Stain & Seal Experts vs 76 Fence

76 Fence is the better bet today on raw TAM and budget, even though the numbers are modest. With 2 total units and 1 franchised location generating over $1.5M AUV, there’s immediate wallet to capture. That 8% royalty and a wide investment band ($165K–$316K) signal owner-operator economics with enough margin to afford a tech stack—POS, scheduling, and back-office are non-negotiable at that revenue tier. The single franchised unit gives you a live proof point; if the software can demonstrate labor savings or booking uplift there, the franchise sales narrative writes itself. You’re not playing a waiting game—the revenue exists right now.

Stain & Seal Experts looks cheaper to open, but zero franchised units means zero multiply-able software deals. The 6% royalty is lower, but the sub-$120K build-out and one-unit footprint suggest operators who will pinch pennies on software until forced. No franchisees means no urgency, no FDD-validated growth story, and no near-term TAM beyond a single corporate location. You’d be selling into a vacuum, hoping the franchisor eventually recruits operators who then need tools—that’s a timing risk a vendor’s pipeline can’t absorb.

The terrain difference seals it: 76 Fence has an operating franchisee with $1.5M in revenue flowing through the business. That’s a concentrated, high-signal account where closing one deal opens the door to system-wide adoption once the franchisor sees the value. Stain & Seal’s procurement model is franchisor-controlled, same as 76 Fence, but there’s nobody to control it for yet. You’d trade proof-of-concept immediacy for an empty org chart.

Verdict: 76 Fence wins on budget, timing, and TAM—target the franchised unit now and leverage success for exclusive vendor status as the system grows.