FranchiseVerdict
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FV-03028·STRONGExcellent91

Young Rembrandts

Education - Children's ProgramsFranchising since 2001Website
Investment
$47K – $60K
16th pct Children's Pr…
Avg revenue
$143K
5th pct Children's Pr…
Royalty
10.0%
78th pct Children's Pr…
Units
47
75th pct Children's Pr…
SBA default
0.0%
vs <3% typical

Bottom line

  • Total investment $47K – $60K including a $45K franchise fee, 10.0% ongoing royalty.
  • Average unit revenue of $143K/year (median $125K).
  • Rated STRONG with a risk score of 45/100. SBA loan default rate of 0.0% across 10 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

Legal entity
Young Rembrandts Franchise, Inc.
Incorporated in
Illinois
HQ
23 North Union Street, Elgin, Illinois 60123
Auditor
DHJJ LTD.
Audited financials
Franchisor revenue
$916K
vs $933K prior year
⚠ Going-concern note
Disclosed in FDD 2026
Auditor flagged doubt about continued operations. Verify against the latest FDD before deciding.

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 Young Rembrandts unit return on the cash you put in?

Revenue · per unit, per year
$
FDD Item 19 reports $143,084
Franchisor take · royalty + ad fund
Royaltytyp 68%
%
Ad fundtyp 35%
%
Operating costs · category default: education
COGS
%
Labor
%
Rent / occupancy
%
Other operating
%
Total invested capital · what you actually put in
Initial investment
$
FDD Item 7: $47K–$60K
Working capital
$
FDD reports $1K–$4K

Unlevered ROIC · per unit

28%

Below typical band (30–60%)

0%30–60% Yale band80%

Store EBITDA · annual
$16K
EBITDA margin
11.0%
Total invested
$56K
Payback
42 mo
Unit-level only. A multi-unit portfolio gives up roughly 5–15% of this to shared services (corporate G&A) before reaching the ~10-unit break-even Yale describes.

Levered LBO scenario · Yale Crease Capital framing

What would 25 Young Rembrandts units return on equity?

Edit assumptions

Equity IRR · 5-yr

49.9%

7.57× MOIC

Year-1 DSCR

1.88×

EBITDA ÷ debt service

Equity required

$114K

on $572K purchase

Total debt

$458K

SBA $0.3M + senior + seller note

Overview

About

Franchisees operate art instruction studios for children, typically offering after-school and weekend drawing/painting classes using proprietary teaching methods. Day-to-day operations include teaching students in-person or hybrid formats, managing class schedules, handling parent communications, and managing instructor payroll and facility overhead.

CEO
Elizabeth Wahl
Founded
1997
FDD year
2026
States available
17

Item 7 · what it costs

The Vitals

Total investment
$47K – $60K
All-in to open one unit
Liquid capital
$1K – $4K
Cash you must have on hand
Franchise fee
$45K
Royalty
10.0%
Gross Revenues · typical 6–8%
Ad fund
2.0%
typical 3–5%
Total fee load
12.0%
vs 9–13% typical

Item 19

Financial Performance

Avg gross sales
$143K
Per unit, per year
Median gross sales
$125K
Item 19 type
Gross Revenues
Sample size
46 units
vs category median 16 · large
Range (low → high)
$24K$323K
Cohort dispersion
Transparency
4 / 5
vs category median 4 / 5 · typical
Revenue rank5th
vs Education - Children's Programs peers
Investment cost rank16th
Lower investment ranks lower (better)
Royalty rate rank78th
Lower royalty = lower percentile (better)
Unit count rank75th
vs Education - Children's Programs peers
Risk score rank10th
Lower risk = lower percentile (better)

Item 20 · unit dynamics

The Growth Chart

Total units
47
Opened
0
Last reporting year
Closed
1
Turnover rate
2.1%
Company-owned
1
Corporate units in the system
% franchised
98%
vs corporate-owned
Net growth (yr3)
-2.1%
Net unit change last year
3-yr CAGR
+2.2%
Compounded over last 3 years
2024
46-1
Franchised units
2025
47
Franchised units
2026
45
Franchised units

Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.

Item 20 · 16 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).

AK
ME
VT
NH
MA
RI
CT
NY
NJ
PA
DE
MD
DC
WA
OR
CA
NV
ID
MT
WY
UT
CO
AZ
NM
ND
SD
NE
KS
OK
TX
MN
IA
MO
AR
LA
WI
IL
MS
TN
MI
IN
KY
AL
OH
WV
GA
VA
NC
SC
FL
HI
Registered · 16 states
Not registered

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.

Total loans
10
Loan volume
Avg loan
Default rate
0.0%
vs <3% typical · system-wide
5-yr default

FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17

Risk & Legal

45
Risk · 0-100
STRONG45 / 100

Modest revenue potential, no profitability disclosure, and shrinking franchise network create meaningful uncertainty about unit-level economics and system viability.

Score breakdown · what drove the 45 / 100 rating

  1. 01MINORDeclining unit count (-2.1% YoY) suggests system contraction and potential market saturation or franchisee dissatisfaction
  2. 02MEDNet income not disclosed in FDD Item 19 — impossible to validate profitability claims against $46,650-$60,100 investment
  3. 03MINORHigh royalty burden (10% on first $75k revenue) combined with unknown net margins creates uncertainty on actual take-home profit
  4. 04MINORAverage revenue of $143k is only 2.4x initial investment — thin margin for covering operating costs, rent, payroll, and royalties
  5. 05MINORFranchise fee of $44,500 represents 96% of minimum total investment, leaving only $2,150-$15,600 for working capital and setup

Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification

FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal

Contract & Territory Detail

Territory
Number of elementary schools
Protected territory
Yes
Initial term
10 years
Renewal term
10 years
Online sales rights
Restricted
Franchisor can compete
Yes
Hire a manager?
Allowed
Litigation count
0
Right of first refusal
Yes
Franchisor can buy back on resale
Mandatory arbitration
Yes
Jury trial waiver
Yes
Non-compete
2 yrs
Post-termination restriction
Owner-operator
Required
Governing law
Illinois

Item 11

Training & Operations

Classroom training
23 hrs
On-the-job training
13 hrs
POS system
Active Network
Operating tech stack

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

39 numbers

Locked
(415) 513-••••
Alanna Reynard
CA
(915) 545-••••
Tabetha Reinking
TX
(623) 349-••••
Brian and Elaine Dawson
AZ

One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included

FDD download

Young Rembrandts · FDD (2026) PDF

Single-page checkout · instant download · CSV export of contacts available separately above