FacebookMeta
ning a splash page or other presence on the Internet through any social networking site in connection with the operation of your Franchised Business, including without limitation, Facebook, LinkedIn,
From the filings
+75% units YoYHQ-led decisions
Meals of Hope
Professional servicesSoftware purchasing at Meals of Hope is controlled at the franchisor level, with a mandated Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system already in place. The brand operates just 8 total units (7 franchised, 1 company-owned) but posted 75% year-over-year unit growth in its 2024 FDD. For vendors, this is a small, early-stage target where a single HQ relationship can influence the entire system.
For software vendors selling into US franchise brands.
Live signals
Total units
8
7 franchised
Unit growth YoY
+75%
vs prior filing
AUV
—
Item 19, 2023
Royalty
—
of gross sales
Ad fund
5%
national + local
Initial fee
$40K
per unit
Investment range
$61K–$72K
all-in, Item 7
Procurement
Franchisor controlled
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. It is a floor, not a total — the filing discloses one of the two headline fees.
5%+of gross sales (FY2024)
15% reference
Mandated & recommended tech
The systems vendors compete with
Systems named in Item 11 of this filing. None is recorded as mandated here, which is not the same as the filing mandating nothing. Read Item 11 before treating the category as open.
InstagramMeta
presence on the Internet through any social networking site in connection with the operation of your Franchised Business, including without limitation, Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo, Instagram, Twitter an
LinkedInLinkedIn
ash page or other presence on the Internet through any social networking site in connection with the operation of your Franchised Business, including without limitation, Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo, Ins
TwitterX
n the Internet through any social networking site in connection with the operation of your Franchised Business, including without limitation, Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube,
YouTubeGoogle
et through any social networking site in connection with the operation of your Franchised Business, including without limitation, Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube, that uses a
Franchisor behaviours
What the franchisor requires
20 requirements the franchisor states in this filing, each in its own words; 6 explicit no's; 8 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
Franchisor shall also have the right to, at any time without notice, electronically connect with the Computer System to monitor or retrieve data stored on the Computer System or for any other purpose Franchisor deems necessary.
Must the franchisee submit periodic financial statements (monthly, quarterly or annual) to the franchisor?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisee must maintain financial records for the operation of the Franchised Business in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles and must provide Franchisor, at Franchisor’s request, with (i) annual financial reports and operating statements in the form Franchisor specifies, prepared by a certified…
How the franchisor buys
Is the franchisor or an affiliate itself a supplier of required products, services or systems?
YesItem 8
You are required to purchase equipment used in packing events such as sealers, funnels, stands from us.
Does the franchisor reserve the right to change designated suppliers or systems at any time?
YesItem 11
We reserve the right to require you to purchase Proprietary Software to use for your franchised operations, and we reserve the right to designate another program in the future.
How much revenue did the franchisor and its affiliates earn from franchisee purchases in the last fiscal year?
846538Item 8
Our affiliate, Meals of Hope, Inc. derived $846,538 in revenue from franchisee required purchases during the 2023 calendar year.
Does the franchisor or an affiliate receive rebates, commissions or other revenue from designated or approved suppliers?
YesItem 8
We have the right to receive payments from suppliers on account of their dealings with you and other franchisees and to use all amounts we receive Meals of Hope Logistics, Inc.
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?
90Item 8
We estimate that your Required Purchases will account for approximately 95% of your total costs incurred in establishing your Franchised Business, and approximately 90% of your ongoing costs to operate the Franchised Business after the initial start-up phase.
Does the franchisor charge a fee to evaluate a proposed supplier?
YesItem 8
If we incur any costs in connection with testing a particular product or evaluating an unapproved supplier at your request, you or the supplier must reimburse our reasonable testing costs, regardless of whether we subsequently approve the item or supplier.
Can a franchisee propose a new supplier for the franchisor's approval?
YesItem 8
In the event you wish to purchase any approved item from an unapproved supplier, you must provide us with the name, address and telephone number of the proposed supplier, a description of the item you wish to purchase, and purchase price of the item, if known.
