Bottom line
- Total investment $356K – $513K including a $43K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $383K/year (median $329K).
- Rated MODERATE with a risk score of 63/100. SBA loan default rate of 0.0% across 72 loans (below the industry average).
- Auditor disclosed a going-concern note — flagged doubt about the franchisor's ability to continue operations. Verify against the latest FDD.
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 The Bar Method unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
25%
Below typical band (30–60%)
Levered LBO scenario · Yale Crease Capital framing
What would 25 The Bar Method units return on equity?
Equity IRR · 5-yr
49.9%
7.57× MOIC
Year-1 DSCR
1.88×
EBITDA ÷ debt service
Equity required
$1.8M
on $8.8M purchase
Total debt
$7.0M
SBA $4.4M + senior + seller note
Overview
About
Bar Method franchisees operate boutique fitness studios offering barre-based fitness classes targeting primarily female clientele. Day-to-day operations include managing class schedules, instructor payroll, marketing, member retention, and facility maintenance for a studio-based recurring revenue model with membership and drop-in fees.
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 · 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 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
The Bar Method presents high risk due to system contraction, ongoing multi-state litigation involving misrepresentations, undisclosed profitability metrics, and franchisor going concern status.
Score breakdown · what drove the 63 / 100 rating
- 01MINORDeclining unit count (-2.7% YoY) indicates system contraction and potential franchisee struggles
- 02HIGHMultiple active litigation matters including Item 19 misrepresentation and unregistered franchise sales in multiple states
- 03MEDNet income not disclosed despite average revenue of $383,065, suggesting profitability concerns or unwillingness to share performance data
- 04HIGHGoing concern status raises questions about franchisor's financial viability and ability to support franchisees
- 05MEDHigh initial investment ($356K-$512K) combined with unit decline creates elevated risk of capital loss
- 06MINOR6% royalty on gross revenue (not net) creates cash flow pressure during slow periods
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
81 numbers
One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included
FDD download
The Bar Method · FDD (2024) PDF