Who administers the Card My Yard Marketing Fund?
Card_My_Yard Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
We orsomeone we designate willseparately administer the Fund. The Fund is not a trust or escrow account, and we do not have any fiduciary obligations with respect to the Fund. We will direct all programs financed by the Fund, including the creative concepts, materials, endorsements, and the geographic market and media placement and allocation thereof. We may use the Fund to satisfy the costs of producing video, audio and written advertising materials; administering regional and multi-regional advertising programs; developing and maintaining an Internet website; developing and maintaining gift card, membership and other customer loyalty programs; and supporting public relations, market research and other advertising, promotion and marketing activities. We are not required to make expenditures for you that are equivalent or proportionate to your Fund contributions or to ensure that any particular franchisee benefits directly or in proportion to its contributions to the Fund. Except for any portion of the Fund spent on website development and maintenance (a portion of which may include soliciting the sale of franchises using our website or websites primarily focused on franchise growth), the Fund is not used to solicit the
Source: Item 11 — FRANCHISOR'S ASSISTANCE, ADVERTISING, COMPUTER SYSTEMS AND TRAINING (FDD pages 34–43)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Card My Yard's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, the Marketing Fund, if established, will be administered separately by Card My Yard or someone they designate. The document specifies that the Fund is not a trust or escrow account, and Card My Yard does not have fiduciary obligations regarding the fund. Card My Yard will direct all programs financed by the Fund, including creative concepts, materials, endorsements, geographic market, and media placement.
The Marketing Fund can be used to cover various costs, such as producing advertising materials, administering regional advertising programs, maintaining an internet website, developing customer loyalty programs, and supporting public relations and market research. However, the FDD clarifies that the Fund is generally not used to solicit the sale of franchises, except for website development and maintenance. Card My Yard businesses owned by the company may contribute to the Fund under the same terms as franchisees.
Card My Yard anticipates that Fund advertising will be conducted primarily through search engine optimization, public relations, and electronic or print media on a regional basis, with the majority of advertising initially developed in-house. The Fund may be used to directly place advertising in local or regional markets or to create marketing materials for franchisees to implement locally. Franchisees can credit the amounts spent on implementing advertising created by the Fund towards their local advertising obligations. The document also states that Card My Yard will not use franchisee contributions to defray operating expenses, except for reasonable salaries, administrative costs, travel expenses, and overhead incurred in administering the Fund and its programs. An annual statement of the Fund's operations will be prepared and made available to franchisees upon request, although these statements are not required to be audited. If the Fund is terminated, all unspent monies will be distributed to the contributors in proportion to their contributions during the preceding 12-month period.