What is the Individual's obligation regarding the identity of suppliers authorized by Checkers?
Checkers Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
r supplies and/or suppliers of those items. After notice of such modification, you may not initiate any new orders of, or reorder,
any brand, or transact with any supplier, that we no longer approve for use with the System or by Restaurants generally (or by a particular subset of Restaurants, within our reasonable business judgment).
If you propose to use any brand and/or supplier which is not then approved by us, you must first notify us and submit sufficient information, specifications and samples concerning such brand and/or supplier so that we can decide whether such brand complies with our specifications and standards and/or such supplier meets our approved supplier criteria. We have the right to charge reasonable fees to cover our costs. We will notify you of our decision within a reasonable period of time. We may prescribe procedures for the submission of requests for approval and impose obligations on suppliers, which we may require be incorporated in a written agreement. We may impose limits on the number of suppliers (which may include us or our Affiliates) and/or brands for any of the foregoing items.
Source: Item 22 — CONTRACTS (FDD pages 91–92)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Checkers' 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, franchisees are required to use only brands and suppliers approved by Checkers. If a franchisee wishes to use a brand or supplier not already approved, they must first notify Checkers and submit all necessary information, specifications, and samples for evaluation. Checkers has the right to charge reasonable fees to cover the costs of this evaluation process. Checkers will then notify the franchisee of their decision within a reasonable timeframe.
Checkers may also prescribe procedures for submitting approval requests and impose obligations on suppliers, potentially requiring these obligations to be included in a written agreement. Furthermore, Checkers can set limits on the number of approved suppliers or brands for any given item, which may include Checkers itself or its affiliates.
This policy ensures that all Checkers restaurants maintain consistent quality and adhere to brand standards. It also allows Checkers to control the supply chain and potentially benefit from supplier relationships through payments, fees, commissions, or reimbursements. Franchisees must maintain an adequate inventory of approved products to meet Checkers' standards. Franchisees are also required to cooperate with Checkers' market research programs, including test marketing new products and providing feedback.
In practical terms, a prospective Checkers franchisee should be aware that they will have limited flexibility in choosing suppliers and brands. They must follow Checkers' established procedures for requesting approval of new suppliers and be prepared to pay associated fees. This requirement helps maintain uniformity across all Checkers locations but may also limit a franchisee's ability to negotiate better deals with alternative suppliers.