Amazing Explorers Academy Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
- Investment
- $543K – $5.1M
- Disclosed sales
- $666K
- gross sales, not profit
- SBA charge-off
- Not SBA-matched
Data from FDD filing
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Amazing Explorers Academy is an early education franchise offering STEAM-focused preschool and childcare. Franchisees run the centers, managing teachers, curriculum, enrollment, and licensing compliance.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Amazing Explorers Academy franchise requires a total initial investment of $543K – $5.1M, including a $100K franchise fee and an ongoing 7.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2023 FDD, average unit revenue was $666K[2]. FranchiseVerdict grade: B (Above average), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Sources, dates and evidence
FDD issued: · Data extracted: · Last cited check: · Staleness risk: high - issued more than two years ago
Evidence: strong✓ Investment (Item 7)✓ Item 19 status✓ Units and owners (Item 20)✗ SBA loan coverage✓ Litigation (Item 3)✓ Financial statements (Item 21)✓ Franchisor identityhow this is scored6 of 6 headline figures on this page cite a page of the filing.
Overview
- Investment
- $543K – $5.1M
- 65th pct Education
- Avg gross sales
- $666K
- 21st pct Education
- Royalty
- 7.0%
- 21st pct Education
- Units
- 5
- 18th pct Education
- SBA charge-off
- N/A
Quick verdict · Education · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Education median · No shading = within ±10% · Red = unfavorable by >10% · Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a)
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Not financial advice. Methodology
Bottom line
- COSTTotal investment $543K – $5.1M including a $100K franchise fee, 7.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSAverage unit revenue of $666K/year.
- RISKVerdict B (Above average), verdict score 54/100 (higher is better).
- GROWTHPositive: net +1 franchised outlets in the latest year (1 opened, 0 closed) (Item 20).
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- AEA DEV LLC
- Parent company
- AEA Franchising LLC
- FDD Item 1, page 8 of the 2023 FDD
- Ultimate parent
- Amazing Explorers LLC
- FDD Item 1, page 8 of the 2023 FDD
- CEO title
- Founder and Principal
- Marcello Spinelli
- Incorporated in
- FL
- HQ
- 6555 Sanger Rd, Orlando FL 32827
- Auditor
- RGK Consulting, Inc.
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $971K
- vs $475K prior year
Overview
About
- CEO
- Marcello Spinelli
- Headquarters
- FL
- Founded
- 2016
- FDD year
- 2023
- States available
- 9
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 1363% above the typical education franchise.
Source: FDD 2023 · Items 5–7
Full Item 7 breakdown19 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Franchise Feenot refundable | $100K | $100K | |
| Real Estate Feenot refundable | $25K | $25K | |
| Construction Management Feenot refundable | $150K | $500K | |
| Real Estate Acquisition or Lease Deposit | $30K | $520K | |
| Construction and Leasehold Improvements | $0 | $3.0M | |
| Furniture, Fixtures & Equipment | $25K | $400K | |
| Lease Guarantee | $0 | $20K | |
| Lease Guarantee Payment | $0 | $3K | |
| Development or Soft Costs | $80K | $350K | |
| Technology Fee | $0 | $5 | |
| Insurance | $2K | $5K | |
| Training (travel and living expenses) | $3K | $5K | |
| Signage | $20K | $30K | |
| Utility/Security Deposits | $2K | $5K | |
| Pre-Opening Advertising and Grand Opening Expenses | $25K | $30K | |
| Pre-Opening Operating Expenses | $25K | $30K | |
| Licenses and Permits | $2K | $10K | |
| Professional Fees (Legal, Accounting) | $5K | $10K | |
| Additional funds (Three months)not refundable | $50K | $100K | |
| Total initial investment | $543K | $5.1M |
Line items extracted from FDD Item 7. Ranges reflect the franchisor's stated low and high per line. Total is the sum of line-item lows / highs — actual costs may fall outside this range depending on market and build-out scope.
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $543K – $5.1M
- Middle of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $50K – $100K
- Middle of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $100K – $100K
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Royalty
- 7.0%
- typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 1.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 13.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 7.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 1.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $0 |
| Training fee | $500 |
| Transfer fee | $25K |
| Renewal fee | $5K |
| Total fee load | 13.0% of rev |
At 13.0% total fee load, roughly $87K per year goes to the franchisor before you pay a single operating expense.
What do units actually make?
Average unit sales run 63% above the education norm.
