What is the required format and manner for leasing premises for a Bens Soft Pretzels location?
Bens_Soft_Pretzels Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
to $400.
Site Selection
You select the site for the Store with site selection guidelines we provide. You must obtain our approval of the site location and the lease. We will use our reasonable best efforts to review a site you have selected in order to evaluate and approve the location of your Store within thirty days after you provide us the information about the site. Additional sites are considered until our approval is reached. The factors which we may (but are not required to) consider for our approval include demographic radius characteristics and growth factors in the area, traffic patterns, ease of access, parking, visibility, allowed signage, competition from other businesses providing similar products and services, the proximity to other businesses, the nature of the businesses in proximity to the proposed site, and other commercial characteristics (including rental obligations and other lease terms for the proposed site) and the size, appearance and other physical characteristics of the proposed site location. We recommend that the size of the location be 600 to 2,100 square feet.
We approve or disapprove locations or leases by a written notice which is delivered to you. You must lease the premises for your location in the form and manner required by us and deliver a copy of the signed lease to us immediately after its signing. You must not sign any lease which has not been approved in writing by us. If your business premises is to be leased, you must submit the lease to us for written approval at least fifteen days before it is scheduled to be executed. If you lease your business premises, the lease must include language contained in the Lease Rider which is attached to your Franchise Agreement as Schedule C. The lease shall give us, our agents or designees the right to enter the premises to conduct inspections at any time during regular business hours, the right to receive notices of default directly from the lessor and the right, but not the duty, to assume the lease for all or any part of the term, if you default under the lease, are evicted or if your Franchise Agreement expires or is terminated.
If you intend to operate the Store at a space within a Meijer store for which our affiliate Evans Jones Management Inc. has entered into a Master In-Store License, then you must enter into the Sublicense which is attached to your Franchise Agreement as a Schedule. If you intend to operate the Store at a space within a Walmart store (or within any other store, or at any location) for which our affiliate Ben's Soft Pretzels LLC has entered into a Master Lease Agreement, then you must enter into the Sublease which is attached to your Franchise Agreement as a Schedule. With respect to premises to be located within a Walmart store, you should be aware that the Walmart Master Lease Agreement allows the Walmart lessor (and thereby the sublessor which is our affiliate pursuant to the sublease) to declare in default and to terminate not only the lease (and the sublease) for the one store where a default occurs but also all the leases (and subleases) for all other stores which are occupied by you. Under either the Sublicense or Sublease,
you are required to make all payments due in connection with the space or Store premises and may not alter or sublet the space or Store premises for any reason.
Source: Item 11 — FRANCHISOR'S ASSISTANCE, ADVERTISING, COMPUTER SYSTEMS, AND TRAINING (FDD pages 23–30)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Bens Soft Pretzels' 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, franchisees must adhere to specific guidelines when leasing premises. The franchisee is responsible for selecting a site that meets Bens Soft Pretzels' site selection guidelines, and must obtain Bens Soft Pretzels' approval of both the site location and the lease agreement. Bens Soft Pretzels will review the site within thirty days of receiving the necessary information. Factors considered for approval include demographics, traffic patterns, accessibility, parking, visibility, signage, competition, proximity to other businesses, commercial characteristics, rental obligations, lease terms, and the site's physical attributes, with a recommended size of 600 to 2,100 square feet.
Franchisees must lease the premises in the format and manner required by Bens Soft Pretzels and provide a copy of the signed lease immediately after signing. The franchisee is prohibited from signing any lease that has not received prior written approval from Bens Soft Pretzels. If the premises are to be leased, the lease must be submitted for approval at least fifteen days before its scheduled execution.
For locations within a Meijer or Walmart store, franchisees must enter into a Sublicense or Sublease, respectively, attached to the Franchise Agreement. Franchisees are required to make all payments related to the space and cannot alter or sublet the premises. It is recommended that franchisees employ a real estate attorney for legal advice regarding the lease terms. The typical timeframe between signing the Franchise Agreement and opening the store ranges from four to nine months, influenced by factors such as site acquisition, lease negotiation, financing, leasehold improvements, equipment installation, weather, and employee training. Franchisees must provide a copy of the signed lease within 180 days and commence operations within 365 days of the Franchise Agreement, or risk termination without a refund of the initial franchise fee.