Reporting comprehensive data on franchise businesses for the first time, the U.S. Census Bureau found that franchises with paid employees accounted for 10.5 percent of the nation’s businesses.
570 News in Toronto reports that Tim Horton’s franchise owners have launched a near $2-billion lawsuit claiming lost profits since the iconic Canadian company switched from fresh-baked to frozen donuts. The $1.95-billion suit is scheduled to go to court in November and it has even divided franchisees, as a large group of store owners is trying to stop a smaller group from following through on the lawsuit.
The Coalition of Franchisee Association held their Capital Hill Forum in Washington DC, July 15th – 17th attracting franchisee leaders from the Meineke, Hardees, Pizza Hut, Burger King, Super Cuts, Buffalo Wild Wings, Subway and Dunkin’ Donuts franchise systems. Watch the slide show.
Binding arbitration clauses are increasingly being inserted by businesses when entering into contacts with other parties. These clauses, which often provide businesses with an advantage and go unnoticed by the signer, drastically limit the legal options available to the signing party. The Arbitration Fairness Act bans mandatory binding arbitration clauses in consumer and employment contracts, including franchise agreements. Specifically acknowledging the disparate economic power between the parties, the bill invalidates the enforceability of pre-dispute arbitration agreements in franchise disputes
Launched in 2007, the Coalition of Franchisee Associations ( CFA) works, “to leverage the collective strengths of franchisee associations for the benefit of the franchisee community.” At the CFA, we have been promoting our Second Annual CFA Day Forum. The Forum is a three-day event in Washington, DC that brings franchisees across many different brands and their vendor business partners together to network; discuss business tactics and best practices; and to actively participate in government relations through meetings with members of Congress.
Don Sniegowski writes at BlueMauMau that Experts say that well organized franchisees can make profound changes in a franchisor’s behavior. Some have even been able to fire wayward CEOs, replace a franchisor’s board of directors, and spearhead a new strategy that lifts store profits and the brand.
Current franchise laws and regulations do not go far enough to protect the interests of franchisees against often times overreaching franchisors according to an article published in Franchise Law Journal, Volume 29, Number 3, Winter 2010, by Lagarias & Boulter.
Steve Silva and Derek Weilbaecher are founders of Yellow Mountain, LLC. They have been involved in the quick service restaurant business for over six years and together own and operate eight Zaxby’s restaurants, two in Douglas County, GA and six in Jefferson County, AL. James Laskaris, president of Ioan Donuts, LLC and Stephen Attard, director of operations of Ioan Donuts, LLC have been Dunkin’ Donuts franchisees since 2000 and currently have 16 open locations in Atlanta.
Mike Dempsey reports at Nation’s Restaurant News that nearly all public restaurant companies reported fourth-quarter same-store sales results this month, and winter storms and lingering economic pressures pushed most into negative territory. Some, mainly because of value messaging, moved in a positive direction.
The RI Lawyers Weekly Sidebar Blog has posted that the U.S. Supreme Court has upheld in part and overturned in part a decision of the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in a case stemming from a dispute between an oil company and eight gas station operators who claimed the oil company tried to drive them out of business.