From the filings

+247.619% units YoYHQ-led decisions

The Designery

Financial services

Software purchasing at The Designery is driven by a franchisor mandate that covers business management, closet design, kitchen design, and Service Minder platforms. With 73 franchised units and a 2026 FDD on file, the addressable market is modest but concentrated under a single decision-making structure. Vendors should understand the mandated stack and the HQ executives who control technology standards before engaging.

For software vendors selling into US franchise brands.

Live signals

Total units
73
73 franchised
Unit growth YoY
+247.619%
vs prior filing
AUV
—
Item 19, 2026
Royalty
7%
of gross sales
Ad fund
2%
national + local
Initial fee
$55K
per unit
Investment range
$185K–$420K
all-in, Item 7
Procurement
Approved supplier
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.

9%of gross sales (FY2026)

Ongoing fees: 9% of gross sales (FY2026)Royalty 7%, Ad fund 2%. Total 9% of gross sales. Drawn against a 15% reference scale.

15% reference

Royalty 7%Ad fund 2%

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.

QuickBooksIntuit
Mandatory
AccountingItem 7

lities sufficient to run all of the software required to operate your Franchised Business; (ii) a laser printer meeting our standards and specifications; (iii) updated versions of QuickBooks, Microsof

Franchisor behaviours

What the franchisor requires

28 requirements the franchisor states in this filing, each in its own words; 3 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?

Yes

Franchise agreement

Franchisor may require use of a specific accounting software and version thereof as set forth in the Operations Manual, and Franchisee will be solely responsible for any associated cost.

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

Yes

Item 11

There are no contractual limitations on our right to access data stored in the Business Management and Technology System, and we may program the Business Management and Technology System to automatically transmit data and reports about the operation of your Franchised Business to us.

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

Yes

Franchise agreement

Franchisee will, at its expense, submit to the Franchisor within 60 days of the end of each calendar year of the Franchised Business during the term of this Agreement, a complete financial statement for the said calendar year, including, without limitation, both an income statement and balance sheet, which may be…

How the franchisor buys

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

Yes

Item 8

we approve or designate suppliers (which may be us or an affiliate of ours) from time to time in the Operations Manual and otherwise in writing (each an ā€œApproved Supplierā€).

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

Yes

Franchise agreement

Franchisor has the irrevocable right to modify, supplement, or otherwise change its lists of Approved Suppliers and any items that must be purchased from such Approved Suppliers at any time, as Franchisor deems advisable in its sole discretion.

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

2546609

Item 8

The total revenue of $2,546,609 represents 60% of Franchisor’s total revenue of $4,232,602.

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

Yes

Item 8

We may derive income in the form of rebates or marketing allowances paid to us by Approved Suppliers that we require you to use.

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?

70

Item 8

approximately 70% to 95% of your total ongoing purchases and leases to operate the Franchised Business after the initial start-up phase.

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

Yes

Item 8

You will be required to pay us a $1,000 alternative supplier fee/new product review fee plus our actual cost of the inspection and our actual cost of testing the proposed product or evaluating the proposed service or service provider, including personnel and travel costs to review any alternate supplier.

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

Yes

Item 8

If you wish to purchase any unapproved item, including inventory, and/or acquire approved items from an unapproved supplier, you must provide us the name, address and telephone number of the proposed supplier, a description of the item you wish to purchase, and the purchase price of the item, if known.

Communications

Does the franchisor own or control the business telephone numbers, or take them over when the agreement ends?

Yes

Franchise agreement

Franchisor reserves the right to procure and supply all telephone numbers and email accounts associated with the Franchised Business.

Franchise management

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

Yes

Franchise agreement

Franchisee agrees that, in order to maintain the high quality and uniform standards associated with the Franchise System and to protect its goodwill and reputation, Franchisee will permit Franchisor, during business hours, to inspect Franchisee’s Franchised Business or attend a project site, confer with Franchisee…

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

Yes

Franchise agreement

Franchisor will have the right to add to and otherwise modify the contents of the Operations Manual from time to time in writing in any manner, including through the Operations Manual, email, Franchisor’s website, or any other means.

