Pearle Vision
Formerly known as Lawn of America
Bottom line
- Total investment $680K – $1.3M including a $30K franchise fee, 7.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $1.2M/year (median $1.1M). Estimated payback in 3.6 years.
- Rated STRONG with a risk score of 48/100. SBA loan default rate of 0.0% across 153 loans (below the industry average).
- 15 litigation matters disclosed in Item 3 — higher than typical. Review the summary for patterns (franchisor-initiated vs. franchisee-initiated).
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
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 Pearle Vision unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
18%
Below typical band (30–60%)
Levered LBO scenario · Yale Crease Capital framing
What would 25 Pearle Vision units return on equity?
Equity IRR · 5-yr
49.9%
7.57× MOIC
Year-1 DSCR
1.88×
EBITDA ÷ debt service
Equity required
$2.0M
on $10.0M purchase
Total debt
$8.0M
SBA $5.0M + senior + seller note
Overview
About
Pearle Vision franchisees operate optical retail locations selling eyeglasses, contact lenses, and eye care services. Day-to-day operations include conducting eye exams (typically with licensed optometrists), fitting and selling corrective lenses, managing inventory, and handling customer service. Franchisees manage staffing, local marketing, and compliance with state optometry regulations.
Item 7 · what it costs
The Vitals
Item 19
Financial Performance
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 21 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 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.
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Pearle Vision presents high investment risk due to declining unit economics, extensive litigation with antitrust/fraud allegations, unprotected territories, and inability to verify financial claims without Item 19 disclosure.
Score breakdown · what drove the 48 / 100 rating
- 01MINORDeclining unit count (-1.6% YoY) indicates contracting franchise system with 503 units
- 02HIGHMultiple serious litigation issues including antitrust, data breach, false advertising, and franchisee fraud allegations suggest systemic operational and compliance problems
- 03HIGHNo Item 19 financial disclosure (Going Concern = False) prevents independent verification of the $1.247M average revenue claim
- 04MINORUnprotected territory creates direct competition risk and cannibalization between franchisees
- 05MINORHigh initial investment ($679K-$1.27M) combined with declining system growth increases franchisee failure risk
- 06MINOR7% royalty on gross revenues (not net) means royalties paid even during unprofitable periods
- 07HIGHLitigation history includes fraud allegations against franchisor toward franchisees, indicating potential relationship deterioration
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
Item 11
Training & Operations
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
40 numbers
One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included
FDD download
Pearle Vision · FDD (2024) PDF