FranchiseVerdict
Optimize U logo
FV-01837·MODERATEExcellent81

Optimize U

OtherFranchising since 2020Website
Investment
$313K – $529K
76th pct Other
Avg revenue
50th pct Other
Royalty
15.0%
62nd pct Other
Units
29
55th pct Other
SBA default

Bottom line

  • Total investment $313K – $529K including a $50K franchise fee, 15.0% ongoing royalty.
  • No Item 19 financial performance data disclosed — the franchisor chose not to publish revenue figures.
  • Rated MODERATE with a risk score of 62/100.
  • System growing at 200.0% CAGR over 3 years with 29 total units — strong expansion trajectory.

Item 1 · who you're contracting with

The Franchisor

Legal entity
OPTIMIZE U HOLDING LLC
Incorporated in
Kentucky
HQ
4625 Falconcrest Dr., Paducah, KY 42001
Auditor
ATA, PC
Audited financials
Franchisor revenue
$265K
vs $358K 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 Optimize U 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: generic
COGS
%
Labor
%
Rent / occupancy
%
Other operating
%
Total invested capital · what you actually put in
Initial investment
$
FDD Item 7: $313K–$529K
Working capital
$
FDD reports $75K–$95K

Unlevered ROIC · per unit

7%

Below typical band (30–60%)

0%30–60% Yale band80%

Store EBITDA · annual
$38K
EBITDA margin
5.0%
Total invested
$506K
Payback
162 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

Optimize U appears to be an education/training services franchise, likely operating physical locations or hybrid delivery model. Franchisees manage student enrollment, curriculum delivery, instructor scheduling, and client retention while paying 15% royalties on gross profit to the franchisor.

CEO
Joshua Hudson
Founded
2020
FDD year
2025
States available
11

Item 7 · what it costs

The Vitals

Total investment
$313K – $529K
All-in to open one unit
Liquid capital
$75K – $95K
Cash you must have on hand
Franchise fee
$50K
Royalty
15.0%
Gross Profit · typical 6–8%
Ad fund
n/d
Total fee load
15.0%
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
29
Opened
8
Last reporting year
Closed
0
Turnover rate
0.0%
Company-owned
17
Corporate units in the system
% franchised
41%
vs corporate-owned
Multi-unit owners
13.8%
Net growth (yr3)
+200.0%
Net unit change last year
3-yr CAGR
+200.0%
Compounded over last 3 years
2023
12+15
Franchised units
2024
4
Franchised units
2025
4
Franchised units

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

Item 20 · 9 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).

AK
ME
VT
NH
MA
RI
CT
NY
NJ
PA
DE
MD
DC
WA
OR
CA
NV
ID
MT
WY
UT
CO
AZ
NM
ND
SD
NE
KS
OK
TX
MN
IA
MO
AR
LA
WI
IL
MS
TN
MI
IN
KY
AL
OH
WV
GA
VA
NC
SC
FL
HI
Registered · 9 states
Not registered

States derived from franchisee phone area codes (Item 20). Approximate — ported numbers may show the original state, not the franchisee's current location.

Government records

SBA Loan Data

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

No SBA loan data available for this brand.

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

Risk & Legal

62
Risk · 0-100
MODERATE62 / 100

Optimize U presents high caution risk due to missing financial disclosures, Going Concern status, aggressive growth trajectory, and opaque profit-based royalty structure masking true franchisee economics.

Score breakdown · what drove the 62 / 100 rating

  1. 01MINORNo Item 19 disclosure (average revenue/net income) — impossible to validate ROI claims on $312.5K-$529K investment
  2. 02HIGHGoing Concern status is FALSE — indicates potential financial instability at franchisor level despite unit growth claims
  3. 03MINOR15% royalty on Gross Profit (not revenue) is unusually high and creates ambiguity around profit calculation methodology
  4. 04MINORExplosive 200% YoY unit growth (from ~10 to 29 units) is atypical and raises sustainability/quality concerns
  5. 05MINORFranchise fee ($50K) is low relative to total investment range, suggesting high ongoing costs or hidden fees
  6. 06HIGHNo litigation disclosed, but Going Concern flag suggests undisclosed franchisor financial distress

Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification

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

Contract & Territory Detail

Territory
Assigned Area
Protected territory
Yes
Initial term
20 years
Renewal term
20 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
Optional
Governing law
Kentucky

Item 11

Training & Operations

Classroom training
72 hrs
On-the-job training
16 hrs
POS system
electronic cash register
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

23 numbers

Locked
(619) 946-••••
OU SoCal Medical,
PC
(813) 428-••••
Optimize U of Tampa Bay LLC
FL
(901) 303-••••
Optimize U Memphis, LLC
TN

One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included

FDD download

Optimize U · FDD (2025) PDF

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