What is the nature of the Manual that Embassy Suites provides, and who owns it?
Embassy_Suites Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
- We will loan to you a copy of our Manual and/or provide you with electronic access to the Manual on the Hilton Intranet resources library. The Manual is confidential and is the
property of our affiliate, Hilton International Holding LLC, a Delaware limited liability company ("HIH") (Franchise Agreement, Section 4.6). References to the Manual include the Standards, which include all standards, specifications, requirements, criteria, and policies that have been and are in the future developed and compiled by us for use by you in connection with the design, construction, renovation, refurbishment, appearance, equipping, furnishing, supplying, opening, operating, maintaining, marketing, services, service levels, quality, and quality assurance of System Hotels, including the hotel, and for hotel advertising and accounting, whether in the Manual or the Franchise Agreement or other written communication (Franchise Agreement, Sections 1.0 and 4.6). The Standards do not include any personnel policies or procedures that we may, at our option, make available to you in the Manual or other written communication. You may, in your sole judgment, determine to what extent, if any, any such personnel policies or procedures might apply to the Hotel or Hotel site. The table of contents of the Manual is attached as Exhibit H-1.
Source: Item 11 — FRANCHISOR'S ASSISTANCE, ADVERTISING, COMPUTER SYSTEMS AND TRAINING (FDD pages 53–67)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Embassy Suites' 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, the brand will loan franchisees a copy of their Manual or provide electronic access to it via the Hilton Intranet resources library. The Manual contains the standards, specifications, requirements, criteria, and policies developed and compiled by Embassy Suites for use in connection with the design, construction, renovation, appearance, equipping, furnishing, supplying, opening, operating, maintaining, marketing, services, service levels, quality, and quality assurance of the hotels. These standards apply to hotel advertising and accounting, and are found in the Manual, the Franchise Agreement, or other written communication. The standards do not include any personnel policies or procedures that Embassy Suites may make available.
The Manual is considered confidential and remains the property of Hilton International Holding LLC (HIH), an affiliate of Embassy Suites. Franchisees are granted access to the Manual for the specific purpose of operating their Embassy Suites franchise in accordance with the brand's standards and guidelines.
Prospective franchisees should carefully review the table of contents of the Manual, which is included as an exhibit in the FDD, to understand the scope and depth of the operational guidance provided by Embassy Suites. Understanding the contents of the manual is key to understanding the expectations of the brand.