What is required for a Cinnaholic franchisee to transfer their rights or obligations under the agreement?
Cinnaholic Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
Franchisee shall not subfranchise, sell, assign, transfer, merge, convey or encumber (each, a "Transfer"), the Bakery, the Franchised Site, this Agreement or any of its rights or obligations hereunder, or suffer or permit any such Transfer of the Bakery, the Franchised Site, this Agreement or its rights or obligations hereunder to occur by operation of law or otherwise without the prior express written consent of Franchisor.
In addition, if Franchisee is a corporation, limited liability company, partnership, business trust, or similar association or entity, the shareholders, members, partners, beneficiaries, investors or other equity holders, as the case may be, may not Transfer their equity interests in such corporation, limited liability company, partnership, business trust, or similar association or entity, without the prior written consent of Franchisor.
Furthermore, in the event that any shareholder, member, partner, investor or other equity holder of Franchisee (the "Equity Holder") is a corporation, limited liability company, partnership, business trust, or similar association or entity, the interests of the shareholders, members, partners, beneficiaries, investors or other equity holders, as the case may be, in such Equity Holder, may not be Transferred, without the prior written consent of Franchisor.
Franchisor will not unreasonably withhold consent to a Transfer provided the requirements of Section 19.4 have been satisfied.
Any Transfer in violation of this Section shall be void and of no force and effect.
In the event Franchisee or an Equity Holder is a corporation, limited liability company, partnership, business trust, or similar association or entity with certificated equity interests, all stock or equity certificates of Franchisee or Equity Holder, as the case may be, shall have conspicuously endorsed upon them a legend in substantially the following form:
Source: Item 22 — CONTRACTS (FDD pages 61–62)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to the 2025 Cinnaholic Franchise Disclosure Document, a franchisee cannot transfer their rights or obligations under the franchise agreement without prior written consent from Cinnaholic. This includes subfranchising, selling, assigning, transferring, merging, conveying, or encumbering the bakery, the franchised site, or the agreement itself. This restriction applies to any transfer, whether by operation of law or otherwise.
Furthermore, if the franchisee is a corporation, limited liability company, partnership, business trust, or similar entity, the equity holders (shareholders, members, partners, beneficiaries, investors) also cannot transfer their equity interests without Cinnaholic's prior written consent. This extends to situations where an equity holder is itself a corporation, LLC, partnership, or similar entity; the equity interests in that entity also require Cinnaholic's approval for transfer.
Cinnaholic will not unreasonably withhold consent to a transfer if the requirements outlined in Section 19.4 of the franchise agreement are met. Any transfer that violates these conditions will be considered void and without effect. To ensure compliance, if the franchisee or an equity holder has certificated equity interests, all stock or equity certificates must bear a specific legend indicating the transfer restrictions.