What criteria does Engel & Volkers use to approve a supplier?
Engel_Volkers Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
We reserve the right to designate or approve one or more third parties (a "Supplier" or "Suppliers"), or ourselves or one of our respective affiliates, to supply you with certain products and services using the Trademarks. If we designate or approve a supplier, you may purchase the categories of products or services using the Trademarks from Suppliers so designated, however, you may also purchase certain products and services using the Trademarks from other suppliers, as long as they are approved by us. We are not the only approved supplier for any category of goods or services. Our affiliate Grund Genug Verlag is the only approved supplier of GG Magazine as described above.
We may designate or approve a Supplier of any products or services to be used in your franchised business. We may concentrate purchases with one or more Suppliers to obtain lower prices, better advertising support and/or better services for any group of your business. If you propose to contract for or purchase products or services from any supplier that we have not previously designated or approved, you must notify us in writing and submit to us all information, specifications and samples that we request. Any products or services from Suppliers must meet the Engel & Völkers standards. The System Documentation contains guidelines, templates and specifications that are modified by us periodically. We will approve any products or services based on samples that have been provided to us. We reserve the right to require that samples from the proposed Supplier be delivered to us or our designated testing facility for evaluation and testing. We will have sole discretion as to whether or not to approve any supplier. Approval of a Supplier of any products or services must be made by us in writing and may also be conditioned on requirements
involving the frequency of delivery, standards of service, including prompt attention to complaints, concentration of purchases and other criteria, and on the Supplier providing us with adequate insurance protection, the Supplier's execution of reasonable indemnity and confidentiality agreements, and the Supplier's payment of reasonable license fees if the Trademarks are used. Our approval of a Supplier may be temporary or conditional, pending our evaluation of the Supplier. You will be notified by us within 4 weeks after we receive all the requested material for review whether or not a supplier is approved. If we do not respond within 4 weeks, the supplier will be deemed approved. There is no fee for requesting that we approve another supplier.
We reserve the right to re-inspect, at any time, the products and/or services of any approved Supplier and to revoke the approval upon the Supplier's failure to continue to meet any of our then-current criteria.
Source: Item 8 — RESTRICTIONS ON SOURCES OF PRODUCTS AND SERVICES (FDD pages 38–40)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Engel & Volkers' 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, the company reserves the right to designate or approve suppliers for products and services used in the franchised business. While franchisees can source certain trademarked products/services from other suppliers, those suppliers must first be approved by Engel & Volkers. Engel & Volkers is not the only approved supplier for any category of goods or services, except for its affiliate Grund Genug Verlag, which is the sole approved supplier of GG Magazine.
If a franchisee proposes using a supplier not already approved, they must provide Engel & Volkers with all requested information, specifications, and samples. The products or services from these suppliers must meet Engel & Volkers' standards, as detailed in the System Documentation, which includes guidelines, templates, and specifications that Engel & Volkers modifies periodically. Engel & Volkers will base its approval on provided samples and may require samples to be delivered to them or a designated testing facility for evaluation.
The approval of a supplier is at Engel & Volkers' sole discretion and must be made in writing. Approval may be conditional, depending on factors such as delivery frequency, service standards (including complaint handling), purchase concentration, and the supplier providing adequate insurance, indemnity, and confidentiality agreements, as well as paying reasonable license fees if trademarks are used. Approvals can be temporary or conditional, pending evaluation. Engel & Volkers will notify the franchisee of the approval decision within four weeks of receiving all requested materials. If no response is received within four weeks, the supplier is deemed approved. Engel & Volkers also reserves the right to re-inspect the products or services of any approved supplier and to revoke the approval if the supplier fails to meet Engel & Volkers' current criteria.
This process is typical in franchising, where franchisors maintain brand consistency and quality control through supplier approval. For a prospective Engel & Volkers franchisee, this means they may have to use designated suppliers for certain items, potentially impacting costs and sourcing flexibility. However, the franchisee can propose alternative suppliers, subject to Engel & Volkers' approval process, which includes meeting specific standards and potentially undergoing testing. The four-week approval timeline provides a reasonable expectation for supplier decisions, and the absence of a response within that period results in automatic approval, which could be beneficial for franchisees seeking timely solutions.