Profitable kids' coding school in Tokyo, 50 students, 5.5 years running

What is for sale

This is a children's programming school in Tokyo that has run for over five years, teaching robotics and Minecraft-based coding lessons on a monthly tuition model, mainly to primary school students. It currently has about 50 enrolled students and is profitable. The seller, a franchise headquarters operating around 20 schools, is selling because it is consolidating resources into new education ventures after the classroom's manager decided to leave.

Because this is an asset sale of the business (not the company), the buyer takes over the equipment, student contracts and know-how, but must set up their own operating entity, lease and franchise agreement in their own name.

What is included

• Equipment and fittings (PCs, robot teaching materials, furniture, signage, interior fit-out, estimated value about ¥2,000,000)
• Existing contracts with about 50 enrolled students
• Operating know-how and curriculum
• Franchise materials and operating system (royalty-only, no joining fee after transfer)
• Classroom inventory
• Support access to a nearby directly-run franchise school

Strengths (as the seller states them)

• About 50 existing enrolled students mean no need to build a customer base from zero
• Franchise joining fee waived after transfer, only ongoing royalty applies
• Curriculum, teaching materials and operating systems provided by the franchise head office, suitable for owners with no teaching experience
• Nearby directly-run sister school available for operational advice and support

Wrinkles a careful buyer would ask about

• Buyer should confirm the scope and process for transferring existing student contracts
• Buyer should check the condition and details of the equipment and fittings included in the sale
• Royalty terms and conditions for continued use of franchise materials and systems should be confirmed before signing
• Current costs include a ¥250,000 monthly salary for one staff member, which affects how profit is calculated for a new owner-operator
• Net assets are not disclosed publicly and require member registration to view
• Seller has indicated a wish to stay on as manager after sale, which should be clarified with the buyer's own plans

Paying for it

If you stay overseas. No Japanese bank will lend to a new company whose director lives abroad. The realistic stack is your own cash plus asking the owner to take part of the price over 2 to 3 years. That one question is in every Deal Pack.

If you move to Japan. On a visa that lets you run a business, Japan Finance Corporation lends up to ¥72M at about 1 to 2 percent for exactly this. Once you have a Japanese company, the government pays two-thirds of due diligence and registered-broker costs, up to about ¥8M (round 16 closes 6 Nov 2026). You start a bank relationship from zero.

What this listing says. Nothing stated about debts, guarantees or payment terms, though the seller notes that after transfer the buyer pays only an ongoing franchise royalty with no joining fee.

Full rundown, with the catches: japandealflow.com/money