SyscoSysco
Mandatoryare required to purchase. You may purchase certain items locally such as produce and cleaning supplies, but you must purchase at least 80% of your total restaurant purchases from Sysco unless we chang
From the filings
HQ-led decisions
RED HOT & BLUE
Quick service restaurantSoftware purchasing control at Red Hot & Blue rests with HQ leadership, primarily the Manager and Chief Executive Officer, Adam Bradley. The franchise currently mandates Sysco for its supply chain, but other operational technology mandates remain undisclosed in the FDD. With only 4 franchised units, the addressable market is extremely small, and a -60% unit growth rate signals a contracting opportunity for vendors.
For software vendors selling into US franchise brands.
Live signals
Total units
5
4 franchised
Unit growth YoY
-60%
vs prior filing
AUV
—
Item 19, 2023
Royalty
5%
of gross sales
Ad fund
4%
national + local
Initial fee
—
per unit
Investment range
$994K–$1.97M
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.
9%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.
ToastToast
Mandatorywith related software, components, terminals and other peripheral equipment. Toast POS platform is our currently required vendor for your POS system. You must acquire and use the Toast POS platform sy
Franchisor behaviours
What the franchisor requires
26 requirements the franchisor states in this filing, each in its own words; 2 explicit no's; 6 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?
YesFranchise agreement
To install, adopt and utilize Franchisor’s required accounting, bookkeeping and software system, so as to report financial information to Franchisor in the formats designated by Franchisor, and using the line items and accounting systems consistent with Franchisor’s reporting systems;
Does the franchisor have direct or independent electronic access to the franchisee's financial, sales or customer records?
YesItem 11
Red Hot & Blue will have independent access to the information and data collected and generated by your point-of-sale computer system.
Must the franchisee submit periodic financial statements (monthly, quarterly or annual) to the franchisor?
YesFranchise agreement
C. Franchisee shall, at Franchisee's expense, submit to Franchisor, in the form prescribed by Franchisor, an unaudited balance sheet of the Franchised Business and a statement of profit or loss for the preceding quarter within thirty (30) days after the end of each quarter of Franchisee's fiscal year.
How the franchisor buys
Is the franchisor or an affiliate itself a supplier of required products, services or systems?
YesItem 8
You must purchase proprietary products for your RED HOT & BLUE® Restaurant only from the suppliers designated in writing by us, which may include us or an affiliate.
Does the franchisor reserve the right to change designated suppliers or systems at any time?
YesItem 11
We may designate in the future new computer system requirements including a System-wide POS system, and we may require its use in all new and existing Restaurants.
How much revenue did the franchisor and its affiliates earn from franchisee purchases in the last fiscal year?
2000Item 8
We sold marketing items to franchisees in 2022 in the amount of $2,000.
Does the franchisor or an affiliate receive rebates, commissions or other revenue from designated or approved suppliers?
YesItem 8
We will retain rebates received from our general distributor and from other suppliers or vendors we will retain.
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?
80Item 8
will constitute up to 90% of your initial investment and approximately 80% of your ongoing expenditures of operating your RED HOT & BLUE® Restaurant.
Does the franchisor charge a fee to evaluate a proposed supplier?
YesItem 6
10 Review of You must reimburse Upon receipt of an Payable only if you request Unapproved us for the expenses it invoice from us that we review and approve an Supplier incurs inspecting an unapproved supplier. unapproved supplier, estimated to range from $750 to $2,000.
Can a franchisee propose a new supplier for the franchisor's approval?
YesItem 8
If you want to purchase food, beverages or products subject to approved supplier requirements from a supplier who has not been previously approved by us, then you must, at your expense, send representative samples or specifications of that supplier’s goods or services, and certain other information about the…
Franchise management
Does the franchisor conduct periodic inspections, audits or evaluations of the franchised business?
YesItem 11
We will conduct as it seems advisable inspections of the Restaurant and make evaluations of products sold (see section III.F. of the Franchise Agreement).
