According to the Bambu franchise agreement, who owns the FRC Materials?
Bambu Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
- 8.2 Confidentiality of FRC Materials. Franchisee shall use the Marks and Bambū system only as specified in the FRC Materials. The FRC Materials are the sole property of Bambu and shall be used by Franchisee only during the term of this Agreement and in strict accordance with the terms and conditions hereof. Franchisee shall not duplicate the FRC Materials nor disclose its contents to persons other than Franchisee's employees or officers who have signed and submitted to Bambu a confidentiality and noncompetition agreement in a form approved by Bambu. Franchisee shall return any written portions of the FRC Materials to Bambu and permanently delete any and all electronic copies of the same upon the expiration, termination or assignment of this Agreement.
- 8.3 Changes to FRC Materials. Bambu reserves the right to revise or delete any of the FRC Materials from time to time as it deems necessary to update or change operating and marketing techniques or standards and specifications. Franchisee, upon receipt of any updated information, shall update its copy of the FRC Materials as instructed by Bambu and shall conform its operations with the updated provisions within 10 days of receipt of each update. Franchisee acknowledges that a master copy of the FRC Materials maintained by Bambu at its principal office or on its website shall be controlling in the event of a dispute relative to the content of the FRC Materials.
- 8.4 Small Message Service. Franchisee acknowledges that one of Bambu's primary methods of communication with Bambu franchisees is by small message service via email, text messages, or other electronic methods ("SMS"). Any standards and specifications, or changes to standards and specifications, that are communicated by SMS are deemed part of the FRC Materials, and Franchisee is required to comply with them.
Source: Item 23 — Receipts (FDD pages 52–209)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Bambu's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, Bambu retains ownership of the FRC (Franchise Resource Center) Materials. The FRC Materials include the Owner Operations Manual, policy releases, the FRC Blog and Forum, notices, marketing materials, artwork, health compliance information, the ordering platform, and other operational documents. These materials provide the standards, specifications, and procedures that Bambu franchisees must use.
As a franchisee, you are granted access to these materials through a password-protected site. You must comply with the mandatory portions of the FRC Materials, and failure to do so could be considered a breach of the franchise agreement. Bambu can modify the FRC Materials at its discretion to update operating and marketing techniques.
Upon receiving updated information, franchisees must update their copy of the FRC Materials and conform their operations to the new provisions within 10 days. Bambu also communicates updates via SMS (small message service), which are considered part of the FRC Materials. Because Bambu owns the FRC Materials, at the end of the franchise agreement, the franchisee must return any written portions of the FRC Materials to Bambu and permanently delete any electronic copies.