Ingenico
Mandatoryequipment and procure services from an approved vendor approved for credit card processing services. Specifically, you are required to use the approved payment devices (currently Ingenico Lane3000, Mo
From the filings
HQ-led decisions
IHOP
Quick service restaurantSoftware purchasing for IHOP is controlled at the corporate level by Dine Brands executives, including Acting CIO Chris Padilla. The brand mandates specific technology systems, including Olo for digital ordering and Tray POS, across its franchise network. With 1,681 franchised locations, the addressable market for approved vendors is substantial.
For software vendors selling into US franchise brands.
Live signals
Total units
1,693
1,681 franchised
Unit growth YoY
—
vs prior filing
AUV
$2.00M
Item 19, 2025
Royalty
4.5%
of gross sales
Ad fund
3.5%
national + local
Initial fee
$50K
per unit
Investment range
$7.24M–$14.38M
all-in, Item 7
Procurement
—
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 (FY2026)
15% reference
Mandated & recommended tech
The systems vendors compete with
2 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.
Olo
Mandatoryt sign an Authorized Operator Agreement for access and use of an approved provider’s on-line ordering system in form and substance approved by us. The current approved provider is Olo, Inc., but we ma
Ecolab
.............................. 44 Sanitizer Wiping Cloths ...................................................................................................................... 45 Ecolab Sink & Surfac
Heartland
ng to non-solicitation and no-hire provisions in the franchise agreements. On May 7, 2019, the parties reached a settlement in which Plaintiff received a payment of $9,500.00. (5) Heartland Consumer P
NoWait
cation. This determination is determined by IHOP in its sole discretion. Waitlist. Waitlist enables restaurants to seat more guests, more efficiently through a service provided by NoWait or Waitwhile.
Punchh
ired, These fees relate to but when implemented, services to reduce credit upon demand. card chargebacks and payment fraud. These would be paid to us or directly to our suppliers. Punchh and loyalty p
Tray
Invoice. IHOP Fee (11) check or wire transfer POS Setup, Training and $3,500 $9,000 Certified or cashier’s Upon invoice. IHOP or Support Fee (12) check or wire POS Vendor transfer Tray POS Software Fe
Waitwhile
is determination is determined by IHOP in its sole discretion. Waitlist. Waitlist enables restaurants to seat more guests, more efficiently through a service provided by NoWait or Waitwhile. Waitlist
Franchisor behaviours
What the franchisor requires
19 requirements the franchisor states in this filing, each in its own words; 4 explicit no's; 11 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
At any time upon Franchisor’s request, Franchisee shall provide to Franchisor or its authorized representatives access, and if applicable a key to permit reading of, the running total of the point-of-sale system.
Must the franchisee submit periodic financial statements (monthly, quarterly or annual) to the franchisor?
YesFranchise agreement
Within 30 days after the expiration of each calendar quarter (or other three-month period designated by Franchisor), Franchisee shall furnish Franchisor with a profit and loss statement of the Franchised Restaurant for such previous quarter and within 90 days after the end of each calendar year, Franchisee shall…
How the franchisor buys
Can a franchisee propose a new supplier for the franchisor's approval?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisee may not purchase any products from a proposed supplier or distributor until and unless Franchisor has provided written approval thereof to Franchisee.
Communications
Does the franchisor own or control the business telephone numbers, or take them over when the agreement ends?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisor shall have the option, exercisable by written notice within 30 days after the termination of this Agreement, to take an assignment of all telephone numbers (and associated listings) for the Franchised Restaurant
Data and IT
Must the franchisee comply with PCI, data-security or cybersecurity standards set by the franchisor?
YesItem 11
All IHOP Restaurants must be compliant with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (“PCI”).
Franchise management
Does the franchisor conduct periodic inspections, audits or evaluations of the franchised business?