Can the franchisor change the operations manual and brand standards unilaterally?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisee acknowledges that all aspects of the business of the RHB System are subject to change as the System evolves and the needs of the System change, and that Franchisor may from time to time revise the contents the Manual, and that Franchisee expressly agrees to comply with each new or changed standard and…
Must the franchisor approve the franchisee's site or location before opening?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisee must obtain the written approval of Franchisor for the site of the Restaurant developed under this Agreement.
Marketing
Is a minimum grand opening advertising spend required?
YesItem 7
Our policy is you must spend at least $15,000 on the grand opening of your Restaurant; however, we suggest that you spend $25,000 to $30,000.
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
You must spend up to 3% of your Gross Sales on approved local advertising and promotion as may be required by us (see section XII.C. of the Franchise Agreement).
Must the franchisee participate in a regional advertising cooperative when one exists?
YesItem 11
we reserve the right and may in our sole discretion require you to participate along with other franchisees in regional cooperative advertising organizations or programs, established from time to time by us currently or in the future by us or by franchisees for the purpose of advertising and promoting the RHB System…
Operations
Must the franchisee buy products from a designated distributor?
YesItem 8
You must purchase proprietary products for your RED HOT & BLUE® Restaurant only from the suppliers designated in writing by us, which may include us or an affiliate.
Must equipment be purchased from designated or approved suppliers?
YesItem 8
You must also purchase or lease some other foods, beverages and products required for your RED HOT & BLUE® Restaurant from suppliers designated or approved by us.
Payments
Are royalties and other fees collected by automatic bank debit (ACH or electronic funds transfer) from the franchisee's account?
YesItem 6
Each fee is uniformly imposed by and payable by electronic funds transfer (“EFT”) to us.
Must the franchisee participate in a gift card program?
YesItem 8
You must participate in any gift certificate and/or gift card administration program designated by us from time to time.
People
Does the franchisor require minimum staffing levels or specific roles?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisee shall maintain a competent, conscientious, trained staff, including at least one fully trained manager on duty at the Restaurant at all times, in sufficient numbers so as to operate the Restaurant efficiently and effectively.
Must employees wear uniforms specified by the franchisor?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisee shall take such steps as are necessary to ensure that its employees preserve good customer relations, wear uniforms of such color, design and other specifications as Franchisor may designate from time to time, present a neat and clean appearance, and render competent and courteous service to Restaurant…
Point of sale
Must the franchisee use a specific point-of-sale system designated or approved by the franchisor?
YesItem 11
You must acquire and use the Toast POS platform system approved for use in the Red Hot & Blue System.
Does the franchisor have independent access to the data in the franchisee's POS or computer system?
YesItem 11
Red Hot & Blue will have independent access to the information and data collected and generated by your point-of-sale computer system.
Training
Can the franchisor charge the franchisee for additional, refresher or remedial training?
YesItem 11
We may offer additional training sessions which may be required by us, at our discretion, and at your expense from time to time.
Is attendance at an annual convention or conference mandatory for the franchisee?
YesFranchise agreement
Franchisee and its shareholders and designated managers shall attend RED HOT & BLUE franchise conventions and meetings.
The filing answers no to 2 questions
- Is there a franchisee advisory council, association or committee?Item 11
- Is the franchisee prohibited from operating its own website or social media accounts, or required to use pages the franchisor provides?Franchise agreement
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 franchisee/operator personally, or a small franchisor still owner-run. Wears every hat.
OwnerCEOPresidentPrincipal
- 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%.
- 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.
- 97.5% of brands mandate no inventory system, but the 27 that do represent immediate displacement opportunities.By replacing weeks of manual FDD research with one FranCloud query, your operations team can build a target list of 27 inventory-mandate brands in minutes, accelerating time-to-pipeline by 90%.
