What is the Buona franchisee required to do to ensure the Franchisor's rights to Improvements if those Improvements are created by another person or entity?

According to Buona's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, if Improvements are created by another person or entity, the franchisee must obtain any assignments of rights in the Improvements from that person or entity. This ensures Buona's rights to the Improvements as required in the relevant section of the franchise agreement.

This requirement means that if a Buona franchisee hires a third party, such as a marketing firm or a design consultant, to develop materials or processes that improve the Buona system, the franchisee is responsible for securing the legal rights to those improvements from the third party. This involves obtaining written assignments that transfer ownership of the improvements to Buona.

This obligation protects Buona's intellectual property rights and ensures that it can freely use and license any improvements to its system. It also means that a franchisee needs to be diligent in its dealings with third-party vendors, ensuring that contracts include provisions for assigning intellectual property rights to Buona. Failure to comply with this requirement could lead to legal disputes and potential breaches of the franchise agreement.