Which items in the Cicis Disclosure Document provide more information about pre-opening purchases/leases?
Cicis Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
[Item 7: ESTIMATED INITIAL INVESTMENT YOUR ESTIMATED INITIAL INVESTMENT FOR A CICIS BUFFET RESTAURANT]
This includes the costs of legal fees and architectural and/or engineering plans as well as the costs of prepaid rent, a lease deposit, utility deposits, and up to $4,000 in expense reimbursement to us for lease review (See Item 5).
The prepaid rent and the lease deposit are estimated to be one month of rent charges.
[Item 11: FRANCHISOR'S ASSISTANCE, ADVERTISING, COMPUTER SYSTEMS, AND TRAINING]
Before you open your Cicis Restaurant, we will:
-
- Review and, at our discretion, accept the proposed site for your Cicis Restaurant. Our determination to accept or not accept a site may be based on various criteria (such as demographics, proposed rental rates, neighborhood and nearby business counts and characteristics, nearby residential populations, traffic count, accessibility, parking, visibility, signage, and competition) which may change in our discretion. We typically accept or reject the proposed site within 30 days of your providing us all required information. It is your responsibility to secure our approval of the proposed site for your Cicis Restaurant within 120 days following the execution of the Franchise Agreement, and if you fail to do so we may terminate the Franchise Agreement. We do not lease Cicis Restaurant premises to our franchisees. (Franchise Agreement, Section 1.B.)
-
- Provide one on-site evaluation at your request or additional on-site evaluations we believe are necessary for site approval. (Franchise Agreement, Section 2.B.)
-
- Review and accept, in our discretion, any proposed modification to the lease rider for the location of your Cicis Restaurant (Franchise Agreement, Section 2.A.)
-
- Loan you a set of prototypical architectural and design plans and specifications for your Location. You must adapt these plans at your expense for construction of the Location. (Franchise Agreement, Section 2.B.)
-
- Provide on-site inspections we believe are necessary to evaluate progress of construction or remodeling, and we have the right to require you to pay us a reasonable fee for such on-site inspections and to pay or reimburse us for expenses we incur, such as the cost of travel, lodging, and meals. (Franchise Agreement, Section 2.B.)
Source: Item 9 — FRANCHISEE'S OBLIGATIONS (FDD pages 28–31)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Cicis's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, Item 7 provides information regarding the estimated initial investment for a Cicis buffet restaurant, including pre-paid rent, lease deposits, and utility deposits. Item 11 outlines Cicis's pre-opening obligations, which include reviewing and accepting the proposed site, providing on-site evaluations, reviewing lease modifications, loaning architectural plans, and conducting site inspections.
Specifically, Item 7 mentions that the initial investment includes costs for legal fees, architectural/engineering plans, prepaid rent, lease deposits, utility deposits, and up to $4,000 in expense reimbursement for lease review. The prepaid rent and lease deposit are estimated to be one month's rent charges. Item 11 states that Cicis does not lease restaurant premises to franchisees and that the franchisee is responsible for securing site approval within 120 days of signing the Franchise Agreement.
Item 11 also states that Cicis will loan prototypical architectural and design plans, which the franchisee must adapt at their own expense. Cicis may conduct on-site inspections to evaluate construction progress and may charge the franchisee for these inspections, including travel, lodging, and meal expenses. These items collectively provide a prospective franchisee with details about the costs and obligations related to pre-opening purchases and leases.