Source: FDD 2023 · Item 19
Single-unit · not modelled
Returns at a glance
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit, and the operating costs that turn one into the other are in no filing. We publish no modelled return for Amazing Explorers Academy until someone supplies them — yours, in the models below.
—
Not modelled yet
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for COGS, labour, rent / occupancy and other operating costs, and will not substitute an assumed one. Enter your own and the model runs on your assumptions.
Total invested capital · disclosed
$2.9M
Item 7 initial investment plus working capital, as filed — the one figure here that needs no assumption.
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
What one unit earns on your invested capital
Model A · Single-Unit Return
Computes unlevered return on invested capital (ROIC) for a single franchise unit, read against the 30–60% reference band · Yale SOM, Post-MBA Path Exhibit 2 (2023). Below that band a passive index fund likely outperforms; above it the franchisor has pricing power you're subsidizing.
Note: Item 19 revenue is what the franchisor discloses, and it is the top line only — gross sales are not profit. No FDD discloses the operating costs that turn one into the other, so those fields start empty and nothing is modelled until you supply them from your own lease quote, labor market and build-out budget.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one Amazing Explorers Academy unit return on the cash you put in?
Illustrative category typicals — not sourced to any filing, survey or sample. Replace them with figures from franchisee validation calls before you rely on the output.
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Your modelled return on total invested capital, before any debt financing.
—
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for COGS, labour, rent / occupancy and other operating costs, and will not substitute an assumed one. Enter your own and the model runs on your assumptions.
What 25 units return when you use SBA financing
Model B · Return on Equity: Debt-Financed Acquisition
Models a 25-unit portfolio acquisition financed with an SBA 7(a) loan. Shows equity IRR (your return on cash invested), DSCR (how safely the cash flow covers debt service), and the capital stack (SBA + seller + equity breakdown).
This is the “search fund” or “entrepreneurship through acquisition” scenario: you buy an existing multi-unit operator, use leverage to amplify returns, and either operate or hire management. The 25-unit size is the typical minimum for an SBA-backed franchise portfolio acquisition to pencil as a full-time income.
What “return on equity” means here: if you put in $500K of your own cash and the business generates enough EBITDA to pay down debt and grow, your equity IRR is the annual return on that $500K, including the value created when you eventually sell. Target IRR for a search fund is typically 25–35%.
Not modelled yet
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for COGS, labour, rent / occupancy and other operating costs, and will not substitute an assumed one. Enter your own and the model runs on your assumptions.
A 25-unit return is built on a per-unit EBITDA. Fill in the operating costs in Model A above and this model runs on that figure, or take the whole scenario to the full ROI workbench, where the portfolio and LBO models accept your own per-unit economics directly.
These models are for research and scenario planning only. Not investment advice. Actual results depend on your specific location, management, and market conditions. Consult a franchise attorney and accountant before signing any franchise agreement.
Item 19 · Source: 2023 FDD
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $666K
- Per unit, per year
Gross sales are revenue before expenses — not profit. Actual owner earnings depend on rent, labor, royalties, marketing fees, and debt service.
- Item 19 type
- company and franchised units
- Sample size
- 4 outlets
- vs category median 16 · small
- Reporting year
- 2022
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2023
- Disclosed in the 2023 filing, covering 2022
Compared against 204 Education brands
Revenue is only 0.2x the investment. This means each unit may take 5+ years to recoup the initial outlay at typical margins.
Operator outlook
What the numbers say
Data-driven interpretation of this brand's financial disclosures, fee structure, and system trajectory.
Unit economics
Average unit generates $666K/year in gross sales. Revenue-to-investment ratio: 0.2x.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 13.0% — above the Education median of 9.0%.
Disclosure
Transparency score 0/10 — minimal disclosure beyond the required average. Hard to judge the distribution of outcomes across units. Sample size of 4 outlets — treat as directional only.
Operator retention
Net unit growth of +66.7% over 3 years (1 opened, 0 closed).
Source: FDD Item 19 financial performance representations and publicly filed FDD data. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Verify all figures with the franchisor and current franchisees before making any investment decision.
vs Education medians
How Amazing Explorers Academy Compares
Category median of published Education brands that report the figure; the middle half spans the 25th to 75th percentile and n counts the brands behind it. Medians are used because a few very large systems pull an average far from the typical brand. Revenue is disclosed gross sales, not profit.
