Fs8Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A FS8 franchise requires a total initial investment of $349K – $841K, including a $60K franchise fee and an ongoing 7.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2026 FDD, average unit revenue was $389K[2]. Verdict grade: B. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 21, 2026 · figures per the 2026 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $349K – $841K
- 63rd pct Health & Fitn…
- Avg gross sales
- $389K
- 18th pct Health & Fitn…
- Royalty
- 7.0%
- 28th pct Health & Fitn…
- Units
- 31
- 64th pct Health & Fitn…
- SBA default
- N/A
Quick verdict · Health & Fitness · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Health & Fitness avg · No shading = within ±15% · Red = >15% below avg · Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a)
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Not financial advice. Methodology
At 0.7x revenue per dollar invested, this system underperforms the typical 1.5-2.5x range.
Bottom line
- Total investment $349K – $841K including a $60K franchise fee, 7.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $389K/year (median $389K).
- Verdict B (Above Average) with a risk score of 57/100.
- Bankruptcy history disclosed in the FDD. Review Item 4 for details before proceeding.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- FS8, Inc.
- Parent company
- FS8 Holdings Inc.
- Incorporated in
- DE
- HQ
- 3601 South Congress Avenue, Building E, Austin, TX 78704
- Auditor
- Grant Thornton LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $456K
- vs $497K prior year
Independent franchisee associations
- Franchise Advisory Council (FAC)
Franchisee-led councils or alliances disclosed in Item 20. Indicates operator voice.
Affiliated brands
- Vaura
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Overview
About
FS8 franchisees operate boutique fitness studios offering group training classes and personalized coaching. Day-to-day operations include managing class schedules, instructor staff, member retention, facility maintenance, and driving local marketing and membership sales to meet revenue targets.
- CEO
- Thomas Dowd
- Headquarters
- TX
- Founded
- 2020
- FDD year
- 2026
- States available
- 8
FDD Item 7 · 2026 filing · 23 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Establishment Fee | $60K | $60K | |
| Document Preparation Fee | $3K | $3K | |
| Equipment Pack | $110K | $110K | |
| Equipment Pack Shipping, Taxes and Duties | $11K | $27K | |
| Induction Seminar | $2K | $2K | |
| Head Trainer Induction | $600 | $600 | |
| Travel and Living Expenses during Training | $5K | $9K | |
| Real Property | $5K | $25K | |
| Architectural Floor Plan Design, Engineering, and Construction/Permit Documents | $10K | $20K | |
| Leasehold Improvements | $1K | $350K | |
| Utility Deposits | $1K | $2K | |
| Exterior and Interior Signage | $5K | $10K | |
| Furniture, Fixtures, Other Equipment | $4K | $10K | |
| Office Equipment and Supplies | $1K | $3K | |
| Computer System | $1K | $2K | |
| Business Licenses and Permits | $1K | $3K | |
| Professional Services | $1K | $5K | |
| Insurance | $1K | $4K | |
| Grand Opening | $25K | $25K | |
| Music Licenses | $2K | $2K | |
| Total initial investment | $349K | $841K |
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.
Single-unit · estimated
Returns at a glance
Indicative numbers using FDD Item 7 / Item 19 inputs and category-benchmarked cost ratios. Full single-unit, 25-unit portfolio, and LBO models (with every input editable to stress-test your own scenario) live on the financials page.
Store EBITDA · annual
$113K
29.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
17%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
6.0 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $349K – $841K
- Near category avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $60K – $100K
- Below avg, review vs category
- Franchise fee
- $10K – $60K
- Below avg, review vs category
- Royalty
- 7.0%
- Gross Sales · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 9.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 7.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $6K |
| Transfer fee | $15K |
| Renewal fee | $6K |
| Total fee load | 9.0% of rev |
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $389K
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $389K
- Item 19 type
- Historic
- Sample size
- 7 units
- vs category median 11
- Range (low → high)
- $292K→$1.2M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $282K→$724K
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- Reporting year
- 2025
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Transparency
- 4 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · typical
Compared against 180 Health & Fitness brands
Revenue is only 0.7x the investment. This means each unit may take 5+ years to recoup the initial outlay at typical margins.
vs Health & Fitness averages
How Fs8 Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 31
- Opened
- 24
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 0
- Turnover rate
- 0.0%
- Company-owned
- 1
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 97%
- vs corporate-owned
3-year detail · Item 20
- Closed (3yr)
- 0
- Terminated (3yr)
- 0
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 0
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 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 · 14 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
- California
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Michigan
- New York
States where the franchisor is registered to sell new franchises (FDD registration filings).
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA loan disclosures. This brand has only 4 7(a) loans on file; statistical reliability is limited below 10 loans.
- Total loans
- 4
- Loan volume
- $2.5M
- Median loan
- $656K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- N/A
Historical SBA 7(a) lending data, not predictive of future performance. How SBA charge-off rates are calculated
- Repayment rate (PIF)
- N/A
- 5-yr charge-off
- N/A
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 2
- Defaults
- 0
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into Fs8's SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 2 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 4 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 1-year lending trend
Instant access. No subscription.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
FS8 presents elevated risk due to explosive unproven growth, non-disclosure of net income, litigation history tied to disclosure failures, and unclear unit-level profitability relative to high capital requirements.
Litigation (Item 3)
8 case reference(s): 0 pending, 2 settled.
Largest disclosed settlement: $100,000
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
Disclosed in last 7 years
bankruptcy proceedings. What’s it like to be a FS8 Item 20 or Exhibit F list current and former franchisee? franchisees. You can contact them to ask about their experiences. What else should I know? These questions are only a few things you should look for. Review all 23 Items and all Exhibits in th
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Grant Thornton LLP
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: No
- Must buy proprietary products: No
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
Score breakdown · what drove the 57 / 100 rating
- 01MEDNet income not disclosed in Item 19 — unable to assess actual profitability despite $388K avg revenue
- 02MINORExplosive unit growth (500% YoY) suggests rapid expansion without proven unit economics or stability
- 03HIGHMultiple litigation matters and consent orders involving F45 affiliates indicate franchise disclosure/compliance issues
- 04MINOROfficer (Luke Armstrong) confidential settlement raises governance and transparency concerns
- 05MEDHigh initial investment ($349K–$840K) paired with undisclosed profitability creates misaligned risk/reward
- 06MINOR7% royalty on gross sales (not net) compounds pressure on thin fitness studio margins
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 10 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 2 |
| Territory type | Population-based |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Online sales rights | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Termination groundsℹ | 1 |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 2 |
| Mandatory arbitration | No |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Texas |
| Litigation count | 5 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
8 case reference(s): 0 pending, 2 settled.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 110 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 10 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
- Franchisor financing
- Offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- MindBody
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: MindBody
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
15 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
FS8 · FDD (2026) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a FS8 franchise?
The total investment to open a FS8 franchise ranges from $349K – $841K, 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 FS8 franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the FS8 FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $389K. The median is $389K. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is FS8's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for FS8 (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 FS8 franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, FS8 has 31 total units in the United States, including 5 franchised units and 1 company-owned units. 24 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is FS8 a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates FS8 as a B-grade franchise with a risk score of 57 out of 100, 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.
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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.