When is the Initial Marketing Program Membership Fee due to Epcon Communities?
Epcon_Communities Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
se Agreement is signed by you and us.
You must also pay us or a provider designated by us a non-refundable initial marketing program membership fee (the "Initial Marketing Program Membership Fee") of $5,000, which is due when the Franchise Agreement is signed by you and us. Existing franchisees in good standing with us are not required to pay the Initial Marketing Program Membership Fee if their Franchise Agreement was signed before May 1, 2023 (and is still in effect), or, if they paid an Initial Marketing Program Membership Fee to us under their existing Franchise Agreement. However, existing franchisees in default under their previously signed Franchise Agreement are required to pay the Initial Marketing Program Membership Fee.
If you are a current franchisee and you, as an individual, or 50% or more of the owners of your corporation, partnership or limited liability company, enter into another Franchise Agreement for the development of an additional project, the non-refundable Initial Franchise Fee will be $5,000, if (a) the location of the additional project is within 100 miles of a project of yours that is under development in accordance with a then-existing Franchise Agreement with us, and, if applicable, (b) the additional project
is located within a state in which we have an effective franchise registration or franchise registration exem
Source: Item 5 — INITIAL FEES (FDD pages 15–16)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Epcon Communities' 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, a new franchisee must pay an Initial Marketing Program Membership Fee of $5,000. This fee is due at the time of signing the Franchise Agreement. The FDD specifies that this fee is non-refundable and is paid to Epcon Communities or a designated provider to operate a franchise system level marketing program. This fee provides the franchisee with access to web-based resources related to the Development System and marketing assets created for use across the franchise system, accessible through an intranet website maintained by Epcon Communities or its designee.
However, there are exceptions to this rule. Existing Epcon Communities franchisees in good standing are not required to pay the Initial Marketing Program Membership Fee if their Franchise Agreement was signed before May 1, 2023, and is still in effect, or if they previously paid this fee under their existing Franchise Agreement. Despite these exceptions, existing franchisees who are in default under their previously signed Franchise Agreement are required to pay the Initial Marketing Program Membership Fee.
The Initial Marketing Program Membership Fee is intended to support advertising plans and materials associated with the marketing fund. Epcon Marketing administers these plans and may use the fees to promote projects of franchisees and affiliates at the local, regional, or national level through various media channels. The expenditure of these fees is approved by Epcon Marketing's trustees, and the finances are administered by Epcon Communities. Audited financial statements regarding the marketing fund's usage are available to franchisees upon request. Any unspent fees at the end of the calendar year are carried over to the next year, and these fees are not used to solicit the sale of franchises.