From the filings
Ding Tea is a 101-unit, fully franchised tea brand with no company-owned locations. The most recent 2026 FDD does not name HQ executives or mandate specific technology systems, leaving software purchasing decisions to individual franchisees. Vendors should target single-unit operators across four states, as no multi-unit operators appear in the current footprint.
For software vendors selling into US franchise brands.
Live signals
Ongoing fee load
The recurring percentage of gross sales named in this filing. It is a floor, not a total — the filing discloses one of the two headline fees.
3%+of gross sales (FY2026)
15% reference
Franchisor behaviours
22 requirements the franchisor states in this filing, each in its own words; 6 explicit no's; 6 questions the text does not settle, which is not a no.
How the franchisor buys
Is the franchisor or an affiliate itself a supplier of required products, services or systems?
YesItem 8
For your information, our parent company, Chu Yu Hsiang, are approved suppliers, but we are not the only approved suppliers for the products and equipment you will need to operate the Tea Shop.
Does the franchisor reserve the right to change designated suppliers or systems at any time?
YesFranchise agreement
In its sole discretion, Franchisor may improve or change the System from time to time (including but not limited to adding to, deleting or modifying elements of the System and amending the Confidential Operations Manual)
How much revenue did the franchisor and its affiliates earn from franchisee purchases in the last fiscal year?
1880334Item 8
In 2025, Chu Yu Hsiang Co., Ltd. generated a revenue of $2,170,223, out of which $1,880,334 was derived from the mandatory purchases and leases made by franchisees.
Does the franchisor or an affiliate receive rebates, commissions or other revenue from designated or approved suppliers?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisor and its affiliated entities reserve the right to derive and receive revenues, rebates or other material consideration as a result of the required purchases by System franchisees, and to retain for itself or use such revenues, rebates or other material consideration as Franchisor deems appropriate.
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?
22Item 8
The estimated proportion of these required purchases and leases by the franchisee to all purchases and leases by the franchisee of goods and services in establishing and operating the franchised business ranges from 22%-28% of franchisee’s total investment.
Does the franchisor charge a fee to evaluate a proposed supplier?
YesItem 8
You or the supplier will be required to reimburse us for all costs that we incur in the testing and approval process, whether the supplier is approved or not.
Can a franchisee propose a new supplier for the franchisor's approval?
YesItem 8
You may suggest suppliers, but every supplier must demonstrate that it meets all specifications, standards, and requirements and has adequate capacity to supply our franchisees' quantity and delivery needs, the ability to provide all franchisees in the DING TEA System.
Communications
Does the franchisor own or control the business telephone numbers, or take them over when the agreement ends?
YesFranchise agreement
At the time of termination or expiration of this Agreement, for any reason, Franchisee must transfer the telephone number for Franchisee’s Outlet to Franchisor or cancel them and de-list them from any applicable telephone directory or other telephone number listing service.
Franchise management
Can the franchisor change the operations manual and brand standards unilaterally?
YesItem 11
We can change the terms of, and add to, the operations manuals whenever we believe it is appropriate.
Must the franchisor approve the franchisee's site or location before opening?
YesItem 11
All sites must be approved by us and must be developed by you in accordance with our requirements.
Marketing
Is the franchisee prohibited from operating its own website or social media accounts, or required to use pages the franchisor provides?
YesFranchise agreement
During the term of this Agreement, Franchisee will use the Ding Tea website and any other internet or social media only as specifically authorized by Franchisor in section 6.2(a) of this Agreement, the Confidential Operations Manual or otherwise in writing to market the Franchised Business conducted at Franchisee’s…
Must the franchisee participate in a customer loyalty or rewards program?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisee must fully participate with any gift card, customer loyalty, referral and other contests and promotions Franchisor arranges for, requires or authorizes Ding Tea franchisees to participate in
Operations
Must the franchisee buy products from a designated distributor?
YesItem 8
Currently, you will have to purchase beverage syrup and proprietary tea teas from our designated suppliers.
Must equipment be purchased from designated or approved suppliers?
YesItem 8
Currently, you will have to purchase beverage syrup and proprietary tea teas from our designated suppliers.
Payments
Must the franchisee use a payment processor or merchant-services provider designated or approved by the franchisor?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisee is required to use and maintain the specific computerized point of sale cash collection system and integrated business computer (“POS System”) that is provided by Franchisor’s authorized supplier.
