FranchiseVerdict
FV-01396·MODERATEStandard71

Kennedy Transmission® Brake & Auto Service

Automotive - Repair & ServiceFranchising since 1990
Investment
$89K – $163K
22nd pct Repair & Serv…
Avg revenue
54th pct Repair & Serv…
Royalty
6.0%
17th pct Repair & Serv…
Units
7
20th pct Repair & Serv…
SBA default
0.0%
vs <3% typical

Bottom line

  • Total investment $89K – $163K including a $18K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
  • No Item 19 financial performance data disclosed — the franchisor chose not to publish revenue figures.
  • Rated MODERATE with a risk score of 65/100. SBA loan default rate of 0.0% across 9 loans (below the industry average).
  • No Item 19 financial performance representation. Without franchisor-disclosed revenue data, you'll need to gather unit economics directly from existing franchisees.

Item 1 · who you're contracting with

The Franchisor

Legal entity
Kennedy Franchising USA, Inc.
Incorporated in
Minnesota
HQ
2225 Daniels Street, Long Lake, Minnesota 55356
Auditor
JOD LTD.
Audited financials
Franchisor revenue
$339K
vs $306K prior year

Yale framework · single-unit ROIC

Returns Analysis

Pulls Item 7 (investment) and Item 19 (revenue) from this brand's FDD into the Yale unlevered-ROIC formula. Override any input to stress-test it against your own assumptions.

The model · Yale framework

What would one Kennedy Transmission® Brake & Auto Service unit return on the cash you put in?

Revenue · per unit, per year
$
Item 19 not disclosed — typing your own estimate
Franchisor take · royalty + ad fund
Royaltytyp 68%
%
Ad fundtyp 35%
%
Operating costs · category default: automotive
COGS
%
Labor
%
Rent / occupancy
%
Other operating
%
Total invested capital · what you actually put in
Initial investment
$
FDD Item 7: $89K–$163K
Working capital
$
FDD reports $25K–$35K

Unlevered ROIC · per unit

63%

Above typical band (30–60%)

0%30–60% Yale band80%

Store EBITDA · annual
$98K
EBITDA margin
13.0%
Total invested
$156K
Payback
19 mo
Unit-level only. A multi-unit portfolio gives up roughly 5–15% of this to shared services (corporate G&A) before reaching the ~10-unit break-even Yale describes.

Overview

About

Kennedy Transmission franchisees operate auto service centers providing transmission repair, brake service, and general automotive maintenance. Day-to-day operations include customer vehicle diagnostics, repair execution, parts inventory management, and service scheduling in a protected territory.

CEO
Elizabeth A. Bidon
Founded
1999
FDD year
2024
States available
1

Item 7 · what it costs

The Vitals

Total investment
$89K – $163K
All-in to open one unit
Liquid capital
$25K – $35K
Cash you must have on hand
Franchise fee
$18K
Royalty
6.0%
Percentage of Gross Revenues · typical 6–8%
Ad fund
6.0%
typical 3–5%
Total fee load
12.0%
vs 9–13% typical

Item 19

Financial Performance

This franchisor did not disclose financial performance representations in Item 19, or our extractor could not parse them.

Item 20 · unit dynamics

The Growth Chart

Total units
7
Opened
0
Last reporting year
Closed
0
Turnover rate
0.0%
Company-owned
0
Corporate units in the system
% franchised
100%
vs corporate-owned
Net growth (yr3)
+0.0%
Net unit change last year
3-yr CAGR
+0.0%
Compounded over last 3 years
2022
7±0
Franchised units
2023
7
Franchised units
2024
7
Franchised units

Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.

Item 12 · 1 state reported

The Territory Map

FDD Item 12 reports the state count, but the specific list isn't in our current data. The map will appear once we re-extract from the FDD or enough franchisee contacts are available.

1

states with franchisees (per FDD Item 12)

Government records

SBA Loan Data

Aggregated from SBA 7(a) loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.

Total loans
9
Loan volume
Avg loan
Default rate
0.0%
vs <3% typical · system-wide
5-yr default

FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17

Risk & Legal

65
Risk · 0-100
MODERATE65 / 100

Micro-franchise system with severe lack of transparency, no financial performance data, questionable corporate stability, and no proven unit growth despite 15-year commitment structure.

Score breakdown · what drove the 65 / 100 rating

  1. 01MEDOnly 7 units systemwide indicates extremely limited franchise network with minimal brand recognition and support infrastructure
  2. 02MINORNo Item 19 financial disclosures (average revenue/net income) prevents validation of $88.5K-$162.5K investment ROI claims
  3. 03HIGHGoing Concern status is FALSE, suggesting potential financial instability or undisclosed operational challenges at corporate level
  4. 04MED6% royalty on undisclosed revenue baseline makes it impossible to calculate actual profitability or breakeven timeline
  5. 05MEDNo disclosed unit growth trajectory over historical period raises questions about market demand and franchisee retention
  6. 06MINOR15-year term length locks franchisees into commitment with minimal transparency on performance metrics or exit opportunities

Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification

FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal

Contract & Territory Detail

Territory
Radius
Protected territory
Yes
Initial term
15 years
Renewal term
15 years
Online sales rights
Restricted
Franchisor can compete
Yes
Hire a manager?
Allowed
Litigation count
0
Right of first refusal
Yes
Franchisor can buy back on resale
Mandatory arbitration
Yes
Jury trial waiver
Yes
Non-compete
2 yrs
Post-termination restriction
Owner-operator
Required

Item 11

Training & Operations

Classroom training
61 hrs
On-the-job training
43 hrs
POS system
Master Repair 8000 Kennedy Version
Operating tech stack

Item 20

Franchisee Contacts

Phone numbers extracted directly from this brand's FDD Item 20. After purchase, you'll also receive a list of validation questions tailored to this brand.

Franchisee contacts

1 numbers

Locked
(952) 884-••••
MN

One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included

FDD download

Kennedy Transmission® Brake & Auto Service · FDD (2024) PDF

Single-page checkout · instant download · CSV export of contacts available separately above