Building Kidz School Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Building Kidz School is an early childhood education and childcare franchise serving infants through age twelve, with a performing-arts curriculum. Franchisees run the schools, managing teachers, enrollment, and licensing compliance.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Building Kidz School franchise requires a total initial investment of $327K – $1.5M, including a $25K – $60K franchise fee and an ongoing 7.0% royalty[2]. The 2026 FDD does not disclose unit-level revenue (no Item 19). SBA 7(a) loans show a 0.0% charge-off rate across 19 loans[1]. FranchiseVerdict grade: A (Strongest tier), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified · figures per the 2026 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $327K – $1.5M
- 58th pct Education
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- Outlet subset
- Royalty
- 7.0%
- 18th pct Education
- Units
- 55
- 55th pct Education
- SBA charge-off
- 0.0%
- % of SBA 7(a) loans not repaid · median varies by category
Quick verdict · Education · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Education avg · 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 $327K – $1.5M including a $60K franchise fee, 7.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSItem 19 discloses 2025 annual revenue and EBITDA margin for 27 Locations, segmented two ways: by EBITDA-margin performance tier (top/middle/bottom thirds of 9 each) and by years-in-operation cohort (1-3yr n=6, 3-5yr n=4, 5-6yr n=5, 6+yr n=12). No single system-wide average is disclosed, so avg_gross_sales/avg_net_income are left null; see item19_cohorts for per-segment revenue stats. EBITDA is not a standard bottom-line net income figure.
- RISKVerdict A (Strongest tier), verdict score 66/100 (higher is better). SBA loan charge-off rate of 0.0% across 19 loans (well below the franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2025).
- DATAItem 19 reports segmented (performance-tier and years-in-operation cohorts) rather than annual gross sales, so unit revenue is not directly comparable. Ask franchisees directly for full unit-level revenue.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Building Kidz Worldwide, LLC
- Parent company
- Building Kidz Worldwide Holdco, LLC
- Ultimate parent
- Building Kidz Holdings, LLC
- CEO title
- Founder, Chief Executive Officer & Chief Marketing Officer
- Vineeta Bhandari
- Founder active
- Yes
- Original founder still leading the business
- Incorporated in
- CA
- HQ
- 303 Vintage Park Drive, Suite 130, Foster City, CA 94404
- Auditor
- Kezos & Dunlavy
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $5.6M
- vs $5.7M prior year
Overview
About
- CEO
- Vineeta Bhandari
- Headquarters
- CA
- Founded
- 2015
- FDD year
- 2026
- States available
- 12
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 41% above the typical education franchise.
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 5–7
FDD Item 7 · 2026 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $60K | $60K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $75K | $150K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $192K | $1.3M |
| Total initial investment | $327K | $1.5M |
Source: Building Kidz School 2026 FDD, Items 5 and 7[2]. “Equipment, build-out, other” is computed as total minus disclosed line items above.
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $327K – $1.5M
- Middle of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $75K – $150K
- Middle of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $25K – $60K
- Middle of category vs category
- Royalty
- 7.0%
- formula · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 1.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 8.0%
- 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 | $360 |
| Training fee | $5K |
| Transfer fee | $25K |
| Renewal fee | $10K |
| Total fee load | 8.0% of rev |
What do units actually make?
Source: FDD 2026 · Item 19
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
Building Kidz School did not disclose financial performance in FDD Item 19. The ROIC and return models require Item 19 revenue. Without it all inputs are estimates. You can still run the calculator with your own assumptions by entering an expected revenue figure.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one Building Kidz School unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Estimated return on your total franchise investment, before any debt financing.
11%
Below the 30–60% attractive-franchise band
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: 2026 FDD
Financial Performance
Item 19 discloses 2025 annual revenue and EBITDA margin for 27 Locations, segmented two ways: by EBITDA-margin performance tier (top/middle/bottom thirds of 9 each) and by years-in-operation cohort (1-3yr n=6, 3-5yr n=4, 5-6yr n=5, 6+yr n=12). No single system-wide average is disclosed, so avg_gross_sales/avg_net_income are left null; see item19_cohorts for per-segment revenue stats. EBITDA is not a standard bottom-line net income figure.
Reported for a subset of outlets rather than the whole system
- Item 19 type
- segmented (performance-tier and years-in-operation cohorts)
- Sample size
- 27 outlets
- vs category median 17
- Range (low → high)
- $364K→$5.3M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Reporting year
- 2025
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2026
- Disclosed in the 2026 filing, covering 2025
- Transparency
- 7 / 10
- vs category median 4 / 10 · above
Compared against 204 Education brands
Operator outlook
What the numbers say
Data-driven interpretation of this brand's financial disclosures, fee structure, and system trajectory.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 8.0% — below the Education average of 10.6%.
Disclosure
Item 19 reports segmented (performance-tier and years-in-operation cohorts) rather than annual gross sales, so unit revenue is not directly comparable.
Operator retention
System expanding at 14.7% CAGR over 3 years across 55 units — operators are staying and new ones are joining.
Multi-unit rate
50% of franchisees own multiple units, a moderate multi-unit rate.
