Under the March 30, 2026 FDD, the offered Chem-Dry Business is a mobile, population-based service operation: a franchisee markets within a non-exclusive Franchised Area, schedules residential and commercial cleaning jobs, dispatches trained employees in branded cargo vans, performs only Approved Services with franchisor-controlled solutions and equipment, and records the work in required software.
The unit converts local leads, repeat customers, and national-account assignments into scheduled floor, surface, rug, and upholstery cleaning visits. The franchisee supplies the office, vans, employees, local marketing, service execution, billing, complaint response, and records. Chem-Dry, Inc. controls the service menu, chemistry, supplier approvals, System Standards, territory rules, CRM access, and reporting; approved vendors and national accounts supply critical inputs or demand.
What does a Chem-Dry franchisee sell, and who buys it?
The franchisee sells on-site cleaning and surface-care work to mostly residential customers and to commercial accounts, including multi-location national accounts. The franchisor divides the menu into Required Services and Additional Services that become Approved Services only after approval and, when required, extra training, equipment, or cleaning solutions.
Required Services
- Core cleaning
- Carpet, area rug, and upholstery cleaning.
- Treatment work
- Spot removal, red-stain treatment, pet urine odor treatment, and protectant or stain-resistance applications.
- Delivery rule
- The service must use franchisor specifications, operating procedures, cleaning solutions, and specialized equipment.
Additional Services
- Current examples
- Leather and vinyl cleaning, carpet repair, carpet spot dyeing, VCT cleaning, wood-floor cleaning, and LVP cleaning.
- Other authorized categories
- Item 16 also identifies tile and stone care, anti-allergen and deodorizer applications, LVT, and LVP work.
- Change authority
- The franchisor may change the core required menu, optional services, and authorized products.
The consumer-facing service process is visible on the official pages for carpet cleaning, upholstery cleaning, and area rug cleaning. Commercial demand includes local facilities and the BFG National Accounts channel; the official commercial-services page describes local and multi-location work. Item 19 says mature responding franchisees reported repeat customer bases, but it does not disclose a required service frequency or customer mix percentage.
Basis: Item 1, pp. 1–5; Item 16, pp. 41–42; Item 19, pp. 46–47; Franchise Agreement §§ 1 and 9.
How does work move from lead to completed job?
A service cycle starts with demand inside the Franchised Area, moves through CRM-based intake and scheduling, then requires a trained owner, operator, or employee to complete an Approved Service with authorized assets. The cycle ends with payment, complaint responsibility, recordkeeping, reporting, and repeat-customer marketing.
Generate permitted demand
- Actor
- Franchisee, CDI Brand Marketing Fund, or BFG National Accounts.
- Action
- Use approved local, digital, direct, referral, repeat-customer, promotional, or national-account channels inside the Franchised Area.
- Asset
- Approved advertising, franchisor-consented website or profile, customer database.
- Output
- A local inquiry or assigned account job.
Create and schedule the job
- Actor
- Owner, disclosed operator, office employee, or salesperson.
- Action
- Create the customer profile, confirm the location and requested Approved Services, schedule the appointment, and maintain the customer list.
- System
- Required web-based Customer Service Management software.
- Output
- A scheduled job within the authorized area.
Scope and prepare
- Actor
- Franchisee employee, operator, or participating owner.
- Action
- Confirm the approved treatment, set the price subject to franchisor pricing rights and promotions, load the job-specific solution and equipment, and prepare the vehicle.
- Asset
- Branded cargo van, approved equipment, franchisor cleaning solutions.
- Output
- A deployable crew and compliant job package.
Perform the Approved Service
- Actor
- Trained franchisee employee, operator, or owner; not an independent contractor.
- Action
- Inspect the surface, apply the authorized process and product, complete extraction or finishing, follow the Manual and System Standards, and comply with applicable handling and disposal rules for cleaning products and wastewater.
- Asset
- Specialized equipment, approved chemistry, service records.
- Output
- A completed job subject to franchisor quality review.
Invoice, collect, and resolve
- Actor
- Franchisee for local work; the franchisor for participating national accounts.
- Action
- Process the invoice and payment. The franchisor bills and collects national-account work, then remits the franchisee amount after the program’s handling and processing mechanism.
