Salesforce
Mandatoryt already have the software required by us, you will be required to license the software from us or our affiliate. The software currently required and licensed from us is Dropbox, Salesforce, and Goog
From the filings
HQ-led decisions
Blue Eagle Investigations
Professional servicesSoftware purchasing at Blue Eagle Investigations is controlled at the headquarters level, with President Stu Macfarlane, CEO Cathy Macfarlane, and COO John Lederhaus identified as key executives. The franchise mandates Salesforce by Salesforce, Inc., and operates a small, 17-unit system of primarily franchised locations. This tight, centralized structure means a single point of entry for vendors targeting this professional services brand.
For software vendors selling into US franchise brands.
Live signals
Total units
17
16 franchised
Unit growth YoY
—
vs prior filing
AUV
—
Item 19, 2024
Royalty
20%
of gross sales
Ad fund
2%
national + local
Initial fee
$50K
per unit
Investment range
$57K–$166K
all-in, Item 7
Procurement
Approved supplier
from the filing
Non-compete
2 years
from the filing
Item 19
No claims
from the filing
Ongoing fee load
What the operator pays every month
The recurring percentage of gross sales named in this filing, before rent, labour or any technology fee.
22%of gross sales (FY2024)
15% reference
Mandated & recommended tech
The systems vendors compete with
1 of these are mandated in the franchise agreement. Each is named in Item 11 of the filing, the incumbents a challenger must displace or integrate with.
Yelp
social media you develop, or use must be attached only to the email address we provide to you or that we have approved. You may not claim or register web listing on sites such as Yelp, etc. but upon t
Franchisor behaviours
What the franchisor requires
20 requirements the franchisor states in this filing, each in its own words; 7 explicit no's; 7 questions the text does not settle, which is not a no.
Accounting
Does the franchisor have direct or independent electronic access to the franchisee's financial, sales or customer records?
YesItem 11
We will have independent access to the information and data collected or generated by the computer system.
Must the franchisee submit periodic financial statements (monthly, quarterly or annual) to the franchisor?
YesFranchise agreement
You shall submit the following reports by the following due dates.
How the franchisor buys
Is the franchisor or an affiliate itself a supplier of required products, services or systems?
YesItem 8
We reserve the right for us or an affiliate to be an approved supplier or the only approved supplier of any of the items listed in the above table.
Does the franchisor reserve the right to change designated suppliers or systems at any time?
YesItem 8
We may issue new specifications and standards for any aspect of our brand system, or modify existing specifications and standards, at any time by revising our manuals and/or issuing new written directives (which may be communicated to you by any method we choose).
How much revenue did the franchisor and its affiliates earn from franchisee purchases in the last fiscal year?
0Item 8
In the last fiscal year, we did not derive any revenue from the sale of these products and services to franchisees.
Does the franchisor or an affiliate receive rebates, commissions or other revenue from designated or approved suppliers?
YesItem 8
We or our affiliates may derive revenue from the sale of goods and supplies sold directly to you, or we may receive a fee or rebate from approved suppliers based off purchases from our franchisees.
Item 8 gives this proportion in one of two shapes: separate percentages for establishing the business and for operating it, or one figure covering "establishing and operating" together. Where they are separate, answer with the operating percentage; where the passage gives only the combined figure, answer with that. What percentage of the franchisee's purchases must come from designated or approved suppliers?
10Item 8
We estimate that the proportion of required purchases or leases will represent 80% to 90% of your overall purchases in opening your franchise business and 10% to 20% of your overall purchases in operating your franchise business.
Can a franchisee propose a new supplier for the franchisor's approval?
YesFranchise agreement
If You desire to purchase any products or services from an unapproved supplier, You must submit to Us a written request for such approval or request the supplier itself to do so.
Communications
Does the franchisor own or control the business telephone numbers, or take them over when the agreement ends?
YesFranchise agreement
You shall assist Us to assign, transfer, or disconnect (at Our option) the telephone listing, telephone numbers, Marketing accounts, e-mail addresses, URL’s, Internet sites, web pages, and Social Media to Us.
