If I sign a Development Agreement with Ben Jerrys, what area will the agreement specify?
Ben_Jerrys Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
If you sign a Development Agreement, the Development Agreement will specify the Deposit Areas (together the "Development Area"), within which you may locate potential sites for Scoop Shops, subject to our approval. The size and scope of the Deposit Areas comprising the Development Area will be contained in the Development Agreement and will be determined on a case-by-case basis. The factors that we consider in determining the size of a Development Area include current and projected market demand, demographics and population, traffic patterns, location of other Scoop Shops, the financial and other capabilities of the developer, and our development plans. During the term of the Development Agreement, if you comply with the obligations under the Development Agreement and Development Schedule, we will not establish or operate, nor franchise anyone other than you to establish or operate, Shops in a Deposit Area until the earlier to occur of the expiration of the Development Agreement or our authorization of a site for your Shop within that Deposit Area, except as may be permitted under the Development Agreement and those exceptions are described below. At the time we authorize a site for a Shop within a Deposit Area, that Deposit Area will cease to be part of the Development Area. There are no circumstances under which the Development Agreement may be altered prior to expiration or termination of the Development Agreement. Your territorial protection is not dependent upon achievement of a certain sales volume, market penetration, or other factors, other than compliance with the Development Agreement and Development Schedule.
Source: Item 12 — TERRITORY (FDD pages 60–64)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Ben Jerrys's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, a Development Agreement will specify the Deposit Areas, collectively known as the Development Area, within which a developer can propose locations for Scoop Shops, subject to Ben Jerrys's approval. The Development Area's size and scope are detailed in the Development Agreement and are determined on a case-by-case basis. Ben Jerrys considers factors such as market demand, demographics, population, traffic patterns, existing Scoop Shop locations, the developer's financial capabilities, and Ben Jerrys's development plans when determining the size of a Development Area.
During the term of the Development Agreement, provided the developer complies with their obligations and the Development Schedule, Ben Jerrys will not establish or operate, nor franchise anyone else to establish or operate, Shops in a Deposit Area. This protection lasts until the Development Agreement expires or Ben Jerrys authorizes a site for the developer's Shop within that Deposit Area. Once a site is authorized, that Deposit Area is no longer part of the Development Area. The Development Agreement cannot be altered before its expiration or termination, and territorial protection is contingent upon compliance with the Development Agreement and Development Schedule, not on sales volume or market penetration.
Ben Jerrys retains rights not specifically granted to the franchisee under both the Franchise Agreement and the Development Agreement. These reserved rights include the ability to operate or license others to operate businesses, including Shops selling Ben & Jerry's products, outside the franchisee's Territory or Development Area, regardless of proximity or impact. Ben Jerrys can also sell or license others to sell products under other proprietary marks and systems, whether similar to the franchisee's Shop or not, within or outside the Territory or Development Area.