For a one-territory, mobile-only Poolwerx business, a defensible 2025 scenario range is approximately $15,075 to $97,845, with a central model near $38,929. These are independent estimates of pre-tax owner-operator benefit—not official Poolwerx profit figures—and part of the amount may compensate the owner for doing day-to-day operating work.
What does Poolwerx Item 19 actually report?
Poolwerx Item 19 reports Gross Revenue, not owner earnings. For the 2025 one-territory mobile-only cohort, the official low was $82,943, the median was $183,840, the average was $188,847, and the high was $404,730. Ten franchisees were in that cohort, and four of ten met or exceeded the average.
The FDD defines Gross Revenue broadly as revenue derived from the Franchised Business, subject to specified exclusions such as bona fide returns and taxes remitted to taxing authorities. It does not permit payment-processing fees to be deducted from Gross Revenue. The franchisor also states that franchisee reports were not independently audited or verified. Source: 2026 Poolwerx Franchise Disclosure Document, Item 19, pp. 52–56.
How is the annual earnings range calculated?
The estimate applies a transparent margin sensitivity to the observed Item 19 low, median, and high revenue figures. The revenue anchors are official Poolwerx figures; the margins are independent assumptions centered on a 21.175% IRS net-income-to-receipts ratio for Administrative and Support Services sole proprietorships.
- Conservative scenario
- $82,943 observed low revenue × 18.175% margin = $15,075 owner-operator benefit.
- Base scenario
- $183,840 observed median revenue × 21.175% margin = $38,929 owner-operator benefit.
- Upside scenario
- $404,730 observed high revenue × 24.175% margin = $97,845 owner-operator benefit.
- Margin sensitivity
- The conservative and upside margins are the IRS proxy minus and plus three percentage points. This spread is analytical, not FDD-reported.
- Tax and debt treatment
- Personal income taxes and financing principal payments are excluded. The IRS net-income proxy may already reflect business interest and depreciation, so it is not identical to cash flow or EBITDA.
| Scenario | FDD Gross Revenue anchor | Applied margin | Estimated owner-operator benefit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative: observed cohort low | $82,943 | 18.175% | $15,075 |
| Base: observed cohort median | $183,840 | 21.175% | $38,929 |
| Upside: observed cohort high | $404,730 | 24.175% | $97,845 |
Observed 2025 Poolwerx revenue anchors combined with an IRS-based margin sensitivity
Interpretation: Sales volume is the dominant modeled driver. The observed cohort high produces more than six times the estimated benefit of the observed low, even before considering differences in labor efficiency, route density, product mix, or vehicle utilization.
Sources: 2026 Poolwerx Franchise Disclosure Document, Item 19, pp. 52–56; IRS Nonfarm Sole Proprietorship Statistics, 2023 Table 2. Values are independent calculations rounded to the nearest dollar.
How much does owner involvement change the result?
Owner involvement can change the economic result by roughly the cost of replacing the owner's labor. The Poolwerx FDD permits either the owner or an approved Manager to supervise the business, but one of them must personally supervise operations while the business is open. A manager-run structure therefore adds a real labor cost; it is not automatically passive ownership.
The chart below subtracts a $48,070 annual wage proxy from each owner-operator scenario. That figure is the May 2025 BLS median wage for First-Line Supervisors of Housekeeping and Janitorial Workers within Services to Buildings and Dwellings. It is not Poolwerx-specific and does not include employer payroll taxes, workers' compensation, benefits, recruiting, or turnover costs.
Same revenue scenarios, with a $48,070 annual manager-wage proxy deducted
Interpretation: At the observed low and median mobile-only revenue levels, the scenario does not fully support the wage proxy for a dedicated manager. The observed high can support that wage in the model, leaving about $49,775 before personal taxes and financing principal—but before manager payroll burden and benefits.
Sources: Owner-operator scenarios above; BLS May 2025 OEWS national industry-specific wage tables, NAICS 561700 and SOC 37-1011. Manager-run figures are independent calculations.
How much of revenue is committed to Poolwerx fees and required marketing?
At current terms, the modeled one-territory mobile burden is about 14.3% to 20.9% of the three revenue anchors before ordinary operating costs. The percentage declines as revenue rises because the $3,000 annual technology minimum and the modeled fixed charges are spread across more sales.
The calculation includes the 7% Royalty Fee, 3% Brand Fund Contribution, minimum 1% Local Area Marketing, the greater of 2% of Gross Revenue or $250 per month for technology, the current $3,525 Convention Fee, and the current $1,650 Local Cooperative amount. The Local Cooperative charge applies when a cooperative is established, and stated amounts may change under the FDD terms. Source: 2026 Poolwerx Franchise Disclosure Document, Item 6, pp. 6–12.
| Mobile revenue anchor | Modeled current FDD charges | Annual amount | Share of revenue |
|---|---|---|---|
| $82,943 observed low | 11% revenue charges + $3,000 technology floor + $5,175 current fixed charges | $17,299 | 20.9% |
| $183,840 observed median | 13% revenue charges + $5,175 current fixed charges | $29,074 | 15.8% |
| $404,730 observed high | 13% revenue charges + $5,175 current fixed charges | $57,790 | 14.3% |
No double subtraction: these FDD-charge calculations are shown as a reasonableness and sensitivity check. They are not subtracted again from the IRS all-in margin scenario because the IRS dataset does not isolate franchise fees, and deducting them twice could understate the result.
