# Image One franchise: cost, 10% royalty, how the commercial cleaning model works, and the independent option

> An Image One franchise is a commercial cleaning business run under the Image One brand of Image One Facility Solutions Inc., a franchisor based in Rolling Meadows, Illinois, founded in 2010 and franchising since 2011. Entrepreneur’s directory lists a $39,750 initial franchise fee, a $49,900 to $72,049 total investment, a 10% royalty, a 2% ad royalty and 22 units. Image One’s own franchise site adds a further 5% to 10% of revenue for administration, marketing and payment assurance.

Published 2026-11-06 by Broombook · Start your cleaning business · 10 min read  
Canonical page: https://broombook.com/guides/image-one-franchise

## Key takeaways

- Entrepreneur lists a $39,750 franchise fee, a $49,900 to $72,049 total investment, $50,000 in cash and net worth, and a 15-year term for Image One.
- Entrepreneur lists a 10% royalty, a 2% ad royalty and a $100 per month technology fee; Image One’s own site says a further 5% to 10% of revenue goes to administration, a marketing fund and an optional payment assurance program.
- Image One Facility Solutions Inc. was co-founded by Tim Conn and Mike Schuchman after they owned a unit in another national janitorial franchise.
- The system had 22 units with 10% growth per Entrepreneur, so Item 20 and calls to most of the owner list are practical.
- In our hypothetical 5-year example, the franchise path costs about $133,410 more in fees than running the same commercial cleaning business independently.

## What is Image One and who owns it?

Image One is a commercial and office cleaning franchise whose franchisor is Image One Facility Solutions Inc., headquartered at 3601 Algonquin Road in Rolling Meadows, Illinois. Its locations clean offices, car dealerships, industrial facilities and other commercial buildings, and the brand markets a proprietary Intelliclean program for tracking every scheduled task so clients are not hit by missed cleans ([Image One](https://www.imageoneusa.com/)).

The company’s own history page says co-founder Tim began running a janitorial company at 14 to service a family-owned office building, partnered with Mike Schuchman in 2001 to own a unit of a national janitorial franchise, and the two then co-founded Image One to improve on that experience ([Image One: About us](https://www.imageoneusa.com/about-us/)). Entrepreneur’s directory lists the parent as Image One Facility Solutions Inc., Tim Conn as president, 19 employees at headquarters, founded in 2010 and franchising since 2011, with 22 units and 10% growth ([Entrepreneur Franchise 500](https://www.entrepreneur.com/franchises/directory/image-one-usa/335016)).

So this is a small, founder-run franchisor, not a brand inside a private equity portfolio. That cuts both ways: decisions are made by the people who built the system and who have run a janitorial franchise unit themselves, and the support staff is small, so your experience depends heavily on a few people. Ask who you would call on a bad day and how many owners they support.

## How does the Image One model work?

You license the brand and system, hire and manage cleaning crews, and service commercial accounts on contracted schedules, usually after hours. The franchising page sells the model on three points: low start-up costs, a well-established business model and consistent revenue, with a training program and ongoing support ([Image One: Franchising](https://www.imageoneusa.com/franchising/)).

What the public pages describe:

- **Services.** Janitorial services, facility cleaning, disinfecting, green cleaning, commercial floor care, deep cleaning, exterior cleaning, move-in and move-out cleaning, post-construction cleaning and building maintenance.
- **Clients.** “From small car dealerships to large industrial facilities,” with customized cleaning packages built around schedule and budget.
- **Quality system.** The Intelliclean program is described as a way to understand each facility’s requirements and track every job, with background checks on all cleaners and a 100% satisfaction guarantee.
- **Local ownership.** Clients are routed to the nearest location by postal code; each location is a franchisee.

What the franchisor’s pages do not spell out: how new accounts are sold (by you, by the franchisor, or both), whether the franchisor bills and collects (its fee page mentions an optional payment assurance program), and whether unit owners buy a starting volume of accounts the way some janitorial systems sell them. Those three points decide whether a 10% royalty is a bargain or a burden, so get them in writing from Items 11 and 12 of the FDD and from owners.