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

Yes

Item 11

Your Approved Location is subject to our written approval.

Marketing

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

Yes

Franchise agreement

Except as approved in advance in writing by Franchisor, Franchisee must not establish or maintain a separate website, splash page, profile or other presence on the Internet, or otherwise advertise on the Internet or any other public computer network in connection with the Franchised Business, including any profile on…

Is a minimum grand opening advertising spend required?

Yes

Item 7

In connection with the opening of the Franchised Business, you must spend a minimum of $15,000 for grand opening advertising and promotion in the 30 days prior to opening the Franchised Business and the 60 days after opening the Franchised Business in accordance with a plan that you must submit to us.

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

In addition to the Brand Fund Contributions, each month you are required to spend the greater of (i) 3% of your Gross Revenue generated during the immediately preceding calendar month; or (ii) $3,000 per month on advertising and promoting your Franchised Business within the Designated Territory in accordance with our…

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

Yes

Franchise agreement

If a Cooperative is established applicable to the Franchised Business, Franchisee must participate in the Cooperative.

Operations

Must the franchisee buy products from a designated distributor?

Yes

Franchise agreement

The Franchisee must currently use Franchisor’s designated suppliers to purchase any items and/or services necessary to operate the Franchised Business.

Must equipment be purchased from designated or approved suppliers?

Yes

Item 8

You must purchase your initial inventory, Business Management and Technology System, branded items, signage and marketing materials, marketing services (of which we are an Approved Supplier), computer equipment and software, insurance, grand opening marketing, and other ongoing marketing from one of our Approved…

Payments

Are royalties and other fees collected by automatic bank debit (ACH or electronic funds transfer) from the franchisee's account?

Yes

Item 6

With the exception of the Initial Franchise Fee, you must pay all fees and other amounts owed to us and/or our affiliates via electronic funds transfer (ā€œEFTā€) through an electronic funds transfer program (the ā€œEFT Programā€), under which we automatically deduct all payments owed to us and/or our affiliates from the…

People

Does the franchisor require minimum staffing levels or specific roles?

Yes

Item 15

The Franchised Business must, at all times, be staffed with at least one individual who has successfully completed the Initial Training Program.

Must employees wear uniforms specified by the franchisor?

Yes

Item 8

Approved Products and Approved Services All Approved Products that we may designate, Approved Services, Approved Location/Storage Facility, vehicles, supplies, equipment, tools, uniforms, forms, advertising materials, computer hardware and software, and inventory used by you in connection with the Franchised Business…

Point of sale

Must the franchisee use a specific point-of-sale system designated or approved by the franchisor?

Yes

Item 8

The Business Management and Technology System will use third-party software from our approved vendors, including our digital platform system, for point-of-sale functions, email marketing, and all customer management functions.

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

Yes

Franchise agreement

Franchisor shall also have the right to, at any time without notice, electronically connect with Franchisee’s Computer System to monitor or retrieve data stored on the Computer System or for any other purpose Franchisor deems necessary.

Sales and CRM

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

Yes

Item 8

You must obtain, maintain, and use the business management and technology system that we specify periodically in the Manuals .

Training

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

Yes

Franchise agreement

Franchisor may charge Franchisee its then‐current training tuition fee for Franchisee and any other persons that attend such additional or refresher training, and Franchisee will be solely responsible for any and all expenses associated with such training (including travel, lodging, meals and employee wages incurred).

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

Yes

Franchise agreement

Attendance at the Annual Conference is mandatory.

The filing answers no to 3 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
  • Must the franchisee use a payment processor or merchant-services provider designated or approved by the franchisor?Franchise agreement

The vendor opportunity at The Designery

The Designery operates 73 franchised locations, with no company-owned units disclosed in the 2026 FDD. The system is headquartered in North Carolina and classified under financial services. For software vendors, the addressable market is 73 franchise locations that must comply with HQ-mandated technology standards. The absence of disclosed company-owned units means the entire footprint is franchised, making the franchisor the sole gatekeeper for technology adoption across the system.

