Can the Principal Owner of a Card My Yard franchise also serve as the General Manager?
Card_My_Yard Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
Before the Card My Yard business opens for business, you must designate an individual who meets our qualifications to serve as the Card My Yard business' General Manager and supervise the operation of your Card My Yard business. Your Principal Owner may serve as the General Manager of your Card My Yard business, but he or she may not serve as the General Manager for more than one Card My Yard business at the same time. With our written consent, you may elect to designate an individual other than your Principal Owner as General Manager. Even if we permit you to designate a General Manager to supervise your operations under the Franchise Agreement, your Principal Owner remains ultimately responsible for the General Manager's performance. The General Manager must devote his or her full time and best efforts to the supervision of your operations under the Franchise Agreement and may not engage in any other business. Each Card My Yard business must have a different General Manager.
You must notify us promptly if your Principal Owner or any General Manager cannot continue or no longer qualifies to serve as a Principal Owner or General Manager, as applicable. You will have 30 days from the date of the notice (or from any date that we independently determine the Principal Owner or General Manager no longer meets our standards) to take corrective action acceptable to us. During that 30-day period, you must provide for interim management of your operations in compliance with the Franchise Agreement.
Source: Item 15 — OBLIGATION TO PARTICIPATE IN THE ACTUAL OPERATION OF THE FRANCHISE BUSINESS (FDD pages 49–50)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Card My Yard's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, the Principal Owner can also serve as the General Manager for their Card My Yard business. However, the Principal Owner cannot act as the General Manager for more than one Card My Yard location simultaneously.
If the franchisee chooses to appoint someone other than the Principal Owner as General Manager, they must obtain written consent from Card My Yard. Regardless of whether the Principal Owner or another individual is chosen as the General Manager, the Principal Owner retains ultimate responsibility for the General Manager's performance. The General Manager must dedicate their full time and best efforts to supervising the Card My Yard business and cannot be involved in any other business ventures without written consent from Card My Yard.
Each Card My Yard business must have a different General Manager to ensure adequate supervision and focus. The names of the Principal Owner and General Manager are listed in Exhibit D of the Franchise Agreement, and the franchisee is responsible for keeping this information current. If either the Principal Owner or General Manager can no longer fulfill their role, Card My Yard must be notified promptly, and corrective action must be taken within 30 days.