## How much does an Image One franchise cost?

Entrepreneur’s directory lists a $39,750 initial franchise fee, a total initial investment of $49,900 to $72,049, a $50,000 net worth requirement and a $50,000 cash requirement ([Entrepreneur](https://www.entrepreneur.com/franchises/directory/image-one-usa/335016)). The franchisor’s separate franchise sales site, imageonefranchise.com, posts the same fee and range in an Item 7 style table and says owners pay a 10% royalty plus “a further 5%-10%” of gross monthly revenue for administration, a marketing fund and an optional payment assurance program ([Image One: The investment](https://imageonefranchise.com/the-investment/)). Check every figure against the FDD.

| Item | Figure listed | Source |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Initial franchise fee | $39,750 | [Entrepreneur](https://www.entrepreneur.com/franchises/directory/image-one-usa/335016) |
| Total initial investment | $49,900 to $72,049 | [Entrepreneur](https://www.entrepreneur.com/franchises/directory/image-one-usa/335016) |
| Net worth and cash requirement | $50,000 each | [Entrepreneur](https://www.entrepreneur.com/franchises/directory/image-one-usa/335016) |
| Royalty | 10% | [Entrepreneur](https://www.entrepreneur.com/franchises/directory/image-one-usa/335016) |
| Ad royalty | 2% | [Entrepreneur](https://www.entrepreneur.com/franchises/directory/image-one-usa/335016) |
| Technology fee | $100 per month | [Entrepreneur](https://www.entrepreneur.com/franchises/directory/image-one-usa/335016) |
| Term of agreement | 15 years | [Entrepreneur](https://www.entrepreneur.com/franchises/directory/image-one-usa/335016) |
| Franchisor’s own posted figures | Same fee and range; 10% royalty plus a further 5% to 10% for administration, marketing fund and optional payment assurance | [Image One: The investment](https://imageonefranchise.com/the-investment/) |

How to read the figures:

- **The fee is most of the investment.** $39,750 of a $49,900 minimum means about $10,000 covers equipment, insurance, vehicle, supplies and working capital at the low end. That is thin for a business that pays crews before clients pay invoices, often on net 30 terms. Plan for the high end and add your own living expenses.
- **12% or more of revenue is a lot.** A 10% royalty plus a 2% ad royalty, before the further 5% to 10% Image One’s own page lists, is higher than the residential maid brands (The Cleaning Authority posts 6% plus a 2% brand fund under its 2026 disclosure document, though [Entrepreneur](https://www.entrepreneur.com/franchises/cleaningauthoritythe/282211) still lists 4% to 6% plus 1%; Molly Maid 3% to 6.5%). Commercial cleaning margins are modest, so what the royalty buys (sales, billing, collections, support) decides whether it works.
- **A 15-year term** is long. Read Item 17 on termination and transfer before you sign.
- **Discounts.** Image One’s veteran page offers 20% off the $39,750 fee ([Image One: Veterans](https://imageonefranchise.com/the-opportunity/veteran-franchise-opportunities/)), and Entrepreneur also lists $5,000 in monthly recurring revenue for one year or 0% financing as veteran options; confirm which applies in Item 5.

For a comparison with maid brands and the overall fee structure, see our guide to [cleaning franchise costs and royalties](https://broombook.com/guides/cleaning-franchise).

## Does Image One publish franchisee earnings?

Its franchise sales site quotes three averages from its 2024 Item 19: $157k in average annual gross billing in year one, $16.3k in average monthly gross profit, and $456.3k in average annual gross billing in 2023 for full-time affiliates ([Image One franchise site](https://imageonefranchise.com/)). Ask for the Item 19 itself to see how many owners each average covers and what “gross profit” subtracts. Under the FTC Franchise Rule, any claim about sales, income or profit must be made in Item 19 of the disclosure document, with a reasonable basis and written substantiation available to you on request; a franchisor that makes no such claim must say so in Item 19 ([16 CFR 436.5(s)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-16/chapter-I/subchapter-D/part-436)).

Averages hide the spread, so build your own as well. A worked example with hypothetical numbers: an office account at 5,000 square feet cleaned five nights a week at $0.10 per square foot per month bills $500 a month, or $6,000 a year. Ten such accounts are $60,000 a year; fifty are $300,000. At a 10% royalty and 2% ad royalty, every $6,000 account sends $720 a year to the franchisor before labor, supplies, insurance and the technology fee. Our [commercial cleaning calculator](https://broombook.com/tools/commercial-cleaning-calculator) prices a building by square footage and frequency so you can test the accounts in your area.

Then ask owners for the real numbers: how many accounts they run, average monthly billing per account, how long accounts stay, and how many crews that takes.