The vendor opportunity at Red Hot & Blue
Pitching software to Red Hot & Blue means targeting a 5-unit quick-service restaurant chain that is currently in a state of contraction. The year-over-year unit growth rate stands at -60.0%, indicating a shrinking footprint. For a SaaS vendor, the total addressable market here is just 4 franchised locations, plus 1 company-owned store. The limited scale and negative momentum mean the revenue potential is small, and a sale would likely be a one-time deal unless the brand reverses its trajectory. Vendors should weigh this reality before investing significant sales resources.
Who controls software purchasing
Buying authority is highly concentrated at the headquarters level, which is part of AJB Capital. Based on the 2023 FDD, the key executive to reach is Adam Bradley, listed as the Manager and Chief Executive Officer. For operational software, Vice President of Operations George Piazza is the most relevant stakeholder. If you sell marketing technology, your initial contact should be Director of Marketing Initiatives George Westberry. With such a lean executive team, there is no sprawling hierarchy to navigate, but gaining the direct attention of these individuals is critical.
Mandated and current tech stack
The franchisor mandates the use of Sysco, but this is a foodservice distributor and not a software platform. Critically, the FDD provides no extract for Item 11, meaning no mandated POS, inventory management, online ordering, or HR systems are publicly named. This creates a blank-slate scenario, but also an uncertain one. A vendor must be prepared to ask pointed discovery questions, as the existing technology landscape is opaque from the outside. Do not assume they use any particular legacy system.
Procurement, renewals, and timing
Because no Item 8 procurement signal is available, the specific rules for how a franchisee must purchase software are unknown. It is not disclosed whether they follow a designated supplier model, an approved supplier list, or an open policy. Regarding contract timing, the initial franchise agreement runs for 20 years. Renewals, when they occur, add 10 years. To renew, a franchisee must provide notice between 6 and 9 months before expiration, remain in full compliance, pay a renewal fee, and adopt the then-current franchise agreement. This window represents a potential trigger for new software adoption, though the extremely low unit count makes such events infrequent.
How to read the Red Hot & Blue FDD
The 2023 Franchise Disclosure Document is the definitive source for understanding this brand's obligations and structure. Item 1 names the executives, confirming this is a tightly run organization. Item 8 should outline procurement restrictions, though the signal was missing here. Item 11 details mandated technology, which again yielded no extract in this filing. And Item 17 defines the renewal process that could open a door for new vendors. The embedded PDF viewer below lets you conduct your own deeper analysis. When you need to prioritize thousands of franchise brands, talk to FranCloud for a ranked target list built on hard FDD data.
Questions vendors ask
RED HOT & BLUE, answered from the filing
The key decision-maker is Adam Bradley, Manager and Chief Executive Officer. George Piazza, VP of Operations, and George Westberry, Director of Marketing Initiatives, likely influence operational and marketing technology decisions.
The 2023 FDD does not name any mandated POS or operational technology systems. The only mandated vendor is Sysco, which is a foodservice distributor, not a software provider.
There are 5 total units: 4 franchised and 1 company-owned. This is a very small, contracting system, down from its previous size based on a -60% year-over-year unit growth rate.
The procurement model is not fully detailed in the available FDD extract. While Sysco is mandated, the full extent of designated versus approved suppliers for other goods and services is not specified.
The initial franchise term is 20 years, and renewals are for 10 years. Given the negative growth and only 5 units, active contract windows will be rare. Renewals require 6-9 months' notice, which could be a trigger for technology evaluation.
The FDD was filed with state franchise regulators in 2023 as required by the FTC Franchise Rule. You can read it using the embedded PDF viewer below on this page.
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 RED HOT & BLUE files a new annual FDD, usually the freshest signal of a vendor change.
Operator footprint
Who runs the locations
9 operators run 9 mapped locations. 0 of them are multi-unit. Aggregate counts from the filing; no names.
Operators by units owned
Single-unit9
Top states by locations
| TX | 2 |
|---|---|
| MD | 2 |
| VA | 2 |
| NC | 1 |
| WI | 1 |
Ownership
The portfolio behind RED HOT & BLUE
unknown of ajb capital.
Related Quick service restaurant brands
Primary franchise filings · updated August 2026. Every figure is source-traceable and QA-checked.