What is the geographic area in which the affiliate-owned Buona restaurants included in Item 19 are located?
Buona Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
This Item 19 presents the following historical results of 19 affiliate-owned Buona restaurants located in the Chicago metropolitan area that are owned and operated solely by companies affiliated with us and are similar to the Buona Business offered in this Disclosure Document. The Buona brand has been established in the Chicago metropolitan area since 1981. Beginning in July 2021, we began adding the Rainbow Cone brand to certain existing affiliate-owned Buona restaurants. The Original Rainbow Cone brand was established in the Chicago metropolitan are over 90 years ago.
Source: Item 19 — FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE REPRESENTATIONS (FDD pages 60–75)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Buona's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, the 19 affiliate-owned Buona restaurants whose financial results are discussed in Item 19 are located in the Chicago metropolitan area. The FDD specifies that these restaurants are owned and operated by companies affiliated with Buona. The Buona brand itself has been established in the Chicago metropolitan area since 1981, and The Original Rainbow Cone brand, which is included in some dual-brand locations, has been in the Chicago metropolitan area for over 90 years.
This geographic concentration has implications for prospective franchisees. The FDD notes that because the affiliate-owned restaurants are located in a market where the Buona name and brand have been recognized for 40 years (and the Rainbow Cone brand for over 90 years), a franchisee establishing a unit in a new market without brand recognition may not perform as well, especially initially.
Additionally, the affiliate-owned restaurants benefit from volume discounts negotiated on a consolidated basis for units located within one region. New franchisees in new markets may not have the volume to negotiate favorable prices with manufacturers and distributors, potentially resulting in higher costs for food and products. Therefore, a new franchisee should consider the established brand presence and the potential for higher costs outside of the Chicago metropolitan area when evaluating the financial performance representations.