- System
- CRM invoice functions and approved payment services.
- Output
- Recorded payment and any complaint-resolution obligation.
Report and reactivate demand
- Actor
- Franchisee owner, manager, or accounting function.
- Action
- Report monthly Gross Sales by the 5th; Gross Revenue and the current customer list by the 10th; and prescribed operating and statistical statements by the 20th. Retain records for five years and send customer-database reminders at least four times per year.
- System
- Required customer-management platform and QuickBooks Online.
- Output
- Operating data visible to the franchisor and repeat-service opportunities.
Basis: Items 6, 8, 11, and 12, pp. 11–38; Franchise Agreement §§ 1.D, 9–12; Software License Agreement §§ 1–10.
Must the owner perform the cleaning work?
No. Personal participation in direct operation is not mandatory, but the franchisee remains contractually responsible. A non-owner operator is permitted only after disclosure to the franchisor and successful completion of required training; customer service work cannot be delegated to independent contractors.
Owner-operated path
The franchisee completes New Buyer Training, may market, schedule, sell, supervise, or perform authorized work, and remains directly accountable to the franchisor. The Franchise Agreement permits as many crews, teams, sales forces, and vans as needed within the Franchised Area, but an owner holding multiple franchises must maintain a separate cleaning crew for each franchise.
Operator-run path
The operator need not hold equity, but must be disclosed, complete the franchisor’s required training within 90 days after employment begins, and sign confidentiality and competitive-business restrictions. The franchisee hires, pays, and supervises employees; the franchisor does not disclose a mandatory headcount, shift pattern, or staffing ratio.
Manager-run operation is contractually possible; absentee ownership is not an FDD-defined category. The owner remains liable for the Chem-Dry Business and cannot substitute independent contractors for franchisee employees performing customer services. Ongoing participation also includes annual in-person training, assigned electronic modules, and attendance at two conventions during the agreement term.
Basis: Item 15, p. 41; Item 11, pp. 29–35; Franchise Agreement §§ 2, 3, and 9.
Which suppliers, assets, and technology are mandatory?
The operating core depends on cleaning solutions manufactured by the franchisor, approved or designated equipment and services, at least one compliant cargo van, a shipment-capable office, required customer-management software, and designated accounting software. The franchisor may narrow sources, change specifications, require upgrades, and access operating or financial data.
Franchisor and approved sources
All cleaning solutions must come from CDI or an authorized source. Equipment, supplies, uniforms, graphics, promotional materials, websites, payment services, and other specified business services must come from approved or designated sources. CDI may limit the approved list, designate a single source, or change specifications when the agreements permit.
Franchisee operating assets
The franchisee provides the office, internet connection, computer hardware, printer, service vans, crews, inventory, insurance, job equipment, customer communication, scheduling, service delivery, billing, and local recordkeeping.
Franchisor reporting access
CDI has independent access to information in the required platform and password access to QuickBooks Online reports. It may retrieve operating information, inspect vehicles and jobs, sample cleaning solution, contact customers, and audit records. The FDD does not grant CDI independent access to information stored only on franchisee-controlled local hardware.
Item 8 estimates that required, approved, designated, or specification-controlled sources represent approximately 15%–30% of ongoing purchases and leases. Each franchise also has an annual minimum purchase requirement for proprietary cleaning solution. No purchasing cooperative is disclosed.
The CRM must manage all customer accounts connected to authorized products and services. CDI or its vendor provides reasonable current-version support and can modify the service, while the franchisee supplies connectivity, security, user access controls, updates, and hardware. The official training-and-support page describes scheduling, customer management, job tracking, and performance reporting; the FDD and Software License Agreement define the mandatory data relationship.
Basis: Item 8, pp. 22–24; Item 11, pp. 29–35; Agreement §§ 2.C, 9, 11, and 12; Software License Agreement §§ 1–13.
What does the franchisor control, and what remains with the franchisee?
The franchisor controls the branded operating envelope: services, products, sources, Manual, technology, data access, Franchised Area, marketing approvals, quality inspection, and reporting. The franchisee controls local execution inside that envelope, including staffing, scheduling, daily supervision, the number of crews and vans, and many pricing and marketing choices.
