LightspeedLightspeed
MandatoryQuickbooks Pro and MS Office for document management. If you purchase a Store, you must acquire, use and maintain a retail management POS software program as we direct. Currently, Lightspeed is our on
From the filings
HQ-led decisions
Pet Depot
Personal servicesSoftware purchasing at Pet Depot is controlled at the headquarters level by President Roman Versch. The franchise currently mandates specific operational systems including Day Smart and Lightspeed, creating a defined tech landscape for vendors. With 29 total units (27 franchised), the addressable market is small but concentrated under a single decision-maker.
For software vendors selling into US franchise brands.
Live signals
Total units
29
27 franchised
Unit growth YoY
-3.571%
vs prior filing
AUV
—
Item 19, 2023
Royalty
5%
of gross sales
Ad fund
2%
national + local
Initial fee
$45K
per unit
Investment range
$293K–$822K
all-in, Item 7
Procurement
Approved supplier
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.
7%of gross sales (FY2023)
15% reference
Mandated & recommended tech
The systems vendors compete with
2 of these are mandated in the franchise agreement. Each is named in Item 11 of the filing, the incumbents a challenger must displace or integrate with.
QuickBooksIntuit
Mandatoryand software at your sole expense, which will at all times conform to our specifications, which we may periodically modify in our discretion. See Item 11. You are required to use Quickbooks Pro and MS
DaySmartDaySmart
ter, UPC scanner and computer monitors and the Microsoft Windows 10 operating system, Intuit QuickBooks Pro, and Microsoft Office, along with The Lightspeed Software for retail or Day Smart Veterinary
Franchisor behaviours
What the franchisor requires
26 requirements the franchisor states in this filing, each in its own words; 5 explicit no's; 3 questions the text does not settle, which is not a no.
Accounting
Must the franchisee use an accounting or bookkeeping system designated or approved by the franchisor?
YesItem 8
You are required to use Quickbooks Pro and MS Office for document management.
Does the franchisor have direct or independent electronic access to the franchisee's financial, sales or customer records?
YesItem 11
our independent access to, and retrieval of, data from your computer and cash register systems.
Must the franchisee submit periodic financial statements (monthly, quarterly or annual) to the franchisor?
YesFranchise agreement
shall submit to Franchisor (i) financial reports substantiating and documenting actual Gross Sales of the Franchised Business and providing such additional information as Franchisor may request, on forms, and in the manner prescribed by Franchisor, which cover the same Accounting Period as, and must be submitted to…
How the franchisor buys
Is the franchisor or an affiliate itself a supplier of required products, services or systems?
YesFranchise agreement
From time to time, Franchisor or an Affiliate may be a designated supplier of specific Proprietary Products and Non-Proprietary Products
Does the franchisor reserve the right to change designated suppliers or systems at any time?
YesItem 8
We may re-inspect or revoke our approval of a supplier or item at any time to protect the best interests of the PET DEPOT® brand.
How much revenue did the franchisor and its affiliates earn from franchisee purchases in the last fiscal year?
63000Item 8
We derived revenues of $63,000 representing approximately 5.8% of our total income of $1,070,500 in the form of rebates from manufacturers and vendors as a result of required purchases by franchisees, during our fiscal year ending December 31, 2021.
Does the franchisor or an affiliate receive rebates, commissions or other revenue from designated or approved suppliers?
YesItem 8
We derived revenues of $63,000 representing approximately 5.8% of our total income of $1,070,500 in the form of rebates from manufacturers and vendors as a result of required purchases by franchisees, during our fiscal year ending December 31, 2021.
Does the franchisor charge a fee to evaluate a proposed supplier?
YesItem 8
We may inspect a proposed supplier’s facilities and test its products and charge a testing fee which may range from $5,000 to $10,000 to cover our direct costs.
Can a franchisee propose a new supplier for the franchisor's approval?
YesItem 8
Alternative Suppliers – Approval Process If you want to use or buy any non-proprietary product or service from an alternative supplier not pre- approved by us, you must request our approval in writing before using or buying the non-proprietary product or service.
Communications
Does the franchisor own or control the business telephone numbers, or take them over when the agreement ends?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisor shall have the right to demand an assignment of the telephone and facsimile numbers and listings, in which case Franchisee hereby consents to the assignment, without compensation, as of the Termination Date or Expiration Date.
Data and IT
Must the franchisee comply with PCI, data-security or cybersecurity standards set by the franchisor?
