What is the initial franchise fee for a Big Blue Swim School franchise?
Big_Blue_Swim_School Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
You must pay us a $50,000 initial franchise fee in a lump sum when you sign your Franchise Agreement. It is not refundable under any circumstances. We did not collect any initial franchise fees during 2024. (We charge a reduced initial franchise fee for the second and each subsequent BIG BLUE Swim School you develop under a Development Rights Agreement (see below)).
Development Rights Agreement
If you sign our DRA because you commit to develop multiple BIG BLUE Swim Schools within a protected territory comprised of distinct geographical development areas, we currently charge a development fee that you must pay in full when you sign the DRA. The development fee equals the full $50,000 initial franchise fee for the first School covered by the first Franchise Agreement you sign concurrently with the DRA, plus a $15,000 deposit for each additional School you commit to develop under the DRA. You must pay the rest of the initial franchise fee for each School (that is, $25,000) when you sign the Franchise Agreement for that School. The initial franchise fee for each School you commit to develop after the first one is $40,000.
The development fee generally is not refundable under any circumstances. If you sign the DRA, pay the development fee, and then choose for any reason not to perform (in which case we terminate the DRA), we have the right to keep the entire development fee and need not return any money to you. However, if we exercise our Qualified Site Lease Rights described in Item 12 and you then elect to develop one less BIG BLUE Swim School in your development territory, we will refund to you the pro rata portion of the development fee allocable to the School that is the subject of the Qualified Site Lease Rights.
Source: Item 5 — INITIAL FEES (FDD pages 12–13)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Big Blue Swim School's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, the initial franchise fee is $50,000. This fee is paid in a lump sum when the Franchise Agreement is signed and is not refundable under any circumstances. This is a fairly standard initial franchise fee when compared to other franchise systems.
Big Blue Swim School does offer a reduced initial franchise fee for franchisees who develop multiple locations under a Development Rights Agreement (DRA). The initial franchise fee for each school after the first is $40,000. The development fee equals the $50,000 initial franchise fee for the first school covered by the first Franchise Agreement, plus a $15,000 deposit for each additional school committed to under the DRA. The remaining $25,000 of the initial franchise fee for each subsequent school is due when signing the Franchise Agreement for that school.
It is important to note that the development fee is generally not refundable. If a franchisee signs a DRA, pays the development fee, and then chooses not to perform, Big Blue Swim School has the right to keep the entire development fee. However, a pro rata portion of the development fee will be refunded if Big Blue Swim School exercises its Qualified Site Lease Rights and the franchisee elects to develop one less Big Blue Swim School in their development territory.