Is a Mr. Sandless franchisee allowed to register domain names similar to the Mr. Sandless brand name?
Mr_Sandless Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
ave sole discretion and control over such website. You are not permitted to maintain an individual website related to the Business, or to establish a uniform resource locator (URL) incorporating
any variation of the "Mr. Sandless" name or the Proprietary Marks, without our prior written approval, which we are not required to provide. You must also participate in any System-wide area computer network, intranet system, or extranet implemented by us, as described in Section 9.11.1 above.
- 13.3.1 You acknowledge that we are the lawful, rightful and sole owner of the Internet domain name www.MrSandless.com, www.MSFloorRefinishing.com, www.MSInstalls.com and any other Internet domain names registered by us or our affiliates, and you unconditionally relinquish any ownership interest in those or any colorably similar Internet domain name. You agree not to register any Internet domain name in any class or category that contains words used in or similar to any brand name owned by us or our affiliates or any abbreviation, acronym, phonetic variation or visual variation of those words.
Source: Item 22 — CONTRACTS (FDD page 42)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to the 2025 Mr. Sandless Franchise Disclosure Document, franchisees are restricted from registering internet domain names that are similar to the Mr. Sandless brand. The FDD states that franchisees acknowledge Mr. Sandless's ownership of domain names such as www.MrSandless.com, www.MSFloorRefinishing.com, and www.MSInstalls.com. Franchisees also relinquish any ownership interest in these or any similarly named internet domain.
Mr. Sandless franchisees are prohibited from registering any internet domain name that contains words used in or similar to any brand name owned by Mr. Sandless or its affiliates. This includes any abbreviation, acronym, phonetic variation, or visual variation of those words. Furthermore, franchisees cannot establish a website related to the Mr. Sandless Proprietary Marks or System, nor can they use the internet to offer, promote, or sell any products or services, or make any use of the Proprietary Marks, without prior written approval from Mr. Sandless.
Mr. Sandless may require that a franchisee's only presence on the internet be through web pages that Mr. Sandless establishes on its own website. This level of control ensures brand consistency and prevents franchisees from potentially misrepresenting the brand online. These restrictions are typical in franchising to protect the brand's integrity and reputation.