How does a Better Blend franchisee obtain the Marketing Fund's financial statement?

According to Better Blend's 2024 Franchise Disclosure Document, Better Blend Franchising, LLC (BBF) will prepare an unaudited annual financial statement of the Marketing Fund within 120 days of the close of BBF's fiscal year. To obtain this financial statement, a franchisee must submit a written request to BBF.

This means that franchisees are not automatically provided with the Marketing Fund's financial statement. Instead, they must proactively request it in writing from Better Blend. The statement itself is unaudited, meaning it has not been reviewed or verified by an independent accounting firm. This is a common practice in franchising, as a full audit can be expensive.

It is important for prospective franchisees to understand that Better Blend has sole discretion over how the Marketing Fund is spent and has no fiduciary duty regarding the fund. While franchisees contribute to the Marketing Fund, expenditures do not need to be proportionate to their contributions, and there is no guarantee of direct or indirect benefit to each franchisee. Therefore, requesting and reviewing the Marketing Fund's financial statement can provide some transparency into how the funds are being managed and spent, even though the statement is unaudited and BBF has broad discretion over the fund's use.