Why is there no single earnings number for the retail-plus-mobile format?
The retail-plus-mobile revenue figures are materially different and cannot be converted into a reliable owner-earnings number with the same service-business margin. Item 19 reports a $1,560,461 median Gross Revenue for all 14 qualifying franchisees operating both a Retail Location and Mobile Unit, but those owners controlled different numbers of Territories. The one-territory retail-plus-mobile subgroup contained only two franchisees, with a $1,617,160 median and average.
Retail operations add product cost, store payroll, rent, utilities, inventory, shrink, merchant fees, and other occupancy expenses that are not disclosed in Item 19. The 2026 FDD also requires a franchisee that starts with a Mobile Unit to develop a Retail Location within 36 months unless a revised date is approved in writing. Therefore, the one-territory mobile estimate is a clean early-format comparison, not a permanent system-wide earnings forecast.
How broad is the official Item 19 population?
The full Item 19 disclosure included 31 qualifying franchisees operating 85 Territories. Poolwerx had 45 open and operating franchisees with 107 Territories at December 31, 2025. Twelve franchisees that opened during 2025 and two non-operational franchisees were excluded. Each franchisee was treated as one Item 19 “outlet,” even when that owner operated multiple Territories.
Item 20 uses Territories rather than franchisees as the outlet count. It shows 89 franchised Territories at the start of 2025 and 107 at year-end, with 23 openings, one termination, four non-renewals, and five transfers during the year. Source: 2026 Poolwerx Franchise Disclosure Document, Item 20, pp. 57–61.
What could move actual Poolwerx owner earnings outside this range?
The largest unresolved uncertainty is the actual expense structure of a comparable Poolwerx franchisee. Item 19 does not disclose chemicals and inventory cost, direct labor, payroll burden, route density, vehicle count, fuel, insurance, merchant fees, bad debt, rent, store payroll, repairs, or owner compensation. A broad IRS margin cannot reproduce those economics precisely.
- Sales mix: recurring pool service, repairs, remodel work, equipment, chemicals, and retail merchandise can carry different gross margins.
- Route density and van productivity: Item 19 reports a 2025 median Gross Revenue per van of $148,283 and an average of $201,035 across all 31 qualifying franchisees, but it does not report profit per van.
- Labor model: technician utilization, overtime, recruiting, workers' compensation, and whether the owner performs management or field work can materially change residual income.
- Scale and format: one Territory, multiple Territories, mobile-only operations, and a Retail Location plus Mobile Unit are different populations and should not be blended.
- Capital and financing: vehicle replacement, inventory growth, store build-out, interest, and principal payments affect owner cash even when accounting profit is positive.
What should a buyer verify before relying on the estimate?
A buyer should replace every broad assumption with comparable franchisee records before making an investment decision. The franchisor states that written substantiation for Item 19 is available on reasonable request, and Item 20 identifies current and former franchisees for direct diligence.
- Request the written substantiation for the 2025 Item 19 tables and confirm how invoices, rebates, transfers, partial-year activity, and non-operational periods were handled.
- Interview one-territory mobile-only owners near the $82,943 low, $183,840 median, and $404,730 high—not only top performers.
- Ask for operating statements that separate service labor, chemicals and inventory, vehicle expenses, insurance, merchant fees, local marketing, technology, royalty, Brand Fund, and owner compensation.
- Confirm whether the owner works as manager, dispatcher, salesperson, technician, or bookkeeper, and normalize the accounts for a market wage for each role.
- Model the required Retail Location separately, including rent, store payroll, inventory turns,product gross margin, shrink, and the 2% retail Local Area Marketing minimum.
- Separate business operating results from financing principal and personal income taxes; neither is estimated in this article.
What is the strongest defensible Poolwerx owner-earnings range?
The strongest defensible range for a one-territory, mobile-only owner-operator is approximately $15,000 to $98,000 annually, with a central scenario near $39,000. It is a limited-confidence, FDD-anchored scenario—not an official Poolwerx earnings disclosure. The largest driver is Gross Revenue; the largest unresolved uncertainty is the actual Poolwerx expense and owner-labor structure.
A manager-run operation may produce substantially less residual income: using the selected wage proxy, the conservative and base scenarios are negative after manager wages, while the upside scenario leaves roughly $50,000 before personal taxes, financing principal, and full employer burden. The decisive diligence step is to obtain Item 19 substantiation and compare normalized profit-and-loss statements from franchisees with the same Territory count, format, maturity, van count, sales mix, and owner role.