What are the minimum requirements for the City Wide franchisee's office, specifically regarding telephone service?
City_Wide Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
to operate the Franchised Business within the Designated Territory, as described and outlined in Attachment B, from the Office as outlined in Section 6.3, subject to the reservation of rights set forth in Section 6.7 below.
- 6.2 Franchisee is not permitted to make material alterations to the trade dress, equipment, fixtures, signs or other materials or items bearing the Marks of the Franchisor in the Designated Territory, without prior written approval by CITY WIDE.
- 6.3 Franchisee shall establish an office for the Franchised Business ("Office") within the Designated Territory before the commencement of any business or promotional activities, which will typically be between 1,000 to 2,000 square feet. At a minimum, such Office shall include telephone service dedicated to the Franchised Business which will be answered by an employee, telephone answering service or voice mail (or combination thereof) and which will take calls from customers or employees twenty-four
(24) hours a day and include a specific reference that identifies the number as being associated with CITY WIDE. These telephone numbers, lines and the services related thereto (collectively, "Telephone Line") will be the sole and exclusive property of CITY WIDE. Franchisee shall always be solely responsible for any expenses and debts incurred with respect to the Telephone Line. Franchisee does hereby irrevocably convey, assign and transfer to CITY WIDE all the rights relative to the termination and/or changing of the Telephone Line should the franchise arrangement and/or relationship between the parties cease at any time for any reason. Additionally, Franchisee does hereby irrevocably convey, assign and transfer to CITY WIDE all the rights to place forwarding instructions upon the Telephone Line to whatever numbers and to any persons CITY WIDE desires, should the franchise arrangement and/or relationship cease at any time for any reason. This includes the assignment of the Telephone Line or forward instructions if Franchisee is using a Telephone Line tied to a cellular, mobile or other portable phone to operate the Franchised Business.
Source: Item 22 — CONTRACTS (FDD page 65)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to City Wide's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, a franchisee must establish an office within their designated territory before starting any business or promotional activities. The office space should typically range from 1,000 to 2,000 square feet.
At a minimum, the City Wide franchisee's office must include telephone service dedicated to the franchised business. This telephone service must be answered by an employee, a telephone answering service, or voicemail (or a combination thereof). The phone service should be capable of taking calls from customers or employees 24 hours a day.
The phone number associated with the City Wide franchise must include a specific reference identifying it as being associated with City Wide. The telephone numbers, lines, and related services are the sole and exclusive property of City Wide. The franchisee is solely responsible for all expenses and debts related to the telephone line. The franchisee irrevocably conveys, assigns, and transfers to City Wide all rights to terminate or change the telephone line should the franchise arrangement cease for any reason. This includes the right to place forwarding instructions on the telephone line to any numbers or persons City Wide desires if the franchise relationship ends. These conditions apply even if the franchisee uses a telephone line tied to a cellular, mobile, or other portable phone to operate the franchised business, with all termination, changing, and forwarding expenses remaining the franchisee's responsibility. City Wide may establish further reasonable requirements concerning the office and its operation, and the franchisee must promptly comply with these requirements upon receiving notice.