Can a Goldfish Swim School franchisee transfer their franchise without the franchisor's approval?
Goldfish_Swim_School Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
18.2 Transfer by Franchisee to a Third Party
The rights and duties of Franchisee as set forth in this Agreement, and the Franchise herein granted, are personal to Franchisee (or its owners), and Franchisor has entered into this Agreement in reliance upon Franchisee's personal or collective skill and financial ability. Accordingly, neither Franchisee nor any holder of a legal or beneficial interest in Franchisee may sell, assign, convey, give away, pledge, mortgage, sublicense or otherwise transfer, whether by operation of law or otherwise, any interest in this Agreement, the Franchise granted hereby, the Approved Location used in operating the Franchised Swim School, its assets or any part or all of the ownership interest in Franchisee without the prior written approval of Franchisor. Any purported transfer without such approval shall be null and void and shall constitute a material breach of this Agreement. If Franchisee is in compliance with this Agreement, Franchisor's consent to such transfer shall be conditioned upon the satisfaction of the following requirements:
18.2.1 Franchisee has complied with the requirements set forth in Section 19;
18.2.2 all obligations owed to Franchisor, and all other outstanding obligations relating to the Franchised Swim School, are fully paid and satisfied;
18.2.3 Franchisee (and any transferring owners, if Franchisee is a business entity) has executed a general release, in a form the same as or similar to the General Release attached as Exhibit 1, of any and all claims against Franchisor, including its officers, directors, shareholders, managers, members, partners, owners, employees and agents (in their corporate and individual capacities), including, without limitation, claims arising under federal, state or local laws, rules or ordinances, and any other matters incident to the termination of this Agreement or to the transfer of Franchisee's interest herein or to the transfer of Franchisee's ownership of all or any part of the Franchise; provided, however, that if a general release is prohibited, Franchisee shall give the maximum release allowed by law;
Source: Item 23 — RECEIPTS (FDD pages 77–389)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Goldfish Swim School's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, a franchisee cannot transfer their franchise rights without prior written approval from the franchisor. The document emphasizes that the franchise rights are personal to the franchisee, and Goldfish Swim School has entered the agreement based on the franchisee's skills and financial capabilities.
This means that a franchisee needs to obtain permission from Goldfish Swim School before selling, assigning, or transferring any interest in the franchise agreement, the physical location, or ownership interest in the franchise. Any transfer attempted without this approval is considered invalid and a breach of the agreement.
To gain approval for a transfer, the Goldfish Swim School franchisee must meet specific conditions, including complying with the requirements outlined in Section 19 of the agreement, fulfilling all outstanding financial obligations to Goldfish Swim School, and executing a general release of claims against the franchisor. These stipulations ensure that the transfer process is controlled by Goldfish Swim School to maintain brand standards and protect their interests.