Franchisor requirements and reserved rights
- Service and supply
- Define authorized work; approve products, equipment, vendors, and cleaning methods; require annual solution purchases.
- Operating standards
- Revise the Manual, require new assets or procedures, and set implementation deadlines.
- Technology and records
- Designate CRM and accounting software, prescribe reports, access data, and audit books.
- Brand and quality
- Approve marketing and websites; condition website approval on CDI ownership of the URL; inspect jobs and vehicles; use mystery shoppers; and direct complaint resolution when CDI intervenes.
- Pricing authority
- Permit franchisee-set prices generally, while reserving lawful minimum, maximum, suggested-price, coupon, and promotion controls.
Franchisee operating decisions
- Location
- Maintain one operating location inside the assigned area, capable of receiving and storing shipments; relocate within the area with at least 10 days’ prior written notice and without CDI site approval.
- Management
- Operate personally or appoint a disclosed, trained operator; hire and supervise employees.
- Capacity
- Choose the number of crews, teams, sales personnel, and vans, while maintaining required service capability.
- Local execution
- Schedule jobs, manage customer communication, choose compliant local marketing vendors, and resolve customer issues.
- Pricing
- Set prices when the franchisor has not imposed a lawful limit and honor required national or promotional offers.
Basis: Items 8, 11, 12, 15, and 16; Agreement §§ 1.D–F and 9–12.
Does the 2026 offer provide an exclusive territory?
No. The attached 2026 Agreement grants a non-exclusive assigned area. The franchisee must advertise, solicit, accept, and perform authorized work only inside that area, while the franchisor, affiliates, other franchisees, designated third parties, and national-account programs retain specified rights to serve or solicit the same market.
The franchisor calculates the Maximum Number of population-based franchises by dividing the assigned area population by 60,000 and rounding to the nearest whole number. Multiple Chem-Dry Businesses may therefore operate in the same assigned area. Internet, catalogue, telemarketing, and other direct channels are permitted only for customers in the assigned area; cross-area jobs can trigger contractual enforcement.
National-account work is different from ordinary local lead ownership. Another franchisee, the franchisor, or a designated third party may service an account when the franchisee opts out, fails an approval process, loses account eligibility, or the national account declines to use that franchisee. The franchisor and affiliates also reserve internet, direct-marketing, alternative-brand, and promotional rights without territorial compensation.
As checked August 1, 2026, the official business-model page describes protected ZIP Code–based exclusive territories, while the March 30, 2026 FDD and attached agreement describe a non-exclusive population-based assigned area. The FDD controls this analysis. The materials do not state whether the website language refers to the 22 household-based outlets, a later offer, or marketing shorthand.
Basis: Item 12, pp. 36–38; Item 20, pp. 47–56; Agreement § 1.D–E. Supplemental context: official business-model page checked August 1, 2026.
What does Item 20 show about the operating population?
At December 31, 2025, the FDD tables reconcile to 923 U.S. locations and no company-owned outlets: 901 population-based outlets plus 22 household-based outlets. The attached operating Agreement explains the population-based model; it does not include a separate household-based agreement or operating path.
Interpretation: the population-based model remained the dominant U.S. outlet population, but the outlet tables introduced 22 household-based outlets in 2025 without attaching corresponding operating terms.
Source and formula: 2026 FDD, Item 20, pp. 47–56, Tables 3A–4B. Population-based U.S. outlets = 941 systemwide less 40 Canada = 901; household-based U.S. outlets = 22; 901 + 22 = 923. Percentages are each model’s share of 923 and reconcile to 100.0%.
The population-based systemwide count, which includes Canada, declined from 1,283 at year-end 2023 to 1,100 at year-end 2024 and 941 at year-end 2025. The household-based table moved from zero to 22 outlets in 2025. The outlet tables project no signed-but-not-open outlets and no projected company-owned openings as of the reporting date.
Which operating questions remain unresolved?
The largest unresolved issue is not the cleaning workflow; it is which territorial and contract model a current buyer will actually receive. The FDD, the two outlet populations, and the current franchise website do not fully reconcile that point.
The official franchise FAQ, innovation and process page, and training page provide useful operational context, but none replaces the governing Agreement, software agreement, Manual, or current written territory schedule.