DoorDashDoorDash
accept orders to be filled at your Restaurant and you may not provide delivery services or catering services (directly or through any third party, including Uber Eats, GrubHub and DoorDash) without fi
From the filings
HQ-led decisions
Pretzelmaker
Quick service restaurantSoftware purchasing at Pretzelmaker is controlled at the headquarters level by FAT Brands executives, including Chief Information Officer Drew Martin. The brand currently mandates only a social media management platform, leaving most operational technology decisions open. With 129 fully franchised locations and an average unit volume of $559,357, the addressable market is concentrated but accessible for vendors who can navigate a lean corporate structure.
For software vendors selling into US franchise brands.
Live signals
Total units
129
129 franchised
Unit growth YoY
-5.147%
vs prior filing
AUV
$559K
Item 19, 2024
Royalty
1.5%
of gross sales
Ad fund
2%
national + local
Initial fee
$25K
per unit
Investment range
$392K–$573K
all-in, Item 7
Procurement
Franchisor controlled
from the filing
Non-compete
2 years
from the filing
Item 19
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.
3.5%of gross sales (FY2025)
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.
GrubhubGrubhub
solicit or accept orders to be filled at your Restaurant and you may not provide delivery services or catering services (directly or through any third party, including Uber Eats, GrubHub and DoorDash)
Uber EatsUber
dvertise or solicit or accept orders to be filled at your Restaurant and you may not provide delivery services or catering services (directly or through any third party, including Uber Eats, GrubHub a
Franchisor behaviours
What the franchisor requires
24 requirements the franchisor states in this filing, each in its own words; 2 explicit no's; 8 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 and our affiliates do have independent access to the information generated and stored in your Information System.
How the franchisor buys
Is the franchisor or an affiliate itself a supplier of required products, services or systems?
YesItem 8
Currently, you must purchase, directly or indirectly (a) initial and ongoing inventory your will need to prepare approved menu items you are authorized to offer and sell at your Restaurant, and (b) branded items and other designated products that are produced by or licensed by our affiliate, from our affiliate GAC…
Is there a franchisee advisory council, association or committee?
YesItem 11
We currently have a franchise advisory council comprised of 6 franchisees who are appointed by us.
Does the franchisor reserve the right to change designated suppliers or systems at any time?
YesItem 8
We may at any time change, delete, or add to any of our specifications or quality standards.
How much revenue did the franchisor and its affiliates earn from franchisee purchases in the last fiscal year?
32852000Item 8
For the calendar year 2024, GAC Supply’s revenues from all Franchisees’ required purchases of products and services were $32,852,000.
Does the franchisor or an affiliate receive rebates, commissions or other revenue from designated or approved suppliers?
YesItem 8
we may receive rebates or other consideration from this supplier based on the volume of purchases made by our franchisees.
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?
95Item 8
Collectively, the purchases and leases described above are approximately 95% of your overall purchases and leases in establishing the Franchise and 95% of your overall purchases and leases in operating the Franchise.
Does the franchisor charge a fee to evaluate a proposed supplier?
YesItem 8
If you use ingredients or offer to sell products that we have not approved, or buy from suppliers we have not approved, we can charge you a fee, in addition to such actions being a default of your agreement.
Can a franchisee propose a new supplier for the franchisor's approval?
YesItem 8
If you wish to procure any items from a supplier other than ones we have previously approved or designated, you must deliver written notice seeking approval of the supplier.
Communications
Does the franchisor own or control the business telephone numbers, or take them over when the agreement ends?
YesItem 17
assign to us all of your business telephone numbers.
Franchise management
Does the franchisor conduct periodic inspections, audits or evaluations of the franchised business?
YesItem 11
Conduct, as we deem advisable, inspections of the Restaurant and evaluations of the products sold and services rendered in and from the Restaurant.
Can the franchisor change the operations manual and brand standards unilaterally?
YesItem 14
We may change the contents of the Manuals, but such changes will not alter your fundamental rights under the Franchise Agreement.
Must the franchisor approve the franchisee's site or location before opening?