Are royalties and other fees collected by automatic bank debit (ACH or electronic funds transfer) from the franchisee's account?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisor requires payment for Required Inventory and of Service Fees by electronic funds transfer (“EFT”) through the Automated Clearing House (“ACH”) electronic network for financial transactions (or such other automatic payment mechanism Franchisor may designate) directly from Franchisee’s account into…
Must the franchisee participate in a gift card program?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisee must fully participate with any gift card, customer loyalty, referral and other contests and promotions Franchisor arranges for, requires or authorizes Ding Tea franchisees to participate in
People
Does the franchisor require minimum staffing levels or specific roles?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisee’s General Manager, Assistant Manager or at least one of Franchisee’s Principal Equity Owners must complete seven to ten calendar days of training in Taiwan.
Must employees wear uniforms specified by the franchisor?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisor is entitled to prescribe standard uniforms and attire for all Franchisee’s Ding Tea personnel in order to enhance the customer experience at the Outlet and to protect Franchisor’s reputation for quality service.
Point of sale
Must the franchisee use a specific point-of-sale system designated or approved by the franchisor?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisee is required to use and maintain the specific computerized point of sale cash collection system and integrated business computer (“POS System”) that is provided by Franchisor’s authorized supplier.
Training
Can the franchisor charge the franchisee for additional, refresher or remedial training?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisor may at its discretion charge Franchisee an additional training fee of up to $500 per person per day for Ding Tea training courses, seminars, conferences or other programs that Franchisor requires Franchisee or Franchisee’s representative(s) to attend in a suitable location selected by Franchisor.
Is attendance at an annual convention or conference mandatory for the franchisee?
YesFranchise agreement
Attendance of a Principal Equity Owner at these meetings will be mandatory (and is highly recommended for Franchisee’s General Manager and all of Franchisee’s other Principal Equity Owners).
Ding Tea presents a modest, fragmented addressable market for software vendors. The system consists of 101 franchised locations with no company-owned units, and the most recent FDD shows a year-over-year unit decline of roughly 15.8%. The operator footprint is entirely single-unit: four mapped operators control approximately four located units, with no multi-unit operators in the 2–9, 10–24, or 25+ unit bands. Top states by unit count are Illinois, Hawaii, Maryland, and Michigan, each with one mapped location. For a vendor, this means a highly decentralized sales environment where each franchisee likely makes independent technology decisions.
The 2026 FDD does not list any HQ executives in Item 1, so there is no named CIO, VP of IT, or operations lead to target at the corporate level. With no company-owned stores and no multi-unit franchisees on file, the buying center appears to sit entirely with individual franchisees. Vendors should prepare for a direct-to-operator sales motion, recognizing that each location is independently owned and operated. The absence of a parent company or private equity sponsor further suggests that no centralized technology mandate is enforced from above.
Ding Tea’s 2026 FDD does not capture any mandated or recommended technology systems. There are no named POS vendors, no required inventory or labor management platforms, and no specified online ordering or delivery integrations. This means the current tech landscape is likely a patchwork of solutions chosen by individual franchisees. For vendors, this represents both a challenge—no single integration point or rip-and-replace cycle—and an opportunity, as operators may be open to tools that improve unit-level economics without corporate interference.
Procurement rules are not disclosed in the FDD’s Item 8 extract, so it is unclear whether Ding Tea uses designated suppliers, an approved supplier list, or an open procurement model. Franchise agreements carry an initial term of three years, with renewal described as conditional and potentially subject to materially different terms. This short term length, combined with the recent unit contraction, suggests that franchisee turnover and contract renewal events could create natural openings for software evaluation. However, no specific contract windows or renewal cycles are published.
The Ding Tea franchise disclosure document was filed with state franchise regulators in 2026 and is embedded below for full review. Key sections for software vendors include Item 1 (the franchisor and any parents, though none are listed here), Item 8 (procurement obligations, not captured in this extract), and Item 11 (franchisor assistance, where mandated tech would typically appear—here, none is disclosed). Item 17 outlines the three-year initial term and conditional renewal language. Because the FDD names no executives and no tech vendors, your sales research will need to rely on direct operator outreach rather than corporate-level intelligence. For a ranked target list of franchise systems where your software is the best fit, FranCloud can help.
Questions vendors ask
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FDD alert
We’ll email you the moment Ding Tea files a new annual FDD, usually the freshest signal of a vendor change.
Operator footprint
8 operators run 8 mapped locations. 0 of them are multi-unit. Aggregate counts from the filing; no names.
Operators by units owned
Top states by locations
| MD | 2 |
|---|---|
| IL | 2 |
| HI | 2 |
| MI | 2 |
Ownership
unknown of chu yu hsiang.
Related Financial services brands
Primary franchise filings · updated June 2026. Every figure is source-traceable and QA-checked.