King of Pops Franchising

The vendor opportunity at King of Pops

King of Pops Franchising is a retail food concept specializing in frozen treats, headquartered in Georgia. According to its 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, the system comprises 58 total units—56 franchised and 2 company-owned—reflecting a year-over-year unit growth rate of 16.67%. The brand's footprint is concentrated in the Southeast: 26 locations in Georgia, 6 in Florida, 4 in Tennessee, 3 in Virginia, and 3 in North Carolina. All 44 mapped franchise operators are single-unit owners; there are no multi-unit operators. This structure means that any technology mandate from the franchisor is likely to be adopted uniformly, making the entire 58-unit system addressable for software vendors. While the average unit volume is not disclosed, the growth rate suggests a brand in expansion mode, which could lead to new unit openings and periodic technology evaluations.

Who controls software purchasing

Decision-making authority for software and technology at King of Pops rests with its co-founders. Steven Carse, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, and Nicholas Carse, Co-Founder, President and Chief Financial Officer, are the top executives listed in the FDD. They are supported by Kathleen Harvin, Franchise Coordinator, and Samson Frederick, Franchise Operations and Marketing Manager. There is no dedicated IT or procurement role, so the CEO and CFO are the likely buyers for any enterprise-level software. Given the small headquarters team, vendors should tailor their pitches to demonstrate how their solution can support the brand's lean operations and franchisee success without adding complexity. The absence of a CIO or CTO means that technical evaluations may be handled by these business-focused leaders.

Mandated and current tech stack

The 2025 FDD mandates specific technology systems for franchisees. HubSpot is the required customer relationship management platform, and Sage 50 is the mandated accounting software. For marketing, franchisees must maintain active presences on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Snapchat, and Twitter. No point-of-sale system is specified in the FDD, which may represent an opportunity for POS vendors or indicate that franchisees have autonomy in this area. The mandated stack is notably lean, focusing on core financials, CRM, and social media engagement. This leaves potential gaps in areas such as inventory management, employee scheduling, loyalty programs, or delivery integration—all of which could be pitched as complementary tools that align with the brand's mobile and event-based sales model.

Procurement, renewals, and timing

King of Pops' FDD does not include an Item 8 extract, so its procurement model—whether it uses designated suppliers, approved suppliers, or an open market—is not publicly documented. Vendors should inquire directly about the process for becoming an approved vendor. Franchise agreements have an initial term of 5 years and a renewal term of 5 years, with renewal conditions that include bringing the business into conformity with then-current standards, purchasing at least 30,000 Pops in the prior 12 months, and executing a new agreement that may contain materially different terms. The requirement to upgrade to then-current standards at renewal could trigger technology refreshes, creating windows for software vendors to propose new solutions. Additionally, the 16.67% unit growth rate suggests that new franchisees are entering the system regularly, each representing a potential new software deployment. The royalty rate is 5% of gross sales, but without AUV data, it is difficult to estimate per-unit software budgets.

How to read the King of Pops FDD

The 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document is filed with state franchise regulators and is available for review in the embedded PDF viewer below. For software vendors, the most relevant sections are Item 11, which details the franchisor's assistance, advertising, computer systems, and training—this is where mandated technology is listed. Item 1 identifies the executive team, providing direct contacts for outreach. Item 17 outlines renewal and termination conditions, offering insight into contract cycles and potential upgrade triggers. Because the FDD does not disclose procurement policies in Item 8, vendors will need to engage the leadership team to understand supplier approval processes. King of Pops is part of a rainbow umbrella organization, though the specific parent entity is not named in the FDD, which may have implications for shared services or group purchasing.

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