Sawyer
Mandatorycifications and must be purchased from our designated suppliers. 5. Studio Management System and Computer Equipment – Currently you are required to purchase, license and utilize a Sawyer studio manage
From the filings
+37.5% units YoYHQ-led decisions
Bella Ballerina Franchising
Youth servicesSoftware purchasing authority at Bella Ballerina Franchising sits at the franchisor level, with Sawyer mandated as the operational platform across all locations. The system is small but growing fast — 14 total units, 11 of them franchised, and a 37.5% year-over-year unit growth rate. For a vendor, the addressable market is tight but the tech mandate creates a single integration point.
For software vendors selling into US franchise brands.
Live signals
Total units
14
11 franchised
Unit growth YoY
+37.5%
vs prior filing
AUV
$405K
Item 19, 2023
Royalty
—
of gross sales
Ad fund
—
national + local
Initial fee
$42K
per unit
Investment range
$116K–$196K
all-in, Item 7
Procurement
Approved supplier
from the filing
Non-compete
2 years
from the filing
Item 19
Claims
from the filing
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.
Franchisor behaviours
What the franchisor requires
23 requirements the franchisor states in this filing, each in its own words; 2 explicit no's; 9 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 all of the information and data that is electronically transmitted on your studio management system and point of sale system and will have access to all data related to the financial performance of your Studio.
Must the franchisee submit periodic financial statements (monthly, quarterly or annual) to the franchisor?
YesFranchise agreement
within 30 days of the end of each calendar month Franchisee shall submit to Franchisor monthly financial statements and other reports related to the operations of the Franchised business
How the franchisor buys
Is the franchisor or an affiliate itself a supplier of required products, services or systems?
YesItem 8
We may designate ourselves and our affiliates as exclusive suppliers of support services, source restricted goods and services.
Does the franchisor reserve the right to change designated suppliers or systems at any time?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisor reserves the right to designate from time to time a single supplier and/or distributor for any services, products, equipment, supplies, or materials including, but not limited to, the System Supplies and to require Franchisee to use such a designated supplier exclusively, which exclusive designated…
How much revenue did the franchisor and its affiliates earn from franchisee purchases in the last fiscal year?
0Item 8
During the fiscal year ending December 31, 2023, we did not earn any revenue from approved suppliers based on our franchisees’ purchases.
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 purchase of goods and services from suppliers according to our specifications, including your purchase of goods or services from our designated exclusive suppliers, to represent approximately 80% of your total purchases and leases in establishing the Franchised Business and approximately 25% of…
Does the franchisor charge a fee to evaluate a proposed supplier?
YesItem 8
We may charge you a fee equal to the costs and expenses that we incur in reviewing and evaluating an alternate supplier, product, and/or service requested by you.
Can a franchisee propose a new supplier for the franchisor's approval?
YesItem 8
If you want to purchase or lease a source restricted item from a supplier that has not been previously approved or designated by us in writing, you must send us a written request for approval and submit additional information, samples, and testing data that we may request.
Communications
Does the franchisor own or control the business telephone numbers, or take them over when the agreement ends?
YesFranchise agreement
In the event of the termination of this Agreement, for any reason, that the accounts related to all telephone numbers associated with the Franchised Business and all rights in and to the telephone numbers associated with the Franchised Business, shall, at Franchisor’s election, be transferred to Franchisor.
Franchise management
Does the franchisor conduct periodic inspections, audits or evaluations of the franchised business?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisor has the right at any and all times during business hours, throughout the terms of this Agree and without prior notice to Franchisee, to inspect Franchisee’s Studio.
Can the franchisor change the operations manual and brand standards unilaterally?
YesItem 11
At all times, we reserve the right to supplement, modify and update the Manuals.
Must the franchisor approve the franchisee's site or location before opening?
YesItem 11
Before you enter into a lease or other agreement for your Studio Location you must obtain our approval.
Marketing
Is the franchisee prohibited from operating its own website or social media accounts, or required to use pages the franchisor provides?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisee’s use of Digital Media shall be subject to and require Franchisor’s express written consent which shall and may be withheld by Franchisor for any or no reason at all.
Is a minimum grand opening advertising spend required?
YesItem 6
You must spend not less than $3,000 toward the marketing and promotion of the grand opening of your Studio.
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
On an on-going monthly basis, you must spend not less than 2% of your monthly Gross Sales on the local marketing of your Studio.
Must the franchisee participate in a regional advertising cooperative when one exists?
YesFranchise agreement
If Franchisee’s Studio or Designated Territory is located within the geographic area of an Advertising Cooperative, franchisee must participate in and contribute to the Advertising Cooperative.
Operations
Must the franchisee buy products from a designated distributor?
YesFranchise agreement
exclusively purchase all System Supplies, including, but not limited to, merchandise, inventory, and supplies, from Franchisor or Franchisor’s designated suppliers;
Must equipment be purchased from designated or approved suppliers?
