Christian Brothers Automotive

The vendor opportunity at Christian Brothers Automotive

Christian Brothers Automotive operates 326 franchised locations across the United States, with no company-owned units disclosed in the 2026 FDD. The entire system is franchised, meaning every location falls under the technology mandates set by the franchisor. For software vendors, this creates a single buying center at the Houston, Texas headquarters. The addressable market is the full 326-unit footprint—no split between corporate and franchisee-controlled purchasing.

Year-over-year unit growth is not disclosed in the most recent FDD. Average unit volume and royalty rates are also not publicly reported in the FDD extract. The initial franchise term runs 15 years, with three optional 5-year renewal terms available. Renewal terms come with a materially different franchise agreement, which can open windows for technology stack changes.

Who controls software purchasing

Software purchasing authority sits at the corporate level. The FDD lists Don Carr as President and Chief Executive Officer and Michael Allnutt as Chief Operating Officer. These are the senior executives most likely involved in enterprise technology decisions. The board includes Chris Chesney, Art Coley, and Sunil Patel as directors. No dedicated CIO or CTO is named in the FDD extract, but the centralized mandate structure confirms that franchisees do not independently select core operational software.

Vendors pitching Christian Brothers Automotive should target the Houston headquarters and prepare for a top-down sales process. The franchisor designates the systems franchisees must use, which means winning a corporate deal unlocks the entire network.

Mandated and current tech stack

Christian Brothers Automotive mandates four categories of technology. Epicor Kinetic serves as the ERP system. Tekmetric is the mandated shop management platform. The FDD also references a designated accounting software suite and a payment software suite, though the specific vendors for those two categories are not named in the FDD extract. All four categories are described as mandated, not merely recommended.

This stack gives incumbent vendors a strong defensive position. For competitors, displacing Epicor Kinetic or Tekmetric requires demonstrating clear ROI at the franchisor level. The accounting and payment suites represent potential openings if the current designations are approaching end-of-life or if the franchisor is open to re-evaluation during renewal cycles.

Procurement, renewals, and timing

The FDD extract does not include Item 8 procurement language, so the formal supplier designation process—whether designated, approved, or open—is not confirmed in our corpus. The presence of multiple mandated systems strongly suggests a designated-supplier model, but vendors should verify this directly in the full FDD.

Timing a pitch around renewal cycles is possible but imprecise. The initial 15-year term and three 5-year renewal options mean franchisees periodically sign new agreements. The FDD explicitly states that renewal agreements contain materially different terms, which may include updated technology requirements. This creates natural inflection points where the franchisor might evaluate new software. However, specific contract windows or upcoming renewal waves are not disclosed.

How to read the Christian Brothers Automotive FDD

The 2026 Christian Brothers Automotive FDD is embedded below. It contains the full legal and operational disclosures filed with state franchise regulators. Review Item 11 for the complete franchisor obligations around technology, Item 8 for procurement rules, and Item 17 for renewal and termination terms. These sections contain the details that determine whether your software fits their compliance and operational requirements.

For a ranked target list of franchise systems matched to your software category, FranCloud maps mandated tech stacks, decision-maker contact signals, and unit growth trends across the entire US franchise market.