Blue Eagle InvestigationsFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Blue Eagle Investigations franchise requires a total initial investment of $100K – $166K, including a $100K franchise fee and an ongoing 20.0% royalty[2]. The 2024 FDD does not disclose unit-level revenue (no Item 19). Verdict grade: F. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2024 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $100K – $166K
- 53rd pct Financial Ser…
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- 30th pct Financial Ser…
- Royalty
- 20.0%
- 32nd pct Financial Ser…
- Units
- 17
- 25th pct Financial Ser…
- SBA default
- N/A
Quick verdict · Financial Services · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Financial Services avg · No shading = within ±15% · Red = >15% below avg · Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a)
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Not financial advice. Methodology
Franchised units fell from 16 to 12 over 3 years. Investigate why operators are leaving.
The franchisor's auditor raised doubt about continued operations. This is a serious risk signal.
Bottom line
- Total investment $100K – $166K including a $100K franchise fee, 20.0% ongoing royalty.
- No Item 19 financial performance data disclosed. The franchisor chose not to publish revenue figures.
- Verdict F (Bottom Quintile) with a risk score of 100/100.
- Auditor disclosed a going-concern note, which flagged doubt about the franchisor's ability to continue operations. Verify against the latest FDD.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- Blue Eagle Franchising, LLC
- Parent company
- Blue Eagle Investigations, Inc.
- CEO title
- President
- Stu Macfarlane
- CEO experience
- 29 yrs
- Years in role or industry
- Founder active
- Yes
- Original founder still leading the business
- Incorporated in
- KS
- HQ
- 6709 W 119th St., #125, Overland Park, KS 66209
- Auditor
- Agler & Gaeddert, Chartered
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $65K
- vs $131K prior year
- ⚠ Going-concern note
- Disclosed in FDD 2024
- Status as of 2024; may have been resolved in a later filing we don't yet have.
Overview
About
Blue Eagle Investigations is a private investigation and security services franchise. Franchisees typically conduct investigations (background checks, surveillance, fraud investigation, corporate intelligence) and provide security consultation services to corporate and individual clients. Operations are office-based with field work for surveillance and undercover assignments.
- CEO
- Stu Macfarlane
- Headquarters
- KS
- Founded
- 2018
- FDD year
- 2024
- States available
- 17
FDD Item 7 · 2024 filing · 13 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Feenot refundable | $50K | $100K | |
| Initial Training | $0 | $600 | |
| Travel, Lodging, Food, and Other Expenses While Training | $500 | $2K | |
| Real Estate Improvements | — | — | |
| Equipment and Supplies | $0 | $2K | |
| Computer and Mobile Phone | $0 | $1K | |
| Software | $0 | $1K | |
| Software from Us | $540 | $3K | |
| Vehicle | $0 | $30K | |
| Miscellaneous Opening Costs | $200 | $10K | |
| Opening Inventory | $2K | $5K | |
| Advertising - 3 months | $0 | $2K | |
| Additional Funds - 3 months | $3K | $10K | |
| Total initial investment | $56K | $166K |
Line items extracted from FDD Item 7. Ranges reflect the franchisor's stated low and high per line. Total is the sum of line-item lows / highs — actual costs may fall outside this range depending on market and build-out scope.
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $100K – $166K
- Near category avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $3K – $10K
- Better than avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $50K – $100K
- Near category avg vs category
- Royalty
- 20.0%
- Gross Sales · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 22.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 20.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Training fee | $300 |
| Transfer fee | $10K |
| Renewal fee | $25K |
| Total fee load | 22.0% of rev |
Financial Performance
This franchisor did not disclose financial performance representations in Item 19, or our extractor could not parse them.
vs Financial Services averages
How Blue Eagle Investigations Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 17
- Opened
- 0
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 3
- Terminated
- 3
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 17.6%
- Company-owned
- 1
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 94%
- vs corporate-owned
- Multi-unit owners
- 1.0%
- Net growth (yr3)
- -15.8%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- +33.3%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 1
- Projected new
- 5
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
- Transfer rate
- 5.9%
- Owners selling to other franchisees
- Termination rate
- 17.6%
- Franchisor-initiated terminations
- Ceased ops
- 17.6%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 23 states with active franchisees
The Territory Map
Derived from franchisee contact records. Shows states with at least one current operator. Not where the franchisor is registered to sell new units (that data is re-extracting in a future refresh).
