SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA · FY1991–PRESENT · ILLINOIS
The Learning Experience franchise in Illinois: what the public record shows
Franchisees of The Learning Experience in Illinois have taken 11 SBA loans since 1991 (average $586,700)— too few resolved loans in-state to publish a local failure rate (we require a resolved cohort, never extrapolate), so the brand's national rate of 6.7% is the better guide.
Loans in IL
11
Resolved
8
Local charge-off
thin
National charge-off
6.7%
Source: SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA files (data.sba.gov), borrower state = IL. 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 of 30 loans.
Businesses in this industry
3,436
statewide, all operators
Per 100k residents
27
national 26.5
Versus the country
+2%
denser
Every business in The Learning Experience's industry operating in Illinois — 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.
Avg weekly wage, this industry
$683
Illinois, BLS QCEW 2025
National average
$645
same industry, all states
Versus the country
+6%
costlier to staff
What The Learning Experience's industry actually pays workers in Illinois, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (2025), employment-weighted across counties. This is a real cost signal independent of the FDD — a market can look demand-rich above and still carry a margin headwind here if local wages run hot for the sector.
| System | Loans in IL | Local charge-off | Units in IL |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kiddie Academy | 44 | 0.0% | — |
| The Goddard School | 36 | 0.0% | — |
| SYLVAN LEARNING | 19 | 20.0% | 11 |
| Goddard Early Learning Center | 17 | 7.1% | — |
| Huntington Learning Center | 16 | 30.8% | — |
| PRIMROSE SCHOOLS | 16 | thin | 9 |
| Goldfish Swim School | 13 | thin | — |
| College Hunks Hauling Junk | 8 | thin | 7 |
| School of Rock | 8 | thin | — |
Same sector, same state, same public records — how The Learning Experience compares to the systems a buyer in Illinois would actually be choosing between. Local rates under 10 resolved loans are marked thin, not hidden.
A broker is paid by the franchisor to place you. I'm paid by you — and the job is pressure-testing The Learning Experience's numbers, including talking you out of a bad deal.