Focus POSFocus POS
Mandatoryincluding the software, ranges from $2,510 to $10,000. You must also purchase from us a POS Help Desk Phone Support Maintenance contract on both the software and hardware for your FOCUS POS System, th
From the filings
HQ-led decisions
Surf City Squeeze
Quick service restaurantSoftware purchasing at Surf City Squeeze is controlled at the headquarters level, with key decision-makers including CEO Eric Lefebvre and COO Jeff Smit. The franchise currently mandates the FOCUS POS System and Olo for its 61 total units, 59 of which are franchised. This creates a concentrated, 59-unit addressable market for vendors looking to displace or integrate with the existing tech stack.
For software vendors selling into US franchise brands.
Live signals
Total units
61
59 franchised
Unit growth YoY
-3.175%
vs prior filing
AUV
—
Item 19, 2026
Royalty
6%
of gross sales
Ad fund
1%
national + local
Initial fee
$30K
per unit
Investment range
$89K–$397K
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 (FY2026)
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.
OloOlo
Mandatoryplication (“App”) and online food ordering service (including any third-party delivery order integration) and may not use any other store- specific App or online ordering service. Olo is a Franchisor-
FacebookMeta
ns 3.2 and 10.2). 7. You may not maintain a web site, software application, an App (application), social media account (including, but not limited to, an account, group or page on Facebook®, Flickr®,
InstagramMeta
web site, software application, an App (application), social media account (including, but not limited to, an account, group or page on Facebook®, Flickr®, Foursquare®, Google+®, Instagram®, LinkedIn®
LinkedInLinkedIn
oftware application, an App (application), social media account (including, but not limited to, an account, group or page on Facebook®, Flickr®, Foursquare®, Google+®, Instagram®, LinkedIn®, Pinterest
PinterestPinterest
lication, an App (application), social media account (including, but not limited to, an account, group or page on Facebook®, Flickr®, Foursquare®, Google+®, Instagram®, LinkedIn®, Pinterest®, Snapchat
SnapchatSnapchat
App (application), social media account (including, but not limited to, an account, group or page on Facebook®, Flickr®, Foursquare®, Google+®, Instagram®, LinkedIn®, Pinterest®, Snapchat®, Tumblr®, X
TwitterX
cial media account (including, but not limited to, an account, group or page on Facebook®, Flickr®, Foursquare®, Google+®, Instagram®, LinkedIn®, Pinterest®, Snapchat®, Tumblr®, X/Twitter®, YouTube®,
YouTubeGoogle
account (including, but not limited to, an account, group or page on Facebook®, Flickr®, Foursquare®, Google+®, Instagram®, LinkedIn®, Pinterest®, Snapchat®, Tumblr®, X/Twitter®, YouTube®, Vine®, VKon
Franchisor behaviours
What the franchisor requires
26 requirements the franchisor states in this filing, each in its own words; 4 explicit no's; 4 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
The POS System must be configured so that we have independent and remote access to the information and data stored in it.
Must the franchisee submit periodic financial statements (monthly, quarterly or annual) to the franchisor?
YesFranchise agreement
to submit to us, on or before the thirtieth (30th) day of each month, commencing with the opening of the Franchised Business, in a format and method approved by us (including through a third-party vendor that franchisee may be required to pay for), a profit and loss statement of the Franchised Business for the…
How the franchisor buys
Does the franchisor reserve the right to change designated suppliers or systems at any time?
YesFranchise agreement
Accordingly, you expressly understand and agree that we may from time to time change the components of the System, including altering the products, programs, services, methods, standards, forms, policies and procedures of that System; abandoning the System altogether in favor of another system in connection with a…
Does the franchisor or an affiliate receive rebates, commissions or other revenue from designated or approved suppliers?
YesFranchise agreement
You acknowledge Franchisor and/or its affiliates has the right to receive commissions, volume discounts, purchase discounts, performance payments, bonuses, rebates, marketing and advertising allowances, co-op advertising, administrative fees, enhancements, price discounts, economic benefits and/or other payments…
Does the franchisor charge a fee to evaluate a proposed supplier?
YesItem 8
A charge not to exceed the reasonable cost of the inspection and the actual cost of the test not to exceed $5,000 must be paid to us either by you or by the proposed supplier.
Can a franchisee propose a new supplier for the franchisor's approval?
YesItem 8
All requests for approving new or alternative suppliers must be submitted in writing by you and/or the supplier to the purchasing department at Kahala Brands.
Communications
Does the franchisor own or control the business telephone numbers, or take them over when the agreement ends?
YesFranchise agreement
You acknowledge that between you and us, we have the sole right and interest in all telephone numbers and directory listings associated with any Proprietary Marks, and you authorize us and appoint us and any officer or agent of ours, as your attorney-in-fact, to direct the telephone company and all listings agencies…
Data and IT
Must the franchisee comply with PCI, data-security or cybersecurity standards set by the franchisor?
