Driving Academy Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
- Investment
- $224K – $557K
- Disclosed sales
- partial, no system average
- SBA charge-off
- Not SBA-matched
Data from FDD filing
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Driving Academy is a truck driving school franchise training students for commercial driver's licenses through classroom and behind-the-wheel instruction. Franchisees run the schools, managing instructors, trucks, and enrollment.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Driving Academy franchise requires a total initial investment of $224K – $557K, including a $50K franchise fee and an ongoing 10.0% royalty[2]. The 2025 FDD on file does not yield a unit-revenue figure we can publish. FranchiseVerdict grade: C (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: medium - issued 12 to 24 months ago; a newer filing is likely on file
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 scored5 of 6 headline figures on this page cite a page of the filing; the rest are marked “Not cited” beside the figure.
Overview
- Investment
- $224K – $557K
- 50th pct Education
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- Outlet subsetn=1
- Royalty
- 10.0%
- 65th pct Education
- Units
- 6
- 20th 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 $224K – $557K including a $50K franchise fee, 10.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSItem 19 discloses only single-unit Gross Revenue: one affiliate-owned location ($6,585,586 in 2024) and one franchised location ($2,055,650 in 2024); no franchisee-wide average/median/quartiles, so avg/median left null.
- RISKVerdict C (Average), verdict score 43/100 (higher is better).
- GROWTHPositive: net +3 franchised outlets in the latest year (3 opened, 0 closed) (Item 20).
- DATAItem 19 reports outlet revenue, but not in a form that yields a per-outlet average we can compare across brands. Ask franchisees directly for full unit-level revenue.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Driving Academy Franchising, Inc.
- Parent company
- Driving Academy Acquisition Inc.
- FDD Item 1, page 9 of the 2025 FDD
- Predecessor
- None (franchisor states it has no predecessors)
- Prior franchisor entity
- CEO title
- President
- Jonathan Marques
- Incorporated in
- New Jersey
- HQ
- 200 East Edgar Road, Linden, New Jersey 07036
- Auditor
- Divine, Blalock, Martin & Sellari, LLC
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $455K
- vs $134K prior year
Affiliated brands
- Driving Academy
- Cosa Bella
- J Crown
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Overview
About
- CEO
- Jonathan Marques
- Headquarters
- New Jersey
- Founded
- 2021
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 4
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 101% above the typical education franchise.
Source: FDD 2025 · Items 5–7
Full Item 7 breakdown16 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Feenot refundable | $50K | $50K | |
| Technology | $10K | $15K | |
| Equipment, Furniture and Fixtures | $65K | $189K | |
| Real Estate | $15K | $28K | |
| Leasehold Improvements | $2K | $22K | |
| Utilities | $200 | $500 | |
| Signagenot refundable | $4K | $6K | |
| Start Up Inventory | $4K | $8K | |
| Grand Opening Marketing | $3K | $5K | |
| Vehicles | $28K | $135K | |
| Vehicle Graphics | $5K | $11K | |
| Staffing | $12K | $31K | |
| Insurance | $850 | $2K | |
| Travel, Lodging and Meals for Initial Training Program | $2K | $4K | |
| Business Licenses, Permits, Certifications and other Professional Fees | $550 | $3K | |
| Additional Funds (3 months) | $25K | $50K | |
| Total initial investment | $224K | $557K |
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
- $224K – $557K
- Middle of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $25K – $50K
- Middle of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $50K – $50K
- Middle of category vs category
- Royalty
- 10.0%
- Set by a formula · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 1.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 11.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 10.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 1.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $550 |
| Training fee | $250 |
| Transfer fee | $3K |
| Renewal fee | $15K |
| Inventory (initial) | $4K – $8K |
| Total fee load | 11.0% of rev |
What do units actually make?
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 19
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
No Item 19 revenue figure for Driving Academy is on file. The return models need a revenue figure to start from, and the operating costs that turn gross sales into a profit are in no FDD. Enter your own and the calculator runs on your assumptions — nothing here is modelled until you do.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one Driving 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 annual revenue, 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.
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: 2025 FDD
Financial Performance
Item 19 discloses only single-unit Gross Revenue: one affiliate-owned location ($6,585,586 in 2024) and one franchised location ($2,055,650 in 2024); no franchisee-wide average/median/quartiles, so avg/median left null.
Reported for a subset of outlets rather than the whole system
Based on a single reporting unit - not a system average
- Item 19 type
- historical gross revenue for two individual outlets (not an averaged cohort)
- Sample size
- 1
- vs category median 16 · small
- Reported figure
- $2.1MCited, not corroborated — printed on page 62 of the 2025 FDD. Nothing else in our record independently restates or re-derives it.
