FacebookMeta
ment or other obligation. You are strictly prohibited from promoting your Restaurant and/or using the Proprietary Marks in any manner on social and/or networking websites, such as Facebook, Instagram,
From the filings
Nature's Table Cafe
Quick service restaurantSoftware purchasing at Nature's Table Cafe is not clearly defined in the 2023 FDD, but the franchisor mandates social media platforms LinkedIn, TikTok, and Twitter for franchisees. The brand operates 53 total units (47 franchised, 4 company-owned) and has experienced a 7.8% decline in locations year-over-year. This small, shrinking system presents a limited addressable market for vendors.
For software vendors selling into US franchise brands.
Live signals
Total units
53
47 franchised
Unit growth YoY
-7.843%
vs prior filing
AUV
—
Item 19, 2023
Royalty
5%
of gross sales
Ad fund
1%
national + local
Initial fee
$30K
per unit
Investment range
$162K–$282K
all-in, Item 7
Procurement
Standards based
from the filing
Non-compete
2 years
from the filing
Item 19
No 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.
6%of gross sales (FY2023)
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
her obligation. You are strictly prohibited from promoting your Restaurant and/or using the Proprietary Marks in any manner on social and/or networking websites, such as Facebook, Instagram, Foursquar
LinkedInLinkedIn
n on a website established or authorized by us (“social media” includes personal blogs, common social networks like Facebook, Instagram and Foursquare , professional networks like LinkedIn, live-blogg
SquareBlock
or cost worksheet and advise you to do the same. We require the use of a computer based POS system. We do not require you to purchase any particular brand. We encourage the use of Square POS. It is us
TikTokTikTok
prohibited from promoting your Restaurant and/or using the Proprietary Marks in any manner on social and/or networking websites, such as Facebook, Instagram, Foursquare, LinkedIn, TikTok and Twitter,
TwitterX
from promoting your Restaurant and/or using the Proprietary Marks in any manner on social and/or networking websites, such as Facebook, Instagram, Foursquare, LinkedIn, TikTok and Twitter, without our
Franchisor behaviours
What the franchisor requires
23 requirements the franchisor states in this filing, each in its own words; 6 explicit no's; 5 questions the text does not settle, which is not a no.
Accounting
Must the franchisee submit periodic financial statements (monthly, quarterly or annual) to the franchisor?
YesFranchise agreement
You shall, at your expense, submit to us, in the form prescribed by us, a profit and loss statement for each month (which may be unaudited) for you within fifteen (15) days after the end of each month during the term hereof.
How the franchisor buys
Is the franchisor or an affiliate itself a supplier of required products, services or systems?
YesItem 8
Currently we are one source of supply (but not the only source of supply) for the smoothie mixes and syrups used by franchisees.
Does the franchisor reserve the right to change designated suppliers or systems at any time?
YesItem 11
We may periodically modify specifications for and components of the computer system.
How much revenue did the franchisor and its affiliates earn from franchisee purchases in the last fiscal year?
133976Item 8
As of December 31, 2022, we received $133,976 from required purchases or 11.5% of our total revenue of $1,161,906.
Does the franchisor or an affiliate receive rebates, commissions or other revenue from designated or approved suppliers?
YesItem 8
We and/or our affiliates may receive payments or other compensation from approved suppliers on account of the suppliers’ dealings with us, you, or other Restaurants in the System, such as rebates, commissions or other forms of compensation.
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?
80Item 8
approximately 80% to 85% of your total purchases in the continuing operation of the Restaurant.
Does the franchisor charge a fee to evaluate a proposed supplier?
YesFranchise agreement
We reserve the right to require you to reimburse our costs related to evaluation and testing.
Can a franchisee propose a new supplier for the franchisor's approval?
YesItem 8
If you wish to purchase, lease or use any products or other items from an unapproved supplier, you must submit a written request for approval, or must request the supplier to do so.
Communications
Does the franchisor own or control the business telephone numbers, or take them over when the agreement ends?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisee has or will acquire during the term of the Franchise Agreement, certain right, title, and interest in and to those certain telephone numbers and regular, classified, internet page, and other telephone directory listings (collectively, the “Telephone Listings”) related to the Franchised Business or the Marks.
