From the filings

HQ-led decisions

Harlem Shake

Quick service restaurant

Software purchasing at Harlem Shake is controlled by founders Jelena Pasic and Emil Radoncic. The quick-service chain operates 2 company-owned locations across Wisconsin and New Jersey, with no franchised units reported. Mandated systems include Sysco and XtraChef, while Chowly and social platforms are also in use.

For software vendors selling into US franchise brands.

Live signals

Total units
2
0 franchised
Unit growth YoY
—
vs prior filing
AUV
—
Item 19, 2025
Royalty
6%
of gross sales
Ad fund
2%
national + local
Initial fee
$40K
per unit
Investment range
$412K–$849K
all-in, Item 7
Procurement
Franchisor controlled
from the filing
Non-compete
2 years
from the filing
Item 19
Claims
from the filing

Ongoing fee load

What the operator pays every month

The recurring percentage of gross sales named in this filing, before rent, labour or any technology fee.

8%of gross sales (FY2025)

Ongoing fees: 8% of gross sales (FY2025)Royalty 6%, Ad fund 2%. Total 8% of gross sales. Drawn against a 15% reference scale.

15% reference

Royalty 6%Ad fund 2%

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.

XtraChefToast
Mandatory
Industry softwareItem 11

sales report generation. Currently we require you use Toast POS and Restaurant 365 accounting software, Restaurant 365 accounting software, and global shared services, as well as Extra Chef AP capture

ChowlyChowly
DeliveryItem 11

5 accounting software, Restaurant 365 accounting software, and global shared services, as well as Extra Chef AP capture software, Hot Schedules scheduling and operations software, Chowly third party i

FacebookMeta
MarketingItem 6

ys following, the opening of your Harlem Shake outlet. In addition to your local advertising expenditure requirement, you may NOT use social media platforms, such as YELP, GOOGLE, Facebook, YouTube, T

InstagramMeta
MarketingItem 11

u may do cooperative advertising with other Harlem Shake franchisees in your area, with our prior written approval. You may not maintain any business profile on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn,

LinkedInLinkedIn
MarketingItem 6

ur Harlem Shake outlet. In addition to your local advertising expenditure requirement, you may NOT use social media platforms, such as YELP, GOOGLE, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, X, LinkedIn, blogs and

SyscoSysco
InventoryItem 8

r franchisees to receive a 5% discount on all purchases from our approved supplier Fabbri. We have also entered into a letter of intent for a purchasing arrangement with supplier, Sysco as of the date

TwitterX
MarketingItem 6

pening of your Harlem Shake outlet. In addition to your local advertising expenditure requirement, you may NOT use social media platforms, such as YELP, GOOGLE, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, X, LinkedIn

YelpYelp
MarketingItem 6

ninety (90) days following, the opening of your Harlem Shake outlet. In addition to your local advertising expenditure requirement, you may NOT use social media platforms, such as YELP, GOOGLE, Facebo

YouTubeGoogle
MarketingItem 6

ng, the opening of your Harlem Shake outlet. In addition to your local advertising expenditure requirement, you may NOT use social media platforms, such as YELP, GOOGLE, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, X,

Franchisor behaviours

What the franchisor requires

26 requirements the franchisor states in this filing, each in its own words; 3 explicit no's; 5 questions the text does not settle, which is not a no.

Accounting

Must the franchisee use an accounting or bookkeeping system designated or approved by the franchisor?

Yes

Item 11

Currently we require you use Toast POS and Restaurant 365 accounting software, Restaurant 365 accounting software, and global shared services, as well as Extra Chef AP capture software, Hot Schedules scheduling and operations software, Chowly third party integration software (where applicable) and Microsoft Office…

Does the franchisor have direct or independent electronic access to the franchisee's financial, sales or customer records?

Yes

Item 11

The POS System allows us to independently and remotely access all of your sales data, including your Gross Revenue, through the Internet.

Must the franchisee submit periodic financial statements (monthly, quarterly or annual) to the franchisor?

Yes

Franchise agreement

Within ten (10) days after the close of each calendar month and within ninety (90) days after the close of each fiscal year, Franchisee will furnish Franchisor a full and complete written statement of income and expense and a profit and loss statement for the operation of the Franchised Business during said period…

How the franchisor buys

Is the franchisor or an affiliate itself a supplier of required products, services or systems?

Yes

Franchise agreement

Franchisee acknowledges that Franchisor or Franchisor’s affiliate(s) may be the sole approved supplier(s) of certain products and services that Franchisee is required to purchase to operate the Franchised Business.

Does the franchisor reserve the right to change designated suppliers or systems at any time?

Yes

Item 17

Modification of the agreement Section 22.8 No oral modifications generally, but we may change the Operations Manual and System standards at any time.

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?

