Bottom line
- Total investment $3.4M – $13.0M including a $50K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- No Item 19 financial performance data disclosed — the franchisor chose not to publish revenue figures.
- Rated CAUTION with a risk score of 72/100. SBA loan default rate of 0.0% across 2 loans (below the industry average).
- No Item 19 financial performance representation. Without franchisor-disclosed revenue data, you'll need to gather unit economics directly from existing franchisees.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Yale framework · single-unit ROIC
Returns Analysis
Pulls Item 7 (investment) and Item 19 (revenue) from this brand's FDD into the Yale unlevered-ROIC formula. Override any input to stress-test it against your own assumptions.
The model · Yale framework
What would one Blue Martini unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
2%
Below typical band (30–60%)
Overview
About
Blue Martini franchisees operate upscale cocktail lounges and bars, managing day-to-day operations including alcohol service, mixology, staffing, inventory control, and customer experience. Franchisees bear full responsibility for liquor liability compliance, staff training, and adherence to local alcohol service laws while paying 5% royalties on gross revenues to corporate.
Item 7 · what it costs
The Vitals
Item 19
Financial Performance
This franchisor did not disclose financial performance representations in Item 19, or our extractor could not parse them.
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 5 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 phone area codes (Item 20). Approximate — ported numbers may show the original state, not the franchisee's current location.
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Blue Martini presents high risk: a micro-system (8 units) with active wrongful death litigation, zero financial transparency, massive capital requirements, and minimal operational scale to support franchisees.
Score breakdown · what drove the 72 / 100 rating
- 01HIGHActive litigation involving wrongful death and alcohol service liability with anticipated refiling in June 2025 creates significant legal and insurance exposure
- 02MEDOnly 8 units system-wide with no disclosed growth trajectory suggests minimal scale, limited support infrastructure, and potential system viability concerns
- 03MEDNo average revenue or net income disclosure (missing Item 19) prevents financial performance validation and suggests weak unit economics
- 04MEDHigh investment range ($3.39M–$12.99M) combined with undisclosed profitability creates severe ROI uncertainty
- 05HIGHPending litigation could trigger insurance rate increases, policy cancellations, or franchisor indemnification obligations affecting franchisee margins
- 06MINORAlcohol service liability in 8-unit system indicates inadequate risk management protocols and compliance training infrastructure
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
Item 11
Training & Operations
Item 20
Franchisee Contacts
Phone numbers extracted directly from this brand's FDD Item 20. After purchase, you'll also receive a list of validation questions tailored to this brand.
Franchisee contacts
5 numbers
One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included
FDD download
Blue Martini · FDD (2025) PDF