Maaco

Maaco's franchise fee is $45,000 for a first center, $22,500 for a second, and $20,000 for third-plus locations. Additional required upfront fees include a $10,000 training and opening fee and a $15,000 initial advertising contribution — bringing the effective fee at signing to $70,000 before any real estate or equipment costs.

Total investment varies dramatically by facility type. The most common scenario — converting an existing auto body shop — runs $196K to $644K. The $448K midpoint is a reasonable planning figure. Key cost drivers include equipment, signage, and computer systems ($32.5K–$307K, a huge range driven by how much shop equipment the existing facility has), construction and improvements ($25K–$150K), and three months of working capital ($50K–$75K). If you're building ground-up or converting a non-automotive space, costs jump to $728K–$3.99M — a fundamentally different investment decision.

New centers benefit from a reduced royalty of 4% for the first six months (versus the standard 8%), which provides meaningful ramp-up relief. After that, the 8% royalty on gross receipts is the second-highest in the automotive repair category. The marketing fee adds $1,200/week flat (approximately $62,400/year) — not a percentage, a flat weekly assessment regardless of your revenue level. At $1.35M median revenue, that flat fee represents about 4.6% of sales in marketing costs alone. Technology runs $799–$973/month for the CCC One management software.

The combined burden of 8% royalty + $62,400 flat marketing fee at $1.35M median revenue is approximately $170K/year — roughly 12.6% of median gross revenue in franchise fees and marketing.

Maaco discloses Item 19 data for 317 qualifying centers (open 2+ years, full production) in 2024.

FY 2024 performance: - All 317 centers: average $1,615,904, median $1,348,304 - Top 50% by revenue (159 centers): average $2,226,532 - Bottom 50% by revenue (158 centers): average $1,001,411

Maaco also provides ramp-up data for centers opened in 2021: - Year 1 average: $866,382 - Year 2 average: $1,341,794 - Year 3 average: $1,301,437

This ramp data is useful: year one averages well below the mature system, but operators who survive the ramp reach $1.3M+ by year two. The relatively stable year-three number suggests $1.3M is a natural plateau for many locations unless actively scaling.

No expense data is disclosed in Item 19. Maaco is a paint-and-body shop; gross margins depend heavily on materials (paint, supplies) and labor. Industry benchmarks for collision repair run 30–40% gross margin after materials, with 15–20% EBITDA after labor and overhead. At $1.35M median revenue and a 17% EBITDA estimate, operating profit before franchise fees would be approximately $230K. After 8% royalty ($108K) and $62.4K marketing, that leaves roughly $60K in owner income — modest for a $400K investment and direct owner-operator involvement. Top operators at $2.2M average revenue would produce far more attractive returns.

Maaco's unit count trend is a concern: the system lost 13 net units in 2022, 22 in 2023, and 13 in 2024, declining from 411 locations in early 2022 to 363 at year-end 2024 — a 12% contraction in three years. New openings have been minimal (just 6 per year in 2022–2024), while closures have run 18–28 per year. The transfer market is active (16–19 per year), suggesting existing operators are selling rather than operators exiting entirely — which means the business is valuable enough to sell, but operators are choosing to exit ownership.

Maaco was founded in 1972 and acquired by Driven Brands in 2012 (same parent as Meineke, Take 5, and other automotive franchises). Driven Brands provides operational infrastructure and supply chain scale, which is a real benefit. But the system's contraction under that ownership suggests the unit economics for new franchisees may not be as attractive as the revenue numbers imply, given the fee structure.

The flat $1,200/week marketing fee is the most distinctive fee structure in the automotive category. It doesn't scale with revenue — which helps high-volume operators but punishes lower-volume ones. A center doing $700K per year pays $62,400 in marketing fees, or 8.9% of revenue, in addition to the 8% royalty. That's a combined 16.9% of revenue in franchise and marketing fees before rent, labor, materials, or anything else.

The Maaco-assisted sale commission (10% of gross price or $30,000, whichever is greater) means if you sell your center with the franchisor's help, you'll pay at least $30,000 off the top. At typical auto body shop valuations, this is a meaningful exit cost.

This is a hands-on business requiring direct owner involvement, or a trusted manager on-site. Auto body painting is a skilled trade; the quality of your paint technicians directly drives your customer satisfaction and repeat business. Labor recruitment and retention in skilled trades is a persistent operational challenge. Validate local labor market conditions before selecting a market.