Franchise management
Must the franchisee participate in a customer-satisfaction or net-promoter survey program?
YesFranchise agreement
You shall participate in all customer surveys and satisfaction audits, which may require that you provide discounted or complimentary products, provided that such discounted or complimentary sales shall not be included in the Gross Sales of the Restaurant.
Does the franchisor conduct periodic inspections, audits or evaluations of the franchised business?
YesItem 11
As we reasonably determine necessary, visits to and evaluations of the Restaurant and the products and services provided to make sure that our high standards of quality, appearance and service of the System are maintained.
Can the franchisor change the operations manual and brand standards unilaterally?
YesFranchise agreement
We may from time to time revise the contents of the Manuals and the contents of any other manuals and materials created or approved for use in the operation of the Franchised Business.
Must the franchisor approve the franchisee's site or location before opening?
YesFranchise agreement
No site may be used for the location of the Restaurant unless it is first
Marketing
Is the franchisee prohibited from operating its own website or social media accounts, or required to use pages the franchisor provides?
YesFranchise agreement
You may not develop, maintain or authorize any other website, other online presence or other electronic medium that mentions or describes the Franchised Business, the System or displays any of the Marks without our prior approval.
Is a minimum grand opening advertising spend required?
YesItem 11
You must spend at least $5,000 on a grand opening advertising campaign to promote the opening of your Restaurant.
Is the franchisee required to spend a minimum amount on local advertising or marketing, as a percentage of sales or a fixed amount?
YesItem 11
You must conduct Local Advertising in your Designated Territory and you must spend at least 2% of your Restaurant’s Gross Sales each calendar quarter for local advertising.
Must the franchisee participate in a regional advertising cooperative when one exists?
YesItem 11
If a Cooperative has been established for a geographic area where your Restaurant is located when the Franchise Agreement is signed, or if any Cooperative is established during the term of the Franchise Agreement, you must become a member of the Cooperative.
Operations
Must the franchisee buy products from a designated distributor?
YesItem 8
you will use only our proprietary recipes and other proprietary products and will purchase those items solely from us or from a source designated by us all of your requirements for those products.
Must equipment be purchased from designated or approved suppliers?
YesFranchise agreement
You shall not purchase or lease from any supplier until and unless such supplier has been approved in writing by us.
Payments
Are royalties and other fees collected by automatic bank debit (ACH or electronic funds transfer) from the franchisee's account?
YesFranchise agreement
By executing this Agreement, you agree that we shall have the right to withdraw funds from your designated bank account each month by electronic funds transfer (“EFT”) in the amount of the royalty fee, marketing fee and any other payments due to us and/or our affiliates.
Must the franchisee participate in a gift card program?
YesFranchise agreement
To sell or otherwise issue gift cards or certificates (together “Gift Cards”) that have been prepared utilizing the standard form of Gift Card provided or designated by us, and only in the manner specified by us in the Manuals or otherwise in writing.
People
Does the franchisor require minimum staffing levels or specific roles?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisee affirms, warrants and understands that Franchisee may staff Franchisee’s Nature’s Table Restaurant with as many employees as Franchisee desires at any time so long as Franchisor’s minimal staffing levels are achieved.
Point of sale
Must the franchisee use a specific point-of-sale system designated or approved by the franchisor?
YesFranchise agreement
You shall record all sales on computer-based point of sale systems approved by us or on such other types of systems as may be designated by us in the Manual or otherwise in writing (“Point Of Sale Systems”), which shall be deemed part of your Computer System.
The filing answers no to 6 questions
- Does the franchisor have direct or independent electronic access to the franchisee's financial, sales or customer records?Item 11
- Is there a franchisee advisory council, association or committee?Item 11
- Must the franchisee participate in a customer loyalty or rewards program?Franchise agreement
- Does the franchisor have independent access to the data in the franchisee's POS or computer system?Item 11
- Can the franchisor charge the franchisee for additional, refresher or remedial training?Item 11
- Is attendance at an annual convention or conference mandatory for the franchisee?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.