Communications
Does the franchisor own or control the business telephone numbers, or take them over when the agreement ends?
YesFranchise agreement
Immediately cease using all telephone and facsimile numbers (other than personal cell phone numbers) and listings, as well as any permitted domain names, used in connection with the operation of the Franchised Business (collectively, the “Assigned Property”), and direct the telephone company, domain name registrar…
Franchise management
Does the franchisor conduct periodic inspections, audits or evaluations of the franchised business?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisee agrees that in order to maintain the high quality and uniform standards associated with the System and to protect its goodwill and reputation, Franchisee will permit Franchisor, during business hours, to confer with Franchisee and its employees and customers, and observe and evaluate Franchisee’s sales…
Can the franchisor change the operations manual and brand standards unilaterally?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisor reserves the right to disclose updates to the Operations Manual via electronic means, including over Franchisor’s website or any intranet or extranet system established in connection with the System.
Must the franchisor approve the franchisee's site or location before opening?
YesItem 12
You must operate your Franchised Business from an Approved Location, which will generally be a home office and/or a storage facility, as applicable.
Marketing
Is the franchisee prohibited from operating its own website or social media accounts, or required to use pages the franchisor provides?
YesFranchise agreement
Except as approved in advance in writing by Franchisor, Franchisee must not establish or maintain a separate website, splash page, profile or other presence on the Internet, or otherwise advertise on the Internet or any other public computer network in connection with the Franchised Business, including any profile on…
Is a minimum grand opening advertising spend required?
YesItem 11
The Initial Packing Event will serve as your grand opening advertising.
Operations
Must the franchisee buy products from a designated distributor?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisee must use Franchisor’s designated suppliers as directed by Franchisor.
Must equipment be purchased from designated or approved suppliers?
YesItem 8
If we have approved suppliers for any item, you must obtain the item from our approved suppliers.
Payments
Are royalties and other fees collected by automatic bank debit (ACH or electronic funds transfer) from the franchisee's account?
YesFranchise agreement
With the exception of the Initial Franchise Fee, Franchisee shall pay all fees and other amounts due to Franchisor and/or its affiliates under this Agreement through an electronic funds transfer program (the “EFT Program”), which Franchisor automatically deducts all payments owed to Franchisor under this Agreement…
Point of sale
Does the franchisor have independent access to the data in the franchisee's POS or computer system?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisor shall also have the right to, at any time without notice, electronically connect with the Computer System to monitor or retrieve data stored on the Computer System or for any other purpose Franchisor deems necessary.
Training
Can the franchisor charge the franchisee for additional, refresher or remedial training?
YesItem 11
We also reserve the right to require additional training programs and refresher courses as we deem necessary, at our aforementioned tuition fee of $400 per person per day.
The filing answers no to 6 questions
- Is there a franchisee advisory council, association or committee?Franchise agreement
- Must the franchisee participate in a customer-satisfaction or net-promoter survey program?
- 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
- Does the franchisor require minimum staffing levels or specific roles?Item 15
- Must the franchisee use a CRM system designated or approved by the franchisor?Item 11
The vendor opportunity at Meals of Hope
Meals of Hope is a retail food franchise headquartered in Florida, operating under the parent entity Meals of Hope Foundation, Inc. The system is small—just 8 total units as of the 2024 FDD, with 7 franchised and 1 company-owned location. That small footprint, however, comes with a notable growth signal: year-over-year unit growth of 75%. For software vendors, this is a classic early-stage opportunity. The addressable market today is tiny, but a single HQ-level deal can lock in the entire system as it scales.
Average unit volume (AUV) and royalty rates are not disclosed in the most recent FDD, so traditional revenue-proxy modeling is not possible here. Vendors should size the opportunity based on unit count and growth trajectory rather than per-unit software spend estimates.
Who controls software purchasing
Software purchasing decisions at Meals of Hope are centralized at the franchisor level. The 2024 FDD lists Stephen Popper as President and CEO, with John C. Day serving as Vice President of Franchise Operations. No dedicated Chief Information Officer or Chief Technology Officer is named in the disclosure, which is typical for a system of this size. The practical implication for vendors: your initial outreach should target Popper and Day, as they are the most likely decision-makers for any system-wide technology mandate.
