Optimize U Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Optimize U is a wellness franchise offering hormone therapy, IV drips, and lab-based health optimization programs. Franchisees run the clinics, managing clinical staff, patient labs, and treatment plans.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Optimize U franchise requires a total initial investment of $313K – $529K, including a $50K franchise fee and an ongoing 15.0% royalty[2]. The 2025 FDD does not disclose unit-level revenue (no Item 19). 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
- $313K – $529K
- 60th pct Health & Fitn…
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- Royalty
- 15.0%
- 76th pct Health & Fitn…
- Units
- 29
- 59th pct Health & Fitn…
- SBA charge-off
- N/A
Quick verdict · Health & Fitness · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Health & Fitness 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 $313K – $529K including a $50K franchise fee, 15.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSFY2024 total operating revenues: Royalties $466,910; Franchise buy-in fee $125,000; Equipment lease income $18,000; Management fee income $1,704,579. FY2024 audited (GAAP); FY2023 figure ($358,451) is income-tax basis. Franchisor in business less than 3 years.
- RISKVerdict C (Average), verdict score 45/100 (higher is better).
- GROWTHSystem growing at 200.0% CAGR over 3 years with 29 total units. Strong expansion trajectory.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Optimize U Holding LLC
- CEO title
- Member/CEO
- Joshua Hudson
- CEO experience
- 9 yrs
- Years in role or industry
- Founder active
- Yes
- Original founder still leading the business
- Incorporated in
- KY
- HQ
- 4625 Falconcrest Dr., Paducah, Kentucky 42001
- Auditor
- ATA, PC (Jackson, Tennessee)
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $2.3M
- vs $358K prior year
Overview
About
- CEO
- Joshua Hudson
- Headquarters
- KY
- Founded
- 2020
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 11
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 27% below the typical health & fitness franchise.
Source: FDD 2025 · Items 5–7
Full Item 7 breakdown13 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee | $50K | $50K | |
| Leasehold Improvements | $5K | $100K | |
| Equipment, Furniture & Fixtures | $140K | $200K | |
| Construction Site Manager | $1K | $5K | |
| Working Capital | $75K | $95K | |
| Travel Lodging and Meals for Initial Training | $1K | $4K | |
| Grand Opening | $2K | $4K | |
| Insurance Deposits and Premiums for First Year | $15K | $20K | |
| Initial Inventory | $500 | $1K | |
| Business Supplies | $500 | $5K | |
| Business Licenses and Permits for First Year | $300 | $1K | |
| Misc. Business Start-up Expenses | $20K | $40K | |
| Signage | $2K | $4K | |
| Total initial investment | $313K | $529K |
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.
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $313K – $529K
- Middle of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $75K – $95K
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Franchise fee
- $50K – $50K
- Middle of category vs category
- Royalty
- 15.0%
- percentage · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- $500/month for first 3 months only; no ongoing required a…
- Total fee load
- 15.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 15.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $500 |
| Transfer fee | $10K |
| Inventory (initial) | $500 – $1K |
| Total fee load | 15.0% of rev |
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
Optimize U did not disclose financial performance in FDD Item 19. The ROIC and return models require Item 19 revenue. Without it all inputs are estimates. You can still run the calculator with your own assumptions by entering an expected revenue figure.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one Optimize U unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Estimated return on your total franchise investment, before any debt financing.
30%
Below the 30–60% attractive-franchise band
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
FY2024 total operating revenues: Royalties $466,910; Franchise buy-in fee $125,000; Equipment lease income $18,000; Management fee income $1,704,579. FY2024 audited (GAAP); FY2023 figure ($358,451) is income-tax basis. Franchisor in business less than 3 years.
Operator outlook
What the numbers say
Data-driven interpretation of this brand's financial disclosures, fee structure, and system trajectory.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 15.0% — above the Health & Fitness average of 8.4%.
Disclosure
Franchisor chose not to disclose financial performance representations. You will need to gather unit economics directly from existing franchisees.
Operator retention
System expanding at 200.0% CAGR over 3 years across 29 units — operators are staying and new ones are joining.
Multi-unit rate
Only 14% of franchisees own multiple units. Could indicate challenging economics or a young system where operators haven't had time to expand.
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 Health & Fitness averages
How Optimize U Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 29
- Opened
- 8
- 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
- 17
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 41%
- vs corporate-owned
- Multi-unit owners
- 13.8%
- Net growth (3-yr)
- +200.0%
- Net unit change over 3 years
- 3-yr CAGR
- +200.0%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 8
- Closed (3yr)
- 0
- Terminated (3yr)
- 0
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 0
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Projected new
- 8
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
- Ceased ops
- 3.4%
- Units that stopped operating
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).
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.
Fast growth in a small system. Newer franchisors expanding quickly may not yet have the support infrastructure of larger systems.
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
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.
Litigation (Item 3)
No litigation required to be disclosed.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · ATA, PC (Jackson, Tennessee)
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
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
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 45 / 100 verdict
- 01MINORNo Item 19 disclosure (average revenue/net income) — impossible to validate ROI claims on $312.5K-$529K investment
- 02HIGHGoing Concern status is FALSE — indicates potential financial instability at franchisor level despite unit growth claims
- 03MINOR15% royalty on Gross Profit (not revenue) is unusually high and creates ambiguity around profit calculation methodology
- 04MINORExplosive 200% YoY unit growth (from ~10 to 29 units) is atypical and raises sustainability/quality concerns
- 05MINORFranchise fee ($50K) is low relative to total investment range, suggesting high ongoing costs or hidden fees
- 06HIGHNo litigation disclosed, but Going Concern flag suggests undisclosed franchisor financial distress
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 15.0% 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 | 20 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 20 years |
| Territory type | protected |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | Yes |
| Territory radius | 1 mi |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | No |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 50 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| RoFR response window | 30 days |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 5 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | McCracken County, Kentucky |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | KY |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation required to be disclosed.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 72 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 24 hrs
- Training location
- Optimize U Corporate / franchisor-designated location in Paducah, KY
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 5 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- Franchisee with franchisor approval
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- electronic cash register
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: electronic cash register
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
23 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Optimize U · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Optimize U franchise?
The total investment to open a Optimize U franchise ranges from $313K – $529K, 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 Optimize U franchise owners earn?
Optimize U does not disclose average franchise owner earnings in their FDD Item 19. Not all franchisors are required to make financial performance representations. We recommend asking existing franchisees directly about their financial experience.
What is Item 19 in the Optimize U 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 Optimize U FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Optimize U's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Optimize U (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 Optimize U franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Optimize U has 29 total units in the United States, including 12 franchised units and 17 company-owned units. 8 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Optimize U a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Optimize U as a C-grade franchise with a verdict score of 45 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.