The franchisor's owner/CEO decides; an ops or franchise-development lead may evaluate.
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 Nature's Table Cafe
Nature's Table Cafe is a quick-service restaurant brand with a small and shrinking footprint. The 2023 FDD reports 53 total units—47 franchised and 4 company-owned—representing a 7.8% decline from the prior year. No average unit volume (AUV) is disclosed, making it difficult to gauge per-location revenue potential. The royalty rate is 5.0%, and the initial franchise term is 10 years.
For software vendors, the addressable market is limited to these 53 locations. FranCloud's operator mapping has identified only 1 franchisee (a single-unit operator in Wisconsin), suggesting the system may be composed of many small, independent operators. This fragmentation could mean a longer sales cycle if decisions are made at the unit level, but it also reduces the risk of a single lost account wiping out your entire pipeline.
Who controls software purchasing
The FDD does not list any HQ executives, so the central buying center remains unknown. However, the franchisor mandates that franchisees use LinkedIn, TikTok, and Twitter—a strong signal that the marketing team has a say in technology selection. For other categories like POS, payroll, or inventory, the absence of mandates suggests franchisees likely have autonomy. Vendors should prepare to sell both to the franchisor (for any future system-wide rollouts) and to individual operators.
Mandated and current tech stack
Nature's Table Cafe's disclosed tech stack is unusual for a restaurant brand. The FDD mandates three social media platforms: LinkedIn, TikTok, and Twitter. Facebook and Instagram are also listed but not explicitly mandated. No point-of-sale, scheduling, delivery, or back-office systems are mentioned. This could mean the franchisor leaves operational tech entirely to franchisees, or that such mandates exist but were not extracted in FranCloud's FDD analysis. Vendors should inquire directly about any unlisted requirements.
Procurement, renewals, and timing
Item 8 (procurement restrictions) was not extracted from the FDD, so it is unclear whether Nature's Table Cafe operates a designated supplier program, an approved supplier list, or an open procurement model. Similarly, Item 17 (renewal, termination, and transfer) provides no insight into contract windows or renewal cycles. With a 10-year initial term and a declining unit count, opportunities to displace incumbent vendors may be rare. Proactive outreach to franchisees—especially those nearing the end of their term—could uncover pockets of demand.
How to read the Nature's Table Cafe FDD
The full 2023 Franchise Disclosure Document is embedded below. It was filed with state franchise regulators and contains the legal and financial disclosures that govern the franchise relationship. Key sections for software vendors include Item 11 (franchisor's assistance, advertising, computer systems, and training) and Item 8 (restrictions on sources of products and services). Review these to confirm whether any additional tech mandates exist beyond the social media platforms noted here.
For a ranked target list of franchise systems that match your software, talk to FranCloud.
Questions vendors ask
Nature's Table Cafe, answered from the filing
The FDD does not list HQ executives, so the buying center is unclear. Given mandated social media platforms, the marketing department likely influences tech decisions, but most operational software choices may rest with franchisees.
The FDD does not mandate any specific POS or operational technology. The only mandated tech are social media platforms: LinkedIn, TikTok, and Twitter. Vendors should verify if any unlisted systems are required.
53 total locations (47 franchised, 4 company-owned) as of the 2023 FDD. The brand has experienced a 7.8% decline in units year-over-year, indicating a contracting footprint.
The FDD does not disclose a designated or approved supplier program (Item 8 not extracted). Procurement appears to be open, but vendors should confirm directly with the franchisor.
The FDD does not provide renewal or contract window details (Item 17 not extracted). With a 10-year initial term and declining unit count, opportunities may be infrequent.
The FDD is filed with state franchise regulators in 2023. You can view it directly in the embedded PDF viewer below on this page.
Source
Read the filing itself
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FDD alert
Tell me when this brand refiles.
We’ll email you the moment Nature's Table Cafe files a new annual FDD, usually the freshest signal of a vendor change.
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
| WI | 1 |
|---|
Related Quick service restaurant brands
Primary franchise filings · updated August 2026. Every figure is source-traceable and QA-checked.