## Which FDD items should you read before signing?

The franchisor must furnish its current disclosure document at least 14 calendar days before you sign a binding agreement or pay anything ([16 CFR 436.2](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-16/chapter-I/subchapter-D/part-436)). For a small commercial cleaning system like Image One, the items that matter most:

- **Item 1, the franchisor.** Image One Facility Solutions Inc., its officers and their experience, including the founders’ earlier janitorial franchise.
- **Item 3, litigation, and Item 4, bankruptcy.** For the franchisor and its officers.
- **Items 5 and 6, fees.** The $39,750 fee, the 10% royalty, the 2% ad royalty, the technology fee, and any fees for accounts the franchisor sources or bills.
- **Item 7, initial investment.** The table behind $49,900 to $72,049, and how many months of additional funds it includes.
- **Item 11, obligations of the franchisor.** Training hours, the Intelliclean system, and whether the franchisor sells accounts or handles billing.
- **Item 12, territory.** Whether you have one, and whether the franchisor can place another unit or a corporate location nearby.
- **Item 19.** Earnings claims, or the statement that none are made.
- **Item 20.** With 22 units, the three-year table of openings, closures, transfers and terminations is short enough to read every line, and the owner list is short enough to call every owner.
- **Item 21, financial statements.** A small franchisor’s audited financials show whether it depends on new franchise fees to operate.

Have a franchise attorney and an accountant review the FDD and the agreement. This guide is not legal or financial advice.

## What do public records show about Image One?

Our search of readable news and court records on October 28, 2026 found no reported lawsuit between Image One Facility Solutions and its franchisees, and no regulator action. That is not proof there is none; Item 3 of the FDD is the authoritative list, and the state franchise regulators in the registration states keep filings.

What the public record does contain:

- **Rankings.** Entrepreneur ranks Image One #73 among top franchises for less than $50,000 in 2026 and #34 among top franchises for veterans in 2025, and lists 22 units with 10% growth ([Entrepreneur](https://www.entrepreneur.com/franchises/directory/image-one-usa/335016)).
- **Scale.** Twenty-two units after 15 years of franchising is a small system. That can mean careful growth or slow growth; Item 20 shows which.
- **Industry context.** Commercial cleaning franchising as a category has drawn lawsuits over whether unit franchisees are really independent businesses or misclassified employees, most prominently against large janitorial systems. Nothing we found connects Image One to such a case, but the way a commercial system sells and bills accounts is exactly what those cases turn on, so read Items 11 and 12 with that in mind.

## What should you ask current and former Image One owners?

With a 22-unit system, call most of the owners in Item 20, including any who left.

1. Who sells your accounts: you, the franchisor, or both? What share of your billing came from accounts the franchisor sourced?
2. Who invoices and collects? How long do clients take to pay, and who carries the receivable?
3. What did you spend before your first profitable month, compared with $49,900 to $72,049?
4. What is your monthly billing now, how many accounts is that, and how many crews?
5. What does the 10% royalty buy you that you could not buy yourself?
6. What does the technology fee cover, and does the Intelliclean system actually run your schedules and inspections?
7. How do you find and keep night-shift cleaners, and does the franchisor help?
8. How responsive is a 19-person head office, and who do you call?
9. For former owners: why did you leave, and what did exiting a 15-year agreement require?
10. Would you buy again at today’s fee?

## Image One vs going independent: a 5-year example

In our hypothetical example, an Image One owner pays about $153,750 to the franchisor over five years, and an independent commercial cleaner with the same revenue spends about $20,340 on software and matching marketing. The gap, about $133,410 or $26,682 a year, is what the brand, the Intelliclean system, training and any sales support must earn back.

Assumptions: both businesses reach the same revenue, modest figures for a one- or two-crew commercial operation. We use the $39,750 fee, the 10% royalty, the 2% ad royalty and the $100 monthly technology fee listed by Entrepreneur, applied to gross revenue (check Item 6). Image One’s own page lists a further 5% to 10% of revenue for administration, a marketing fund and optional payment assurance, so treat the gap as a floor. The independent owner pays for Broombook’s Pro plan at $39 a month and spends the same 2% of revenue on their own marketing.

| Example year | Revenue (assumed) | Royalty at 10% | Ad royalty at 2% | Technology fee |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Year 1 | $60,000 | $6,000 | $1,200 | $1,200 |
| Year 2 | $120,000 | $12,000 | $2,400 | $1,200 |
| Year 3 | $180,000 | $18,000 | $3,600 | $1,200 |
| Year 4 | $240,000 | $24,000 | $4,800 | $1,200 |
| Year 5 | $300,000 | $30,000 | $6,000 | $1,200 |
| **5-year total** | **$900,000** | **$90,000** | **$18,000** | **$6,000** |

| Over five years (example) | Image One | Independent |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Franchise fee | $39,750 | $0 |
| Royalty | $90,000 | $0 |
| Marketing (ad royalty, or the independent’s own 2%) | $18,000 | $18,000 |
| Scheduling, inspection and billing software | $6,000 (technology fee) | $2,340 |
| **Total** | **$153,750** | **$20,340** |

