Sanford Rose AssociatesFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A SANFORD ROSE ASSOCIATES franchise requires a total initial investment of $11K – $15K, including a $8K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.5% royalty[2]. The 2026 FDD does not disclose unit-level revenue (no Item 19). SBA 7(a) loans show a 50.0% charge-off rate across 14 loans[1]. Verdict grade: F. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2026 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $11K – $15K
- 3rd pct Business Serv…
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- 29th pct Business Serv…
- Royalty
- 5.5%
- 8th pct Business Serv…
- Units
- 157
- 45th pct Business Serv…
- SBA default
- 50.0%
- system-wide median varies by category
Quick verdict · Business Services · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Business 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
50.0% of SBA loans charged off across 14 loans, above the 16% franchise average.
Franchising since 1970. Systems this mature have refined operations and brand recognition.
The system contracted 9% year-over-year. Investigate why units are closing.
Bottom line
- Total investment $11K – $15K including a $8K franchise fee, 5.5% 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 84/100. SBA loan charge-off rate of 50.0% across 14 loans (well above the 16% franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2024).
- System contracting at -13.3% CAGR over 3 years. Investigate whether closures are franchisor-driven (consolidation) or franchisee-driven (economics).
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- Sanford Rose Associates International, LLC
- Parent company
- Next Level Exchange, LLC
- Incorporated in
- TX
- HQ
- 5908 Headquarters Drive, K200, Plano, Texas 75024
- Auditor
- Whitley Penn LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $11.1M
- vs $12.1M prior year
Overview
About
Sanford Rose Associates (SRA) operates as an executive search and recruitment staffing firm. Franchisees typically run local recruiting offices, managing candidate sourcing, client relationship building, and fee-based placements in professional and executive markets. Revenue depends heavily on placement commissions and retained search fees.
- CEO
- Jeffrey T. Kaye
- Headquarters
- TX
- Founded
- 1959
- FDD year
- 2026
- States available
- 37
FDD Item 7 · 2026 filing · 5 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Start-up Packagenot refundable | $8K | $8K | |
| Commercial Recruiting and Marketing Tools | $2K | $4K | |
| Office Rent, 600 - 1,000 sq. ft. | $600 | $2K | |
| Insurance and Business Licenses | $2K | $2K | |
| Additional Funds | — | — | |
| Total initial investment | $11K | $15K |
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
- $11K – $15K
- Better than avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $0 – $0
- Better than avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $8K – $8K
- Better than avg vs category
- Royalty
- 5.5%
- percentage · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 0.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 5.5%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 5.5% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 0.0% of gross sales |
| Transfer fee | $8K |
| Total fee load | 5.5% of rev |
Financial Performance
This franchisor did not disclose financial performance representations in Item 19, or our extractor could not parse them.
vs Business Services averages
How Sanford Rose Associates Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 157
- Opened
- 8
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 23
- Terminated
- 1
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 14.6%
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (yr3)
- -8.7%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- -13.3%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Termination rate
- 0.6%
- Franchisor-initiated terminations
- Ceased ops
- 0.6%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 36 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.
- Total loans
- 14
- Loan volume
- $2.4M
- Median loan
- $150K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 50.0%
- rates vary by category · see methodology
Historical SBA 7(a) lending data, not predictive of future performance. How SBA charge-off rates are calculated
- Repayment rate (PIF)
- 50.0%
- 5-yr charge-off
- N/A
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 6
- Defaults
- 1
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into Sanford Rose Associates's SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 6 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 10 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 7-year lending trend
Instant access. No subscription.
A 50.0% charge-off rate means roughly 1 in 2 franchisees failed to repay their SBA loan. Investigate what changed.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Declining unit growth, regulatory compliance history, and zero financial transparency create moderate-to-cautionary risk; viability depends entirely on franchisee reference validation.
Litigation (Item 3)
Sanford Rose Associates International, Inc. entered into an Assurance of Voluntary Compliance with the Illinois Attorney General on November 12, 2019 (Case No. 19-AVC-F008) regarding inadvertent failure to register franchise offerings in Illinois before entering into three franchise agreements with Illinois residents beginning January 2016. Settled with $6,000 payment and agreement to comply with registration requirements.
Largest disclosed settlement: $6,000
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Whitley Penn LLP
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: Yes
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: Yes
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: Yes
Score breakdown · what drove the 84 / 100 rating
- 01MEDUnit count declined 8.7% YoY (157 → 143 units), indicating system contraction and potential market saturation or franchisee dissatisfaction
- 02MEDNo Item 19 financial performance data disclosed—impossible to validate profitability claims or ROI expectations for the $11,400-$14,800 investment
- 03HIGHPrior litigation: Illinois Attorney General Assurance of Voluntary Compliance (2019) for franchise registration violation suggests compliance/disclosure governance issues
- 04MINORDual royalty structure ($10k fixed vs. 5.5% cash receipts) creates ambiguity—unclear which option franchisees actually choose and what average effective rate is
- 05MINORVery low franchise fee ($7,500) coupled with non-disclosure of unit economics may indicate low barriers to entry, leading to weak franchisee quality or oversaturation
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 | 5 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 1 year |
| Territory type | Radius |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory radius | 0.3 mi |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Granted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Right of first refusalℹ | No |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | No |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Texas |
| Litigation count | 1 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
Sanford Rose Associates International, Inc. entered into an Assurance of Voluntary Compliance with the Illinois Attorney General on November 12, 2019 (Case No. 19-AVC-F008) regarding inadvertent failure to register franchise offerings in Illinois before entering into three franchise agreements with Illinois residents beginning January 2016. Settled with $6,000 payment and agreement to comply with registration requirements.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 1 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 0 hrs
- Training location
- Remote (Zoom)
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
70 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
SANFORD ROSE ASSOCIATES · FDD (2026) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a SANFORD ROSE ASSOCIATES franchise?
The total investment to open a SANFORD ROSE ASSOCIATES franchise ranges from $11K – $15K, with an initial franchise fee of $8K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do SANFORD ROSE ASSOCIATES franchise owners earn?
SANFORD ROSE ASSOCIATES 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 SANFORD ROSE ASSOCIATES's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, SANFORD ROSE ASSOCIATES has a charge-off rate of 50.0% across 14 loans, meaning 50.0% of franchise loans were charged off. Charge-off rates are one proxy for franchise risk, though they do not capture all closures. This data comes from FOIA-sourced SBA lending records.
How many SANFORD ROSE ASSOCIATES franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, SANFORD ROSE ASSOCIATES has 157 total units in the United States, including 157 franchised units and 0 company-owned units. 8 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is SANFORD ROSE ASSOCIATES a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates SANFORD ROSE ASSOCIATES as a F-grade franchise with a risk score of 84 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.
For franchisors
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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.