What is the intellectual property subject to the Gold Star franchise license considered?
Gold_Star Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
The Company owns and franchises the Gold Star Chili and Tom + Chee restaurant concept. The franchise arrangement for both brands is documented in the form of a franchise agreement. The franchise arrangement between the Company as the Franchisor and the franchisee as the customer requires the Company to perform various activities to support the brand that do not directly transfer goods and services to the franchise, but instead represent a single performance obligation, which is the transfer of the franchise license. The intellectual property subject to the franchise license is symbolic intellectual property as it does not have significant standalone functionality, and substantially all of the utility is derived from its association with the Company's past or ongoing activities. The nature of the Company's promise in granting the franchise license is to provide the franchisee with access to the brand's symbolic intellectual property over the term of license. The services provided by the Company are highly interrelated with the franchise license and as such are considered to represent a single performance obligation.
The transaction price in a standard franchise arrangement primarily consists of (a) initial franchise fees; (b) continuing franchise fees (royalties); and (c) advertising fees. Since the Company considers the licensing of the franchising right to be a single performance obligation, no allocation of the transaction price is required. Additionally, all franchise agreements require franchisees to purchase proprietary chili from the Company.
Source: Item 23 — Receipts (FDD pages 53–163)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Gold Star's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, the intellectual property subject to the franchise license is considered symbolic intellectual property. Gold Star states that this type of intellectual property does not have significant standalone functionality. Instead, its utility is substantially derived from its association with Gold Star's past and ongoing activities.
For a prospective franchisee, this means that the value of the Gold Star franchise lies heavily in the brand's reputation and the ongoing support and activities of the company. The franchise license grants access to this symbolic intellectual property for the term of the license.
Gold Star considers the licensing of the franchising right to be a single performance obligation. This means that the initial franchise fees, continuing franchise fees (royalties), and advertising fees are all tied to providing access to the brand's symbolic intellectual property. Franchisees are also required to purchase proprietary chili from Gold Star.