Safeguard franchise
2025 filing · March 31, 2025Fewer locations
Safeguard at a glance
A distributorship selling printed business forms, checks, promotional products and related business supplies to local companies. At the end of 2024 there were 45 Safeguard locations in the US, 34 franchised and 11 company-owned.
The business
- Franchisor
- Safeguard Franchise Sales, Inc
- The company that sells the franchises
What you pay
- Cost to open
- $11K–$65K
- Fee, build-out and opening working capital
- Franchise fee
- $1,500
- A license fee for the order management software, plus $30 per employee for training access
- Royalty
- No royalty
- No royalty; distributors earn on the Safeguard products they sell, paying a transaction handling fee (currently $500 a year), a $65 monthly software support fee and a fee on sourced products
- Agreement length
- 10 years
- Territory
- None
- No exclusive territory
- Franchisor financing
- Some financing offered
Where it is
- US locations, 2024
- 45
- Franchised and company-owned
- Franchised
- 34
- Company-owned
- 11
- Change in 3 years
- −2
- Franchised locations, 2022–2024
- States
- 28
- Most in California, Pennsylvania and Indiana
From Safeguard Franchise Sales, Inc’s 2025 filing; SBA status from the SBA Franchise Directory, October 28, 2026.
Where it ranks
Safeguard among all franchises with the same figure.
| Figure | Safeguard | Among all franchises |
|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, midpointHalfway between the low and high estimate | $38,105 | Costs less than 98% of franchises |
| Franchise feePaid once, when you sign | $1,500 | Lower than 99% of franchises |
| US locationsFranchised and company-owned | 45 | More than 63% of franchises |
How much a Safeguard franchise costs
Opening one Safeguard costs an estimated $11,080 to $65,130. That covers the franchise fee and everything else needed to open, through the first months of working capital. It is one of the franchises under $20K.
The biggest costs are automobile ($0 to $25,000) and additional funds – for initial 3-month period ($6,000 to $20,000). Here is every line of the estimate as filed:
| What it pays for | Range | Low | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Desktop Computer | $2,500 | $6,000 | |
| CMS License Fee | $1,500 | ||
| Other Software Applications | $0 | $2,500 | |
| Automobile | $0 | $25,000 | |
| Training Costs | $30 | $4,000 | |
| Safeguard Learning Center User License Fee | $30 | ||
| Insurance and Licenses | $250 | $4,000 | |
| Telephone Services | $270 | $600 | |
| Materials, Supplies, Other | $500 | $1,500 | |
| Additional Funds – For Initial 3-Month Period | $6,000 | $20,000 | |
| Total | $11,080 | $65,130 | |
Source: Safeguard Franchise Sales, Inc, 2025 filing, page 15
Safeguard franchise fee
The franchise fee is $1,500, a license fee for the order management software, plus $30 per employee for training access. You pay it when you sign the franchise agreement.
Source: Safeguard Franchise Sales, Inc, 2025 filing, page 11
Royalty and ongoing fees
| Royalty | No royalty; distributors earn on the Safeguard products they sell, paying a transaction handling fee (currently $500 a year), a $65 monthly software support fee and a fee on sourced products. |
|---|---|
| Desktop Computer | $2,500 to $6,000 |
| Additional and Ongoing Training Fee | Reasonable fee (currently $0 to $4,000 per person). |
The typical franchise royalty is 6% of sales, plus 2% for marketing. See franchise fees and royalties to compare.
Source: Safeguard Franchise Sales, Inc, 2025 filing, page 11
Other fees as filed, from pages 12–15. The filing lists every fee, including late fees and audit costs.
Sales and earnings
No figures Safeguard does not share sales or profit figures for its locations. Talking to current and former franchise owners is the usual way to learn what a location earns.
Source: Safeguard Franchise Sales, Inc, 2025 filing, page 36
SBA loans to Safeguard franchisees
Lenders approved one SBA 504 loan for a Safeguard franchisee in 2018, for $800K. It hasn’t been paid off or charged off yet.
A charged-off loan is one written off as uncollectible. See SBA franchise loans for how 7(a) and 504 loans work.
