FRANCHISE·WATCH·DESK

SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA · FY1991–PRESENT · ARKANSAS

Curves for Women franchise in Arkansas: what the public record shows

Franchisees of Curves for Women in Arkansas have taken 11 SBA loans since 1991 (average $111,618), and of the 11 loans whose story has ended, 9.1% were charged off — versus 19.0% for Curves for Women nationally and 14.8% across all rateable franchise brands.

SBA loan outcomes · Arkansasvs national

Loans in AR

11

Resolved

11

Local charge-off

9.1%

National charge-off

19.0%

Source: SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA files (data.sba.gov), borrower state = AR. Charge-off rate = charged-off ÷ (charged-off + paid-in-full); open loans excluded. A local rate is published only when the resolved cohort clears our floor.

Market density · Arkansas vs nationalThin market

Businesses in this industry

225

statewide, all operators

Per 100k residents

7.3

national 11.9

Versus the country

-39%

thinner

Every business in Curves for Women's industry operating in Arkansas — franchised and independent — from the Census Bureau's County Business Patterns (2023), against 2024 population estimates. Counter-intuitively, density is not a warning: across 198 brand-state cells in our loan data, the densest quartile charges off at 5.6% versus 18.1% in the thinnest. A crowded market is usually proven demand; an empty one is often empty for a reason.

Same-sector systems with SBA loan history in Arkansas1 systems
SystemLoans in ARLocal charge-offUnits in AR
ANYTIME FITNESS; ANYTIME FITNESS EXPRESS7thin

Same sector, same state, same public records — how Curves for Women compares to the systems a buyer in Arkansas would actually be choosing between. Local rates under 10 resolved loans are marked thin, not hidden.

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