Under what circumstances might Gold Star require franchisees or their employees to attend additional training programs?
Gold_Star Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
Gold Star may at its option make available or require attendance of you and/or key employees at, refresher or other additional training programs as it deems appropriate. The location, duration and content of the programs will be as determined by Gold Star in its sole discretion. No fee will be charged by Gold Star for any of these additional training programs at which attendance of you or any of your employees or other representatives is designated by Gold Star as mandatory. You must pay Gold Star for attendance of any optional attendee at any mandatory program and for attendance of any attendee at any optional training program made available by Gold Star the standard fee then charged by Gold Star to other Franchisees for the programs. Gold Star did not charge a fee for these programs during the year ended December 31, 2024. You must pay all travel, lodging, meal and other related or incidental expenses you or your employees or other representatives incur in attending or otherwise regarding these programs.
Although Gold Star is not obligated to provide any additional training programs, Gold Star has offered additional "refresher" training programs each year, which usually are repeated for a total of 4 times per year in various regions and usually is of 2-4 (up to 8 hours) hours in duration. Past sessions usually have been conducted at a hotel or similar site located as centrally as practicable to other Franchisees in the region in which the program is offered. Past topics have included customer service, shift management, recruitment and selection, goal setting and team building, and past instructional materials and procedures have included video, group activities, handouts and manuals. Past programs have been conducted by the (Field Training Manager) Training Coordinator. Attendance at past programs has not been mandatory. There is no guarantee that future programs will be similar to past programs.
Source: Item 11 — Franchisor's Assistance, Advertising, Computer Systems, and Training (FDD pages 26–36)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Gold Star's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, Gold Star has the option to require franchisees and/or their key employees to attend refresher or other additional training programs as they deem appropriate. The specifics of these programs, such as location, duration, and content, are determined by Gold Star at their discretion.
For mandatory additional training programs, Gold Star will not charge a fee for the franchisee or their employees to attend. However, the franchisee is responsible for covering all travel, lodging, meal, and other related expenses incurred while attending these programs. If a franchisee wishes to send additional attendees to a mandatory program or have anyone attend an optional training program, Gold Star will charge its standard fee for those attendees.
While Gold Star is not obligated to provide additional training programs, they have historically offered refresher training programs, typically repeated four times a year in various regions. These past sessions, lasting 2-4 hours, have covered topics like customer service, shift management, and team building, utilizing videos, group activities, handouts, and manuals. These past programs were conducted by the Field Training Manager/Training Coordinator, and attendance was not mandatory. However, the FDD states that there is no guarantee that future programs will be similar to past programs.