River Pools®Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A RIVER POOLS® franchise requires a total initial investment of $114K – $288K, including a $50K franchise fee and an ongoing 12.0% royalty[2]. The 2022 FDD does not disclose unit-level revenue (no Item 19). Verdict grade: F. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 21, 2026 · figures per the 2022 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $114K – $288K
- 39th pct Home Services
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- 54th pct Home Services
- Royalty
- 12.0%
- 45th pct Home Services
- Units
- 17
- 25th pct Home Services
- SBA default
- N/A
Quick verdict · Home Services · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Home Services 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
Franchised units fell from 17 to 5 over 3 years. Investigate why operators are leaving.
The franchisor's auditor raised doubt about continued operations. This is a serious risk signal.
Bottom line
- Total investment $114K – $288K including a $50K franchise fee, 12.0% ongoing royalty.
- No Item 19 financial performance data disclosed. The franchisor chose not to publish revenue figures.
- Verdict F (Bottom Quintile) with a risk score of 92/100.
- 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
- River Pools Franchising, LLC
- CEO title
- President and Manager
- Jason Hughes
- CEO experience
- 2019 yrs
- Years in role or industry
- Incorporated in
- IN
- HQ
- 840 Commerce Pkwy, Fortville, IN 46040
- Auditor
- Roger L. Handy, PC
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $82K
- vs $541K prior year
- ⚠ Going-concern note
- Disclosed in FDD 2022
- Status as of 2022; may have been resolved in a later filing we don't yet have.
Overview
About
River Pools franchisees manufacture and sell fiberglass swimming pool shells, handling production, sales, installation coordination, and customer service. Franchisees operate as regional distributors leveraging the franchisor's proprietary shell designs and manufacturing technology. Day-to-day work involves managing inventory, responding to dealer/contractor inquiries, managing supply chain logistics, and supporting local pool builders and installers.
- CEO
- Jason Hughes
- Headquarters
- IN
- Founded
- 2017
- FDD year
- 2022
- States available
- 12
FDD Item 7 · 2022 filing · 13 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee | $50K | $50K | |
| Leasehold Improvements and Signsnot refundable | $0 | $9K | |
| Equipment and Suppliesnot refundable | $5K | $15K | |
| Inventorynot refundable | $5K | $60K | |
| Vehiclenot refundable | $5K | $30K | |
| Technology and Office Equipmentnot refundable | $3K | $7K | |
| Start-Up Marketingnot refundable | $8K | $10K | |
| Insurancenot refundable | $10K | $15K | |
| Professional Feesnot refundable | $2K | $3K | |
| Licenses/Bondsnot refundable | $500 | $1K | |
| Lease Deposits | $0 | $10K | |
| Your Out-of-Pocket Expenses While Attending Trainingnot refundable | $1K | $3K | |
| Working Capital (Additional Funds over next 3 months) | $25K | $75K | |
| Total initial investment | $114K | $288K |
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
- $114K – $288K
- Better than avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $25K – $75K
- Near category avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $50K – $50K
- Near category avg vs category
- Royalty
- 12.0%
- per_unit · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 14.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 12.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $500 |
| Training fee | $500 |
| Transfer fee | $25K |
| Renewal fee | $5K |
| Total fee load | 14.0% of rev |
Financial Performance
This franchisor did not disclose financial performance representations in Item 19, or our extractor could not parse them.
vs Home Services averages
How River Pools® Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 17
- Opened
- 8
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 2
- Terminated
- 1
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 11.8%
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Multi-unit owners
- 18.9%
- Net growth (yr3)
- +54.5%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- Outlier (see FDD)
- Likely small-sample artifact
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Termination rate
- 5.9%
- Franchisor-initiated terminations
- Ceased ops
- 11.8%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 22 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 loan disclosures. This brand has only 1 7(a) loan on file; statistical reliability is limited below 10 loans.
- Total loans
- 1
- Loan volume
- $25K
- Median loan
- $25K
- 50th percentile
- 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
- 1
- Defaults
- 0
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into River Pools®'s SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 1 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 1 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 1-year lending trend
Instant access. No subscription.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Early-stage pool franchise with opaque financial data, atypical royalty calculation, small unit base, and high capital requirements relative to undisclosed profitability metrics.
Litigation (Item 3)
No litigation required to be disclosed
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Roger L. Handy, PC⚠ Going-concern note flagged
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Score breakdown · what drove the 92 / 100 rating
- 01MINORNo Item 19 financial performance disclosure (avg revenue and net income not provided) prevents ROI validation
- 02MINORHigh royalty rate of 12% based on manufacturer's listed price (not actual franchisee revenue) creates unclear fee structure and potential margin compression
- 03MINOROnly 17 units with 54.5% YoY growth indicates small, early-stage system vulnerable to unit churn; absolute growth numbers are marginal
- 04MINORHigh initial investment range ($113.7K-$288.2K) with $50K franchise fee lacks transparent payback period or break-even timeline
- 05MINORBroad territory protection claim requires verification—undefined territory size and density thresholds create expansion risk
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 |
| Territory type | Specific geographic area |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Not allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Indiana |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation required to be disclosed
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 76 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 25 hrs
- Training location
- Virtual, Indiana, and approved franchise locations
- Field support
- 25 hrs/yr
- On-site visits per year
- Time to open
- 5 mo
- From signing to launch
- POS system
- Online Work Order System
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Online Work Order System
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
28 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
RIVER POOLS® · FDD (2022) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a RIVER POOLS® franchise?
The total investment to open a RIVER POOLS® franchise ranges from $114K – $288K, 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 RIVER POOLS® franchise owners earn?
RIVER POOLS® 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 RIVER POOLS®'s franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for RIVER POOLS® (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 RIVER POOLS® franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, RIVER POOLS® has 17 total units in the United States, including 17 franchised units and 0 company-owned units. 8 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is RIVER POOLS® a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates RIVER POOLS® as a F-grade franchise with a risk score of 92 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.