Can a Carvel franchisee acquire a location before Carvel accepts it?
Carvel Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
o a management agreement with GoTo Foods for it to provide certain support and services to Carvel franchisees. GoTo Foods may delegate certain of these responsibilities to CL, the previous franchisor of Carvel franchises, or other affiliates. However, we remain responsible for all of the support and services required under the Franchise Agreement.
1. Site Selection Review. We will review the location you select for your Shoppe and accept it if it meets our minimum site criteria, at which point it will become the Accepted Location. You may not acquire the Accepted Location until we have accepted it. If you and we have not agreed on an Accepted Location at the time we sign the Franchise Agreement, you must select a location that complies with our site selection criteria within a geographic area that we specify. For any proposed site, we may require you to obtain a site selection analysis from an Approved Supplier, which may include an analysis of such factors as traffic patterns, demographics, and competitors within the market, and provide us with a copy of this analysis. We estimate the cost for this site selection anal
Source: Item 11 — Franchisor's Assistance, Advertising, Computer Systems, and Training (FDD pages 59–74)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Carvel's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, a franchisee cannot acquire a location for their Carvel shop until Carvel has reviewed and accepted it. Carvel must deem the location as meeting their minimum site criteria, at which point it becomes the 'Accepted Location.'
This requirement ensures that all Carvel locations meet the brand's standards for factors like population density, traffic flow, visibility, parking, household income, and local competition. Carvel may also require the franchisee to obtain a site selection analysis from an approved supplier, costing an estimated $2,500 to $5,000, to aid in the evaluation of the location.
This process protects both the franchisee and Carvel by ensuring that new locations have a reasonable chance of success based on established criteria. However, the FDD states that Carvel disclaims any responsibility for the suitability of the Accepted Location and that their acceptance of a site is based only on the site satisfying their minimum site selection criteria only and will not be construed as a representation or warranty that the Shoppe located at the Accepted Location will be successful. The franchisee is ultimately responsible for independently evaluating the site's suitability.