MobiusFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Mobius franchise requires a total initial investment of $1.9M – $4.8M, including a $40K franchise fee and an ongoing 7.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2026 FDD, average unit revenue was $1.7M[2]. Verdict grade: F. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2026 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $1.9M – $4.8M
- 69th pct Education
- Avg gross sales
- $1.7M
- 37th pct Education
- Royalty
- 7.0%
- 17th pct Education
- Units
- 1
- 2nd pct Education
- SBA default
- N/A
Quick verdict · Education · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Education 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 0.5x revenue per dollar invested, this system underperforms the typical 1.5-2.5x range.
Started franchising in 2023. Newer systems carry more uncertainty but may offer better territories.
The franchisor's auditor raised doubt about continued operations. This is a serious risk signal.
Bottom line
- Total investment $1.9M – $4.8M including a $40K franchise fee, 7.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $1.7M/year, with an estimated 10% cash-on-cash return (based on P&L Bottom Line).
- Verdict F (Bottom Quintile) with a risk score of 80/100.
- Auditor disclosed a going-concern note, which flagged doubt about the franchisor's ability to continue operations. Verify against the latest FDD.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- Mobius Franchising, LLC
- Parent company
- Mobius Learning Academy, Inc.
- Incorporated in
- AR
- HQ
- 8313 West Pleasant Grove Road, Bentonville, Arkansas 72713
- Auditor
- Roos & McNabb CPA's
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $0
- vs $0 prior year
- ⚠ Going-concern note
- Disclosed in FDD 2026
- Auditor flagged doubt about continued operations. Verify against the latest FDD before deciding.
Affiliated brands
- maintains a pr
- Mobius IP
- is the owner of the Licensed Marks
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Overview
About
Mobius franchisees likely operate a service-based or technology-enabled business model (specific vertical unknown from data provided). Day-to-day operations involve client acquisition, service/product delivery, managing 7% gross sales royalties to franchisor, and maintaining territory compliance within a protected geographic area.
- CEO
- Kathryn Bartelt
- Headquarters
- AR
- Founded
- 2023
- FDD year
- 2026
- States available
- 1
FDD Item 7 · 2026 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $40K | $40K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $100K | $250K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $1.8M | $4.5M |
| Total initial investment | $1.9M | $4.8M |
Source: Mobius 2026 FDD, Items 5 and 7[2]. “Equipment, build-out, other” is computed as total minus disclosed line items above.
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
$234K
14.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
7%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
15.2 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $1.9M – $4.8M
- Below avg, review vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $100K – $250K
- Near category avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $40K – $40K
- Better than avg 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
- Payback period
- 9.7 yrs
- From FDD / Item 19
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 7.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $500 |
| Transfer fee | $20K |
| Renewal fee | $10K |
| Inventory (initial) | $5K – $10K |
| Total fee load | 9.0% of rev |
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $1.7M
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- N/A
- Avg p&l bottom line
- $349K
- Reported as P&L Bottom Line in FDD Item 19
- Cash-on-cash
- 10.3%
- Based on P&L Bottom Line / investment midpoint
- Item 19 type
- Company-owned
- Sample size
- 1 units
- vs category median 14 · small
- Range (low → high)
- $1.6M→$1.7M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Transparency tier
- revenue_only
- Categorical assessment of disclosure depth
- Transparency
- 7 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · above
Compared against 237 Education brands
Revenue is only 0.5x the investment. This means each unit may take 5+ years to recoup the initial outlay at typical margins.
vs Education averages
How Mobius Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 1
- Opened
- 0
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 0
- Turnover rate
- 0.0%
- Company-owned
- 1
- 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
- Projected new
- 2
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 3 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.
No SBA loan data available for this brand.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Mobius presents HIGH RISK due to a nascent single-unit system with unvalidated unit economics, extreme capex variability, and inadequate profitability relative to investment required.
Litigation (Item 3)
0 case reference(s): 3 pending, 0 settled.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Roos & McNabb CPA's⚠ Going-concern note flagged
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 80 / 100 rating
- 01MINOROnly 1 unit in system with unknown growth trajectory indicates early-stage/unproven model with no performance benchmarks
- 02MINORMassive investment range ($1.9M-$4.8M) suggests highly variable buildout costs and unclear unit economics
- 03MINORNet income of $349K represents only 20.9% net margin on $1.67M revenue—below healthy franchise standards and may not justify capex
- 04MINORSingle data point makes avg revenue/income metrics statistically meaningless for forecasting franchisee returns
- 05MINOR5-year term is short for franchise model; suggests franchisor hasn't committed to long-term partner relationships
- 06MEDNo Item 19 financial performance data disclosed (Avg Revenue/Net Income appear franchisee-reported, not FDD-certified)
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 | 5 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 5 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | Radius/Boundary |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Territory population | 5,000 |
| Online sales rights | Granted |
| 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 | Yes |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Arkansas |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
0 case reference(s): 3 pending, 0 settled.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 45 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 23 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
- Site selection
- franchisee
- Franchisor financing
- Offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- Procare Software
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Procare Software
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
4 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Mobius · FDD (2026) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Mobius franchise?
The total investment to open a Mobius franchise ranges from $1.9M – $4.8M, with an initial franchise fee of $40K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Mobius franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Mobius FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $1.7M. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Mobius's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Mobius (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 Mobius franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Mobius has 1 total units in the United States, including 0 franchised units and 1 company-owned units.
Is Mobius a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Mobius as a F-grade franchise with a risk score of 80 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.