YesItem 11
Therefore, as a franchisee who accepts credit cards, you are required to be PCI compliant by following and adhering to PCI DSS, completing an annual questionnaire and quarterly network PCI scans and installing a network firewall appliance for logging, tracking, reporting, and security assessment.
Franchise management
Does the franchisor conduct periodic inspections, audits or evaluations of the franchised business?
YesItem 11
We will continue our efforts to maintain high and uniform standards of quality, cleanliness, appearance and service at all restaurants in the System, including making periodic inspections and quality service checks of your restaurant
Can the franchisor change the operations manual and brand standards unilaterally?
YesFranchise agreement
Accordingly, you expressly understand and agree that we may from time to time change the components of the System, including altering the products, programs, services, methods, standards, forms, policies and procedures of that System;
Must the franchisor approve the franchisee's site or location before opening?
YesItem 11
You must select, and we must approve, an acceptable location within nine (9) months after the effective date of the Franchise Agreement.
Marketing
Is the franchisee prohibited from operating its own website or social media accounts, or required to use pages the franchisor provides?
YesItem 11
You may not maintain a web site, software application, an App (application), social media account (including, but not limited to, an account, group or page on Facebook®, Flickr®, Foursquare®, Google+®, Instagram®, LinkedIn®, Pinterest®, Snapchat®, Tumblr®, X/Twitter®, YouTube®, Vine®, VKontakte or Weibo®), or…
Is a minimum grand opening advertising spend required?
YesItem 7
You are required, to pay a Grand Opening Marketing fee of $10,000 for a Traditional store or $5,000 for a Non-Traditional store payable to US on the earlier of (i) prior to you executing a lease for the premises where the Franchised Business will be located; or (ii) prior to construction commencing at the premises…
Must the franchisee participate in a customer loyalty or rewards program?
YesFranchise agreement
cooperation with and participation in sales, marketing, advertising and promotional programs (including loyalty programs, online ordering programs, discount coupons, discount gift cards, special menu promotions, and entering into product and service agreements directly with third-party vendors and service providers…
Must the franchisee participate in a regional advertising cooperative when one exists?
YesItem 11
If a Cooperative is formed for your region, you must financially contribute to the Cooperative as required by us.
Operations
Must the franchisee buy products from a designated distributor?
YesFranchise agreement
You must purchase or otherwise acquire certain proprietary or required equipment and supplies utilized in the Franchised Business only from our designated approved distributors or suppliers.
Must equipment be purchased from designated or approved suppliers?
YesFranchise agreement
You must purchase or otherwise acquire certain proprietary or required equipment and supplies utilized in the Franchised Business only from our designated approved distributors or suppliers.
Payments
Must the franchisee use a payment processor or merchant-services provider designated or approved by the franchisor?
YesItem 8
Additionally, you must utilize our approved third party payment card processor, as identified in the Confidential Manual, for processing all such debit, credit, rewards, and Gift/Loyalty card transactions.
Are royalties and other fees collected by automatic bank debit (ACH or electronic funds transfer) from the franchisee's account?
YesFranchise agreement
Payment of the Royalty Fee, Advertising Fee (as defined in Section 5.3), and all other fees due under this Agreement to us shall be made via electronic transfer of funds from the Depository Account.
Must the franchisee participate in a gift card program?
YesItem 8
You are required to accept all approved debit and credit cards, along with Kahala Franchising or its affiliate’s stored value gift cards, loyalty cards, frequency cards, and any other similar Kahala Franchising or affiliate sponsored electronic card and/or payment program (collectively, the “Gift/Loyalty Card”) from…
People
Does the franchisor require minimum staffing levels or specific roles?
YesItem 15
Additionally, you must employ on a full time basis at least one on-premises supervisor (the “Manager”) for the restaurant.
Must employees wear uniforms specified by the franchisor?
YesItem 15
All personnel must wear a uniform or other clothing approved by us.
Point of sale
Must the franchisee use a specific point-of-sale system designated or approved by the franchisor?
YesItem 11
We require you to exclusively use an approved electronic point-of-sale system to record all your sales during the operation of the Franchised Business, the components of which are identified in the Confidential Manual ("POS System").
Does the franchisor have independent access to the data in the franchisee's POS or computer system?
YesItem 11
The POS System must be configured so that we have independent and remote access to the information and data stored in it.
Training
Can the franchisor charge the franchisee for additional, refresher or remedial training?
YesItem 11
We may, in the future, hold refresher or additional training programs, conferences and seminars.
Is attendance at an annual convention or conference mandatory for the franchisee?
YesFranchise agreement
Attendance at these additional training programs and conferences is mandatory.