States derived from franchisee contact records (FDD Item 20). Shows states with at least one current operator on file. Full state registration data (Item 12) will appear on a future FDD refresh.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
No SBA loan data available for this brand.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Rapidly shrinking franchise network, active franchisor-franchisee litigation, undisclosed financials, and going concern issues create a high-risk investment with minimal transparency and declining unit viability.
Litigation (Item 3)
Blue Eagle Franchising, LLC v. Blue Eagle of Michigan LLC and Steven Taylor. Case No. 23LA09795. Filed November 28, 2023, in Johnson County District Court, State of Kansas. Plaintiff filed claims to enforce a promissory note entered into by Defendants with Plaintiff.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Agler & Gaeddert, Chartered⚠ Going-concern note flagged
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: Yes
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: No
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 100 / 100 rating
- 01MEDFranchise system contracting sharply (-15.8% unit decline YoY) signals widespread franchisee dissatisfaction or failure
- 02HIGHActive litigation by franchisor against franchisee indicates enforcement disputes and potential relationship breakdown
- 03MED20% royalty on gross sales is extremely high for a service business with undisclosed profitability metrics
- 04MINORNo Item 19 financial performance disclosure despite $100k franchise fee—impossible to assess realistic ROI
- 05MINORHigh initial investment ($56.8k–$165.5k) paired with unknown revenue/net income creates blind investment scenario
- 06HIGHGoing concern status suggests franchisor financial instability despite collecting $100k upfront fees and 20% royalties
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 10 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | Geographic area (generally an entire state) |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | Yes |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 25 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| RoFR response window | 30 days |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Overland Park, Kansas |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Kansas |
| Litigation count | 1 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
Blue Eagle Franchising, LLC v. Blue Eagle of Michigan LLC and Steven Taylor. Case No. 23LA09795. Filed November 28, 2023, in Johnson County District Court, State of Kansas. Plaintiff filed claims to enforce a promissory note entered into by Defendants with Plaintiff.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 16 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 0 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
28 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Blue Eagle Investigations · FDD (2024) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Blue Eagle Investigations franchise?
The total investment to open a Blue Eagle Investigations franchise ranges from $100K – $166K, with an initial franchise fee of $100K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Blue Eagle Investigations franchise owners earn?
Blue Eagle Investigations does not disclose average franchise owner earnings in their FDD Item 19. Not all franchisors are required to make financial performance representations. We recommend asking existing franchisees directly about their financial experience.
What is Blue Eagle Investigations's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Blue Eagle Investigations (fewer than 10 loans on file). Charge-off rates are one way to gauge franchise risk, but not all franchise loans go through the SBA program. We recommend reviewing turnover and closure data in the FDD and speaking with current franchisees.
How many Blue Eagle Investigations franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Blue Eagle Investigations has 17 total units in the United States, including 16 franchised units and 1 company-owned units.
Is Blue Eagle Investigations a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Blue Eagle Investigations as a F-grade franchise with a risk score of 100 out of 100, based on our analysis of investment costs, revenue data, SBA loan performance, and growth trends. Our rating is based solely on publicly available FDD and government data; we recommend speaking with current franchisees before making any investment decision. This is not investment advice.
Data sourced from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) FOIA records. Not financial advice.
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Data extracted from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) loan disclosures (FOIA). This information is provided for research purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal, or investment advice. Verify all figures with the franchisor's current Franchise Disclosure Document before making any investment decision.