Can Itan require that all membership fees be paid to them or deposited into a trust account they control?

According to Itan's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, Itan may require that all membership fees be paid to them or deposited into a trust account that they control. This is part of Itan's right to determine how membership fees are divided or accounted for when salons operate under a membership model. In this model, franchisees must honor memberships, benefits, and privileges, even if the member purchased their membership from another salon.

This policy enables Itan to manage and distribute membership fees across different salon locations, especially when members utilize multiple locations. By centralizing the collection or directing it to a trust account, Itan aims to ensure proper allocation of funds to the salons visited by the member. This can help streamline financial operations and provide a clear method for tracking and distributing revenue generated through memberships.

For a prospective franchisee, this means that Itan has significant control over membership fee revenue. While this may ensure fair distribution among salons, it also means franchisees may not have immediate access to all membership fee revenue generated at their location. Franchisees should seek clarification from Itan regarding the specific procedures for disbursement, the frequency of payments, and the transparency of the trust account management to fully understand the financial implications.