YesItem 8
To the extent you store, process, transmit or otherwise access or possess cardholder data in connection with your operation of the Franchised Business, you are required to maintain the security of cardholder data and adhere to the then-current PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards), currently found…
Franchise management
Does the franchisor conduct periodic inspections, audits or evaluations of the franchised business?
YesItem 11
We will periodically visit your Store and/or Hospital at no additional expense to you to inspect your operations, observe and confer with your supervisorial or managerial personnel and review your books and records in order to verify your compliance with the Franchise Agreement and the Operations Manual.
Can the franchisor change the operations manual and brand standards unilaterally?
YesItem 14
We may modify the Operations Manual at any time.
Must the franchisor approve the franchisee's site or location before opening?
YesItem 11
You must select your site.
Marketing
Is a minimum grand opening advertising spend required?
YesItem 11
You must spend $15,000 on Grand Opening advertising and promotion for your PET DEPOT® Store or Hospital.
Must the franchisee participate in a customer loyalty or rewards program?
YesItem 11
Under the frequent shopper program, you must provide discounts on retail sales to customers who present our frequent shopper identification cards.
Operations
Must the franchisee buy products from a designated distributor?
YesItem 8
You must buy certain pet food, pet supplies and any other items deemed to be critical to the PET DEPOT® brand from designated suppliers.
Must equipment be purchased from designated or approved suppliers?
YesItem 8
You must purchase or lease all equipment, inventory, supplies, tools, and other products and materials required for the operation of your Store and/or Hospital solely from suppliers (including distributors, manufacturers, and other sources) we have approved in writing.
Payments
Are royalties and other fees collected by automatic bank debit (ACH or electronic funds transfer) from the franchisee's account?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisee hereby authorizes Franchisor to initiate electronic debit entries and/or credit collection entries to Franchisee’s designated primary business operating checking or savings account for the payment of Royalty Fees, advertising fees, rent and rent-related expenses, if and as applicable, and all other sums…
Must the franchisee participate in a gift card program?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisee shall participate in, and abide by, the PET DEPOT® gift certificate program described in the Manual, as Franchisor may revise it from time to time
People
Does the franchisor require minimum staffing levels or specific roles?
YesFranchise agreement
The Franchised Business shall at all times be under the direct, personal supervision of at least one (1) Certified Manager.
Must employees wear uniforms specified by the franchisor?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisee shall cause all employees, while working in the Franchised Business to wear uniforms in the color, style and design then specified by Franchisor, and to 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
You must purchase and use in operating your Store and/or Hospital a computer POS retail bundle that includes an office server and a point-of-sale (“POS”) system with network capacity and 2 POS cash registers that we approve.
Does the franchisor have independent access to the data in the franchisee's POS or computer system?
YesItem 11
and our independent access to, and retrieval of, data from your computer and cash register systems.
Training
Can the franchisor charge the franchisee for additional, refresher or remedial training?
YesItem 11
For these additional training programs, we charge a per person training fee of $500 per day.
Is attendance at an annual convention or conference mandatory for the franchisee?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisee or at least one person who is a Primary Owner or other supervisorial or managerial personnel must attend each Annual Meeting held
The filing answers no to 5 questions
- Is there a franchisee advisory council, association or committee?Item 11
- Must the franchisee participate in a customer-satisfaction or net-promoter survey program?Franchise agreement
- Is the franchisee prohibited from operating its own website or social media accounts, or required to use pages the franchisor provides?Franchise agreement
- Is the franchisee required to spend a minimum amount on local advertising or marketing, as a percentage of sales or a fixed amount?Franchise agreement
- Must the franchisee participate in a regional advertising cooperative when one exists?Item 11
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
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- 63.5% of personal services brands mandate no POS system, but I can't identify the 108 that do without digging through hundreds of FDDs.Manually reviewing one FDD takes 3+ hours. At 108 targets, that's 324 hours. FranCloud's tech_landscape reveals POS mandates instantly, turning a $16,200 research slog into a single query.
- 91.6% of brands don't mandate a CRM, but the 25 that do are hidden in static reports, delaying my outreach to high-intent prospects.Landing one CRM-displacing deal in this segment can yield $30k+ ARR. FranCloud's find_lookalikes pinpoints those 25 brands and their peers, accelerating pipeline by months.
The vendor opportunity at Pet Depot
Pet Depot presents a compact but centralized sales target for software vendors. The system consists of 29 total units—27 franchised and 2 company-owned—with headquarters in California. Year-over-year unit growth declined by 3.571%, indicating a contracting footprint. The average unit volume is not disclosed in the most recent FDD. Franchisees pay a 5.0% royalty on gross sales under a 10-year initial term.
