Yogi Bear's Jellystone Park

The vendor opportunity at Yogi Bear's Jellystone Park

Yogi Bear's Jellystone Park operates 77 franchised units, all under a single brand umbrella owned by Sun Communities, Inc. The network is entirely franchised, with no company-owned locations disclosed in the 2024 FDD. Unit growth has contracted slightly, with a year-over-year change of -2.532%. For software vendors, the addressable market is exactly 77 locations. The franchise fee royalty is 4.5%, and the initial term runs 7 years. Average unit volume is not disclosed in the most recent FDD.

The operator footprint shows 74 mapped operators across roughly 74 located units. All operators fall into the single-unit band, with zero multi-unit operators recorded. Top states by unit count are New York (7), Texas (7), Ohio (6), Pennsylvania (5), and Michigan (5). This geographic spread suggests a distributed network without dense regional clusters, which may influence deployment and support considerations for software vendors.

Who controls software purchasing

Purchasing authority sits at the corporate level. The FDD lists Robert E. Schutter, Jr. as President and Bruce Thelen as Chief Operating Officer of SUI, the operating entity under parent Sun Communities, Inc. Jon P. Burek serves as Executive Vice President, and Lisa D. Courtney is Director of Operations. Steve M. Stafford handles franchise sales. For a software vendor, the likely buying center includes the President and COO for strategic decisions, with the Director of Operations influencing day-to-day operational tools. The absence of multi-unit franchisees simplifies the sales process: there are no large franchisee groups with independent purchasing power.

Mandated and current tech stack

The only mandated technology disclosed in the FDD is a system-wide reservation program. The named vendor is Campspot. This is a hard mandate across all 77 franchised units. No other operational software—POS, property management, accounting, or marketing platforms—is identified as mandated or recommended in the available FDD extracts. Vendors offering complementary solutions that integrate with Campspot may find a receptive audience, but any pitch should acknowledge the existing mandate and demonstrate clear integration paths.

Procurement, renewals, and timing

Item 8 of the FDD does not disclose a procurement model. There is no extract indicating designated suppliers, approved supplier lists, or open procurement language. This means vendors must engage HQ directly to understand purchasing processes. Renewal terms offer one additional 5-year period if the franchisee is in good standing, following the initial 7-year term. With 77 units and a recent negative growth trend, contract renewal cycles are likely distributed across the network. Vendors should inquire about upcoming renewal clusters or system upgrade cycles directly with HQ.

How to read the Yogi Bear's Jellystone Park FDD

The 2024 Franchise Disclosure Document is the primary source for all data on this page. It details the franchise structure, fees, obligations, and executive team. Key items for software vendors include Item 11 (franchisor's obligations), which surfaces the Campspot mandate, and Item 1 (the franchisor and any parents), which names the executives and reveals Sun Communities, Inc. as the parent. Item 17 covers renewal terms. The FDD does not provide AUV or detailed procurement rules in the available extracts. For a ranked target list of franchise systems matched to your software category, FranCloud can help.