Image Studios Franchise
Cost, fees, owner earnings, closure rate and litigation for a Image Studios franchise — pulled from the franchisor's own public FDD (2026), not its sales material.
Disclosure honesty
Image Studios discloses earnings (Item 19) — but the grade is how honestly. We graded it C.
What their own earnings claim actually says
Discloses 2025 revenue and estimated earnings after key expenses for 82 of 129 units, segmented by occupancy tier. Excludes 10 non-reporters (8 in lowest tier), understates costs by using old 5.5% royalty rate, and omits owner salary/debt service.
What a Image Studios franchise actually costs to run
| Fee | Disclosed | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $64,500 | Item 5 — paid up front, before you open |
| Royalty | 6% of gross sales | Item 6 — charged on revenue, not profit |
| Advertising fund | 2% of gross sales | Item 6 — brand marketing, spent at the franchisor's discretion |
| Total recurring fees | 8% of gross sales | Before rent, labor, food or debt service |
| Total initial investment | $773,392 – $1,734,462 | Item 7 — franchisor's own low/high estimate |
Site dev fee $6,500; $300/wk royalty minimum; $110/wk ad fund minimum; heavy ancillary fees.
Royalty and ad-fund percentages are charged on gross sales — an owner pays them whether or not the location is profitable.
Image Studios system size and owner turnover
| Total outlets | 129 |
| Ceased operations | 0 |
| Terminated by franchisor | 0 |
| Transferred to new owners | 3 |
| Closure rate | 0.0% of outlets |
Zero terminations or closures across 3 years; one reacquisition by franchisor in 2025 Utah.
From Item 20 of the FDD 2026. Terminations and ceased operations are the franchisor's own count of owners who stopped — the number the sales pitch leaves out.
Is Image Studios worth it? — how it compares to 47 similar franchises
| Ongoing fees | 8% of sales | lower than most (median 8%) |
| Startup cost | from $773,392 | pricier than 94% of peers |
| Disclosure honesty | Grade C | less honest than most of the category |
| Closure rate | 0.0% of outlets | better than most (median 0.0%) |
| Disclosed lawsuits | 0 | fewer than most |
Benchmarked against every hair, beauty & personal care franchise we've graded from public FDDs — the context the franchisor's pitch never gives you.
Owner take-home for a Image Studios
The franchisor's framing: Discloses 2025 revenue and estimated earnings after key expenses for 82 of 129 units, segm… We reconstruct what an owner actually keeps, from their own FDD.
- Reconstructed owner P&L — net take-home after royalty, ad fund, rent, labor & debt
- Break-even timeline + cash-on-cash ROI
- Full fee stack + required-purchase markups
- Decoded real failure / closure rate
- How it ranks vs comparable franchises
- Validation-call playbook — the exact questions to ask
See a full sample report → · 30-day guarantee
Image Studios franchise — frequently asked
- How much does a Image Studios franchise cost?
- The FDD lists a total initial investment of about $773,392–$1,734,462, including a $64,500 initial franchise fee.
- How much do Image Studios franchise owners make?
- Discloses 2025 revenue and estimated earnings after key expenses for 82 of 129 units, segmented by occupancy tier. Excludes 10 non-reporters (8 in lowest tier), understates costs by using old 5.5% royalty rate, and omits owner salary/debt service. We grade this disclosure C for honesty.
- What are the Image Studios franchise fees?
- Image Studios' FDD discloses a $64,500 initial franchise fee, a 6% royalty on gross sales, a 2% advertising-fund contribution, for roughly 8% of gross sales in recurring fees before rent, labor, or debt service. Site dev fee $6,500; $300/wk royalty minimum; $110/wk ad fund minimum; heavy ancillary fees.
- What is the Image Studios franchise profit margin?
- Image Studios does not publish a franchisee net-profit margin — almost no franchisor does. What Item 19 actually shows: Discloses 2025 revenue and estimated earnings after key expenses for 82 of 129 units, segmented by occupancy tier. Excludes 10 non-reporters (8 in lowest tier), understates costs by using old 5.5% royalty rate, and omits owner salary/debt service. Recurring fees alone take about 8% of gross sales, before rent, labor, food or debt service. Margin has to be reconstructed from the disclosure, not read off it.
- What is the Image Studios franchise failure rate?
- Zero terminations or closures across 3 years; one reacquisition by franchisor in 2025 Utah.
- How many Image Studios locations are there?
- Image Studios' FDD reports 129 total outlets, with 0 that ceased operations in the most recent reporting year and 3 transferred to new owners. Item 20 is where system health shows up before the marketing does.
- Does Image Studios have complaints or lawsuits?
- Image Studios discloses no material litigation in Item 3 of the filing we reviewed. That's a positive signal, though it covers only what the franchisor is required to report.
- Is a Image Studios franchise worth it?
- It depends on the numbers, not the pitch. Image Studios scores C on disclosure honesty, carries about 8% of sales in ongoing fees. Get the real owner take-home before you sign.
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Compare Image Studios to similar franchises
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Source: MN CARDS 35429-202602-10 (Clean FDD 2026). FranchiseValidate is independent and not affiliated with Image Studios or its franchisor. Figures are extracted from the franchisor's own public disclosure document; verify against the current FDD before any decision.