Data and IT
Must the franchisee comply with PCI, data-security or cybersecurity standards set by the franchisor?
YesFranchise agreement
At Your cost and expense, You must investigate and ensure that You comply with all data security standard (“DSS”) standards, regulations, and requirements; however, We reserve the right to approve of the supplier You use for compliance.
Franchise management
Does the franchisor conduct periodic inspections, audits or evaluations of the franchised business?
YesFranchise agreement
We may conduct periodic evaluations, inspections, and audits of all aspects of Your Franchise Business at reasonable intervals by Our duly authorized representative for compliance with the System, reporting, customer service and the standards and procedures set forth in the Manuals.
Can the franchisor change the operations manual and brand standards unilaterally?
YesFranchise agreement
We have the right to revise the Manuals at Our sole discretion.
Marketing
Is the franchisee prohibited from operating its own website or social media accounts, or required to use pages the franchisor provides?
YesItem 11
You may not create a website for your franchise business.
Operations
Must the franchisee buy products from a designated distributor?
YesItem 8
You must purchase or lease the following products and services from us, other sources designated or approved by us, or according to our specifications as set forth in the manuals:
Must equipment be purchased from designated or approved suppliers?
YesItem 8
You must purchase or lease the following products and services from us, other sources designated or approved by us, or according to our specifications as set forth in the manuals:
Payments
Are royalties and other fees collected by automatic bank debit (ACH or electronic funds transfer) from the franchisee's account?
YesFranchise agreement
Royalties, and Marketing Fund Fees (when instituted), are due on the 15th and last day of each month in accordance with Our then-current electronic funds transfer, ACH or other automatic withdrawal program or as specifically directed by Us.
People
Does the franchisor require minimum staffing levels or specific roles?
YesItem 15
You must have either the operating principal or at least one manager available during regular business hours.
Point of sale
Does the franchisor have independent access to the data in the franchisee's POS or computer system?
YesItem 11
We will have independent access to the information and data collected or generated by the computer system.
Training
Can the franchisor charge the franchisee for additional, refresher or remedial training?
YesItem 6
We can also require you to attend refresher training classes if you do not pass our inspections or otherwise determined by us in our sole discretion.
Is attendance at an annual convention or conference mandatory for the franchisee?
YesFranchise agreement
If We determine to hold a conference or seminar, attendance is mandatory for Your Operating Principal.
The filing answers no to 7 questions
- Is there a franchisee advisory council, association or committee?Item 11
- Does the franchisor charge a fee to evaluate a proposed supplier?Item 8
- Must the franchisor approve the franchisee's site or location before opening?Item 11
- Is a minimum grand opening advertising spend required?Item 11
- Is the franchisee required to spend a minimum amount on local advertising or marketing, as a percentage of sales or a fixed amount?Item 12
- Must the franchisee participate in a regional advertising cooperative when one exists?Item 11
- Must the franchisee use a specific point-of-sale system designated or approved by the franchisor?Item 11
The vendor opportunity at Blue Eagle Investigations
Blue Eagle Investigations presents a compact, centralized sales target for software vendors. The franchise system comprises 17 total units—16 franchised and 1 company-owned—spread across at least five states, including Iowa, Connecticut, Minnesota, Washington, and Virginia. Every operator in the system is a single-unit franchisee; there are no multi-unit operators on file. This structure means a vendor does not need to navigate a complex web of large franchisee groups. The entire system can be influenced through a single point of contact at the franchisor's headquarters.
The brand operates in the professional services sector and is independently owned, with no parent company listed in the 2024 Franchise Disclosure Document. The royalty rate is 20%, and the initial franchise term is 10 years. Average unit volume is not disclosed in the FDD. For a software vendor, the immediate addressable market is exactly 17 locations, with growth dependent on the franchisor's future development plans, which are not detailed in the current disclosure.
Who controls software purchasing
Control over technology decisions is firmly held at the top. The 2024 FDD's Item 1 identifies three executives: Stu Macfarlane (President), Cathy Macfarlane (CEO and Sales Director), and John Lederhaus (COO). In a system of this size, these are the individuals who will evaluate, approve, and mandate any new software platform. There is no separate CIO or VP of Technology listed, meaning the C-suite directly owns the technology buying process. A vendor's outreach should be directed squarely at these three names, with a value proposition that speaks to operational efficiency and franchisee support for a small, hands-on leadership team.
