Does Brueggers Bagels reserve the right to require audited financial statements from franchisees?
Brueggers_Bagels Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
require that your financial statements be audited, at your expense, by an independent certified public accountant approved by us;
- 13.2.3. Interim unaudited income statements thirty (30) days and sixty (60) days after the Bakery opens; and
- 13.2.4. Interim unaudited income statements and balance sheets not less often than quarterly, within forty-five (45) days after the end of the period to which the statements relate.
- 13.3. Parent and Guarantor Financial Statements. At our request, you agree to furnish a statement of financial condition as of the end of the fiscal quarter for each individual or corporate guarantor of your obligations to us and, if applicable, for each of your direct and indirect corporate parents.
- 13.4. Right to Examine or Audit. We and our designated agents will have the right to examine and copy, at our expense, on reasonable notice and during normal business hours, your books, records, accounts, and sales tax returns. We will also have the right, at any time, to have an independent audit made of your books. If an inspection or audit reveals that any payment to us has been understated, you must immediately pay to us the amount owed, together with applicable interest and late fees as provided in Section 5.5. If an inspection or audit reveals any underreporting of Gross Sales of two percent (2%) or more or underpayment of royalties of two percent (2%) or more, you must, in addition to payment of monies owed with interest, reimburse us for all costs connected with the inspection or audit (including expenses for travel, lodging and wages, and reasonable accounting and legal costs). The foregoing remedies are in addition to any other remedies we may have.
Source: Item 22 — CONTRACTS (FDD page 61)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Brueggers Bagels' 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, Brueggers Bagels can require franchisees to have their financial statements audited. The audit must be conducted at the franchisee's expense by an independent certified public accountant approved by Brueggers Bagels.
In addition to the potential requirement for audited financial statements, Brueggers Bagels also requires franchisees to submit interim unaudited income statements 30 and 60 days after the bakery opens. Franchisees must also provide interim unaudited income statements and balance sheets no less often than quarterly, within 45 days after the end of the period to which the statements relate.
Brueggers Bagels also has the right to examine and copy a franchisee's books, records, accounts, and sales tax returns, at their own expense, given reasonable notice and during normal business hours. They also reserve the right to have an independent audit made of the franchisee's books at any time. If an inspection or audit reveals that any payment to Brueggers Bagels has been understated, the franchisee must immediately pay the amount owed, along with applicable interest and late fees. If underreporting of gross sales or underpayment of royalties is 2% or more, the franchisee must reimburse Brueggers Bagels for all costs connected with the inspection or audit, including expenses for travel, lodging and wages, and reasonable accounting and legal costs.