From the filings

HQ-led decisions

Sweetwater Technologies

Professional services

Software purchasing at Sweetwater Technologies is controlled by its small HQ leadership team, led by Owner/President Chad R. Gripp. The franchise currently operates a single unit and mandates NetSuite by Oracle for both ERP and CRM, plus Flight Plan. With only one addressable location, the immediate vendor opportunity is narrow but may appeal to suppliers seeking early-stage franchise relationships.

For software vendors selling into US franchise brands.

Live signals

Total units
1
0 franchised
Unit growth YoY
—
vs prior filing
AUV
—
Item 19, 2024
Royalty
—
of gross sales
Ad fund
3%
national + local
Initial fee
—
per unit
Investment range
$89K–$190K
all-in, Item 7
Procurement
Approved supplier
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. It is a floor, not a total — the filing discloses one of the two headline fees.

3%+of gross sales (FY2024)

Ongoing fees: 3% of gross sales (FY2024)Ad fund 3%. Total 3% of gross sales, from the fees this filing discloses. Drawn against a 15% reference scale.

15% reference

Ad fund 3%

Mandated & recommended tech

The systems vendors compete with

1 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.

NetSuiteOracle
Mandatory
AccountingItem 11

e, equipment, components or Software and services and may modify specifications for and components of the Computer System from time to time. Current Software requirements include: NetSuite CRM and Fli

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

Must the franchisee use an accounting or bookkeeping system designated or approved by the franchisor?

Yes

Franchise agreement

In doing so, you must utilize the accounting software that we specify (currently, NetSuite portal and Flight Plan).

Does the franchisor have direct or independent electronic access to the franchisee's financial, sales or customer records?

Yes

Item 11

While we will not generally have independent remote access to your Computer System, we will have remote independent access to certain financial, bookkeeping, and customer data stored in a “cloud” or network-based format.

Must the franchisee submit periodic financial statements (monthly, quarterly or annual) to the franchisor?

Yes

Franchise agreement

Within 15 days after the end of each calendar quarter, a profit and loss statement for your SW Business for the immediately preceding calendar quarter; (b) no later than March 1 of each year (or the end of the second month of your fiscal year, if your fiscal year is not the calendar year), annual profit and loss and…

How the franchisor buys

Is the franchisor or an affiliate itself a supplier of required products, services or systems?

Yes

Item 8

You are required to lease or obtain from us or our affiliates the following items: drone, truck, and proprietary chemicals.

Does the franchisor reserve the right to change designated suppliers or systems at any time?

Yes

Franchise agreement

We may change approved suppliers for these product and services at any time and from time to time.

How much revenue did the franchisor and its affiliates earn from franchisee purchases in the last fiscal year?

0

Item 8

Because this is a new franchise offering and, as of the issuance date of this disclosure document, we do not yet have any franchisees, we have not received any revenue on account of franchisee purchases.

Does the franchisor or an affiliate receive rebates, commissions or other revenue from designated or approved suppliers?

Yes

Item 8

We may receive rebates, payments or other material benefits from suppliers based on franchisee purchases.

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?

90

Item 8

We estimate that required purchases from us or our affiliates, from Approved Suppliers, or according to our standards and specifications currently represent 90% of your total purchases in establishing your Franchised Business and 90% of your overall purchases in operating the Franchised Business.

Does the franchisor charge a fee to evaluate a proposed supplier?

Yes

Item 6

Supplier Our Actual Costs 30 days after If you request that we approve a supplier Evaluation Fee notice to you of that is not currently an Approved Supplier, approval or you will reimburse us our actual costs of disapproval of the evaluating the supplier.

Can a franchisee propose a new supplier for the franchisor's approval?

Yes

Item 8

If you want us to approve a new supplier, Material or service that you propose, you agree to submit to us sufficient written information about the proposed new supplier, Material or service to enable us to approve or reject either the supplier or the Material or service.

Franchise management

Must the franchisee participate in a customer-satisfaction or net-promoter survey program?

Yes

Franchise agreement

You agree to present to your customers such evaluation forms that we periodically prescribe and to participate and/or request your customers to participate in any surveys performed by us or on our behalf.

Does the franchisor conduct periodic inspections, audits or evaluations of the franchised business?

Yes

Franchise agreement

We have the right at any time during your business hours, and without prior notice to you, to inspect and audit, or cause to be inspected and audited, your (if you are a Business Entity) and the SW Business’ business, bookkeeping and accounting records, sales and income tax records and returns and other records.

Can the franchisor change the operations manual and brand standards unilaterally?

Yes

Item 16

We may periodically modify System Standards, and any such modifications may obligate you to invest additional capital in your Franchised Business and/or incur higher operating costs.

Must the franchisor approve the franchisee's site or location before opening?

Yes

Item 12

Any and all warehouses or other sites for your Franchised Business must be located within the Territory and must be pre-approved by us.

Marketing

Is the franchisee prohibited from operating its own website or social media accounts, or required to use pages the franchisor provides?

Yes

Item 11

You must not create your own website.

Is a minimum grand opening advertising spend required?

Yes

Franchise agreement

You will be required to spend a minimum of $1,500 as we determine appropriate on an initial launch marketing within the time periods outlined in the Manual and varies based on the time of year that you sign this Agreement.

Is the franchisee required to spend a minimum amount on local advertising or marketing, as a percentage of sales or a fixed amount?

Yes

Item 11

You must spend a minimum of $100 each month on local marketing, promotion and advertising, not including payments to the System Fund.

