What is the role of Carbones Pizzeria in maintaining and administering the Carbone's Pizza Advertising Fund?
Carbones_Pizzeria Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
ment and the opening of the restaurant may be longer.
During the operation of your Restaurant, we will:
- (1) Make available additional training programs or "refresher courses" on an ad hoc basis that we feel are necessary to familiarize you on changes and updates to our franchise system (Franchise Agreement, Section 7). We can require you to attend this training. We do not currently charge for this training but may in the future.
- (2) If new menu offerings are developed or existing offerings modified, we will provide you with guidance on these new items (Franchise Agreement, Section 8). However, you are solely responsible for establishing your own prices.
- (3) Be available to consult with you on operating issues during normal business hours at times we may specify (Franchise Agreement, Section 7).
- (4) Maintain and administer the Carbone's Pizza Advertising Fund (Franchise Agreement, Section 6).
- (5) Be available to consult with you on marketing initiatives you may want to employ (Franchise Agreement, Section 7).
Advertising.
We have no obligation to spend any amounts on advertising your Restaurant.
Carbone's Pizza Advertising Fund.
You must pay an advertising fee of 1% of your monthly Gross Sales up to $2,000,000. There is no advertising fee on Gross Sales over $2,000,000 in any given year. Funds are collected and maintained in a separate bank account from our general operating funds. Our company-owned Restaurant also pays the 1% advertising fee to the fund. There is one franchisee who does not pay an advertising fee and one whose threshold to cease payments is less than $2,000,000.
The purpose of the fund is to develop marketing and advertising programs that benefit the Carbone's Pizza brand. This means we may use monies in the fund for any purpose that promotes the franchise system, and our trademarks, including the creation, production and placement of consumer advertising; purchase of marketing related technology platforms, such as social media management, market research, consumer insights and analytics; costs of preparing and conducting local, regional or national media of our choice, including: television, radio, internet, magazine, direct mail and newspaper, billboard, social media and digital advertising, direct mail campaigns, and other public relations activities; developing and/or hosting an internet web page or similar activities; administering advertising programs, direct mail and other media advertising; in-house staff assistance and related administrative costs; local and regional promotions; public relations campaigns including the cost of retaining public relations firms; consumer and market research (including surveys and sampling); and other advertising and marketing activities.
We currently use a design firm that produces our advertising materials. However, we may change this firm at any time. Advertising may be placed in local or regional traditional media. We also advertise on billboards and buses. We may also advertise over the Internet including social media channels. We do not guarantee that advertising expenditures from the Fund will benefit you or any other franchisee directly, on a pro rata basis, or at all. We have no obligation to spend any amount on advertising in your territory. Advertising monies we collect that are not used in one year will be carried over to the next year. Any interest the funds earn will be used for advertising before we use any principal. We may also allocate a portion of the funds to cover the costs of any of our employees who provide services to the fund. We will not spend any portion of any advertising fund for advertising principally designed to solicit the sale of franchises.
Source: Item 11 — FRANCHISOR'S ASSISTANCE, ADVERTISING, COMPUTER SYSTEMS, AND TRAINING (FDD pages 15–19)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to the 2025 Carbones Pizzeria Franchise Disclosure Document, Carbones Pizzeria maintains and administers the Carbone's Pizza Advertising Fund. Franchisees are required to pay an advertising fee of 1% of monthly Gross Sales up to $2,000,000, with no advertising fee on Gross Sales exceeding that amount in a year. The company-owned restaurants also contribute 1% of their gross sales to the advertising fund. There are a couple of exceptions to this policy, with one franchisee not paying an advertising fee and another having a lower threshold for ceasing payments. These funds are kept in a separate bank account, distinct from the general operating funds of Carbones Pizzeria.
The purpose of the advertising fund is to develop marketing and advertising programs that benefit the Carbone's Pizza brand. Carbones Pizzeria has broad discretion in how the fund is used, including creating and placing consumer advertising across various media such as television, radio, internet, magazines, direct mail, newspapers, billboards, social media, and digital platforms. The fund can also be used for market research, public relations, and administrative costs related to advertising and marketing activities. Carbones Pizzeria uses a design firm to produce advertising materials but may change this firm at any time.
Carbones Pizzeria does not guarantee that advertising expenditures will directly benefit each franchisee on a pro rata basis or at all, and they have no obligation to spend any specific amount on advertising in a franchisee's territory. Advertising monies not used in a given year are carried over to the next year, and any interest earned on the funds is used for advertising before any principal. While Carbones Pizzeria does not have an advertising council composed of franchisees, they do solicit input from franchisees regarding advertising methods and expenditures, with decisions made based on the consensus of franchisees. Although Carbones Pizzeria does not audit the fund, they will provide an annual accounting of how the fund's proceeds were spent in the previous year upon a franchisee's request.
In 2024, the advertising fund expenditures were allocated as follows: 41.96% for email and online advertising, 28.26% for advertising creative and production services, 26.58% for sports advertising, and 3.20% for print advertising. This breakdown gives prospective franchisees an idea of how Carbones Pizzeria has allocated advertising funds in the recent past.