Marigold Academy Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Marigold Academy is an early education franchise operating preschool and childcare centers. Franchisees run the schools, managing teachers, curriculum, enrollment, and licensing compliance.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Marigold Academy franchise requires a total initial investment of $847K – $1.1M, including a $50K franchise fee and an ongoing 7.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2025 FDD, average unit revenue was $2.5M[2]. FranchiseVerdict grade: C (Average), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $847K – $1.1M
- 71st pct Education
- Avg gross sales
- $2.5M
- Company-owned onlyn=132nd pct Education
- Royalty
- 7.0%
- 18th pct Education
- Units
- 2
- 8th pct Education
- SBA charge-off
- N/A
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 $847K – $1.1M including a $50K franchise fee, 7.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSAverage unit revenue of $2.5M/year (company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance).
- RISKVerdict C (Average), verdict score 39/100 (higher is better).
- FLAGRevenue data based on only 1 reporting unit. Treat as directional, not definitive. Ask franchisees directly for current unit economics.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Marigold Academy LLC
- Parent company
- None
- CEO title
- Chief Executive Officer
- Jignesh (Jay) Shah
- Incorporated in
- DE
- HQ
- 156 Washington Street, Bloomfield, New Jersey 07003
- Auditor
- DA Advisory Group PLLC
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $0
- vs $0 prior year
Overview
About
- CEO
- Jignesh (Jay) Shah
- Headquarters
- NJ
- Founded
- 2023
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 1
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 44% above the typical education franchise.
Source: FDD 2025 · Items 5–7
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $50K | $50K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $126K | $174K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $671K | $838K |
| Total initial investment | $847K | $1.1M |
Source: Marigold Academy 2025 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
- $847K – $1.1M
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $126K – $174K
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Franchise fee
- $50K – $50K
- Middle of category vs category
- Royalty
- 7.0%
- percentage · 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 | $750 |
| Training fee | $20K |
| Transfer fee | $25K |
| Renewal fee | $13K |
| Inventory (initial) | $10K – $12K |
| Total fee load | 8.0% of rev |
What do units actually make?
Average unit sales run 216% above the education norm.
Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance
Based on a single reporting unit - not a system average
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 19
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
$379K
15.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
34%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
35 mo
cash-on-cash, unlevered
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. The target band for an attractive franchise is 30–60% ROIC. Below that and a passive index fund likely outperforms; above that and the franchisor has pricing power you're subsidizing.
Note: Item 19 revenue is what the franchisor discloses. It's the top line only. Operating costs below are category estimates. Override them to match your real lease quote, labor market, and build-out budget.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one Marigold Academy unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Estimated return on your total franchise investment, before any debt financing.
34%
Within the 30–60% "attractive franchise" band
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%.
Levered LBO scenario · Yale Crease Capital framing
What would 25 Marigold Academy units return on equity?
Equity IRR · 5-yr
29.4%
3.63× MOIC
Year-1 DSCR
2.75×
EBITDA ÷ debt service
Equity required
$9.1M
on $20.2M purchase
Total debt
$11.1M
SBA $5.0M + senior + seller note
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
Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance
Based on a single reporting unit - not a system average
- Avg gross sales
- $2.5M
- 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 owned outlet financials
- Sample size
- 1
- vs category median 17 · small
- Reported figure
- $2.5M
- 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
- Transparency
- 8 / 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.
Unit economics
Average unit generates $2.5M/year in gross sales. Revenue-to-investment ratio: 2.6x. Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 8.0% — below the Education average of 10.6%.
Disclosure
Transparency score 8/10 — this franchisor discloses detailed breakdowns (quartiles, segments, or cohort data). Buyers can model unit economics with higher confidence. Sample size of 1 unit — treat as directional only.
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 Marigold Academy Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 2
- Opened
- 0
- 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
- 2
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 0%
- vs corporate-owned
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 0
- Closed (3yr)
- 0
- Terminated (3yr)
- 0
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 0
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
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)
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
Marigold Academy presents CAUTION-to-HIGH RISK due to minimal system validation (2 units only), unprotected territory, going concern status, and insufficient financial disclosure to justify $846k+ entry investment.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · DA Advisory Group PLLC
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
Score breakdown · what drove the 39 / 100 verdict
- 01MEDOnly 2 units in system with unknown growth trajectory indicates extremely limited track record and franchisee success validation
- 02HIGHGoing Concern status = False suggests financial viability questions at corporate level
- 03MINORUnprotected territory creates direct competition risk within your market and cannibalization potential
- 04MINOR7% royalty on $2.5M average revenue = $177.5k/year ongoing cost on already-thin 25.6% net margins
- 05MINORNo Item 19 financial performance representations limits ability to validate franchisee profitability claims
- 06MINORExtremely small franchise system creates survival risk if either existing unit fails
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 2025 · Items 11, 12, 17
FDD Items 12, 15, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 10 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | protected |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory radius | 5 mi |
| Territory population | 10,000 |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Granted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 25 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Morris County, New Jersey |
| Jury trial waiver | No |
| Governing law | NJ |
| Litigation count | 0 |
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 40 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 80 hrs
- Training location
- Northern New Jersey
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 18 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- franchisee with franchisor approval
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- ProCare
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: ProCare
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Marigold Academy franchise?
The total investment to open a Marigold Academy franchise ranges from $847K – $1.1M, 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 Marigold Academy franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Marigold Academy FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $2.5M. Important context: Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance; Based on a single reporting unit - not a system average. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Item 19 in the Marigold 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 Marigold Academy FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Marigold Academy's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Marigold 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 Marigold Academy franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Marigold Academy has 2 total units in the United States, including 0 franchised units and 2 company-owned units.
Is Marigold Academy a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Marigold Academy as a C-grade franchise with a verdict score of 39 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
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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.