Mandated and current tech stack
The technology landscape at Blue Eagle Investigations is defined by a single mandate: Salesforce, provided by Salesforce, Inc. This is the only system named in the FDD's technology disclosures. The mandate creates both a constraint and an opportunity. Any new software must integrate with or complement the existing Salesforce environment. Vendors offering solutions that sit on top of Salesforce, such as industry-specific apps on the AppExchange, or tools that feed data into the CRM, will find a receptive architecture. The absence of any other mandated POS, scheduling, or back-office system suggests the rest of the stack is either open or handled at the franchisee level without franchisor oversight.
Procurement, renewals, and timing
The 2024 FDD provides no Item 8 signal regarding a designated or approved supplier program. This means that for any technology not explicitly mandated, the procurement path is not publicly constrained by the franchisor. Vendors can likely engage franchisees directly, though winning the HQ endorsement would be the most efficient path to system-wide adoption given the centralized control.
Timing a sales cycle should be tied to the franchise agreement lifecycle. The initial term is 10 years, and renewal requires the franchisee to give notice between 6 and 12 months prior to expiration and to sign the then-current franchise agreement, which may contain materially different terms. This renewal window is the natural point at which a franchisor might introduce new technology mandates or upgrades. With no year-over-year unit growth data available, the renewal cycle of the existing 16 franchised units is the primary recurring opportunity for a vendor to displace an incumbent or insert a new solution.
How to read the Blue Eagle Investigations FDD
The full 2024 Franchise Disclosure Document is embedded below. For a software vendor, the critical sections are Item 1, which lists the named executives who control purchasing, and Item 11, which details the franchisor's technology obligations and mandates. Reviewing these sections directly will confirm the Salesforce mandate and the absence of other required systems. The document also contains the full renewal conditions in Item 17, which define the contractual windows for system-wide technology changes. For a ranked target list of franchise brands matched to your software category, talk to FranCloud.
Questions vendors ask
Blue Eagle Investigations, answered from the filing
The buying center is the C-suite. The 2024 FDD lists Stu Macfarlane (President), Cathy Macfarlane (CEO and Sales Director), and John Lederhaus (COO) as the principal officers. A vendor should target these three individuals for any software pitch.
The 2024 FDD mandates the use of Salesforce, provided by Salesforce, Inc. No other operational, POS, or back-office systems are specified as mandated or recommended in the disclosure document.
The system has 17 total units, consisting of 16 franchised locations and 1 company-owned unit. The operator footprint is entirely single-unit operators, with mapped locations in IA, CT, MN, WA, and VA.
The 2024 FDD does not contain an Item 8 procurement signal regarding designated or approved suppliers. In the absence of this disclosure, the procurement model for non-mandated technology is not publicly defined and should be assumed open.
The initial franchise term is 10 years. Renewal requires notice 6–12 months before expiration and signing the then-current agreement. With no unit growth data, the primary window is tied to the renewal cycle of the existing 16 franchised units.
The 2024 FDD was filed with state franchise regulators. You can read the full document in the embedded PDF viewer below to analyze the complete Item 11 technology mandates and Item 1 executive list directly from the source.
Source
Read the filing itself
Every number on this page traces back to this document. Read it in full, page by page. Buy the original PDF to download, search, and annotate it.
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FDD alert
Tell me when this brand refiles.
We’ll email you the moment Blue Eagle Investigations files a new annual FDD, usually the freshest signal of a vendor change.
Operator footprint
Who runs the locations
9 operators run 9 mapped locations. 0 of them are multi-unit. Aggregate counts from the filing; no names.
Operators by units owned
Single-unit9
Top states by locations
| IA | 1 |
|---|---|
| CT | 1 |
| MN | 1 |
| WA | 1 |
| VA | 1 |
Related Professional services brands
Primary franchise filings · updated June 2026. Every figure is source-traceable and QA-checked.