Average unit volume (AUV) is not disclosed in the most recent FDD. The royalty rate is 7.0%. Initial term length and year-over-year unit growth are also not disclosed. Vendors should weigh the modest unit count against the concentration of decision-making authority when evaluating the sales opportunity.

Who controls software purchasing

The 2026 FDD Item 1 lists five executives: Casey Ridley (Co-Founder and President), Jeffrey Dudan (Chief Executive Officer), Michael O’Driscoll (Chief Operating Officer and President of Franchising), Joshua Krisher (Chief Financial Officer), and Thomas Ryan, Jr. (Chief Development Officer). Technology mandates are set at the HQ level, and the COO/President of Franchising is the most likely operational buyer for systems that touch franchisee workflows. The CFO is the probable financial approver for enterprise-level software investments.

No parent company is on file, indicating The Designery is independently owned. This simplifies the buying process: vendors need to influence only this leadership team, not a multi-brand corporate parent.

Mandated and current tech stack

The FDD mandates four categories of technology: a Business Management and Technology System, closet software, kitchen software, and Service Minder Software. All are listed as mandated, meaning franchisees cannot opt out or substitute alternatives without franchisor approval. This creates a single point of entry for vendors whose products can replace or integrate with these mandated systems.

Specific vendor names for the mandated systems are not disclosed in the available FDD extracts. Vendors should use discovery calls to map the incumbent providers and identify integration or displacement opportunities. The presence of both closet and kitchen software mandates reflects The Designery’s dual focus on closet and kitchen design services.

Procurement, renewals, and timing

The FDD does not include an Item 8 procurement extract, so the supplier qualification process is not publicly documented. Vendors should expect some form of designated or approved supplier program given the mandated technology requirements. Without an Item 17 renewal extract or disclosed term length, contract renewal cycles cannot be estimated from public filings. The lack of year-over-year unit growth data further limits visibility into expansion-driven software buying windows.

How to read the The Designery FDD

The 2026 FDD is embedded below for full review. Key sections for software vendors include Item 1 (executive team), Item 11 (mandated technology systems), and Item 8 (procurement restrictions, if available in the full document). The FDD is filed with state franchise regulators and serves as the authoritative source on franchisor policies. For a ranked target list of franchise systems matched to your software category, FranCloud can help.

Questions vendors ask

The Designery, answered from the filing

The FDD lists Casey Ridley (Co-Founder/President), Jeffrey Dudan (CEO), Michael O’Driscoll (COO/President of Franchising), and Joshua Krisher (CFO) as key executives. Technology mandates likely flow through this leadership group, with the COO and CFO as probable buying-center contacts.
The 2026 FDD mandates a Business Management and Technology System, closet software, kitchen software, and Service Minder Software. Specific vendor names for these systems are not disclosed in the available FDD extracts.
The Designery has 73 franchised units. Company-owned unit counts are not disclosed in the most recent FDD. This represents a concentrated, single-brand franchise system.
The FDD does not include an Item 8 extract in our corpus, so the procurement model—whether designated supplier, approved supplier, or open—is not publicly confirmed. Vendors should inquire directly about supplier qualification requirements.
The FDD lacks an Item 17 renewal extract and does not disclose initial term length or unit growth trends. Without renewal-cycle data or term years, contract window timing cannot be estimated from public filings alone.
The Designery's 2026 FDD is filed with state franchise regulators. You can view the embedded PDF viewer below to review the full document, including Item 11 technology mandates and Item 1 executive disclosures.
Source

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The Designery2026 FDDView only

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

Operator footprint

The Designery’s FDD on file does not disclose a franchisee directory.

Ownership

The portfolio behind The Designery

holding_vehicle of Homefront Brands.

Sibling brands

Related Financial services brands

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