- A single outlet — not a range
- Reporting year
- 2024
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2025
- Disclosed in the 2025 filing, covering 2024
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 11.0% — above the Education median of 9.0%.
Disclosure
Item 19 reports outlet revenue, but not in a form that yields a per-outlet average we can compare across brands.
Operator retention
Net unit growth of +300.0% over 3 years (3 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 Driving 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 2025 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 6
- Opened
- 3
- 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
- 2
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 67%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (3-yr)
- Outlier (see FDD)
- Likely small-sample artifact
- 3-yr CAGR
- Outlier (see FDD)
- Likely small-sample artifact
Last fiscal year · Item 20 exits and transfers
- Terminated
- 0
- Not renewed
- 0
- Transferred
- 0
- Reacquired
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Continuity rate
- 100.0%
- Units that stayed open
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 12 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.
Available to sell in · Item 12
- Hawaii
- Maryland
States where the franchisor is registered to sell new franchises (FDD registration filings).
Where the owners are · Item 20 owner list
16 current owners across 12 states.
- FL 3
- NJ 2
- NY 2
- GA 1
- ID 1
- IN 1
- LA 1
- MA 1
- OR 1
- PA 1
- SC 1
- TX 1
Counts only, from the list the franchisor prints in Item 20. 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 disclosed
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Divine, Blalock, Martin & Sellari, LLC
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Item 21 audited statements are for the franchisor Driving Academy Franchising, Inc. (a New Jersey corporation; cover page says LLC), FY ended Dec 31 2024/2023/2022, reported in whole US dollars. Clean/unqualified auditor opinion. As printed, the 2024 balance sheet does not foot: total assets 383,516 vs total liabilities 863,878 + stockholders' deficit (749,960) = 113,918; figures reported as stated from the same statement. FY2024 revenue = initial franchise fees 199,500 + franchise license fees 2,500 + royalties 253,313 = 455,313. Item 19 discloses only single-unit Gross Revenue: one affiliate-owned location ($6,585,586 in 2024) and one franchised location ($2,055,650 in 2024); no franchisee-wide average/median/quartiles, so avg/median left null.
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 43 / 100 verdict
- 01MINORNo average revenue or net income disclosure (Item 19) — impossible to validate ROI claims or profitability benchmarks
- 02MINORExtreme unit growth (300% YoY) with only 6 locations suggests either aggressive recent expansion or cherry-picked data; unsustainable growth rates often precede contraction
- 03MEDHigh royalty structure (10% + $1,000 minimum) with undisclosed revenue makes break-even analysis impossible; $1,000 minimum may be unsustainable for struggling locations
- 04MINORLarge investment range ($224K-$557K spread) indicates high variability in startup costs; unclear what drives the 149% difference
- 05MINORProtected territory lacks specifics — size, density, and exclusivity definitions should be questioned
- 06MEDOnly 6 franchised units provides minimal track record and limited peer validation data
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 11.0% of sales (royalty + ad fund), before rent and labor.
Source: FDD 2025 · Items 11, 12, 17
FDD Items 12, 15, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 5 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 2 |
| Territory type | Protected territory |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory radius | 15 mi |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | No |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 30 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 60 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Linden, New Jersey |
| Jury trial waiver | No |
| Governing law | New Jersey |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation disclosed
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 56 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 85 hrs
- Training location
- Corporate headquarters in Linden, New Jersey
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 6 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- Franchisee selects site within protected territory, subject to franchisor written approval
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
16 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 Driving Academy franchise?
The total investment to open a Driving Academy franchise ranges from $224K – $557K, with an initial franchise fee of $50K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Driving Academy franchise owners earn?
Item 19 of the Driving Academy FDD discloses outlet figures from $2.1M to $2.1M but no single average across all outlets. These are gross sales figures, not profit; the Revenue section shows what the filing reports and on what basis. Item 20 of the FDD lists current and former franchisees; asking them directly is the standard way to fill this gap.
Who owns Driving Academy?
Driving Academy is franchised by Driving Academy Franchising, Inc.. Its parent company is Driving Academy Acquisition Inc.. Source: FDD Item 1, 2025 filing.
What is Item 19 in the Driving 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 Driving Academy FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Driving Academy's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Driving 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 Driving Academy franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Driving Academy has 6 total units in the United States, including 4 franchised units and 2 company-owned units. 3 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Driving Academy a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Driving Academy as a C-grade franchise with a verdict score of 43 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
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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.