From the filings
Software purchasing at Asian Chao is controlled at the corporate level by founder and principal Biagio Schiano. The franchise’s 2023 FDD mandates electronic cash register systems, database configuration software, and monitoring software, creating a defined tech stack across 48 franchised and 7 company-owned quick-service restaurants. With 55 total units and a -7.7% year-over-year unit change, vendors face a compact but tech-governed addressable market.
For software vendors selling into US franchise brands.
Live signals
Ongoing fee load
The recurring percentage of gross sales named in this filing, before rent, labour or any technology fee.
7%of gross sales (FY2023)
15% reference
Franchisor behaviours
21 requirements the franchisor states in this filing, each in its own words; 3 explicit no's; 10 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?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisor shall have the right and authority (without, however, any obligation to do so) to correct such deficiencies and charge Franchisee a reasonable fee for Franchisor’s expenses in so acting, payable by Franchisee immediately upon demand.
Must the franchisee submit periodic financial statements (monthly, quarterly or annual) to the franchisor?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisee shall, at Franchisee’s expense, submit to Franchisor, in the form prescribed by Franchisor, profit and loss statement for each of the thirteen (13) four (4) week accounting periods designated by Franchisor (the “Statement Period”) (which may be unaudited) for Franchisee within fifteen (15) days after the…
How the franchisor buys
Is the franchisor or an affiliate itself a supplier of required products, services or systems?
YesItem 8
We are currently the only approved supplier of the imported Italian tile. We are the only approved supplier of the Software used for the operation of the Restaurant. We are currently an approved supplier of Business Supplies (stationery, business cards, brochures, presentation folders, paper and other materials)…
How much revenue did the franchisor and its affiliates earn from franchisee purchases in the last fiscal year?
401388Item 8
During the last fiscal year ended December 31, 2022, we derived revenues of $401,388 or 1.31% of our total revenues of $30,672,904 from required purchases or leases including the above Coca Cola arrangement.
Does the franchisor or an affiliate receive rebates, commissions or other revenue from designated or approved suppliers?
YesItem 8
We do not receive additional rebates from Coca Cola for new locations but still receive rebates based on volume purchases (0.25% of the dollar amount).
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?
25Item 8
We estimate that Your purchases and leases from Us, approved suppliers and in accordance with Our specifications will be approximately 25% to 35% of Your costs to establish and operate the Franchised Business.
Does the franchisor charge a fee to evaluate a proposed supplier?
YesItem 8
You pay the cost of the inspection and the test, not to exceed $500.
Can a franchisee propose a new supplier for the franchisor's approval?
YesItem 8
If You wish to purchase, lease or use any products or other items from an unapproved supplier, You must submit a written request for approval, or must request the supplier to do so.
Communications
Does the franchisor own or control the business telephone numbers, or take them over when the agreement ends?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisee, at the option of Franchisor, shall assign to Franchisor all rights to the telephone numbers of the Restaurant and any related Yellow Pages trademark listing or other business listings and execute all forms and documents required by Franchisor and any telephone company at any time to transfer such service…
Franchise management
Does the franchisor conduct periodic inspections, audits or evaluations of the franchised business?
YesItem 11
If We determine it is necessary, visits to, and evaluations of, the Restaurant and the products and services provided to make sure that the high standards of quality, appearance and service of the System are maintained.
Can the franchisor change the operations manual and brand standards unilaterally?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisor may from time to time revise the contents of the Manuals and the contents of any other manuals and materials created or approved for use in the operation of the Franchised Business.
Must the franchisor approve the franchisee's site or location before opening?
YesFranchise agreement
No site may be used for the location of the Restaurant unless it is first accepted in writing by Franchisor.
Marketing
Is the franchisee required to spend a minimum amount on local advertising or marketing, as a percentage of sales or a fixed amount?
YesItem 11
You must spend annually, throughout the term of the Franchise Agreement, 1% of the Gross Sales of the Restaurant on advertising for the Restaurant in Your Area of Primary Responsibility for Local Advertising.
Must the franchisee participate in a regional advertising cooperative when one exists?
YesItem 11
If a Cooperative has been established for a geographic area where Your Restaurant is located when the Franchise Agreement is signed, or if any Cooperative is established during the term of the Franchise Agreement, You must sign all documents We request and become a member of the Cooperative according to the terms of…
Payments
Are royalties and other fees collected by automatic bank debit (ACH or electronic funds transfer) from the franchisee's account?