The franchise gives you a name that has existed since 2010, a task-tracking system, training, and possibly help winning accounts. The independent path keeps the 12% of revenue, lets you bid any building at any price, and starts with far less than $49,900: insurance, a janitorial bond, equipment and software. In commercial cleaning, accounts are won by bidding and relationships, which an independent can do directly; our guides on [how to start a commercial cleaning business](https://broombook.com/guides/how-to-start-a-commercial-cleaning-business) and [winning commercial cleaning contracts](https://broombook.com/guides/commercial-cleaning-contracts) cover both.

The scheduling, checklist, reminder and billing side of the technology fee is available to independents directly. Broombook gives an independent commercial cleaning company recurring job scheduling, a crew app with checklists and clock-in, automatic reminders, and card-on-file billing. It is free for an owner with up to 2 cleaners, or $39 a month on Pro for a bigger crew, with no credit card to start. It does not sell you accounts or give you a brand, and it does not do invoices with net terms, which large commercial clients often require; see the [features page](https://broombook.com/features) for what it does and does not do.

## Frequently asked questions

### How much does an Image One franchise cost?

Entrepreneur’s directory lists a $39,750 initial franchise fee and a total initial investment of $49,900 to $72,049, with $50,000 in cash and net worth required. Image One’s own franchise site posts the same fee and range; confirm every figure in Items 5 and 7 of the FDD.

### What royalty does Image One charge?

Entrepreneur lists a 10% royalty, a 2% ad royalty and a $100 per month technology fee on a 15-year agreement. Image One’s own site says a further 5% to 10% of revenue goes to administration, a marketing fund and an optional payment assurance program. That is higher than most residential maid franchises; ask what sales, billing and support it includes.

### Who owns Image One Facility Solutions?

Image One Facility Solutions Inc. is a founder-run franchisor in Rolling Meadows, Illinois. Its about page says co-founders Tim (Conn, listed as president by Entrepreneur) and Mike Schuchman started it after owning a unit in another national janitorial franchise. Entrepreneur lists it as founded in 2010 and franchising since 2011.

### How many Image One franchises are there?

Entrepreneur lists 22 units with 10% growth. Item 20 of the FDD gives the exact count of franchised and company-owned locations by state for the last three years.

### Does Image One publish how much franchisees make?

Its franchise site quotes its 2024 Item 19: $157k average annual gross billing in year one, $16.3k average monthly gross profit, and $456.3k average annual gross billing in 2023 for full-time affiliates. Read the full Item 19 to see how many owners each average covers, and ask owners for monthly billing, number of accounts and account retention.

### Is an Image One franchise worth it compared with starting a commercial cleaning business independently?

It depends on what the royalty buys. In our hypothetical 5-year example, the franchise costs about $133,410 more in fees than an independent business with the same revenue, about $26,682 a year. If the franchisor sources and bills accounts for you, that may be worth it; if you sell your own accounts, probably not.

## Sources

- [Image One: Commercial and office cleaning (home page, checked October 28, 2026)](https://www.imageoneusa.com/)
- [Image One: About us (founders and history)](https://www.imageoneusa.com/about-us/)
- [Image One: Franchising](https://www.imageoneusa.com/franchising/)
- [Image One franchise site: home page with Item 19 averages (checked November 7, 2026)](https://imageonefranchise.com/)
- [Image One franchise site: The investment (Item 7 table, royalty and other fees)](https://imageonefranchise.com/the-investment/)
- [Image One franchise site: Veteran franchise opportunities](https://imageonefranchise.com/the-opportunity/veteran-franchise-opportunities/)
- [Entrepreneur Franchise 500: Image One franchise information](https://www.entrepreneur.com/franchises/directory/image-one-usa/335016)
- [Entrepreneur: The Cleaning Authority franchise information](https://www.entrepreneur.com/franchises/cleaningauthoritythe/282211)
- [eCFR: 16 CFR Part 436, Disclosure Requirements Concerning Franchising](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-16/chapter-I/subchapter-D/part-436)

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Broombook is scheduling, online booking and crew software for residential cleaning businesses. More guides for cleaning business owners: https://broombook.com/guides