How might the Protected Territory for a Hawthorn Suites By Wyndham franchise be defined?
Hawthorn_Suites_By_Wyndham Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
rands we or our affiliates acquire. These competitive outlets could be adjacent, adjoining or proximate to your Chain Facility. You will be assigned a "Protected Territory" under Section 2 of the Franchise Agreement in which we will not own, operate or manage another Chain Facility without your consent. We will not permit any additional franchises for a Chain Facility to open in
the Protected Territory after you execute your Franchise Agreement with us. However, any Chain Facility located within the Protected Territory when your Franchise Agreement becomes effective may have its franchise renewed or reissued, expanded for additional guest rooms or, if its franchise terminates or is not renewed, replaced with a replacement Chain Facility having not more than 120% of the guest rooms of the replaced Chain Facility, located within the same trading area.
We will negotiate the Protected Territory with you before you sign the Franchise Agreement. These negotiations will take into account one or more of the following: the nature of the market your Facility will serve (urban/suburban/rural); population density; demographics; natural travel boundaries (such as rivers or impassable lands); what public and private facilities, if any, may generate lodging demand for your Facility (including airports, highways, sports and entertainment venues, colleges, military bases, tourist attractions, hospitals, shopping malls and commercial and industrial activities); the "seasonal" versus yearround nature of the anticipated occupancy of your Facility; the weekend versus weekday anticipated occupancy of your Facility; and other variables. The Protected Territory may be defined as a radius from the door of the Facility or an irregular area bound by one or more streets, highways, governmental jurisdiction boundaries or natural boundaries, or by latitude and longitude and described in words, depicted on a map, or both. In any case, your Protected Territory will be described in Section 2 of the Franchise Agreement. There is no minimum Protected Territory that we offer.
We may own, operate, lease, manage or franchise Chain Facilities anywhere outside of the Protected Territory without restriction or obligation, even if they compete with your Facility. We may grant Protected Territories for other Chain Facilities that overlap your Protected Territory.
Continuation of your territorial rights does not depend upon whether you achieve certain sales volumes, market penetration or other contingencies. We may operate, lease, manage, or license any other party to operate a Chain Facility in the Protected Territory beginning (a) six months before the expiration of the Franchise Agreement, or (b) as of the date that a date for the premature termination of the Franchise Agreement has been confirmed in writing by us. During the term of your Franchise Agreement, neither you nor your owners, officers or directors may own, lease, manage or franchise a timeshare resort, vacation or residence club, fractional ownership residence, condominium/apartment leasing or rental business, or the like, for any facility or business that shares directly or indirectly, common areas, amenities, recreation facilities, services, supplies or support activities with the Facility.
Source: Item 12 — TERRITORY (FDD pages 71–73)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Hawthorn Suites By Wyndham's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, the Protected Territory for a franchisee is not exclusive, meaning franchisees may face competition from other franchisees, outlets owned or managed by Hawthorn Suites By Wyndham, or other competitive brands they control. The Protected Territory is assigned under Section 2 of the Franchise Agreement, where Hawthorn Suites By Wyndham agrees not to own, operate, or manage another Chain Facility without the franchisee's consent. However, existing Chain Facilities within the Protected Territory when the Franchise Agreement becomes effective may be renewed, reissued, or expanded, and if a franchise terminates or is not renewed, it can be replaced with a Chain Facility having not more than 120% of the guest rooms of the replaced Chain Facility, located within the same trading area.
The negotiation of the Protected Territory occurs before signing the Franchise Agreement, taking into account factors such as the market's nature (urban/suburban/rural), population density, demographics, natural travel boundaries, and public/private facilities that generate lodging demand (airports, highways, sports venues, colleges, etc.). Other considerations include the seasonal versus year-round occupancy and weekend versus weekday occupancy. The Protected Territory can be defined as a radius from the facility's door or an irregular area bound by streets, highways, governmental boundaries, natural boundaries, or latitude and longitude, described in words, depicted on a map, or both, and is detailed in Section 2 of the Franchise Agreement. There is no minimum Protected Territory offered by Hawthorn Suites By Wyndham.
Hawthorn Suites By Wyndham does not restrict franchisees from soliciting or accepting guest reservations from inside or outside their Protected Territory, including through telemarketing, direct mail, or online marketing, as long as they comply with applicable law. However, the Facility must not book reservations through any electronic reservation system, booking engine or other channel other than their CRS or through approved consumer website(s) or third-party distribution sites unless permitted under their System Standards or with their prior written consent. Franchisees are required to participate in Chain marketing programs. Hawthorn Suites By Wyndham and its affiliates can solicit or accept reservations from guests residing in the franchisee's Protected Territory.
It is important to note that Hawthorn Suites By Wyndham may own, operate, lease, manage, or franchise Chain Facilities outside the Protected Territory without restriction, even if they compete with the franchisee's Facility, and may grant Protected Territories for other Chain Facilities that overlap the franchisee's Protected Territory. The continuation of territorial rights does not depend on achieving certain sales volumes or market penetration. Hawthorn Suites By Wyndham may operate a Chain Facility in the Protected Territory six months before the Franchise Agreement expires or when a premature termination date is confirmed in writing. Franchisees are restricted from owning or operating certain types of businesses that share common resources with the Facility and from promoting competing businesses. Breaching this obligation may result in termination of the Protected Territory.