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Learning Express franchise — is it worth it?
Medium risk Shrinking network Item 19 disclosed
What Learning Express's most recent Franchise Disclosure Document says about the money, the litigation, and the franchisee churn — before you wire a five- or six-figure franchise fee.
Everything below is free, read straight off Learning Express's registered filing. Weighing Learning Express against other options? Get a free shortlist of franchises that fit your budget.
Figures above are as disclosed in Learning Express's most recent FDD (registered 2020). Source: Minnesota Dept. of Commerce — CARDS franchise registrations · filing 10921-202003-03 — check it yourself. See every other Minnesota-registered franchise.
Considering Learning Express? See what else fits your budget
Tell us your budget and the industries you're open to. We'll match you with 5–10 franchises whose own FDDs fit — ranked by earnings disclosure, growth and closure rate — and email you the list. Learning Express will be on it if it fits.
How much does a Learning Express franchise make?
Learning Express is one of the franchisors that answers this on the record: its most recent FDD makes an Item 19 financial performance representation — actual unit earnings figures, disclosed by the franchisor itself. The headline figure did not machine-read cleanly from this filing, so we don't print one; Item 19 of the source FDD has the tables. See every other brand that discloses earnings in the Other franchises with disclosed Item 19 earnings ranking.
Learning Express franchise profit vs. revenue
Revenue is not profit. An Item 19 almost always reports sales — what a location takes in — not what an owner keeps. Out of that number come Learning Express's 5% royalty, the ad fund, rent, payroll, supplies and debt service. No FDD tells you a Learning Express franchise's profit, because profit depends on your site, your rent and how you run it — so treat any "Learning Express franchise profit" figure quoted elsewhere as someone's estimate, not a disclosure.
Learning Express lawsuits & legal history (FDD Item 3)
Learning Express's most recently filed Franchise Disclosure Document (2020) discloses no litigation in Item 3. That is a real signal rather than a gap: the FTC Franchise Rule requires a franchisor to disclose material litigation involving itself, its predecessors, parents, affiliates and management, so an empty Item 3 in a current filing means there was nothing it was required to report. It is worth reading alongside the churn numbers — a system can have a clean Item 3 and still be losing franchisees, which is what Item 20 shows.
Learning Express closures & failure rate
Before you sign, Learning Express will hand you a list of current owners to call as references — and they choose who's on that list. It won't include the owners who quit, got bought out, or were forced out last year. The FDD does report that number, even though the reference list leaves those people off. Below is what Learning Express's most recent filing shows, and whether it's normal for a franchise of this kind.
The closest thing an FDD has to a failure rate is Item 20 — outlet openings, closures, terminations and non-renewals, reported by the franchisor. Learning Express's latest tables show a shrinking franchised network — more units left than opened. Its franchised-outlet closure rate — closures, terminations and non-renewals against outlets — is 9.2%. Net franchised outlets moved -8 to 101 in the latest reported year.
Who owns Learning Express?
Learning Express's franchise is offered by Learning Express, Inc. — the franchisor named on the cover of its most recently filed Franchise Disclosure Document (2020), and the entity a franchisee actually signs with. That name comes straight off the filing at MN CARDS; it identifies the franchisor, not necessarily the ultimate parent company behind it.
Other franchises at a similar investment level
Anyone weighing Learning Express is really weighing it against the other brands their money could go into. These are the closest by total initial investment (FDD Item 7), each with its own FDD-based page.
Learning Express franchise — frequently asked
Who owns Learning Express — who is the franchisor?
Learning Express's most recently filed FDD (2020) names Learning Express, Inc. as the franchisor — the entity you would actually sign the franchise agreement with, as stated on the disclosure document itself. A registry filing names the franchisor, not necessarily its ultimate parent company.
How much does a Learning Express franchise cost?
Learning Express's most recently filed FDD (Item 7) puts the total estimated initial investment at a range disclosed in Item 7, with an initial franchise fee of $35,000 and a 5% royalty. That price is the franchisor's own estimate of what it takes to open, not a quote.
How much profit does a Learning Express franchise make?
Learning Express discloses unit earnings in Item 19, but that figure is revenue — sales — not profit. Royalties (5% of gross for Learning Express), the ad fund, rent, payroll and supplies all come out of it, and no FDD discloses what an owner nets. Any Learning Express franchise profit number quoted elsewhere is an estimate.
Does Learning Express disclose financial performance (Item 19)?
Yes — Learning Express reports unit-level earnings in Item 19. The headline figure did not machine-read cleanly, so check Item 19 of the source FDD for the numbers.
Are there lawsuits against Learning Express?
No — Learning Express's most recently filed FDD (2020) discloses no litigation in Item 3. Franchisors must disclose material litigation involving themselves, their predecessors, parents, affiliates and management, so an empty Item 3 is a genuine signal rather than an omission.
Is Learning Express a good franchise to buy?
Nobody can answer that from Learning Express's numbers alone — it comes down to how its investment, earnings, litigation and franchisee churn stack up against category peers and against your own budget. Our read on this filing is medium risk. Every figure behind that read is on this page for free. If you're comparing options, the free shortlist on this page matches you with 5–10 franchises that fit your budget and industry.
Get a free email when something changes on Learning Express or this category: a new FDD registration, a new lawsuit, an outlet count that shifts, or Item 19 earnings going from undisclosed to disclosed. Pulled straight from the same state registries this page is built on.