Who bears the expense of developing a Big Blue Swim School?
Big_Blue_Swim_School Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
Before you begin operating the School, we will (directly or through a third party):
-
- Provide various real estate services. (Franchise Agreement—Section 4; Development Rights Agreement—Section 5) These services do not include conforming the School's premises to local ordinances and building codes obtaining required permits, for which you will be responsible. The School always will be developed at your expense.
-
- Offer Small Business Administration loan-expeditor services if you apply for SBA-assisted financing.
-
- You must locate, evaluate, and select each School's site. You must give us all information and materials we request to assess each proposed School site. We will not search for or select the site for you. However, using local commercial real estate brokers, we may propose potential School sites for your consideration in your Site Selection Area (under the Franchise Agreement) or Territory (under the Development Rights Agreement). Proposal of a School's site will be based on our then-current criteria for BIG BLUE Swim School sites, including population density and other demographic characteristics, visibility, traffic flow, competition, accessibility, ingress and egress, size, and other physical and commercial characteristics.
Source: Item 11 — FRANCHISOR'S ASSISTANCE, ADVERTISING, COMPUTER SYSTEMS, AND TRAINING (FDD pages 37–51)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to the 2025 Big Blue Swim School FDD, the franchisee is responsible for the expenses associated with developing the swim school. Specifically, the franchisee bears the costs of conforming the premises to local ordinances and building codes, as well as obtaining the necessary permits. While Big Blue Swim School may offer real estate services, these do not extend to covering the costs of development.
This means that prospective Big Blue Swim School franchisees need to be prepared to cover all costs related to the physical construction and setup of their location. These expenses can include construction, permits, and any modifications required to meet local regulations. Franchisees should carefully budget for these development costs, as they can be significant and impact the overall profitability of the franchise.
Big Blue Swim School does offer some assistance in the site selection process, such as proposing potential sites using local commercial real estate brokers. However, the final responsibility for locating, evaluating, and selecting the site rests with the franchisee. While Big Blue Swim School may review potential sites, the franchisee must provide all necessary information and materials for assessment and cannot proceed with a site that has not been accepted by Big Blue Swim School.