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 averages
How Building Kidz School Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2026 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 55
- Opened
- 7
- 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
- 0.0%
- Company-owned
- 9
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 84%
- vs corporate-owned
- Multi-unit owners
- 50.0%
- Net growth (3-yr)
- +14.7%
- Net unit change over 3 years
- 3-yr CAGR
- +14.7%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 7
- Closed (3yr)
- 0
- Terminated (3yr)
- 0
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 0
- Transfers (3yr)
- 3
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Projected new
- 15
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
- Transfer rate
- 2.1%
- Owners selling to other franchisees
- Ceased ops
- 2.1%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 15 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.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
- Total loans
- 19
- Loan volume
- $20.7M
- Median loan
- $743K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 0.0%
- rates vary by category · see methodology
Historical SBA 7(a) lending data, not predictive of future performance. How SBA charge-off rates are calculated
- Repayment rate (PIF)
- 100.0%
- 5-yr charge-off
- 0.0%
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 9
- Defaults
- 0
- Typical loan rate
- 7.6%
- avg rate to borrowers
- Franchised industry avg
- 5.3%
- brand beats franchise avg ↓
- Jobs supported
- 219
- 1.9 per loan
- Lender concentration
- 31%
- top lender's share
Borrower mix: 42% went to startups / new businesses, 58% to established operators
Franchise vs independent — in child day care services, franchised businesses charge off at 5.3% vs 13.0% for independents — franchising is associated with 59% lower SBA default risk in this category.
Top lenders financing Building Kidz School franchisees
Showing 3 of 9 lenders. The full breakdown — every lender, state distribution, interest rates & risk ratings — is in the SBA Lending Report below.
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into Building Kidz School's SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 7 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 6 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 9-year lending trend
- SBA 504 real estate/equipment data
Instant access. No subscription.
With a 0.0% charge-off rate across 19 loans, banks have historically viewed this brand favorably for lending.
What could kill this investment?
SBA loans charge off at 0.0% — 100% below the 16.0% national norm, i.e. lower lender-observed risk.
Source: SBA 7(a) FOIA · FDD Items 3, 21
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 4, 8, 16, 21
Risk & Legal
Deteriorating franchisee relationships (4 lawsuits in 2024), anemic unit growth, unprotected territory, and going concern issues present meaningful risks despite solid historical unit economics.
Litigation (Item 3)
One 2017 arbitration/settlement with a converted-school buyer (Golden Stone) that defaulted on purchase/franchise obligations, settled for $348,000; plus four 2024 JAMS arbitration actions filed by the franchisor against franchisees (Barth, Kalsi, MJ & K Kidz, Buccola) to collect royalty payments.
Largest disclosed settlement: $348,000
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Kezos & Dunlavy
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: Yes
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: Yes
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: Yes
Score breakdown · what drove the 66 / 100 verdict
- 01MINORStagnant unit growth of only 2.6% YoY with 48 total units suggests market saturation or system-wide challenges
- 02MINORFour separate arbitration actions in FY2024 for royalty collection indicate widespread franchisee financial distress and franchisor-franchisee conflict
- 03HIGHGoing concern status is False, indicating potential financial instability at corporate level
- 04MINORNo protected territory creates direct competition risk between franchisees and cannibalization concerns
- 05MINORRoyalty structure of 7% or $500/month minimum means thin-margin locations still owe $6K annually regardless of profitability
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 8.0% of sales (royalty + ad fund), before rent and labor.
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 11, 12, 17
FDD Items 12, 15, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 15 years |
|---|---|
| Territory type | none |
| Protected territory | No |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Termination groundsℹ | 2 |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 2 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | San Francisco Bay Area, California |
| Jury trial waiver | No |
| Governing law | California |
| Litigation count | 5 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
One 2017 arbitration/settlement with a converted-school buyer (Golden Stone) that defaulted on purchase/franchise obligations, settled for $348,000; plus four 2024 JAMS arbitration actions filed by the franchisor against franchisees (Barth, Kalsi, MJ & K Kidz, Buccola) to collect royalty payments.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 74 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 30 hrs
- Training location
- Foster City, CA headquarters, live online, corporate schools in CA, or franchisee's location
- Ongoing training
- Optional
- Field support
- 30 hrs/yr
- On-site visits per year
- Time to open
- 6 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- franchisee with franchisor approval
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- Building Kidz Connect (childcare management software/CRM)
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Building Kidz Connect (childcare management software/CRM)
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
57 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Building Kidz School · FDD (2026) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Building Kidz School franchise?
The total investment to open a Building Kidz School franchise ranges from $327K – $1.5M, with an initial franchise fee of $60K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Building Kidz School franchise owners earn?
Building Kidz School does not disclose average franchise owner earnings in their FDD Item 19. Not all franchisors are required to make financial performance representations. We recommend asking existing franchisees directly about their financial experience.
What is Item 19 in the Building Kidz School 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 Building Kidz School FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Building Kidz School's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, Building Kidz School has a charge-off rate of 0.0% across 19 loans, meaning 0.0% of franchise loans were charged off. Charge-off rates are one proxy for franchise risk, though they do not capture all closures. This data comes from FOIA-sourced SBA lending records.
How many Building Kidz School franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Building Kidz School has 55 total units in the United States, including 46 franchised units and 9 company-owned units. 7 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Building Kidz School a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Building Kidz School as a A-grade franchise with a verdict score of 66 out of 100 (higher is better), based on our analysis of investment costs, revenue data, SBA loan performance, and growth trends. 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?
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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.