YesFranchise agreement
In addition to the rights granted to Franchisor under Section 10.07, Franchisor and its Affiliate shall have the right, at any time and from time to time, to enter the Franchised Restaurant and other business offices to inspect (including the right to inspect point-of-sale systems, and other equipment, as applicable…
Can the franchisor change the operations manual and brand standards unilaterally?
YesItem 14
We have the right to modify or supplement the Operations Manuals upon notice or delivery to you.
Must the franchisor approve the franchisee's site or location before opening?
YesItem 11
You may not develop a Restaurant until we have issued our acceptance of the site.
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 may not develop, create, generate, own, license, lease or use in any manner any computer medium or electronic medium (including any internet home page, website, social media site, including those utilizing mobile technology, bulletin board, newsgroup or other internet-related medium) which in any way uses…
Must the franchisee participate in a customer loyalty or rewards program?
YesItem 11
Except for certain non-traditional venues, all domestic restaurants must participate in the program.
Operations
Must equipment be purchased from designated or approved suppliers?
YesFranchise agreement
shall be purchased and procured by Franchisee from Franchisor or its Affiliate (if offered by Franchisor or its Affiliate), from approved suppliers or distributors designated by Franchisor or its Affiliate, or from suppliers or distributors selected by Franchisee and not disapproved in writing by Franchisor or its…
Payments
Must the franchisee use a payment processor or merchant-services provider designated or approved by the franchisor?
YesItem 11
You must purchase equipment and procure services from an approved vendor approved for credit card processing services.
Are royalties and other fees collected by automatic bank debit (ACH or electronic funds transfer) from the franchisee's account?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisee hereby irrevocably consents to the inspection of such financial statements by Franchisor or its Affiliate and to Franchisor’s use of such financial statements, at Franchisor’s election, in the Franchise Disclosure Document.
Must the franchisee participate in a gift card program?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisee shall participate in any of Franchisor’s gift card programs.
People
Must employees wear uniforms specified by the franchisor?
YesFranchise agreement
By way of illustration and without limitation, such standard procedures, policies, rules and regulations may or will specify accounting records and information, payment procedures, specifications for required supplies and purchases, including Trademarked Products, hours of operation, advertising and promotion…
Point of sale
Must the franchisee use a specific point-of-sale system designated or approved by the franchisor?
YesItem 11
Subject to some exceptions, you must purchase or lease, depending on the program, an IHOP-approved POS computer system.
Does the franchisor have independent access to the data in the franchisee's POS or computer system?
YesItem 11
IHOP will have the right to access all the information (including sales and financial data) and the systems that generate them for marketing, audit and sales verification purposes and to retrieve transaction information including sales mix, usage and other operations data both in person and electronically through the…
Training
Can the franchisor charge the franchisee for additional, refresher or remedial training?
YesItem 11
While additional training and refresher courses are offered by IHOP from time to time, you are not required to attend unless attendance is deemed essential by IHOP.
Is attendance at an annual convention or conference mandatory for the franchisee?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisor shall have the right to require Franchisee, its Designated Representative (if applicable), or the manager employed by Franchisee for the Franchised Restaurant, to attend at least one management seminar per year if Franchisor deems attendance to be essential.
The filing answers no to 4 questions
- Is a minimum grand opening advertising spend required?Item 6
- Is the franchisee required to spend a minimum amount on local advertising or marketing, as a percentage of sales or a fixed amount?Item 11
- Must the franchisee participate in a regional advertising cooperative when one exists?Item 11
- Must the franchisee buy products from a designated distributor?Franchise agreement
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.
Formal HQ procurement; C-suite sponsor + cross-functional committee + IT/security/legal; often PE-backed.
VP SalesHead of SalesCROSales Director
- 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%.
- 82.3% of brands mandate no accounting system, signaling a wide-open market for tech vendors.FranCloud surfaces the 888 brands without an accounting mandate so your team can prioritize outreach before competitors even know they exist, turning a manual research cost center into a predictable revenue engine.
- 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.
