Pepper Palace

The vendor opportunity at Pepper Palace

Pepper Palace presents a concentrated, corporate-controlled sales target for software vendors. The chain operates 81 locations, all of which are company-owned, with no franchised units disclosed in the 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document. This structure eliminates the need to sell through a fragmented franchisee base; a single deal with the headquarters in Sevierville, Tennessee can cover the entire footprint. The average unit volume sits at $349,435.92, with a 6.0% royalty rate on a 10-year initial term. While year-over-year unit growth is not disclosed, the fully corporate model means any technology displacement or new implementation is a top-down decision.

Who controls software purchasing

The executive team listed in Item 1 of the FDD provides a clear map of the buying center. Morten Steen-Jorgensen serves as CEO, with operational leadership split between Caleb Stone, Vice President of Operations, and Tavis Scholz, Vice President of Store Operations and Development. The most direct entry point for a software vendor is likely Carla Branson, Vice President of Finance and Human Relations, whose purview spans both the financial approval chain and the HR systems that include the mandated UKG platform. No parent company is on file, indicating Pepper Palace is independently owned and decisions are made internally without a larger corporate parent's procurement overlays.

Mandated and current tech stack

The 2025 FDD Item 11 disclosures reveal a tightly mandated technology environment. For e-commerce and point-of-sale, Pepper Palace requires Shopify by Shopify Inc., with a specific note for a "Re-Visit" implementation also by Shopify Inc. Human capital management and scheduling are locked into UKG. Business intelligence and loss prevention run on RetailNext. Financials are standardized on QuickBooks Online by Intuit Inc. Marketing operations use OPTISign digital marketing software, and inventory management is handled by Thrivemetrics. This stack represents both a barrier and an opportunity: any new vendor must either integrate with these mandated systems or demonstrate a compelling reason to replace one of them at the corporate level.

Procurement, renewals, and timing

The FDD does not provide an Item 8 procurement extract, so the formal supplier designation process—whether designated, approved, or open—is not publicly detailed. However, the presence of seven specifically named and mandated vendors strongly suggests a centralized, designated-supplier model. Renewal mechanics offer a potential window for displacement. The franchise agreement provides for additional 10-year renewal terms, but requires franchisees to sign the then-current agreement, which "may contain materially different terms and conditions." This clause allows the franchisor to update technology requirements at renewal. Since all units are currently company-owned, the more relevant timing trigger is internal budget cycles and any strategic technology refresh initiatives driven by the operations or finance leadership.

How to read the Pepper Palace FDD

The full 2025 FDD is embedded below for direct review. Key sections for a software vendor include Item 1 for executive decision-makers, Item 11 for the complete list of mandated technology systems and their vendors, and Item 17 for renewal conditions that could force technology adoption across the system. The document is filed with state franchise regulators and represents the most current public disclosure of Pepper Palace's operational and contractual requirements. For a ranked target list of franchise systems matched to your software category, FranCloud can help you prioritize based on tech stack fit, decision-maker accessibility, and unit economics.