YesItem 11
Before you make a binding commitment to purchase, lease, or sublease a site, we must approve in writing the proposed lease or purchase agreement or any letter of intent between you and the third-party seller or lessor.
Marketing
Is a minimum grand opening advertising spend required?
YesItem 7
You must spend the required grand opening marketing and promotion amounts 2 weeks before opening your Restaurant and the 6 weeks after opening the 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
In addition to contributing to the Fund, you must also spend 2% of net sales during each calendar quarter on local advertising and promotion of your Restaurant.
Must the franchisee participate in a customer loyalty or rewards program?
YesItem 8
You must use our designated supplier for the loyalty programs that you are required to offer in connection with the operation of your Restaurant.
Operations
Must the franchisee buy products from a designated distributor?
YesItem 8
You must purchase and sell certain (a) specified beverage items (i.e. sodas), (b) icing and other products ancillary to the preparation of cookies and certain menu items, (c) branded paper products and product packaging, from our then-current approved supplier, which may modify upon written notice to you, and we may…
Must equipment be purchased from designated or approved suppliers?
YesItem 8
You must purchase all or most parts of the digital and static menu system from an approved vendor that we engaged to design a menu/computer system for our franchisees.
Payments
Are royalties and other fees collected by automatic bank debit (ACH or electronic funds transfer) from the franchisee's account?
YesFranchise agreement
To authorize _______________, or its affiliates ("PAYEE"), to deduct certain amounts by automatic deduction, please complete the following steps:
Must the franchisee participate in a gift card program?
YesItem 8
We have an electronic gift card program and you must participate in this program.
People
Does the franchisor require minimum staffing levels or specific roles?
YesItem 15
Your manager must assume responsibility for the day-to-day operation of the Restaurant, oversight of the preparation of food products, and supervision of personnel and accounting and must spend at least 40 hours per week overseeing the operation of the Restaurant.
Point of sale
Must the franchisee use a specific point-of-sale system designated or approved by the franchisor?
YesItem 11
You must purchase or lease and maintain, at your own expense, only those brands, types, makes and/or models of Information Systems computer hardware and software, communications hardware and software, point of sale hardware and software, kitchen display systems, kiosk(s), data and/or databases and any other items…
Does the franchisor have independent access to the data in the franchisee's POS or computer system?
YesItem 11
We and our affiliates do have independent access to the information generated and stored in your Information System.
Training
Can the franchisor charge the franchisee for additional, refresher or remedial training?
YesItem 11
Provide, as we deem appropriate, additional training for you or your manager, operating partner, assistant managers, shift leaders or other employees.
The filing answers no to 2 questions
- Is the franchisee prohibited from operating its own website or social media accounts, or required to use pages the franchisor provides?Item 16
- 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.
HQ leadership: CEO/President + VP Ops/Franchise + a first dedicated IT/systems owner.
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 Pretzelmaker
Pretzelmaker operates 129 quick-service restaurants, all franchised, with no company-owned locations. The brand posted an average unit volume of $559,357 in its 2025 FDD. Unit count contracted by 5.1% year-over-year, which means the total addressable market for software vendors is modest and may be shrinking. However, the franchisee base is highly fragmented: 124 distinct operators control the 129 units, and none of them are multi-unit owners. Every location is independently run by a single-unit operator. This structure means any technology adoption must be driven either by a strong HQ mandate or by proving value directly to individual owner-operators.
The top states by unit count are Texas (25), Utah (10), California (9), Iowa (7), and New York (6). Vendors targeting Pretzelmaker should focus their efforts on these geographies, where the majority of franchisees are clustered.
Who controls software purchasing
Software purchasing authority sits at the parent level. The brand is managed by executives at FAT Brands, and the 2025 FDD lists Drew Martin as Chief Information Officer of FAT. Martin is the most direct buyer for any technology vendor pitching an enterprise-level solution. Other relevant decision-makers include Taylor Wiederhorn, who serves as President and CEO of Pretzelmaker and Co-CEO of FAT, and Kenneth J. Kuick, CFO of Pretzelmaker and CFO of FAT. Thayer Wiederhorn (COO of FAT) and Mason Wiederhorn (Chief Brand Officer of FAT) round out the leadership team.