Must the franchisee participate in a regional advertising cooperative when one exists?

Yes

Item 11

If an association of Franchised Businesses is established in a geographic area in which your Franchised Business is located (the “Co-op”), you must join and actively participate in it.

Operations

Must the franchisee buy products from a designated distributor?

Yes

Franchise agreement

You must also only use certain approved designated suppliers for certain services that you will need to operate your SW Business.

Must equipment be purchased from designated or approved suppliers?

Yes

Item 8

If required by the Manuals, you must purchase certain goods and services only from suppliers designated or approved by us (which may include, or be limited exclusively to, us or our affiliate) (each, an “Approved Supplier”).

Point of sale

Does the franchisor have independent access to the data in the franchisee's POS or computer system?

Yes

Item 11

While we will not generally have independent remote access to your Computer System, we will have remote independent access to certain financial, bookkeeping, and customer data stored in a “cloud” or network-based format.

Sales and CRM

Must the franchisee use a CRM system designated or approved by the franchisor?

Yes

Item 8

You must use the computer hardware and software and other communication equipment and technology that we designate in our Manual from time to time.

Training

Can the franchisor charge the franchisee for additional, refresher or remedial training?

Yes

Franchise agreement

We may require you (or if you are a Business Entity, your manager) to attend periodic or refresher training courses (“Additional Training”) for up to 3 days annually.

Is attendance at an annual convention or conference mandatory for the franchisee?

Yes

Franchise agreement

We may require you to attend our annual convention, if we host one.

The filing answers no to 2 questions
  • Is there a franchisee advisory council, association or committee?Item 11
  • Are royalties and other fees collected by automatic bank debit (ACH or electronic funds transfer) from the franchisee's account?Item 6

The vendor opportunity at Sweetwater Technologies

Sweetwater Technologies is a professional services franchise with a single company-owned unit, headquartered in Illinois. The 2024 FDD does not disclose any franchised locations, and the total unit count stands at one. For software vendors, the immediate addressable market is extremely small—just one unit—but the franchise’s early stage may offer a window to build a long-term supplier relationship before any expansion occurs.

No average unit volume (AUV) or royalty percentage is disclosed in the FDD. The initial franchise term is five years, with renewal rights for two additional five-year periods, subject to conditions including a successor franchise fee, remodeling, and training. This structure means any software contract tied to the franchise lifecycle could have a five-year horizon.

Who controls software purchasing

Purchasing authority sits with the HQ leadership team. The FDD lists Chad R. Gripp as Owner and President, TeNeille J. Gripp as Owner, Secretary, and Treasurer, and David Taylor as Vice President of Operations. Hannah Harrell (Gripp) serves as Strategic Partnership Director, and Michelle Dykstra is Strategic Development Director. In a single-unit franchise, these executives likely make or directly approve all software buying decisions. Vendors should direct outreach to Chad Gripp or David Taylor for operational tools, and to Hannah Harrell for partnership-oriented solutions.

Mandated and current tech stack

The 2024 FDD mandates two Oracle NetSuite products: NetSuite ERP and NetSuite CRM. Additionally, Flight Plan is a mandated system, though its specific function is not detailed in the available extracts. No point-of-sale system is named, which is consistent with a professional services model. Vendors selling complementary tools—such as marketing automation, analytics, or project management—should position their products as integrations with the existing NetSuite environment.

Procurement, renewals, and timing

The FDD does not include an Item 8 extract, so the franchise’s procurement model—whether designated supplier, approved supplier, or open—is not publicly known. Renewal terms under Item 17 require the franchisee to enter into the then-current franchise agreement, pay a successor fee, and remodel or upgrade the business to current standards. These renewal triggers, occurring every five years, may create natural openings for software evaluation and replacement. Vendors should monitor the franchise’s expansion signals and renewal calendar for potential entry points.

How to read the Sweetwater Technologies FDD

The 2024 Sweetwater Technologies FDD is embedded below. It contains the full legal and operational disclosures filed with state franchise regulators. Key sections for software vendors include Item 11 (franchisor’s obligations), which lists mandated technology, and Item 17 (renewal), which outlines contract lifecycle events. Because the franchise currently operates only one unit, the FDD provides a concentrated view of the entire system’s tech stack and decision-making structure. For a ranked target list of franchise systems matched to your software category, FranCloud can help.

Questions vendors ask

Sweetwater Technologies, answered from the filing

Owner/President Chad R. Gripp and VP of Operations David Taylor are the likely decision-makers, supported by Strategic Partnership Director Hannah Harrell.
The FDD mandates Flight Plan and NetSuite by Oracle for both ERP and CRM. No POS system is named.
The 2024 FDD reports 1 company-owned unit. Franchised unit count is not disclosed.
The FDD does not include an Item 8 procurement extract, so the supplier designation model is not publicly disclosed.
With a 5-year initial term and renewal rights for two additional 5-year periods, contract windows may align with renewal or remodeling cycles.
The 2024 FDD is filed with state franchise regulators. You can view it in the embedded PDF viewer below.
Source

Read the filing itself

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Sweetwater Technologies2024 FDDView only

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The brands you can actually sell into, from the filings.

Operator footprint

Who runs the locations

1 operators run 2 mapped locations. 1 of them are multi-unit. Aggregate counts from the filing; no names.

Operators by units owned

2–9 units1

Top states by locations

IL2

Related Professional services brands

Primary franchise filings · updated June 2026. Every figure is source-traceable and QA-checked.