NorthStar Moving

The vendor opportunity at NorthStar Moving

NorthStar Moving is a home-services brand headquartered in California with a total footprint of 4 units, according to its 2023 Franchise Disclosure Document. Of those, just 1 is franchised; the remaining 3 are company-owned. For a software vendor, the addressable market is therefore limited to that single franchised location, plus any potential influence over the company-owned operations if the HQ is open to centralizing its own stack. The brand does not disclose average unit volume or royalty percentages in the available FDD extracts, and year-over-year unit growth is not reported. The initial franchise term is 10 years.

Who controls software purchasing

Decision-making authority sits at the top of the organization. The FDD’s Item 1 lists Laura McHolm as Co-Founder, President and Chief Executive Officer, and Abraham (“Ram”) Katalan as Co-Founder and Chief of Operations. These two individuals are the most likely buyers or approvers for any software pitch. Liron Cohen, Director of Operations, may also play a role in evaluating operational tools. Carrie N. Callahan, Director of Public Relations, is on file but is less likely to be involved in back-office or moving-software decisions. No parent company is on file; the brand appears independently owned.

Mandated and current tech stack

The 2023 FDD mandates two technology systems for franchisees. First, a system described only as “Moving Software” is required; the specific vendor name is not disclosed in the available data. Second, QuickBooks Online by Intuit Inc. is mandated for accounting. These mandates give vendors a clear picture of the incumbent stack: any new software would need to integrate with or replace QuickBooks Online and the existing moving-operations platform. Because the system is so small, the franchisor may be open to consolidating tools, but the bar for switching costs is high given the limited number of units.

Procurement, renewals, and timing

Item 8 of the FDD does not provide an extractable procurement signal, meaning there is no publicly disclosed designated-supplier or approved-supplier program in the available data. This suggests procurement is handled informally or on a case-by-case basis by HQ. Renewal terms, drawn from Item 17, offer two paths: a 10-year renewal or a 5-year renewal, both contingent on providing notice, paying a renewal fee, signing the then-current form of franchise agreement (which may contain materially different terms), updating the business, not being in default, and signing a release. With only one franchised unit, renewal-driven software evaluation windows will be infrequent. Vendors should monitor any expansion signals, though no growth is reported in the current FDD.

How to read the NorthStar Moving FDD

The 2023 NorthStar Moving FDD is embedded below for full review. It contains the legal and operational disclosures filed with state franchise regulators, including the Item 11 tech mandates and Item 17 renewal conditions referenced here. Reading the full document is essential to verify any assumptions before outreach. For a ranked target list of franchise systems that match your software category, FranCloud can help you prioritize the right brands.