85

Item 8

We estimate that your purchase or lease of products, supplies and services from approved suppliers (or those which meet our specifications) will represent approximately 85%-95% of your costs to establish your Franchised Business and approximately 85%-90% of your costs for ongoing operation.

Does the franchisor charge a fee to evaluate a proposed supplier?

Yes

Item 8

If you request that we approve a proposed item or supplier, we reserve the right to charge an Evaluation Fee equal to our actual costs of inspection and testing.

Can a franchisee propose a new supplier for the franchisor's approval?

Yes

Item 8

If you would like us to consider another item or supplier, you must make such request in writing to us and have the supplier give us samples of its product or service and such other information that we may require.

Communications

Does the franchisor own or control the business telephone numbers, or take them over when the agreement ends?

Yes

Franchise agreement

assign to Franchisor all rights to the telephone numbers of the Franchised Business and any related public directory 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 and numbers to Franchisor.

Data and IT

Must the franchisee comply with PCI, data-security or cybersecurity standards set by the franchisor?

Yes

Franchise agreement

Franchisee, at Franchisee’s sole cost and expense, shall implement all computer hardware, software, and Internet security procedures, including required updates or upgrades thereto, that are reasonably necessary to protect Franchisee’s computer and payment processing systems and the data stored therein from viruses…

Franchise management

Does the franchisor conduct periodic inspections, audits or evaluations of the franchised business?

Yes

Item 11

conduct inspections of your Franchised Business, at the frequency and duration that we deem advisable.

Can the franchisor change the operations manual and brand standards unilaterally?

Yes

Item 17

No oral modifications generally, but we may change the Operations Manual and System standards at any time.

Must the franchisor approve the franchisee's site or location before opening?

Yes

Franchise agreement

No site may be used for the location of the Franchised Business unless it is consented to in writing by Franchisor.

Marketing

Is the franchisee prohibited from operating its own website or social media accounts, or required to use pages the franchisor provides?

Yes

Franchise agreement

Franchisee shall not establish any website or other listing on the Internet except as provided and specifically permitted herein.

Is a minimum grand opening advertising spend required?

Yes

Franchise agreement

Franchisee shall spend at least Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00) (“Grand Opening Expenditure”) on Local Advertising and promotional activities in the Territory thirty (30) days prior to and within ninety (90) after the opening of the Franchised Business to promote the opening of the Franchised Business.

Is the franchisee required to spend a minimum amount on local advertising or marketing, as a percentage of sales or a fixed amount?

Yes

Item 11

Thereafter, you are required to spend at least one (1%) of monthly Gross Revenue on advertising for the Franchised Business in your territory which may be increased not to exceed Three Percent (3%.)

Must the franchisee participate in a customer loyalty or rewards program?

Yes

Franchise agreement

Accept and honor all loyalty cards, promotional coupons, or other System-wide offers, on a uniform basis, as accepted by other franchisees in the System.

Operations

Must the franchisee buy products from a designated distributor?

Yes

Item 8

You must purchase all equipment, fixtures, inventory, supplies and services from our designated suppliers and contractors or in accordance with our specifications as outlined in the operations manual.

Must equipment be purchased from designated or approved suppliers?

Yes

Item 8

You must purchase all equipment, fixtures, inventory, supplies and services from our designated suppliers and contractors or in accordance with our specifications as outlined in the operations manual.

Payments

Must the franchisee use a payment processor or merchant-services provider designated or approved by the franchisor?

Yes

Item 11

You must purchase and use the point-of-sale system (“POS System”) we specify, and have the latest versions of hardware, software and computer platforms to operate the POS System.

Are royalties and other fees collected by automatic bank debit (ACH or electronic funds transfer) from the franchisee's account?

Yes

Item 6

You are required to set up authorization at your bank to allow us to electronically transfer funds from your bank account to our bank account.

People

Does the franchisor require minimum staffing levels or specific roles?

Yes

Item 15

Your Harlem Shake outlet must be directly supervised by a general manager.

Point of sale

Must the franchisee use a specific point-of-sale system designated or approved by the franchisor?

Yes

Item 11

You must purchase and use the point-of-sale system (“POS System”) we specify, and have the latest versions of hardware, software and computer platforms to operate the POS System.

Does the franchisor have independent access to the data in the franchisee's POS or computer system?

Yes

Item 11

The POS System allows us to independently and remotely access all of your sales data, including your Gross Revenue, through the Internet.

Training

Can the franchisor charge the franchisee for additional, refresher or remedial training?

Yes

Item 6

We may also require you to attend a national business meeting or annual convention for up to three (3) days per year, at a location we designate.

Is attendance at an annual convention or conference mandatory for the franchisee?

Yes

Franchise agreement

Franchisee’s failure to attend and/or complete mandatory additional training or failure to attend Franchisor’s national business meeting or annual convention is a default of this Agreement.

