Is a Brain Balance franchisee required to license proprietary software from the franchisor?
Brain_Balance Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
TIAL FEES**
Standard Brain Balance® Center
The initial uniform franchise fee for a Brain Balance® Center is $45,000 and is payable in a lump sum at the time you sign the Franchise Agreement. You are also required to license the proprietary software ("Software") from the Franchisor under the Application License Agreement pay the Franchisor $15,000 for the Software license, and pay the Franchisor a prorated amount of the $1,850 annual software maintenance fee and Customer Relationship Management System (CRM) License Fee for the balance of the first year of operation at the time the Software is activated, plus a prorated amount of the $1,000 in software fees you will pay to us for annual third party software program access.
If you are a party to an existing Franchise Agreement with us for a Brain Balance® Center and wish to acquire an additional franchise to open additional standard Center(s), we will reduce the franchise fee based on the following scale:
| Units | Initial Fee | Software Fee | Annual Software Maintenance | |---|---|---|---| | | | | Fees and CRM License Fee |
Brain Balance® Satellite Center
A satellite center concept ("Brain Balance® Satellite Center") is available to Franchisees who currently own at least one Standard franchise location for a minimum of 12 months, are in good standing with no franchise agreement defaults, and have a minimum of $480,000 in revenue per franchise location during the prior 12-month period. A satellite location can only be located within the Franchisee's existing market. Brain Balance® Satellite Centers are facilities that only deliver programming and do not handle lead intake or assessment of prospective enrolling families, post-Program assessments, or administrative functions, so they are smaller and have fewer features. The initial franchise fee for a Brain Balance® Satellite Center is $25,000. You are also required to license the proprietary software ("Software") from the Franchisor under the Application License Agreement and pay the Franchisor $10,000 for the Software license, both of which will be prorated based upon the remaining term of the Standard Center's Franchise Agreement.
Source: Item 5 — INITIAL FEES (FDD pages 12–13)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Brain Balance's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, franchisees are required to license proprietary software from the franchisor. For a standard Brain Balance Center, the franchisee must "license the proprietary software ('Software') from the Franchisor under the Application License Agreement pay the Franchisor $15,000 for the Software license, and pay the Franchisor a prorated amount of the $1,850 annual software maintenance fee and Customer Relationship Management System (CRM) License Fee for the balance of the first year of operation at the time the Software is activated, plus a prorated amount of the $1,000 in software fees you will pay to us for annual third party software program access."
For a Brain Balance Satellite Center, which is available to franchisees who already own a standard location and meet certain revenue and operational criteria, the franchisee is "required to license the proprietary software ('Software') from the Franchisor under the Application License Agreement and pay the Franchisor $10,000 for the Software license, both of which will be prorated based upon the remaining term of the Standard Center's Franchise Agreement. You would also pay the Franchisor a prorated amount of the $1,850 annual software maintenance fee and CRM License Fee for the balance of the first year of operation at the time the Software is activated, plus a prorated amount of the $1,000 in software fees you will pay to us for annual third party software program access."
This software licensing requirement means that prospective Brain Balance franchisees must factor in the initial software license fee ($15,000 for a standard center or $10,000 for a satellite center), plus prorated annual software maintenance and CRM fees ($1,850 annually), and third-party software program access fees ($1,000 annually) into their startup costs. The fees are non-refundable once paid. The software license fee for a satellite center is prorated based on the remaining term of the standard center's franchise agreement.