Additional executives on file include Geoff Goodman (Senior Strategic Advisor), Samantha Sheffield (Board Member), and Jacques Groenteman (Chairman of the Board). While these individuals may influence strategic direction, day-to-day operational technology decisions are more likely to rest with the President/CEO and VP of Franchise Operations.
Mandated and current tech stack
The 2024 FDD mandates a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system. No specific CRM vendor is named in the disclosure, and no other operational technology—point-of-sale, inventory management, scheduling, or accounting—is identified as mandated or recommended. This creates a wide opening for vendors in adjacent categories. If you sell a solution that integrates with or complements a CRM, you can position yourself against an existing mandate without competing head-to-head on the CRM itself.
Because the system is so small, the current tech stack is likely lightweight. Vendors should approach discovery conversations prepared to map the full technology landscape, as much of it may be undocumented or ad hoc.
Procurement, renewals, and timing
Item 8 of the 2024 FDD—which typically discloses procurement restrictions, designated suppliers, and purchasing cooperatives—contains no extract in our corpus. This means the franchisor's procurement model (designated supplier, approved supplier, or open) is not publicly known. Vendors should clarify this directly in initial conversations.
On renewals, Item 17 provides a clear window into contract timing. The initial franchise term is 5 years, with two additional 5-year renewal terms available. To renew, franchisees must execute the then-current form of Franchise Agreement, which may include materially different terms—including updated technology requirements. This creates a natural trigger point for software evaluation. With the system's first units likely still within their initial term, renewal-driven tech mandates may be on the horizon as the brand matures.
How to read the Meals of Hope FDD
The full 2024 Meals of Hope Franchise Disclosure Document is embedded below. This is the primary source for understanding the franchisor's technology mandates, procurement rules, and decision-making structure. Key sections for software vendors include Item 1 (executive team), Item 11 (franchisor assistance and mandated systems), Item 8 (procurement restrictions), and Item 17 (renewal conditions). Because this is an early-stage system, the FDD may be less detailed than those of larger brands—but the information it does contain is the most reliable basis for qualifying this franchise as a sales target. For a ranked list of franchise systems that match your software category, FranCloud can help you prioritize your outreach.
Questions vendors ask
Meals of Hope, answered from the filing
The buying center includes Stephen Popper (President and CEO) and John C. Day (VP of Franchise Operations). No dedicated CIO or CTO is listed in the 2024 FDD.
The 2024 FDD mandates a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system. No specific POS or operational tech vendor is named in the disclosure.
8 total units: 7 franchised and 1 company-owned, as disclosed in the 2024 FDD. This is a very early-stage franchise system.
The 2024 FDD does not include an Item 8 procurement extract, so the designated-supplier versus approved-supplier model is not publicly disclosed.
Initial terms are 5 years, with two additional 5-year renewal terms available. Renewal requires executing the then-current franchise agreement, which may trigger tech stack reviews.
The 2024 FDD is filed with state franchise regulators. You can view the embedded PDF viewer below to read the full disclosure document.
Source
Read the filing itself
Every number on this page traces back to this document. Read it in full, page by page. Buy the original PDF to download, search, and annotate it.
View only A one-time purchase: the original filing, yours to keep.
FDD alert
Tell me when this brand refiles.
We’ll email you the moment Meals of Hope files a new annual FDD, usually the freshest signal of a vendor change.
Operator footprint
Who runs the locations
9 operators run 10 mapped locations. 1 of them are multi-unit. Aggregate counts from the filing; no names.
Operators by units owned
Single-unit8
2–9 units1
Top states by locations
| WY | 2 |
|---|---|
| OK | 1 |
| FL | 1 |
| WI | 1 |
| TN | 1 |
Ownership
The portfolio behind Meals of Hope
unknown of meals of hope foundation.
Related Professional services brands
Primary franchise filings · updated June 2026. Every figure is source-traceable and QA-checked.