Source: SBA 7(a) and 504 loan data, as of September 30, 2026
Growth and closures
Share of franchised locations, 2024 / 2022–2024. Typical means the median: half of brands are above it, half below.
| Measure | Safeguard | Typical printing and sign brand | Typical franchise |
|---|---|---|---|
| GrowthNet change in franchised locations | 0% / −5.6% | +0.4% / −1.7% | +1.2% / +10% |
| ClosuresTerminated, not renewed or stopped operating | 0% / 8.3% | 1.3% / 10% | 3.9% / 16% |
| Bought backLocations the franchisor took back | 0% / 8.3% | 0% / 0% | 0% / 0% |
Typical printing and sign brand is the median of the 14 brands in printing and sign franchises with three years of counts.
How Safeguard compares
Of the 34 printing and sign franchises on this site, Safeguard is the 4th cheapest to open and the 21st largest by number of locations.
| Figure | Safeguard | Typical printing and sign brand | Typical franchise |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, low end | $11K | $133K | $222K |
| Cost to open, high end | $65K | $312K | $477K |
| Franchise fee | $2K | $48K | $40K |
| US locations | 45 | 98 | 21 |
| Shares earnings figures | No | 23 of 34 | 2,147 of 3,352 |
Typical is the median across the 34 brands in printing and sign franchises; typical franchise, across every brand here.
Locations opened and closed
| Year | Franchised | Company-owned | Opened | Closed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 36 (−3) | 8 | – | – |
| 2022 | 33 (−3) | 11 | +3 | −6 |
| 2023 | 34 (+1) | 11 | +1 | 0 |
| 2024 | 34 (0) | 11 | 0 | 0 |
Closed or left counts terminations, non-renewals, locations bought back by the franchisor and locations that stopped operating.
See which brands grew most in the fastest-growing franchises rankings.
More in the guides: home-based franchises and franchise failure rates.
Over 4 years, from the start of 2021 to the end of 2024, franchised locations went from 39 to 34 (−5, −13%). The earlier years come from the brand's 2024 filing.
Source: Safeguard Franchise Sales, Inc, 2025 filing, page 36
2021: Safeguard Franchise Sales, Inc, 2024 filing, page 37
Where Safeguard locations are
At the end of 2024, Safeguard had locations in 28 states. The most are in California, Pennsylvania and Indiana.
- California7
- Pennsylvania4
- Indiana3
- New York3
- Georgia2
- Iowa2
| State | Franchised | Company-owned | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | 6 | 1 | 7 |
| Pennsylvania | 3 | 1 | 4 |
| Indiana | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| New York | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| Georgia | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Iowa | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Minnesota | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Washington | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Arizona | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Arkansas | 0 | 1 | 1 |
All 28 states
| Delaware | 1 |
|---|---|
| Florida | 1 |
| Hawaii | 1 |
| Idaho | 1 |
| Illinois | 1 |
| Kentucky | 1 |
| Maine | 1 |
| Mississippi | 1 |
| Nevada | 1 |
| Ohio | 1 |
| Oklahoma | 1 |
| Oregon | 1 |
| South Carolina | 1 |
| Texas | 1 |
| Utah | 1 |
| Virginia | 1 |
| Wisconsin | 1 |
| Wyoming | 1 |
Source: Safeguard Franchise Sales, Inc, 2025 filing, page 37
Who owns Safeguard?
Safeguard franchises are sold by Safeguard Franchise Sales, Inc. Its ultimate parent is Deluxe Corporation.
From Safeguard Franchise Sales, Inc’s 2025 filing, page 6.
Lawsuits and bankruptcy
| Lawsuits and regulatory actions | Yes. The filing describes past or pending cases involving the franchisor, its affiliates or its executives on pages 9–11. |
|---|---|
| Bankruptcy | None. The filing says no bankruptcy has to be disclosed. |
Franchisors must disclose lawsuits and bankruptcies involving the company, its parents and affiliates, and its executives. Many cases are routine disputes with franchisees over fees or contracts; read the descriptions in the filing and ask current owners about anything that worries you.
Source: Safeguard Franchise Sales, Inc, 2025 filing, litigation on pages 9–11, bankruptcy on page 11
Safeguard filings
A franchisor files a new disclosure each year it sells franchises. The figures on this page come from Safeguard Franchise Sales, Inc’s 2025 filing, issued March 31, 2025; the earlier ones below are on record with the NASAA Electronic Filing Depository and the Minnesota Department of Commerce and fill in older location counts.
| Filing | Issued | Registry | On this page |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 filing | March 31, 2025 | NASAA depository | Costs, fees and locations, 2022–2024 |
| 2024 filing | – | Minnesota | Locations, 2021 |
Each link opens the filing as a PDF. See the newest filings across all brands.
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