After termination or expiration of a Buona franchise, what is the restriction on soliciting employees?
Buona Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
| Provision | Section in Franchise Agreement | Summary |
|---|---|---|
| s. Non-competition and non- solicitation covenants after the franchise is terminated or expires | Section 14.3 – 14.4 | No involvement in Competitive Business for 2 years within 10 miles of the site of any Buona Business, whether or not formerly owned by you, except owning less than 2% of the outstanding shares of a publicly traded security. No solicitation of our employees or our franchisees’ employees for 1 year. |
Source: Item 17 — RENEWAL, TERMINATION, TRANSFER AND DISPUTE RESOLUTION (FDD pages 52–60)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Buona's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, if the franchise agreement is terminated or expires, the franchisee is restricted from soliciting Buona's employees or its franchisees' employees for a period of one year. This restriction is detailed in Section 14.3 – 14.4 of the Franchise Agreement.
This non-solicitation clause prevents a former franchisee from actively recruiting current employees of the Buona franchise system. This is a fairly standard practice in franchising, designed to protect the franchisor and its franchisees from losing valuable staff to a former franchisee who might start a competing business. The restriction applies to both Buona's corporate employees and employees of other Buona franchisees, broadening the scope of protection.
For a prospective Buona franchisee, this means that upon exiting the system, whether through termination or expiration of the agreement, they cannot actively seek to hire employees from the Buona system for one year. This could impact their ability to quickly staff a new, potentially competing business. It is important to understand the implications of this clause, especially if the franchisee anticipates a possible departure from the Buona system in the future.