From the filings
Software purchasing decisions at Paciugo Gelato Caffe flow through its small corporate headquarters in Texas, led by CEO Jeffrey P. Sinelli. The brand does not mandate any specific technology systems in its most recent FDD, leaving a wide-open landscape for vendor pitches. With 25 franchised locations and 13.6% year-over-year unit growth, the addressable market is compact but expanding.
For software vendors selling into US franchise brands.
Live signals
Ongoing fee load
The recurring percentage of gross sales named in this filing, before rent, labour or any technology fee.
8%of gross sales (FY2026)
15% reference
Franchisor behaviours
28 requirements the franchisor states in this filing, each in its own words; 3 explicit no's; 3 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?
YesItem 11
We may independently poll your Gross Sales and other information input and compiled by your POS System from a remote location.
Must the franchisee submit periodic financial statements (monthly, quarterly or annual) to the franchisor?
YesFranchise agreement
Within 30 days following the end of each calendar quarter, you must provide to PFI a copy of your profit and loss statements prepared according to generally accepted accounting principles and which accurately reflect your financial information for the applicable Accounting Periods.
How the franchisor buys
Does the franchisor reserve the right to change designated suppliers or systems at any time?
YesItem 11
We reserve the right to form a different advertising council and change or dissolve the current advertising council.
How much revenue did the franchisor and its affiliates earn from franchisee purchases in the last fiscal year?
103993.63Item 8
In 2025, we received $103,993.63 from franchisee purchases.
Does the franchisor or an affiliate receive rebates, commissions or other revenue from designated or approved suppliers?
YesItem 8
Our affiliate also has entered into agreements with other suppliers which provide for the suppliers’ payment of rebates based on purchases by PACIUGO FRANCHISE INTERNATIONAL, LLC Franchise Disclosure Document | 2026 15 the system.
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 purchases and leases from us or our designated suppliers will be approximately 90% of your total initial investment (not including the initial franchise fee) and approximately 90% to 95% of your ongoing purchases and leases in the operation of the Franchised Business.
Does the franchisor charge a fee to evaluate a proposed supplier?
YesItem 8
We may charge a fee for testing, which will not exceed the PACIUGO FRANCHISE INTERNATIONAL, LLC Franchise Disclosure Document | 2026 14 reasonable cost of the inspection and the actual cost of the test.
Can a franchisee propose a new supplier for the franchisor's approval?
YesItem 8
If you propose to purchase from an unapproved source any items for use in your Store for which we have identified, designated, or approved supplier(s), you must request our approval.
Communications
Does the franchisor own or control the business telephone numbers, or take them over when the agreement ends?
YesItem 17
We may, at termination/nonrenewal our option, assume all telephone numbers for the Store.
Data and IT
Must the franchisee comply with PCI, data-security or cybersecurity standards set by the franchisor?
YesItem 11
You must, at all times, be compliant with all applicable and current Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (“PCI DSS”) requirements and other data security policies that we may implement.
Franchise management
Does the franchisor conduct periodic inspections, audits or evaluations of the franchised business?
YesFranchise agreement
PFI or its designated agent has the right to audit, examine, and copy your books, records, accounts, and business tax returns at any time.
Can the franchisor change the operations manual and brand standards unilaterally?
YesFranchise agreement
You acknowledge that the System, the Manual, and the products and services offered by the Franchised Business may be modified, (such as, but not limited to, the addition, deletion, and modification of menu items, operating procedures, products, and services) from time to time by PFI.
Must the franchisor approve the franchisee's site or location before opening?
YesItem 11
We will approve or refuse to approve your proposed site within 60 days after receiving all requested information about 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
You may not use the Marks or any part or derivative thereof or any of PFI’s Copyrighted Works on the Internet, except as expressly permitted in writing.
Is a minimum grand opening advertising spend required?
YesItem 11
Unless we agree otherwise, within 30 days after opening the Store, you must carry out an advertising program that promotes the opening of the Store.
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
In each calendar year during the term of the Franchise Agreement, you must spend 2% of Gross Sales to promote the Store in your market area.
Must the franchisee participate in a customer loyalty or rewards program?
YesFranchise agreement
You shall participate in and offer to your customers: (a) all customer loyalty and reward programs; (b) all contests, sweepstakes, and other prize promotions; and (c) all meal deals, which PFI may develop from time to time.
Must the franchisee participate in a regional advertising cooperative when one exists?
YesItem 11
If a Cooperative is established for an area in which any Store is located, you must become a member of the Cooperative and participate in the Cooperative by contributing the amounts required by the Cooperative’s governing documents, and you must abide by the Bylaws of the Cooperative.
Operations
Must the franchisee buy products from a designated distributor?
YesFranchise agreement
In addition to Designated Suppliers, PFI may require you to buy your requirements of food, ingredients, and supplies from affiliated or third-party distributors (“Designated Distributors”), and you shall comply with all such requirements.
Must equipment be purchased from designated or approved suppliers?
YesItem 8
You must purchase from us or from designated sources all: (1) fixtures, furniture, equipment, interior and exterior signage, graphics, decor, trade dress, and Store design consulting services;
Payments
Must the franchisee use a payment processor or merchant-services provider designated or approved by the franchisor?
YesFranchise agreement
Accept debit cards, credit cards, Restaurant value cards, or other non-cash systems that PFI specifies periodically and participate in PFI’s required payment procedures and collection of funds relating thereto.
Are royalties and other fees collected by automatic bank debit (ACH or electronic funds transfer) from the franchisee's account?
YesItem 6
All fees and expenses described above are non-refundable and, unless otherwise indicated, we impose all fees uniformly, and all fees that are payable to us will be paid by electronic funds transfer or other means we specify.
