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indicates the clear winner per row. Ties and missing data are not highlighted.
How winners are chosen
Lower is better for investment, liquid capital, franchise fee, royalty and ad-fund rates, SBA charge-off rate, and owner turnover.
Higher is better for disclosed revenue and owner earnings, verdict score, total units, net unit growth, and franchisee contacts. For the letter grade, A ranks highest.
A row is highlighted only when one brand clearly leads. Ties are never highlighted, and missing data never counts as a win. Some rows (earnings-metric type, loan counts, contract terms) are informational and have no winner.
Focus by buyer type
| Brand |  AStrongest tierLightbridge Academy Education 2025 FDD Remove |  DBelow averageMaple Bear Education 2025 FDD Remove |
|---|---|---|
| Vitals | ||
FDD filing | FDD issued Apr 10, 2025 | FDD issued May 2, 2025 |
Investment range | $1.0M – $2.7M | $799K – $2.4M |
Liquid capital | $150K – $300K | $150K – $200K |
Franchise fee | $50K | $85K |
Royalty rate | 7.0% | 6.0% |
Ad fund rate | 2.0% | 2.0% |
| Performance | ||
Avg gross sales | $2.5MCombined outlet types | No Item 19 representation |
Median gross sales | $2.6MCombined outlet types | Not disclosed |
Avg owner earnings Metric varies by brand. Check type below | $380K | Not disclosed |
Earnings metric | EBITDA / Average 380,317 | Not classified |
| Risk | ||
Rating | AStrongest tier | DBelow average |
Verdict score | 94 / 100 | 36 / 100 |
SBA charge-off rate | 0.0% (n=41) | Under 10 loans (3) |
SBA loans on record | 41 | 3 |
| Scale | ||
Total units | 81 | 1 |
Net change (latest yr) | +7 | -1 |
Signed, not yet open | 117 (1.44 per open outlet) | 4 (4.00 per open outlet) |
Turnover rate | 0.0% | 100.0% |
| Contract | ||
Initial term (years) | 15 | 10 |
Renewal term (years) | 5 | 5 |
Initial training (hrs) | 177 | 80 |
| Contacts | ||
Franchisee phones | 56 | 7 |
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