FranchiseVerdict
i4 Search Group logo
FV-01269·MODERATEExcellent81

i4 Search Group

Business Services - StaffingFranchising since 2021Website
Investment
$65K – $351K
42nd pct Staffing
Avg revenue
42nd pct Staffing
Royalty
14.0%
58th pct Staffing
Units
39
50th pct Staffing
SBA default

Bottom line

  • Total investment $65K – $351K including a $50K franchise fee, 14.0% ongoing royalty.
  • No Item 19 financial performance data disclosed — the franchisor chose not to publish revenue figures.
  • Rated MODERATE with a risk score of 57/100.
  • System growing at 72.7% CAGR over 3 years with 39 total units — strong expansion trajectory.

Item 1 · who you're contracting with

The Franchisor

Legal entity
i4 Franchise Development Inc.
Incorporated in
Arizona
HQ
7185 Liberty Centre Drive, Suite A, West Chester, Ohio 45069
Auditor
DA Advisory Group PLLC
Audited financials
Franchisor revenue
$972K
vs $890K prior year

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 i4 Search Group unit return on the cash you put in?

Revenue · per unit, per year
$
Item 19 not disclosed — typing your own estimate
Franchisor take · royalty + ad fund
Royaltytyp 68%
%
Ad fundtyp 35%
%
Operating costs · category default: generic
COGS
%
Labor
%
Rent / occupancy
%
Other operating
%
Total invested capital · what you actually put in
Initial investment
$
FDD Item 7: $65K–$351K
Working capital
$
FDD reports $6K–$9K

Unlevered ROIC · per unit

21%

Below typical band (30–60%)

0%30–60% Yale band80%

Store EBITDA · annual
$45K
EBITDA margin
6.0%
Total invested
$216K
Payback
58 mo
Unit-level only. A multi-unit portfolio gives up roughly 5–15% of this to shared services (corporate G&A) before reaching the ~10-unit break-even Yale describes.

Overview

About

i4 Search Group is a staffing/recruitment franchise that places professional and technical talent with client companies. Franchisees manage client relationships, candidate sourcing and screening, and placements while paying 14% royalties on all gross revenue generated. Day-to-day operations involve sales prospecting, candidate interviews, client matching, and commission-based revenue collection.

CEO
Scott Butts
Founded
2020
FDD year
2025
States available
17

Item 7 · what it costs

The Vitals

Total investment
$65K – $351K
All-in to open one unit
Liquid capital
$6K – $9K
Cash you must have on hand
Franchise fee
$50K
Royalty
14.0%
Gross Sales · typical 6–8%
Ad fund
3.0%
typical 3–5%
Total fee load
17.0%
vs 9–13% typical

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

Total units
39
Opened
10
Last reporting year
Closed
2
Turnover rate
5.1%
Company-owned
1
Corporate units in the system
% franchised
97%
vs corporate-owned
Net growth (yr3)
+26.7%
Net unit change last year
3-yr CAGR
+72.7%
Compounded over last 3 years
2023
38+8
Franchised units
2024
30
Franchised units
2025
22
Franchised units

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).

AK
ME
VT
NH
MA
RI
CT
NY
NJ
PA
DE
MD
DC
WA
OR
CA
NV
ID
MT
WY
UT
CO
AZ
NM
ND
SD
NE
KS
OK
TX
MN
IA
MO
AR
LA
WI
IL
MS
TN
MI
IN
KY
AL
OH
WV
GA
VA
NC
SC
FL
HI
Registered · 5 states
Not registered

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.

No SBA loan data available for this brand.

FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17

Risk & Legal

57
Risk · 0-100
MODERATE57 / 100

Non-transparent financial metrics, high ongoing royalties, small system size, and undisclosed going concern status create meaningful investment uncertainty despite moderate growth trajectory.

Score breakdown · what drove the 57 / 100 rating

  1. 01MEDNo Item 19 financial performance data disclosed (average revenue and net income not provided) — impossible to assess ROI on $65k-$351k investment
  2. 02MINORHigh royalty rate of 14% on gross sales (not net profit) creates cash flow pressure, especially in early years
  3. 03MED39 total units is a small system with limited brand recognition; while growing 26.7% YoY, absolute growth is modest (~9 units added)
  4. 04HIGHNo going concern status disclosed — suggests potential franchisor financial instability or recent changes in ownership/structure
  5. 05MINORWide investment range ($65k-$351k) indicates high variability in startup costs with unclear cost drivers and lack of transparency

Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification

FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal

Contract & Territory Detail

Territory
Population
Protected territory
Yes
Initial term
8 years
Renewal term
5 years
Online sales rights
Restricted
Franchisor can compete
Yes
Hire a manager?
Allowed
Litigation count
0
Right of first refusal
Yes
Franchisor can buy back on resale
Mandatory arbitration
Yes
Jury trial waiver
Yes
Non-compete
2 yrs
Post-termination restriction
Owner-operator
Required
Governing law
Ohio

Item 11

Training & Operations

Classroom training
53 hrs
On-the-job training
44 hrs
POS system
LOXO
Operating tech stack

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

26 numbers

Locked
(702) 328-••••
MT
(562) 477-••••
AZ
(513) 477-••••
MT

One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included

FDD download

i4 Search Group · FDD (2025) PDF

Single-page checkout · instant download · CSV export of contacts available separately above