YesItem 6
The royalty fee will be withdrawn from Your designated bank account by electronic funds transfer (“EFT”) weekly on Wednesday based on Gross Sales from the preceding Accounting Period
Must the franchisee participate in a gift card program?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisee shall sell or otherwise issue gift cards or certificates (together “Gift Cards”) that have been prepared utilizing the standard form of Gift Card provided or designated by Franchisor, and only in the manner specified by Franchisor in the Operating Manual or otherwise in writing.
People
Does the franchisor require minimum staffing levels or specific roles?
YesItem 15
You must retain at all times a General Manager and the other personnel as are needed to operate and manage the Restaurant.
Point of sale
Must the franchisee use a specific point-of-sale system designated or approved by the franchisor?
YesItem 11
You must purchase and use the electronic cash register systems, and software that meet Our specifications and that 30 Food Systems FDD 2023 B are capable of electronically connecting with Our computer system.
Does the franchisor have independent access to the data in the franchisee's POS or computer system?
YesItem 7
We have the right, as described in Item 11, to access the data on Your system at Our discretion.
Training
Can the franchisor charge the franchisee for additional, refresher or remedial training?
YesItem 11
We reserve the right to charge a fee for the additional training programs and seminars that We provide on an optional basis.
Is attendance at an annual convention or conference mandatory for the franchisee?
YesFranchise agreement
Attendance at the convention will be mandatory.
Who buys here
The decision-maker a vendor sells to at this scale, and the gaps they’re paid to close, derived from our data by segment and unit count, not a guess.
The franchisor's owner/CEO decides; an ops or franchise-development lead may evaluate.
Asian Chao is a quick-service restaurant brand headquartered in Florida, with 55 total units as of its 2023 FDD—48 franchised and 7 company-owned. The system contracted by 7.7% year-over-year, which means the addressable unit count for software vendors is modest and likely stable or shrinking in the near term. Average unit volume is not disclosed in the most recent FDD. The royalty rate is 6.0%, and the initial franchise term runs 10 years. For a software vendor, the opportunity lies less in rapid unit growth and more in replacing or supplementing the mandated technology already in place across the existing estate.
Software purchasing authority at Asian Chao sits at the top. The 2023 FDD identifies a single executive: Biagio Schiano, listed as principal and founder. No additional officers, IT leadership, or procurement personnel appear in Item 1. This suggests a centralized, founder-led buying process where Mr. Schiano is the sole decision-maker for technology selection and vendor approval. Vendors should prepare to engage directly with the founder, framing value in terms of operational efficiency, compliance with the franchisor’s mandated tech categories, and support for a compact franchise system.
Item 11 of the 2023 FDD mandates three categories of technology for franchisees: electronic cash register systems, database configuration software, and monitoring software. The FDD does not name specific vendors or products within these categories, so the incumbent providers are not publicly known. This creates a potential opening for vendors who can demonstrate superior integration across POS, data management, and operational monitoring—especially if they can offer a unified platform that simplifies compliance for franchisees while giving the franchisor visibility across the system.
The 2023 FDD contains no Item 8 procurement extract, meaning Asian Chao’s supply-chain and purchasing rules—including whether franchisees must buy from designated suppliers or may use approved alternatives—are not publicly disclosed. On renewals, Item 17 states that a franchisee in good standing receives a right of first refusal for the successor term, provided the lease can be renewed and the franchisor has not decided, in its sole discretion, to withdraw from the geographic location. The renewal term length is not specified. With negative unit growth and a 10-year initial term, the most likely software sales triggers are system upgrades, compliance refreshes, or a founder-led initiative to modernize the mandated stack rather than new-unit rollouts.
The full 2023 Asian Chao Franchise Disclosure Document is embedded below. Key sections for software vendors include Item 1 (the franchisor and its executives), Item 11 (the mandated technology obligations), and Item 17 (renewal and transfer conditions that can signal decision windows). Because the FDD does not disclose specific vendor names or an Item 8 procurement framework, direct outreach to the founder will be necessary to map the incumbent tech stack and identify replacement or upsell opportunities. For a ranked target list of franchise systems matched to your software category, FranCloud can help.
Questions vendors ask
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FDD alert
We’ll email you the moment Asian Chao files a new annual FDD, usually the freshest signal of a vendor change.
Operator footprint
1 operators run 1 mapped locations. 0 of them are multi-unit. Aggregate counts from the filing; no names.
Operators by units owned
Top states by locations
| WI | 1 |
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Related Quick service restaurant brands
Primary franchise filings · updated June 2026. Every figure is source-traceable and QA-checked.