Story Time Chess Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Story Time Chess is a children's education franchise teaching chess to young kids through storytelling-based lessons. Franchisees run local programs, managing instructors, classes, and enrollment.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Story Time Chess franchise requires a total initial investment of $56K – $76K, including a $50K franchise fee and an ongoing 7.0% royalty[2]. The 2026 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 2026 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $56K – $76K
- 16th pct Education
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- Company-owned only
- Royalty
- 7.0%
- 18th pct Education
- Units
- 5
- 19th pct Education
- SBA charge-off
- N/A
Quick verdict · Education · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Education 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 $56K – $76K including a $50K franchise fee, 7.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSItem 19 reports outlet revenue, but not in a form that yields a per-outlet average we can compare across brands.
- RISKVerdict C (Average), verdict score 45/100 (higher is better).
- DATAItem 19 reports outlet revenue, but not in a form that yields a per-outlet average we can compare across brands. Ask franchisees directly for full unit-level revenue.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Story Time Chess Franchising LLC
- Parent company
- Thinking Cup, Inc.
- Predecessor
- company
- Prior franchisor entity
- CEO title
- Chief Executive Officer
- Paul Levy
- Incorporated in
- Tennessee
- HQ
- 116 Agnes Rd, Suite 200, Knoxville, Tennessee 37919
- Auditor
- Metwally CPA PLLC
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $80K
- Most recent fiscal year
Affiliated brands
- a Story Time Chess
- did not exist in the past and does not now offer franchises in any lines of business
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Overview
About
- CEO
- Paul Levy
- Headquarters
- TN
- Founded
- 2025
- FDD year
- 2026
- States available
- 2
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 90% below the typical education franchise.
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 5–7
Full Item 7 breakdown11 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Feenot refundable | $45K | $45K | |
| Signagenot refundable | $0 | $759 | |
| Equipmentnot refundable | $669 | $2K | |
| Computer System and Point of Sale Systemnot refundable | $360 | $3K | |
| Business Permits & Licensesnot refundable | $50 | $500 | |
| Professional Feesnot refundable | $2K | $4K | |
| Insurancenot refundable | $1K | $2K | |
| Training Expensesnot refundable | $1K | $5K | |
| Printingnot refundable | $425 | $700 | |
| Opening Advertising Campaignnot refundable | $500 | $2K | |
| Additional Funds - 3 Monthsnot refundable | $4K | $11K | |
| Total initial investment | $56K | $76K |
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
- $56K – $76K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $4K – $11K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $50K – $50K
- Middle of category vs category
- Royalty
- 7.0%
- percentage_of_gross · 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 |
| Transfer fee | $20 |
| Renewal fee | $11K |
| Total fee load | 8.0% of rev |
What do units actually make?
Source: FDD 2026 · Item 19
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
Story Time Chess 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 Story Time Chess unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Estimated return on your total franchise investment, before any debt financing.
153%
Above the 30–60% band. Verify revenue is per-unit average
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: 2026 FDD
Financial Performance
Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance
- Item 19 type
- gross sales
- Sample size
- 3
- vs category median 17 · small
- Range (low → high)
- $303K→$501K
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Reporting year
- 2025
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2026
- Disclosed in the 2026 filing, covering 2025
- Transparency
- 4 / 10
- vs category median 4 / 10 · typical
Compared against 204 Education brands
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 8.0% — below the Education average of 10.6%.
Disclosure
Item 19 reports outlet revenue, but not in a form that yields a per-outlet average we can compare across brands.
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 Education averages
How Story Time Chess Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2026 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 5
- Opened
- 0
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 0
- Turnover rate
- 0.0%
- Company-owned
- 5
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 0%
- vs corporate-owned
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 0
- 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 12 · 2 states reported
The Territory Map
FDD Item 12 reports the state count, but the specific list isn't in our current data. The map will appear once we re-extract from the FDD or enough franchisee contacts are available.
2
states with franchisees (per FDD Item 12)
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
Pre-opening franchisor (is_pre_opening=true, began franchising 2025) with 5 company-owned units and no franchised units yet. Net worth is thin at $25,000. No litigation, no bankruptcy, no going-concern note; audited financials and Item 19 disclosed. Scored around 43 for limited operating history.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Metwally CPA PLLC
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: Yes
Score breakdown · what drove the 45 / 100 verdict
- 01MINORPre-opening / brand-new franchisor (2025), 0 franchised units
- 02MINORThin net worth of $25,000
- 03HIGHNo litigation, bankruptcy, or going-concern flags
- 04MINORAudited financials and Item 19 present
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 8.0% of sales (royalty + ad fund), before rent and labor.
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 11, 12, 17
FDD Items 12, 15, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 5 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 5 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | Population-based |
| Protected territory | No |
| Online sales rights | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Termination notice | 5 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Tennessee |
| Litigation count | 0 |
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 15 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 25 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and off-site
- POS system
- Tutor Cruncher (transitioning to proprietary POS System)
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Tutor Cruncher (transitioning to proprietary POS System)
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
2 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Story Time Chess · FDD (2026) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Story Time Chess franchise?
The total investment to open a Story Time Chess franchise ranges from $56K – $76K, 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 Story Time Chess franchise owners earn?
Story Time Chess 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 Story Time Chess 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 Story Time Chess FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Story Time Chess's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Story Time Chess (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 Story Time Chess franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Story Time Chess has 5 total units in the United States, including 0 franchised units and 5 company-owned units.
Is Story Time Chess a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Story Time Chess 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
Are you the franchisor?
If you represent Story Time Chess, you can request corrections or provide updated information.
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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.