Can City Publications elect to arrange cooperative advertising in the future?
City_Publications Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
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- There is no advertising program for which you are required to make contributions. There is no advertising council composed of franchisees. We may elect at a future time to arrange cooperative advertising. You may elect with other franchisees to establish cooperative advertising for a select area encompassing your mutual territories. It is optional for the franchisees to participate in such a cooperative. If such a cooperative is established, we anticipate that each franchisee in the given area would automatically be a member, with one vote per franchise agreement. Any company or affiliate owned outlets would also be members and would be required to make the same contributions as the other members. Since there are no cooperatives at this point or ever in the past, we do not have a policy on an amount that franchisees would be required to contribute to the cooperative. We anticipate that the members would establish a governing board and would adopt governing documents that would be available for review by a prospective franchisee. (Section 11B)
Source: Item 11 — FRANCHISOR'S ASSISTANCE, ADVERTISING, COMPUTER SYSTEMS AND TRAINING (FDD pages 19–24)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to City Publications' 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, City Publications may choose to arrange cooperative advertising in the future. Currently, there is no advertising program that requires franchisee contributions, nor is there an advertising council composed of franchisees. However, franchisees can also elect to establish cooperative advertising for their mutual territories. Participation in such a cooperative is optional for franchisees.
If a cooperative advertising program is established by City Publications, it is anticipated that each franchisee in the relevant area would automatically become a member, with one vote per franchise agreement. Any company-owned or affiliate-owned outlets would also be members and would be required to contribute the same amount as other members. Since no cooperatives exist currently or have existed in the past, there is no established policy regarding the amount franchisees would be required to contribute.
The 2025 FDD states that the members of a cooperative advertising program would establish a governing board and adopt governing documents, which would be available for review by prospective franchisees. This structure ensures that franchisees have a voice in how cooperative advertising funds are spent and that the cooperative is managed transparently. Prospective franchisees should inquire about the potential costs and benefits of participating in a cooperative advertising program, as well as the specific terms and conditions of membership, should one be established in their area.