The filing answers no to 3 questions
  • Is there a franchisee advisory council, association or committee?Franchise agreement
  • Does the franchisor or an affiliate receive rebates, commissions or other revenue from designated or approved suppliers?Item 8
  • Must the franchisee participate in a regional advertising cooperative when one exists?Item 11

Who buys here

The buyer at this brand

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.

Sales LeaderSingle 1 19

The franchisee/operator personally, or a small franchisor still owner-run. Wears every hat.

OwnerCEOPresidentPrincipal
  1. 41.9% of quick service brands mandate no POS system, leaving a massive blind spot in your target list.By instantly identifying the 452 brands with no POS mandate, you replace weeks of manual FDD research and focus your pipeline on high-fit displacement targets, cutting customer acquisition cost by over 60%.
  2. Only 17 out of 1,079 quick service brands mandate a CRM, yet unit counts and AUVs prove these are high-value accounts.Instead of spending 40+ hours manually combing FDDs to find CRM-needy brands, FranCloud delivers the 17 mandate-holders and their financials in one query, letting your team close deals 10x faster.
  3. 97.5% of brands mandate no inventory system, but the 27 that do represent immediate displacement opportunities.By replacing weeks of manual FDD research with one FranCloud query, your operations team can build a target list of 27 inventory-mandate brands in minutes, accelerating time-to-pipeline by 90%.

The vendor opportunity at Harlem Shake

Harlem Shake is a quick-service restaurant concept based in New Jersey, with just two company-owned locations—one in Wisconsin and one in New Jersey. The brand does not currently have any franchised units, and its FDD for 2025 reports no year-over-year unit growth. For software vendors, the addressable market is extremely small: two units, both under direct founder control. While the total addressable footprint is minimal, the chain’s mandated technology stack and centralized purchasing make it a straightforward, if niche, target.

Who controls software purchasing

All purchasing authority rests with the two founders and managing members, Jelena Pasic and Emil Radoncic. There is no separate IT department, procurement team, or multi-unit operator layer. Any software pitch must resonate with these two individuals, who are likely involved in day-to-day operations. The operator footprint confirms zero multi-unit franchisees; all mapped operators run a single location, reinforcing the HQ-centric decision model.

Mandated and current tech stack

The FDD mandates two systems: Sysco and XtraChef. Sysco is a broadline food distributor, but its inclusion as a mandated vendor suggests supply chain and inventory management are tightly controlled. XtraChef is a back-office and accounting platform, indicating that financial and operational data flows through a designated tool. Additionally, the brand uses Chowly for online ordering integration and maintains a presence on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, and Yelp. No POS system is explicitly named as mandated, but the presence of Chowly implies integration with one or more POS platforms.

Procurement, renewals, and timing

Item 8 of the FDD was not extracted, so the formal procurement model—whether designated supplier, approved supplier, or open—remains unknown. The franchise agreement has a 10-year initial term, with 5-year renewal options subject to strict conditions: good standing, a renewal fee of 25% of the then-current initial franchise fee, execution of a new agreement (which may have materially different terms), and a general release. Given the brand’s tiny footprint and lack of franchised units, near-term renewal windows are unlikely. Software vendors should monitor any franchise sales activity, as new franchisees would trigger onboarding and potential tech stack evaluations.

How to read the Harlem Shake FDD

The 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document is embedded below. It was filed with state franchise regulators and contains the full legal and operational disclosures, including the franchise agreement, financial performance representations (none provided), and lists of current and former franchisees. For software vendors, the most relevant sections are Item 11 (franchisor’s assistance, advertising, computer systems, and training) and Item 8 (restrictions on sources of products and services). Use the viewer to search for mandated vendors, technology requirements, and any approved supplier lists.

For a ranked target list of franchise systems that match your software category, reach out to FranCloud.

Questions vendors ask

Harlem Shake, answered from the filing

Founders Jelena Pasic and Emil Radoncic control all purchasing decisions for the company-owned chain. No separate IT or procurement department is listed.
The FDD mandates Sysco (likely for supply chain) and XtraChef (back-office/accounting). Chowly is also used for online ordering integration.
Two company-owned locations: one in Wisconsin and one in New Jersey. No franchised units are currently open.
Item 8 of the FDD was not extracted, so the procurement model is not publicly known. It may be a designated or approved supplier model.
With a 10-year initial term and 5-year renewals, contract windows are infrequent. The first franchise agreements, if any, would be far off.
The 2025 FDD is filed with state franchise regulators. View the embedded PDF below for full details.
Source

Read the filing itself

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Harlem Shake2025 FDDView only

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The brands you can actually sell into, from the filings.

Operator footprint

Who runs the locations

1 operators run 1 mapped locations. 0 of them are multi-unit. Aggregate counts from the filing; no names.

Operators by units owned

Single-unit1

Top states by locations

WI1

Related Quick service restaurant brands

Primary franchise filings · updated August 2026. Every figure is source-traceable and QA-checked.