After termination or expiration of the Bambu franchise agreement, what must a franchisee cease doing regarding their identity?
Bambu Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
- b.
Cease to identify itself as a Bambū franchisee or publicly identify itself as a former Franchisee or use any of Bambu's trade secrets, signs, symbols, devices, trade names, trademarks or other materials.
- c.
If the Franchisor does not exercise its option to purchase described in Section 19.3 above, cease to identify the Franchised Location as being, or having been, associated with Bambu and, if deemed necessary by Bambu, paint or otherwise change the interior and exterior of the shoppe to distinguish it from a Bambū shoppe and immediately cease using any proprietary mark of Bambu or any mark in any way associated with the Mark and Bambū system or any mark confusingly similar to the Mark.
- d.
Deliver to Bambu all signs, sign-faces, advertising materials, forms and other materials bearing any of the Marks or otherwise identified with Bambu and obtained by and in connection with this Agreement.
- e.
Immediately deliver to Bambu the OOM and other FRC Materials and all other information, software, documents and copies thereof which are proprietary to Bambu, including but not limited to all customer information contained in computer databases or otherwise.
- f.
Promptly take such action as may be required to cancel all fictitious or assumed names or equivalent registrations relating to its use of any Marks which are under the exclusive control of Bambu or, at the option of Bambu, assign the same to Bambu.
- g.
Notify all of Franchisee's service providers, including Internet and telephone service providers, Yelp, Google, and other online directory publishers of the termination or expiration of Franchisee's right to use any telephone number and any regular, classified or other telephone directory listings associated with any Mark and to authorize transfer thereof to Bambu or its designee.
Franchisee acknowledges that, as between Franchisee and Bambu, Bambu has the sole rights to and interest in all telephone, and printed and online directory listings associated with any Mark.
Source: Item 23 — Receipts (FDD pages 52–209)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Bambu's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, upon termination or expiration of the franchise agreement, a franchisee must cease identifying themselves as a Bambu franchisee or publicly presenting themselves as a former franchisee. They are also prohibited from using any of Bambu's trade secrets, signs, symbols, devices, trade names, trademarks, or other materials. This means that a franchisee can no longer represent themselves as being associated with the Bambu brand in any way after the agreement ends.
Furthermore, if Bambu does not exercise its option to purchase the franchise location, the franchisee must cease identifying the location as being associated with Bambu. If deemed necessary by Bambu, the franchisee must alter the interior and exterior of the shop to clearly differentiate it from a typical Bambu location. This includes discontinuing the use of any proprietary marks associated with Bambu or any confusingly similar marks.
In practical terms, this means a former franchisee must remove all Bambu branding from their location, marketing materials, and online presence. They must also take action to cancel any assumed names or registrations related to the use of Bambu's marks. Additionally, the franchisee is responsible for notifying all service providers, including internet, telephone, and online directory services like Yelp and Google, about the termination of their right to use any telephone numbers or listings associated with Bambu's marks, and authorize the transfer of these to Bambu or its designee. These obligations ensure a clean break between the franchisee and the Bambu brand, protecting Bambu's identity and reputation.