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2023 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 5
- Opened
- 1
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 0
- Terminated
- 0
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- N/A
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (3-yr)
- +66.7%
- Net unit change over 3 years
- 3-yr CAGR
- +66.7%
- Compounded over last 3 years
Last fiscal year · Item 20 exits and transfers
- Terminated
- 0
- Not renewed
- 0
- Projected new
- 4
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 4 states with active franchisees
The Territory Map
Derived from franchisee contact records. Shows states with at least one current operator. Not where the franchisor is registered to sell new units (that data is re-extracting in a future refresh).
States derived from franchisee contact records (FDD Item 20). Shows states with at least one current operator on file. Full state registration data (Item 12) will appear on a future FDD refresh.
Where the owners are · Item 20 owner list
5 current owners across 4 states.
- NY 2
- MN 1
- TX 1
- VA 1
Counts only, from the list the franchisor prints in Item 20; 1 entries carry no state. Names and phone numbers are for your own due diligence and are not shown here.
Fast growth in a small system. Newer franchisors expanding quickly may not yet have the support infrastructure of larger systems.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
No SBA loan data available for this brand.
What could kill this investment?
Source: SBA 7(a) FOIA · FDD Items 3, 21
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 4, 8, 16, 21
Risk & Legal
Litigation (Item 3)
Subject: officers or affiliates. The franchisor is not a named party in these cases.
No litigation or other dispute resolution required to be disclosed in Item 3, for either AEA DEV (master franchisee) or AEA Franchising (master franchisor).
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · RGK Consulting, Inc.
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: Yes
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: No
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 54 / 100 verdict
- 01MINOROnly 13 total units with modest 18.2% YoY growth — small system size limits brand recognition and support infrastructure
- 02MED7% royalty on undisclosed revenue means franchisees cannot model profitability or compare against industry benchmarks
- 03MEDNo litigation disclosed is positive, but combined with other red flags suggests possible brand immaturity rather than strength
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 13.0% of sales (royalty + ad fund), before rent and labor.
Source: FDD 2023 · Items 11, 12, 17
FDD Items 12, 15, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 15 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 10 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | Protected territory |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Granted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 5 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 30 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Florida |
| Jury trial waiver | No |
| Governing law | FL |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation or other dispute resolution required to be disclosed in Item 3, for either AEA DEV (master franchisee) or AEA Franchising (master franchisor).
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 80 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 24 hrs
- Training location
- NY Amazing Explorers Academy
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Field support
- 40 hrs/yr
- On-site visits per year
- Time to open
- 18 mo
- From signing to launch
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- ProCare Software
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: ProCare Software
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
6 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Amazing Explorers Academy franchise?
The total investment to open a Amazing Explorers Academy franchise ranges from $543K – $5.1M, with an initial franchise fee of $100K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Amazing Explorers Academy franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Amazing Explorers Academy FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $666K. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
Who owns Amazing Explorers Academy?
Amazing Explorers Academy is franchised by AEA DEV LLC. Its parent company is AEA Franchising LLC. The ultimate parent named in the FDD is Amazing Explorers LLC. Source: FDD Item 1, 2023 filing.
What is Item 19 in the Amazing Explorers Academy FDD?
The FDD section where a franchisor may disclose financial performance of its outlets. Disclosure is optional and formats vary; figures are typically gross sales, which is revenue before expenses, not profit. FranchiseVerdict extracts these figures directly from the Amazing Explorers Academy FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Amazing Explorers Academy's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Amazing Explorers Academy (fewer than 10 loans on file). Charge-off rates are one way to gauge franchise risk, but not all franchise loans go through the SBA program. We recommend reviewing turnover and closure data in the FDD and speaking with current franchisees.
How many Amazing Explorers Academy franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Amazing Explorers Academy has 5 total units in the United States, including 5 franchised units and 0 company-owned units. 1 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Amazing Explorers Academy a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Amazing Explorers Academy as a B-grade franchise with a verdict score of 54 out of 100 (higher is better). The grade is a deterministic score built from six weighted dimensions — financial health, unit economics, unit growth, scale, legal, and transparency — then calibrated against SBA loan charge-off rates and FDD age. Transparency is one of the six, so a filing that discloses less scores lower on that dimension than one that discloses more. Our rating is based solely on publicly available FDD and government data; we recommend speaking with current franchisees before making any investment decision. This is not investment advice.
Data sourced from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) FOIA records. Not financial advice.
For franchisors
Are you the franchisor?
If you represent Amazing Explorers Academy, you can request corrections or provide updated information.
Other Education franchises
Compare similar franchise opportunities in the Education category
Data extracted from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) loan disclosures (FOIA). This information is provided for research purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal, or investment advice. Verify all figures with the franchisor's current Franchise Disclosure Document before making any investment decision.