The operator base is entirely single-unit: all 20 mapped operators run exactly one location. No multi-unit operators exist in the system. This fragmentation at the franchisee level means individual owners likely have little autonomy over technology decisions, reinforcing the top-down procurement model.
Who controls software purchasing
President Roman Versch is the only executive listed in Item 1 of the 2023 FDD. No chief information officer, chief technology officer, or VP of operations appears on file. In a 29-unit system with no parent company and a single named executive, Versch is the presumed gatekeeper for all software evaluation and purchasing decisions. Vendors should direct outreach to the president’s office at the California headquarters.
The absence of a dedicated technology executive suggests that software pitches must speak to operational pain points and ROI in terms a general manager or owner-operator would prioritize. Demonstrating compatibility with the existing mandated stack is table stakes.
Mandated and current tech stack
The 2023 FDD mandates four specific technology systems. Day Smart serves as the core veterinary practice management platform, with the Day Smart Veterinary Practice Management System explicitly required. For accounting, franchisees must use Intuit QuickBooks Pro. Point-of-sale operations run on The Lightspeed Software by Lightspeed Commerce Inc. These mandates are drawn directly from Item 11 of the disclosure document.
Any vendor selling adjacent or replacement software must address integration with this stack. Day Smart and Lightspeed are the operational backbone; QuickBooks handles financials. A vendor offering, for example, inventory management, customer engagement, or payroll solutions would need to demonstrate seamless data flow with these named systems or make a compelling case for displacement.
Procurement, renewals, and timing
Item 8 of the FDD, which typically describes procurement requirements such as designated suppliers, approved supplier programs, or cooperative purchasing arrangements, yielded no extractable signal in the available data. Vendors should assume that the franchisor retains the right to specify suppliers and should verify the exact language in the full FDD before building a compliance case.
Renewal terms under Item 17 offer a potential window for technology re-evaluation. Franchisees may exercise a 10-year renewal option provided they are in good standing, give timely notice, sign a general release, pay a renewal fee, and execute the then-current Franchise Agreement. Critically, the franchisor may present a contract with terms materially different from the expiring agreement. This clause could allow the franchisor to introduce new technology mandates at renewal, creating an opening for vendors whose systems align with evolving operational requirements.
How to read the Pet Depot FDD
The full 2023 Pet Depot Franchise Disclosure Document is embedded below. Key sections for software vendors include Item 11 (Franchisor’s Assistance, Advertising, Computer Systems, and Training), which lists the mandated technology systems named above. Item 8 (Restrictions on Sources of Products and Services) should be reviewed directly to confirm whether any approved supplier program exists beyond the explicit mandates. Item 17 (Renewal, Termination, Transfer, and Dispute Resolution) contains the renewal conditions that may signal future contract windows. Item 19 (Financial Performance Representations) may provide unit-level revenue data useful for ROI modeling, though no AUV was extractable from the available summary.
For a ranked target list of franchise systems matched to your software category, FranCloud can help you prioritize outreach based on tech stack fit, decision-maker concentration, and unit growth trajectory.
Questions vendors ask
Pet Depot, answered from the filing
President Roman Versch is the sole executive listed in the FDD. With no CIO or CTO on file, he is the presumed decision-maker for all technology procurement across the 29-unit system.
The FDD mandates Day Smart Veterinary Practice Management System, Intuit QuickBooks Pro for accounting, and The Lightspeed Software by Lightspeed Commerce Inc. for point-of-sale. These are required systems for franchisees.
Pet Depot operates 29 total units, comprising 27 franchised locations and 2 company-owned stores. The system contracted by 3.57% year-over-year, with all 20 mapped operators running a single unit.
The procurement model is not explicitly detailed in the available FDD extracts. Item 8, which typically outlines designated or approved supplier requirements, provided no extractable signal in the 2023 filing.
Franchise agreements run for 10-year initial terms. Renewal requires good standing, timely notice, a general release, a renewal fee, and signing the then-current agreement, which may contain materially different terms.
The 2023 Pet Depot FDD was filed with state franchise regulators. You can review the full document in the embedded PDF viewer below to analyze Item 11 technology mandates and Item 19 financial performance representations directly.
Source
Read the filing itself
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FDD alert
Tell me when this brand refiles.
We’ll email you the moment Pet Depot files a new annual FDD, usually the freshest signal of a vendor change.
Operator footprint
Who runs the locations
20 operators run 20 mapped locations. 0 of them are multi-unit. Aggregate counts from the filing; no names.
Operators by units owned
Single-unit20
Related Personal services brands
Primary franchise filings · updated June 2026. Every figure is source-traceable and QA-checked.