What happens if TMC is required to configure the Equipment for a Circle K franchisee?
Circle_K Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
- 1.1.2 Franchisee acknowledges that TMC is not supplying, leasing, selling, supporting or maintaining the Equipment or providing training to Franchisee related thereto and TMC only requires that the Equipment be purchased or leased from designated third-party suppliers that provide appropriate training, support and maintenance and that the Equipment comply with the technical configurations established or approved by TMC to ensure that the Equipment is compatible with the Circle K Systems. If TMC is required to configure the Equipment for Franchisee, Franchisee will be obligated to reimburse TMC for the reasonable costs and expenses of such configuration, including, but not limited to, expenses for travel and lodging.
Source: Item 22 — CONTRACTS (FDD page 100)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Circle K's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, franchisees are generally responsible for purchasing or leasing and installing the required electronic point of sale equipment and back office systems, referred to as "Equipment," from designated third-party suppliers. Circle K requires that this equipment complies with technical configurations established or approved by TMC to ensure compatibility with Circle K Systems. TMC does not typically supply, lease, sell, support, maintain the Equipment, or provide training related to it.
However, in the event that TMC (TMC Franchise Corporation), as the franchisor, is required to configure the Equipment for a Circle K franchisee, the franchisee becomes responsible for reimbursing TMC. This reimbursement covers the reasonable costs and expenses incurred by TMC for the configuration.
The costs that the franchisee would be responsible for include, but are not limited to, expenses for travel and lodging that TMC incurs while configuring the equipment. This condition highlights the importance of ensuring that the franchisee's chosen third-party suppliers can properly configure the equipment to meet Circle K's standards, to avoid triggering this reimbursement obligation.