YesItem 8
You may only use those products, supplies, equipment, technology systems, and services that we authorize and designate in writing.
People
Must employees wear uniforms specified by the franchisor?
YesItem 11
For the protection of the System, you must ensure that all employees wear and maintain the proper uniforms with our approved System branded apparel and uniforms including, but not limited to, the apparel and uniforms comprising System Supplies.
Point of sale
Must the franchisee use a specific point-of-sale system designated or approved by the franchisor?
YesItem 11
You must purchase, license and use the computer, point of sale, business management, and ordering systems that we designate.
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 all of the information and data that is electronically transmitted on your studio management system and point of sale system and will have access to all data related to the financial performance of your Studio.
Training
Can the franchisor charge the franchisee for additional, refresher or remedial training?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisee or, if Franchisee is a Corporate Entity, Franchisee’s Managing Owner and Manager, at Franchisee’s sole cost and expense, must attend and successfully complete all refresher training courses or system-wide training courses, additional training programs and seminars as Franchisor periodically may designate…
Is attendance at an annual convention or conference mandatory for the franchisee?
YesFranchise agreement
Attendance at an Annual System Conference is mandatory.
The filing answers no to 2 questions
- Does the franchisor or an affiliate receive rebates, commissions or other revenue from designated or approved suppliers?Item 8
- Does the franchisor require minimum staffing levels or specific roles?Franchise agreement
The vendor opportunity at Bella Ballerina
Bella Ballerina Franchising operates in youth services, with a total of 14 units — 11 franchised and 3 company-owned — as reported in its 2024 Franchise Disclosure Document. The system posted a 37.5% year-over-year unit growth rate, signaling active expansion. Average unit volume sits at $405,259. For a software vendor, the immediate addressable market is small: 14 locations. The growth trajectory, however, suggests a system in scaling mode, which can create openings for tools that support multi-unit management, class scheduling, and parent communication.
Who controls software purchasing
The 2024 FDD does not list individual executives in Item 1, so the specific decision-maker — whether a founder, operations lead, or external advisor — is not publicly identified. What is clear is that purchasing control is centralized. The franchisor mandates Sawyer across the system, which means any software evaluation or procurement decision likely runs through HQ. Vendors should expect a single-threaded sales process rather than a distributed, franchisee-led buying motion.
Mandated and current tech stack
Sawyer is the only named, mandated technology in the 2024 FDD. Sawyer serves as the operational backbone for class registration, scheduling, and payment processing in youth activity businesses. No other mandated POS, CRM, payroll, or marketing platforms are disclosed. This creates a clear integration dependency: any add-on software — whether for advanced CRM, staff management, or analytics — must either integrate with Sawyer or replace it, and replacement would require franchisor approval.
Procurement, renewals, and timing
Procurement signals are thin in this FDD. Item 8, which typically outlines designated suppliers, approved suppliers, or open procurement, contains no extractable data. Similarly, Item 17 provides no renewal or term-length disclosure. Without these data points, vendors cannot map contract expiration cycles or predict RFP windows. The practical takeaway: outreach timing is not data-driven here. Vendors should focus on demonstrating clear integration value with Sawyer and positioning for the system’s growth phase.
How to read the Bella Ballerina FDD
The 2024 FDD is embedded below. For software vendors, the most relevant sections are Item 11 (the franchisor’s obligations, where the Sawyer mandate appears) and Item 8 (procurement restrictions, though empty here). Item 1 lists no executives, so buyer identification requires external research. Item 19 gives unit counts and growth rates. Item 20 shows outlet openings and closings, which can signal churn risk or expansion momentum. Use the PDF viewer to search for “Sawyer,” “software,” and “technology” to confirm the current state.
For a ranked target list of franchise systems with stronger procurement signals and larger addressable unit counts, FranCloud can help.
Questions vendors ask
Bella Ballerina Franchising, answered from the filing
The FDD does not list individual executives, so the specific buyer is not publicly identified. Purchasing authority appears centralized at the franchisor level given the Sawyer mandate.
Sawyer is the mandated operational platform. No other mandated systems are disclosed in the 2024 FDD.
14 total units: 11 franchised and 3 company-owned, as disclosed in the 2024 FDD.
The procurement model is not disclosed in the 2024 FDD. Item 8 contains no extractable signal on designated or approved suppliers.
Contract windows cannot be estimated. The initial term length and renewal provisions are not disclosed in the 2024 FDD.
The 2024 FDD is filed with state franchise regulators. You can read it directly in the embedded PDF viewer below.
Source
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FDD alert
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Operator footprint
Who runs the locations
13 operators run 13 mapped locations. 0 of them are multi-unit. Aggregate counts from the filing; no names.
Operators by units owned
Single-unit13
Top states by locations
| VA | 4 |
|---|---|
| FL | 2 |
| SC | 2 |
| NC | 2 |
| MA | 1 |
Related Youth services brands
Primary franchise filings · updated June 2026. Every figure is source-traceable and QA-checked.