The filing answers no to 4 questions
- Must the franchisee use an accounting or bookkeeping system designated or approved by the franchisor?Item 11
- Is the franchisor or an affiliate itself a supplier of required products, services or systems?Item 8
- Is there a franchisee advisory council, association or committee?Item 6
- 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
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
- 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 Surf City Squeeze
Surf City Squeeze presents a compact but specific opportunity for software vendors. The system consists of 61 total units, with 59 of those being franchised locations. This represents the total addressable market for a vendor selling into the franchisee base, assuming a solution is not adopted at the corporate level. The brand is experiencing a year-over-year unit decline of 3.175%, a signal that the system may be optimizing operations and could be receptive to technology that drives efficiency or reduces costs. The royalty rate is 6.0% of gross sales, and the initial franchise term is 10 years.
Who controls software purchasing
Software purchasing decisions are centralized at the headquarters in Arizona. The executive team is the buying center. The named officers in the 2026 FDD are Eric Lefebvre (Chief Executive Officer), Renee St-Onge (Chief Financial Officer), and Jeff Smit (Chief Operating Officer). Operational leadership includes Anthony Crosby, Senior Vice President of Restaurant Operations, and Blake Borwick, Vice President of Restaurant Operations. For a technology vendor, the COO and SVP of Operations are the most likely champions or evaluators for a new platform, with final budget approval resting with the CEO and CFO.
Mandated and current tech stack
The 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document explicitly mandates two technology systems. The point-of-sale system is the FOCUS POS System. For digital ordering, the brand requires Olo by Olo Inc. These mandates are a critical piece of intelligence for any vendor. A competing POS provider would need to displace a deeply embedded, mandated system. A complementary technology, such as a labor scheduling or inventory management tool, would need to integrate with both FOCUS and Olo to be viable. No other mandated or recommended technology vendors are named in the available data.
Procurement, renewals, and timing
The FDD does not provide an extract for Item 8, which details procurement restrictions. Therefore, the specific obligations around purchasing from designated suppliers are not disclosed in the most recent FDD. The presence of mandated technology systems, however, strongly implies a controlled procurement environment for core operational software. Regarding contract timing, the initial franchise agreement runs for 10 years. Franchisees in good standing may renew for a single additional term of 5 years, with no further right to renew. This long initial term means that franchisees are locked in for a decade, making the point of renewal a rare but critical window for switching major systems. The current negative unit growth suggests that new store openings are not a significant driver of new software seats.
How to read the Surf City Squeeze FDD
The full 2026 Surf City Squeeze FDD is embedded below. For software vendors, the most important sections are Item 11, which details the franchisor's obligations and will list all mandated technology, and Item 8, which outlines restrictions on sources of products and services. Item 19 may contain financial performance representations, though the average unit volume is not available in our extract. Reviewing these sections will provide the complete picture of the franchise's technology requirements and the financial health of its operators. For a ranked target list of franchise systems based on your specific software category, talk to FranCloud.
Questions vendors ask
Surf City Squeeze, answered from the filing
The C-suite controls purchasing. Key executives include CEO Eric Lefebvre, CFO Renee St-Onge, and COO Jeff Smit. SVP of Restaurant Operations Anthony Crosby and VP Blake Borwick are likely operational stakeholders for any tech evaluation.
The 2026 FDD mandates the FOCUS POS System for point-of-sale and Olo by Olo Inc. for digital ordering. These are the two named, required systems in their current tech stack.
There are 61 total units, comprising 59 franchised locations and 2 company-owned stores. The brand operates in the quick-service restaurant segment.
The specific procurement model is not detailed in the available FDD extract. The mandate of specific POS and online ordering systems suggests a designated or required supplier model for core technology.
The initial franchise term is 10 years. A single 5-year renewal is possible if conditions are met. With a -3.175% unit decline, the system may be focused on vendor consolidation or efficiency tools rather than expansion-driven purchasing.
The FDD was filed with state franchise regulators in 2026. You can review the full document in the embedded PDF viewer below for complete Item 11 and Item 19 details.
Source
Read the filing itself
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FDD alert
Tell me when this brand refiles.
We’ll email you the moment Surf City Squeeze files a new annual FDD, usually the freshest signal of a vendor change.
Operator footprint
Who runs the locations
19 operators run 23 mapped locations. 2 of them are multi-unit. Aggregate counts from the filing; no names.
Operators by units owned
Single-unit17
2–9 units2
Top states by locations
| NJ | 5 |
|---|---|
| ID | 5 |
| MI | 4 |
| CA | 2 |
| IL | 2 |
Ownership
The portfolio behind Surf City Squeeze
strategic_multibrand of MTY Food Group.
Sibling brands
Related Quick service restaurant brands
Primary franchise filings · updated June 2026. Every figure is source-traceable and QA-checked.