Safari KidFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Safari Kid franchise requires a total initial investment of $402K – $1.8M, including a $70K franchise fee and an ongoing 7.0% royalty[2]. The 2025 FDD does not disclose unit-level revenue (no Item 19). SBA 7(a) loans show a 0.0% charge-off rate across 14 loans[1]. Verdict grade: A. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $402K – $1.8M
- 53rd pct Education
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- 47th pct Education
- Royalty
- 7.0%
- 17th pct Education
- Units
- 25
- 39th pct Education
- SBA default
- 0.0%
- system-wide median varies by category
Quick verdict · Education · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Education 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
Only 0.0% of 14 SBA loans charged off, well below the 16% franchise average.
The system contracted 6% year-over-year. Investigate why units are closing.
Bottom line
- Total investment $402K – $1.8M including a $70K franchise fee, 7.0% ongoing royalty.
- No Item 19 financial performance data disclosed. The franchisor chose not to publish revenue figures.
- Verdict A (Top Quintile) with a risk score of 47/100. SBA loan charge-off rate of 0.0% across 14 loans (well below the franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2024).
- System contracting at -10.5% CAGR over 3 years. Investigate whether closures are franchisor-driven (consolidation) or franchisee-driven (economics).
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- Safari Kid Franchising, LLC
- Parent company
- Safari Kid Global Inc.
- CEO title
- Chief Executive Manager & Member
- Deepak Mudakavi
- CEO experience
- 18 yrs
- Years in role or industry
- Founder active
- Yes
- Original founder still leading the business
- Incorporated in
- CA
- HQ
- 34899 Newark Blvd., Newark, CA 94560
- Auditor
- CPA Auditor, Inc.
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $1.4M
- vs $1.7M prior year
Overview
About
Safari Kid franchisees operate early childhood education and enrichment centers, likely offering preschool, after-school care, STEM-focused classes, and outdoor/adventure-themed educational programming. Day-to-day operations include classroom instruction, staff management, parent communications, curriculum delivery, facility maintenance, and enrollment/retention activities.
- CEO
- Deepak Mudakavi
- Headquarters
- CA
- Founded
- 2006
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 4
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing · 21 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Franchise Feenot refundable | $70K | $70K | |
| Pre-Opening Services Feenot refundable | $30K | $30K | |
| Booksnot refundable | $900 | $5K | |
| Suppliesnot refundable | $1K | $2K | |
| Training Program Travel Expensesnot refundable | $4K | $10K | |
| Leased Real Estatenot refundable | $8K | $55K | |
| Equipmentnot refundable | $5K | $10K | |
| Furniture & Materialsnot refundable | $5K | $120K | |
| Build Out of Learning Centernot refundable | $200K | $1.2M | |
| Business Permits & Licensesnot refundable | $200 | $6K | |
| Liability Insurance (for 6 months)not refundable | $1K | $6K | |
| Signagenot refundable | $6K | $15K | |
| Initial Advertisingnot refundable | $15K | $15K | |
| Print, Design, Marketingnot refundable | $3K | $9K | |
| Security Systemnot refundable | $1K | $10K | |
| Accounting & Legal Expensesnot refundable | $2K | $7K | |
| Additional Fundsnot refundable | $50K | $208K | |
| Franchise Fee (Area Developer)not refundable | $120K | $120K | |
| Pre-Opening Services Fee - 1st unit (Area Developer)not refundable | $30K | $30K | |
| Pre-Opening Services Fee - 2nd unit (Area Developer)not refundable | $30K | $30K | |
| Total initial investment | $883K | $3.6M |
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
- $402K – $1.8M
- Near category avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $50K – $208K
- Near category avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $70K – $70K
- Near category avg vs category
- Royalty
- 7.0%
- Gross Sales · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 1.5%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 8.5%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 7.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 1.5% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $250 |
| Transfer fee | $30K |
| Renewal fee | $0 |
| Total fee load | 8.5% of rev |
Financial Performance
This franchisor did not disclose financial performance representations in Item 19, or our extractor could not parse them.
vs Education averages
How Safari Kid Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 25
- Opened
- 0
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 1
- Terminated
- 0
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 4.0%
- Company-owned
- 8
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 68%
- vs corporate-owned
- Multi-unit owners
- 54.5%
- Net growth (yr3)
- -5.6%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- -10.5%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Projected new
- 3
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
- Continuity rate
- 94.4%
- Units that stayed open
- Ceased ops
- 4.0%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 6 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
- 14
- Loan volume
- $18.1M
- Median loan
- $775K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 0.0%
- rates vary by category · see methodology
Historical SBA 7(a) lending data, not predictive of future performance. How SBA charge-off rates are calculated
- Repayment rate (PIF)
- 100.0%
- 5-yr charge-off
- 0.0%
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 5
- Defaults
- 0
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into Safari Kid's SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 5 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 3 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 6-year lending trend
- SBA 504 real estate/equipment data
Instant access. No subscription.
With a 0.0% charge-off rate across 14 loans, banks have historically viewed this brand favorably for lending.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Safari Kid presents elevated risk due to unit decline, total absence of financial transparency (no Item 19), and high capital requirements without demonstrated unit profitability.
Litigation (Item 3)
No litigation required to be disclosed
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · CPA Auditor, Inc.
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 47 / 100 rating
- 01MINORUnit count declining 5.6% YoY (25 units) — suggests system contraction and potential franchisee struggles
- 02MINORNo Item 19 (average revenue/income) disclosure — impossible to assess unit economics or ROI; major transparency red flag
- 03MINORHigh initial investment range ($401K–$1.78M) with 7% royalties creates significant cash flow pressure without performance visibility
- 04HIGHGoing Concern flag is False but lack of financial disclosure makes viability assessment impossible
- 05MINOR15-year term is unusually long; combined with declining units, suggests difficulty franchisee retention
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 | 15 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 15 years |
| Territory type | Households |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Territory population | 12,000 |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 5 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| RoFR response window | 30 days |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Newark, CA |
| Governing law | California |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation required to be disclosed
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 51 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 46 hrs
- Training location
- Newark, California and/or Union City, California
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 18 mo
- From signing to launch
- POS system
- Procare
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Procare
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
30 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Safari Kid · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Safari Kid franchise?
The total investment to open a Safari Kid franchise ranges from $402K – $1.8M, with an initial franchise fee of $70K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Safari Kid franchise owners earn?
Safari Kid 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 Safari Kid's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, Safari Kid has a charge-off rate of 0.0% across 14 loans, meaning 0.0% of franchise loans were charged off. Charge-off rates are one proxy for franchise risk, though they do not capture all closures. This data comes from FOIA-sourced SBA lending records.
How many Safari Kid franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Safari Kid has 25 total units in the United States, including 17 franchised units and 8 company-owned units.
Is Safari Kid a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Safari Kid as a A-grade franchise with a risk score of 47 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.