The vendor opportunity at IHOP
IHOP presents a concentrated sales opportunity for software vendors. The system is overwhelmingly franchised, with 1,681 franchised units compared to just 12 company-owned locations. This structure means a corporate-level mandate can unlock a large, nationwide footprint from a single deal. The average unit volume sits at $2,000,000, indicating healthy per-location revenue that can support technology investments. The brand operates under Dine Brands, with its headquarters in California.
Who controls software purchasing
Technology purchasing decisions are made at the headquarters level. The key executive for software vendors to engage is Chris Padilla, the Acting Chief Information Officer for Dine Brands. The broader executive team overseeing the brand includes John Peyton, Chief Executive Officer of Dine Brands; Lawrence Kim, President of IHOP; and Vance Chang, Chief Financial Officer for both Dine Brands and IHOP. Christine K. Son serves as Senior Vice President, Legal, General Counsel and Secretary. The operator footprint data shows 40 mapped operators, all single-unit operators, heavily concentrated in California. This fragmented operator base reinforces that strategic technology decisions are not made by franchisees.
Mandated and current tech stack
The 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document explicitly mandates three technology systems. The IHOP app is a required component of the system. For digital ordering, Olo by Olo Inc. is mandated. The point-of-sale system is Tray POS. For a vendor pitching a competing or complementary solution, these systems represent the entrenched incumbents that must be displaced or integrated with. Any new software must demonstrate clear compatibility or a compelling reason to switch from these mandated providers.
Procurement, renewals, and timing
The procurement model for IHOP is not detailed in the available FDD extracts. The document does not include an Item 8 procurement signal, so it remains unclear whether the brand uses a designated supplier, approved supplier, or open procurement model. Similarly, the initial franchise term length and Item 17 renewal signals are not disclosed in the most recent FDD. This lack of data makes it difficult to predict natural contract renewal windows from the public filing. Vendors will need to engage directly with the IT leadership to understand the procurement calendar and approval process.
How to read the IHOP FDD
The IHOP Franchise Disclosure Document for 2026 is the foundational legal filing that governs the franchise relationship. For a software vendor, the critical sections are Item 11, which details the franchisor's assistance and mandated technology systems, and Item 1, which identifies the executives who control the brand. The full document is available below. Reviewing these sections will confirm the specific contractual obligations franchisees have regarding the tech stack you are looking to replace or augment. For a ranked target list of franchise brands aligned with your software, contact FranCloud.
Questions vendors ask
IHOP, answered from the filing
The key technology decision-maker is Chris Padilla, Acting Chief Information Officer at Dine Brands. The executive team also includes CEO John Peyton and CFO Vance Chang.
The 2026 FDD mandates Tray POS for point-of-sale and Olo by Olo Inc. for digital ordering. The IHOP app is also a mandated system.
IHOP has 1,693 total units, consisting of 1,681 franchised locations and 12 company-owned restaurants.
The specific procurement model is not disclosed in the most recent FDD. The document does not contain an extract from Item 8 detailing designated or approved supplier requirements.
The initial franchise term length and Item 17 renewal signals are not disclosed in the most recent FDD, making contract window timing difficult to predict from public filings alone.
The IHOP FDD is filed with state franchise regulators in 2026. You can review the full document using the embedded PDF viewer below.
Source
Read the filing itself
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FDD alert
Tell me when this brand refiles.
We’ll email you the moment IHOP files a new annual FDD, usually the freshest signal of a vendor change.
Operator footprint
Who runs the locations
1,629 operators run 1,629 mapped locations. 0 of them are multi-unit. Aggregate counts from the filing; no names.
Operators by units owned
Single-unit1,629
Top states by locations
| CA | 221 |
|---|---|
| TX | 209 |
| FL | 142 |
| GA | 81 |
| VA | 65 |
Ownership
The portfolio behind IHOP
strategic_multibrand of Dine Brands Global.
Sibling brands
Related Quick service restaurant brands
Primary franchise filings · updated June 2026. Every figure is source-traceable and QA-checked.