What actions are Bonchon franchisees required to take regarding trade name or fictitious name registrations for the Proprietary Marks?
Bonchon Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
Your right to use the Proprietary Marks is limited to the uses authorized under this Agreement. Any unauthorized use of the Proprietary Marks by you will constitute an infringement of our rights and a material and incurable breach of this Agreement which, unless we waive the breach, will entitle us to terminate this Agreement immediately upon notice to you, with no opportunity to cure.
- B. You may not use the Proprietary Marks in any way which will incur any obligation or indebtedness on our behalf. You agree to comply with our Manuals' instructions in filing and maintaining all requisite trade name or fictitious name registrations, and in executing any documents considered necessary by us or our counsel to obtain protection for the Proprietary Marks or to maintain their continued validity and enforceability.
- C. You agree to affix our Proprietary Marks on the facilities of your franchised Bonchon Business, including your Bonchon Restaurant, your franchised Business's point-of-sale materials, signs, stationery, advertising, sales, marketing and promotional materials and other objects in the size, color, lettering style and fashion and at the places which we designate in our Manuals or otherwise. You also agree to display the Proprietary Marks and relevant trademark and copyright notices pursuant to the requirements set forth in the Manuals. No trademarks, logotypes, names, symbols or service marks other than the Proprietary Marks may be used by or in connection with your franchised Business in any fashion whatsoever except as we may expressly provide in our Manuals or as we may approve in writing.
15.04 Required Means of Identification; Non-Use of Trade Name
You must conduct your franchised Bonchon Business under the assumed business name "Bonchon". You agree, at your expense, to perform all filings and procure all required or necessary government approvals or registrations required to do business under that assumed business name and to furnish to us copies of all such filings, approvals and registrations. You must never identify yourself as an agent of ours.
Source: Item 23 — RECEIPTS (FDD pages 92–536)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Bonchon's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, franchisees must comply with the instructions in Bonchon's manuals for filing and maintaining all required trade name or fictitious name registrations. These registrations are necessary to protect Bonchon's Proprietary Marks and maintain their validity and enforceability. Franchisees are also responsible for executing any documents that Bonchon or its counsel deem necessary for this purpose.
Bonchon franchisees must conduct their franchised business under the assumed name "Bonchon." They are responsible for all filings and for obtaining all required government approvals or registrations needed to operate under this assumed name. Copies of these filings, approvals, and registrations must be provided to Bonchon. However, franchisees must not identify themselves as agents of Bonchon, but rather as independently owned and operated franchisees in all dealings and advertising materials.
Upon termination or expiration of the franchise agreement, franchisees must take action to cancel any assumed name or equivalent registration that contains the Proprietary Mark "Bonchon" or any other Proprietary Mark of Bonchon within fifteen days. If a franchisee fails to do so, Bonchon is authorized to act on their behalf and at the franchisee's expense to discontinue the use of the name. This includes Bonchon being irrevocably appointed as the franchisee's attorney-in-fact to execute the necessary documents.