Following termination of the Dryject franchise agreement, is the franchisee allowed to contact former customers?
Dryject Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
(c) Any and all customer lists and their contents relating to the Franchised Business, whether compiled or developed by You or any other person, are owned by Us, constitute confidential information and are Our proprietary property (whether supplied by Us or not) and You shall not use the customer lists for any purpose whatsoever other than in the normal conduct of the Franchised Business prior to any default under this Agreement, or termination or expiration of this Agreement and for no other purpose and You must require any of Your employees, agents and independent contractors who have access to customer lists to sign a confidentiality agreement. To the extent that You may have or claim any right, title or interest in or to such customer lists and contents, You agree to, and do hereby, assign to Us all of Your right, title and interest therein. You will, upon demand, promptly deliver to Us a complete list of current and former customers, including name, telephone number, complete mailing address, frequency of service, last date serviced and price of service, and other information concerning such customers as requested by Us. You expressly acknowledge that Your ability to operate, develop and expand the Franchised Business is based largely on the goodwill of the Marks and know-how embodied in the DryJect System. Accordingly, You agree that We are the sole owner of all customer lists and relationships and all other goodwill arising from Your operation of the Franchised Business. Any attempt by You to offer any services or products similar to those provided by the Franchised Business to any customers or prospective customers of the Franchised Business following any expiration or termination of this Agreement shall be a violation of Our rights in such customer lists and relationships and goodwill. You agree that in the event of any such action or threatened action by You, We shall be entitled to a preliminary or permanent injunction or other equitable relief to restrain such actions, and to recover Our damages equal to the amount of profits received by You from any such action in violation of Our rights.
Source: Item 8 — BUSINESS RELATIONSHIP (FDD pages 68–229)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to the 2025 Dryject Franchise Disclosure Document, franchisees are restricted from contacting former customers after the termination or expiration of the franchise agreement. The FDD states that all customer lists and their contents are owned by Dryject and considered confidential and proprietary information.
The agreement explicitly prohibits franchisees from using customer lists for any purpose other than the normal operation of the franchised business before any default, termination, or expiration of the agreement. Franchisees must also ensure their employees, agents, and independent contractors sign confidentiality agreements to protect these customer lists. Upon demand, franchisees must provide Dryject with a complete list of current and former customers, including detailed information such as names, telephone numbers, mailing addresses, service frequency, last service date, and service price.
The FDD emphasizes that the goodwill of the Dryject system is crucial to the business's operation and expansion, and Dryject retains sole ownership of all customer lists, relationships, and associated goodwill. Any attempt by a franchisee to offer similar services or products to customers or prospective customers of the franchised business after the agreement's termination or expiration is considered a violation of Dryject's rights. In such cases, Dryject is entitled to seek injunctive relief and recover damages equal to the profits the franchisee gained from the violation.