PauseFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Pause franchise requires a total initial investment of $881K – $1.5M, including a $60K franchise fee and an ongoing 7.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2025 FDD, average unit revenue was $1.5M[2]. Verdict grade: A. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 21, 2026 · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $881K – $1.5M
- 93rd pct Health & Fitn…
- Avg gross sales
- $1.5M
- 52nd pct Health & Fitn…
- Royalty
- 7.0%
- 28th pct Health & Fitn…
- Units
- 8
- 36th pct Health & Fitn…
- SBA default
- N/A
Quick verdict · Health & Fitness · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Health & Fitness 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
Bottom line
- Total investment $881K – $1.5M including a $60K franchise fee, 7.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $1.5M/year.
- Verdict A (Top Quintile) with a risk score of 33/100.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- PAUSE FRANCHISOR INC.
- Parent company
- Pause Holdings, Inc.
- Incorporated in
- DE
- HQ
- 13353 W. Washington Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90066
- Auditor
- REESE CPA LLC
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $226K
- vs $753K prior year
Independent franchisee associations
- Franchise Advisory Council (FAC)
Franchisee-led councils or alliances disclosed in Item 20. Indicates operator voice.
Affiliated brands
- Pause Clinic West Hollywood
- Pause Brentwood
- Pause El Segundo
- Pause Studio City
- Pause Float Studio
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Overview
About
Pause appears to be a wellness or lifestyle services franchise based on brand positioning. Franchisees likely operate retail/service locations serving customers seeking wellness, fitness, mental health, or lifestyle products/services, handling daily operations, customer acquisition, staff management, and local marketing within their protected territory.
- CEO
- John Klein
- Headquarters
- CA
- Founded
- 2022
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 3
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing · 16 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Feenot refundable | $60K | $60K | |
| Leasehold Improvements | $410K | $670K | |
| Project Management, Architecture & Engineering | $45K | $55K | |
| Equipment | $170K | $382K | |
| Furniture and Fixtures | $20K | $25K | |
| Rent (3 months) | $32K | $66K | |
| Security Deposit | $32K | $66K | |
| Signage | $10K | $18K | |
| Startup Supplies | $10K | $20K | |
| Insurance Deposits and Premiums | $1K | $2K | |
| Business Licenses and Permits | $8K | $15K | |
| Professional Fees | $15K | $25K | |
| Training Expenses | $1K | $5K | |
| Grand Opening Marketing | $40K | $40K | |
| Audio Video/Information Technology/Security | $7K | $16K | |
| Additional Funds (3 months) | $20K | $70K | |
| Total initial investment | $881K | $1.5M |
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.
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
$461K
30.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
37%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
33 mo
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $881K – $1.5M
- Below avg, review vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $20K – $70K
- Better than avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $35K – $60K
- Below avg, review vs category
- Royalty
- 7.0%
- Gross Revenue · 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 | $800 |
| Transfer fee | $10K |
| Renewal fee | $10K |
| Total fee load | 8.0% of rev |
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $1.5M
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- N/A
- Item 19 type
- Affiliate-Owned Locations
- Sample size
- 5 units
- vs category median 11 · small
- Range (low → high)
- $1.3M→$1.8M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Transparency
- 7 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · above
Compared against 180 Health & Fitness brands
vs Health & Fitness averages
How Pause Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 8
- Opened
- 3
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 0
- Turnover rate
- 0.0%
- Company-owned
- 5
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 38%
- vs corporate-owned
3-year detail · Item 20
- 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 20 · 17 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.
- Total loans
- 20
- Loan volume
- N/A
- Amount data pending
- Median loan
- N/A
- Charge-off rate
- N/A
Historical SBA 7(a) lending data, not predictive of future performance. How SBA charge-off rates are calculated
- Repayment rate (PIF)
- N/A
- 5-yr charge-off
- N/A
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 0
- Defaults
- 0
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Pause presents material investment risk due to franchisor going concern status, micro-scale system of 8 units, undisclosed profitability data, and unclear growth trajectory—fundamentals required for franchisee success are not transparent.
Litigation (Item 3)
0 case reference(s): 0 pending, 0 settled.
Largest disclosed settlement: $315,000
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · REESE CPA LLC
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: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 33 / 100 rating
- 01HIGHGoing Concern status indicates financial distress or operational instability at franchisor level
- 02MEDOnly 8 units system-wide suggests minimal scale, limited support infrastructure, and high failure risk
- 03MEDNet income not disclosed in Item 19 prevents ROI validation — cannot verify if $1.54M average revenue generates acceptable profit after 7% royalties and operating costs
- 04MINORHigh initial investment range ($880K–$1.53M) creates significant exposure with unproven unit economics
- 05MINORUnknown unit growth trajectory indicates stagnant or declining system; no evidence of expansion or franchisee success replication
- 06MINORMinimal franchise fee ($60K) relative to total investment suggests franchisor relies heavily on royalties, creating misaligned incentives
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 | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 10 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | Radius and Population |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Territory sizeℹ | 100,000 residents |
| Online sales rights | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Termination groundsℹ | 2 |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 4 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Delaware |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
0 case reference(s): 0 pending, 0 settled.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 40 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 50 hrs
- Training location
- Franchisor location and on-site
- Franchisor financing
- Offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- Zenoti
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Zenoti
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
26 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Pause · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Pause franchise?
The total investment to open a Pause franchise ranges from $881K – $1.5M, with an initial franchise fee of $60K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Pause franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Pause FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $1.5M. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Pause's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Pause (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 Pause franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Pause has 8 total units in the United States, including 0 franchised units and 5 company-owned units. 3 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Pause a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Pause as a A-grade franchise with a risk score of 33 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.