People
Does the franchisor require minimum staffing levels or specific roles?
YesItem 15
ITEM 15 OBLIGATION TO PARTICIPATE IN THE ACTUAL OPERATION OF THE FRANCHISED BUSINESS The Franchised Business must be supervised on-premises by an Operating Principal.
Must employees wear uniforms specified by the franchisor?
YesFranchise agreement
You shall cause all employees, while working at the Store, to: (a) wear uniforms of such color, design, and other specifications as PFI may designate from time to time, and (b) present a neat and clean appearance.
Point of sale
Must the franchisee use a specific point-of-sale system designated or approved by the franchisor?
YesItem 11
The Franchise Agreement requires that you use only the point of sale cash registers and computer systems and equipment that we prescribe for Paciugo Stores (“POS System”) and that you adhere to our requirements for use.
Does the franchisor have independent access to the data in the franchisee's POS or computer system?
YesItem 11
We may independently poll your Gross Sales and other information input and compiled by your POS System from a remote location.
Training
Can the franchisor charge the franchisee for additional, refresher or remedial training?
YesItem 11
During the operation of the Franchised Business, we or our designee will: 1. Provide ongoing consultation and offer remedial or additional training, at our option (Franchise Agreement, Section 5.4., 5.5., and 5.6.).
Is attendance at an annual convention or conference mandatory for the franchisee?
YesItem 11
You must pay all expenses you or your personnel incur in attending the Paciugo Franchise Meeting, including the cost of travel, lodging, meals, wages, and registration fees, if we choose to charge registration fees.
Who buys here
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.
Paciugo Gelato Caffe operates a compact, fully franchised system of 25 units. The brand is in a growth phase, posting 13.6% year-over-year unit growth. For a software vendor, this is a small but active target: 28 mapped operators run these locations, and five of them are multi-unit operators controlling between two and nine units each. The remaining 23 operators are single-unit franchisees. This structure means you are selling into a mix of hands-on owner-operators and a small group of multi-unit owners who may need light enterprise functionality.
The geographic concentration is extreme. Texas is the home market with 21 locations, followed by Illinois with nine. Single units exist in Florida, Massachusetts, and North Carolina. A location-based sales strategy should start in Dallas-Fort Worth, where the brand is headquartered, and Chicago. The brand does not report an Average Unit Volume (AUV), so you cannot benchmark their tech spend against revenue. You will need to lead with operational efficiency and labor savings in your pitch.
Purchasing authority sits at the franchisor level. The FDD lists Jeffrey P. Sinelli as Manager and Chief Executive Officer, and Jeff Vickers as Senior Vice President of Franchise Development. There is no CIO, CTO, or VP of Technology on file. In a system this small, the CEO likely signs off on any brand-wide technology recommendation, while the SVP of Franchise Development influences what is communicated to franchisees.
Because there is no mandated tech stack, franchisees likely have autonomy to choose their own point-of-sale, payroll, and scheduling tools. However, a successful vendor strategy would still start at HQ. Getting a nod from Sinelli or Vickers—even as a preferred or recommended vendor—can unlock the multi-unit operators and set a standard for new locations as the system grows.
The 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document contains no mandated or recommended technology systems. This is a blank-slate environment. Unlike larger quick-service chains that lock franchisees into a specific POS or inventory platform, Paciugo Gelato Caffe imposes no such requirements in its current FDD. This absence is itself a sales signal: franchisees are making independent software decisions, and there is no incumbent to displace.
For a vendor, the lack of a tech mandate means you must sell location by location or win over the franchisor to create a preferred relationship. The five multi-unit operators are the highest-value targets. They run between two and nine stores and will feel the pain of fragmented systems more acutely than a single-unit owner.
The FDD does not include an Item 8 extract, so the brand's procurement and supply-chain model remains undisclosed. There is no information on whether franchisees must buy from designated suppliers or if they have open purchasing discretion. In practice, the absence of a mandated tech stack suggests an open purchasing environment, but you should verify this directly with the franchisor or a franchisee.
Contract timing is driven by the franchise agreement's structure. The initial term is 10 years. Franchisees in good standing can renew for two additional, consecutive five-year terms. Renewal conditions include signing the then-current form of the franchise agreement, which may be materially different, and a requirement to renovate or modernize the store to current standards. This modernization clause is a potential trigger for technology upgrades. A franchisee approaching renewal may need to implement new systems to comply with updated brand standards. With 25 units and a 10-year term, a handful of locations likely approach renewal each year, creating a small but recurring sales window.
New unit openings are the more immediate opportunity. At 13.6% growth, the brand is adding roughly three new locations per year. Each new store needs a full technology stack from day one. Building a relationship with the franchise development team now positions you for those openings.
The FDD viewer below contains the full regulatory filing for 2026. Key sections for a software vendor include Item 1, which identifies the executives and ownership structure, and Item 11, which would list any franchisor obligations around technology. As noted, Item 11 contains no mandates in this filing. Item 8, which governs procurement, was not available in our extract, so direct review of the full document is essential. The brand appears independently owned with no parent company on file, meaning decisions are made entirely within this small corporate entity. For a ranked target list of franchise systems that match your software category, FranCloud can help.
Questions vendors ask
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FDD alert
We’ll email you the moment Paciugo Gelato Caffe files a new annual FDD, usually the freshest signal of a vendor change.
Operator footprint
23 operators run 28 mapped locations. 4 of them are multi-unit. Aggregate counts from the filing; no names.
Operators by units owned
Top states by locations
| TX | 19 |
|---|---|
| IL | 3 |
| FL | 1 |
| MA | 1 |
| NC | 1 |
Related Quick service restaurant brands
Primary franchise filings · updated June 2026. Every figure is source-traceable and QA-checked.