How to Start an Eye Level Learning Center Franchise in 7 Steps: Checklist

The current official U.S. recruiting page asks prospects whether they are a U.S. citizen or Green Card holder, have at least a bachelor’s degree, have at least $60,000 in liquid capital and $130,000 in net worth, and are prepared to run and market the center and work with children. The same page says a teaching background is not necessary. These are public recruiting-stage screening criteria, not a guarantee of acceptance or a substitute for Daekyo America’s current approval standards.

The 2026 FDD adds a qualification-stage criminal background check. Daekyo America provides the applicant with FBI Form FD-258 and its procedures; the applicant must arrange fingerprinting and authorize the result to be sent to Daekyo America. The FDD says signing may be postponed if the result has not arrived. Applicants should follow Daekyo America’s current instructions and verify the submission route against the official FBI FD-258 information.

For an entity, the FDD limits ownership to three owners who reside in the state of the Learning Center and requires an equity-owning Operating Principal with operational authority; each owner signs the Guaranty and Assumption of Obligations. The entity’s governing purpose must be limited to owning and operating the Eye Level Learning Center and incidental uses. Absentee ownership is not allowed: the Operating Principal—and any 50% or greater owner who is not the Operating Principal—falls under the disclosed full-time participation rule. Source: 2026 Eye Level FDD, Item 15, pp. 48–50; Franchise Agreement §§1.C and 8.E.

The FDD does not prescribe a single named “application-to-award” sequence, so the roadmap below separates verified dependencies from inferred administrative order. The federal disclosure review period belongs before signing or payment; site approval belongs before lease execution; training and physical development can proceed in parallel after signing but must both clear their opening conditions.

Sources: 2026 Eye Level FDD, Items 5, 6, 8, 9 and 11, pp. 13–14, 23, 27–44; Franchise Agreement §§2.A–2.F and 4.A. The FTC explains the federal pre-sale timing rule in its Consumer’s Guide to Buying a Franchise.

Site approval is not lease approval or territory protection. Written site approval is required before the franchisee signs a lease or other site document. The location must support exterior signage, have a lease term of at least three years and contain at least 600 square feet; the FDD says a typical center is roughly 900 to 1,200 square feet. Retail space such as a strip mall or town center is the default unless Daekyo America grants a written exception.

Daekyo America then separately reviews the lease before execution; the franchisee sends a signed copy within seven days. A discretionary temporary location may be allowed for up to 12 months after documented good-faith efforts to find permanent space. For buildout, the franchisee prepares compliant plans and uses approved architect/contractor requirements; Daekyo America reviews design compliance, not legal compliance. Applicable local permits and licenses remain the franchisee’s responsibility and vary by location, as the U.S. Small Business Administration explains.

For a first Eye Level Learning Center, the franchisee or Operating Principal and any separate Center Director must satisfactorily complete pre-opening training. The Franchise Agreement makes New Franchisee Training virtual/online by default but allows Daekyo America to choose in-person delivery. Self-Directed Learning Part 1 precedes training, and Part 2 must be completed before opening; prerequisite self-study is due at least one week before training begins. A pre-opening Business Plan is also required, but Daekyo America’s review does not endorse its projections. Up to two days of Opening Day Support is assistance, not opening authorization.

The 120-day estimate spans multiple control points. Daekyo America controls franchise, site and lease review, training standards and its written opening notice. The franchisee controls timely submissions, site search, financing, buildout, required purchases, insurance and staffing. Landlords, contractors, suppliers, insurers and authorities control separate dependencies that Daekyo America does not guarantee.

Sources: 2026 Eye Level FDD, Items 8 and 11, pp. 27–44; Franchise Agreement §§2.C, 2.F and 8.F.

The contractual opening gate has four express conditions: Daekyo America must notify the franchisee in writing that the Learning Center meets its standards and specifications; the required franchisee or Operating Principal and Center Director must satisfactorily complete training; amounts then due must be paid; and required insurance certificates must be delivered. Construction completion alone does not satisfy these conditions, and training completion alone does not create opening authorization.

Before that final gate, the franchisee also needs approved premises, required Operating Assets and Instructional Materials, designated computer systems, applicable licenses and permits, and EFT authorization. Insurance includes the disclosed $1 million per-occurrence/$2 million aggregate general-liability limits, cyber coverage, required additional-insured endorsement, and—during buildout—specified contractor/project coverage including Builder’s Risk. The opening process also includes the assigned microsite, Google Business Profile and required background checks for assistants age 18 or older.

Franchise Agreement §9.A also ties marketing to the opening period: it requires a $4,000 center-opening advertising spend under Daekyo America’s guidelines, although New Centers in Arizona, Florida, Oregon and Nevada are excluded from that contractual spend requirement. Pre-opening marketing counts only if Daekyo America elects to treat it that way.

A Transfer Learning Center follows a different path. The incoming buyer must qualify, sign the Transfer Training Agreement and complete required training before takeover; the lease must be transferable, current franchise documents must be executed as required, and center deficiencies may need correction or scheduled upgrades. The seller and transferee must work together at the center for at least one month before and one month after transfer.

For additional units, Item 22 lists no Development Agreement or Area Development Agreement, and the standard Franchise Agreement grants no right to another center. Each additional center requires another Franchise Agreement. Item 5 says a qualified multi-unit franchisee pays the separate initial franchisefee for each additional agreement when the first Franchise Agreement is signed, so approvals and opening clocks should be verified unit by unit.

Sources: 2026 Eye Level FDD, Items 5, 12, 17 and 22; Franchise Agreement §§4.A and 12.C.

Reconcile current recruiting statements with the April 8, 2026 FDD and attached Franchise Agreement, including qualification thresholds, fees, training format and state addenda. Confirm that the ownership structure satisfies the Operating Principal, guaranty, owner-count, same-state residence and participation rules. Do not sign a lease until Daekyo America has approved the site and lease terms in the required sequence.

Verify the exact Effective Date, training availability, complete-site-submission requirements, approved architect/contractor standards and evidence needed for the final written standards notice. Check local permit and inspection lead times with the relevant authorities rather than treating the 120-day estimate as a local construction schedule.

Item 20 provides current and former franchisee contacts, which can help test actual site-search, lease-review, buildout, training and authorization timing. The FTC’s Franchise Fundamentals guidance explains FDD due diligence.