Because every Pretzelmaker unit is franchised and operated by a single-unit owner, any software that requires franchisee adoption will need HQ endorsement. The CIO’s office is the gatekeeper for evaluating and recommending technology to the system.
Mandated and current tech stack
The 2025 FDD is unusually light on technology mandates. Item 11 requires franchisees to use a Social Media Management Software, but no specific vendor is named. No point-of-sale system, back-office platform, inventory management tool, or delivery aggregator is listed as mandated or recommended. This represents a greenfield opportunity for vendors in most software categories. The absence of a mandated POS, in particular, suggests franchisees may be using a patchwork of legacy or self-selected systems, creating an opening for a vendor that can offer a unified solution with HQ backing.
Procurement, renewals, and timing
Pretzelmaker’s procurement rules are not detailed in the 2025 FDD. Item 8, which typically outlines designated or approved supplier requirements, contains no extract in the filing. This means vendors cannot assume a formal supplier approval process exists or does not exist. Direct outreach to the CIO or CFO is the most reliable path to understand how software purchasing decisions are made.
Franchise agreements run for an initial term of 15 years. Renewals are for 10 years and come with specific conditions: the franchisee must be in good standing, sign the then-current franchise agreement, pay a renewal fee equal to 40% of the then-current initial franchise fee, sign a general release, and renovate the restaurant premises. These renewal events, along with any new unit openings, represent natural windows when franchisees may be required or incentivized to adopt new technology. However, with negative unit growth, renewal-driven opportunities will be more common than new-store openings.
How to read the Pretzelmaker FDD
The full 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document is available below. For software vendors, the most relevant sections are Item 11 (franchisor’s assistance, advertising, computer systems, and training), which lists mandated technology, and Item 8 (restrictions on sources of products and services), which defines procurement rules. Item 1 identifies the executives who control purchasing. Item 17 covers renewal terms and can help you time your outreach. Review these sections to build a complete picture of the technology landscape before contacting HQ. For a ranked target list of franchise systems that match your ideal customer profile, reach out to FranCloud.
Questions vendors ask
Pretzelmaker, answered from the filing
Drew Martin, Chief Information Officer of FAT Brands, is the most relevant executive for software purchasing decisions. The C-suite also includes Taylor Wiederhorn (President/CEO) and Kenneth Kuick (CFO).
The 2025 FDD mandates only Social Media Management Software. No specific point-of-sale, back-office, or operational technology vendors are disclosed as required or recommended for franchisees.
There are 129 total units, all franchised. The brand operates no company-owned stores. Unit count declined by 5.1% year-over-year, signaling a consolidating footprint.
The procurement model is not disclosed in the 2025 FDD. Item 8 does not specify whether franchisees must buy from designated suppliers, approved suppliers, or have open purchasing discretion.
Initial franchise terms are 15 years. Renewals are for 10 years and require signing the then-current agreement, paying 40% of the initial fee, and renovating the premises. Contract windows may align with these renewal cycles or new unit openings, though unit count is currently declining.
The 2025 FDD is filed with state franchise regulators. You can review the full document in the embedded PDF viewer below to analyze Item 11 (tech obligations) and Item 8 (procurement) directly.
Source
Read the filing itself
Every number on this page traces back to this document. Read it in full, page by page. Buy the original PDF to download, search, and annotate it.
View only A one-time purchase: the original filing, yours to keep.
FDD alert
Tell me when this brand refiles.
We’ll email you the moment Pretzelmaker files a new annual FDD, usually the freshest signal of a vendor change.
Operator footprint
Who runs the locations
123 operators run 124 mapped locations. 1 of them are multi-unit. Aggregate counts from the filing; no names.
Operators by units owned
Single-unit122
2–9 units1
Top states by locations
| TX | 25 |
|---|---|
| UT | 10 |
| CA | 9 |
| IA | 7 |
| NY | 6 |
Ownership
The portfolio behind Pretzelmaker
unknown of pm franchise brands.
Related Quick service restaurant brands
Primary franchise filings · updated June 2026. Every figure is source-traceable and QA-checked.