What document governs the site selection obligations for a Nothing Bundt Cakes franchise?
Nothing_Bundt_Cakes Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
ARTICLE 4 BAKERY LOCATION
4.1 Approved Location
You must enter into the site selection addendum attached as Exhibit 1 to this Agreement, which will govern the parties' site selection obligations (the "Site Selection Addendum") upon signing this Agreement. You will be required to purchase or lease an Approved Location meeting our standards and specifications within ninety (90) days of the Effective Date (the "Approved Location"). If you have entered into an area development agreement or development rights rider to the Franchise Agreement, you must comply with the provisions of such agreement and/or rider, as the case may be regarding opening time frames. The Approved Location must be used solely to operate a Bakery, and not for any other purpose. OUR APPROVAL OF A LOCATION DOES NOT CONSTITUTE A REPRESENTATION, WARRANTY OR GUARANTEE OF THE COMMERCIAL VALUE OF YOUR LOCATION OR YOUR FINANCIAL SUCCESS IF YOU CHOOSE TO OPERATE A NOTHING BUNDT CAKES BAKERY AT THAT LOCATION.
4.2 Lease Approval
We have the right to review, evaluate, and approve your lease for the Approved Location (the "Lease") prior to execution. We will condition our approval of any proposed Lease upon, among other things, you and your landlord's execution of a "Collateral Assignment of Lease" in the form attached as Exhibit 2 to this Agreement, which (i) grants us the right, but not the obligation, to assume the Lease upon (a) your default on the Lease, or (b) termination, transfer or expiration of this Agreement, and (ii) authorizes and requires your landlord to disclose to us, upon our request, sales and other information you have furnished to the landlord. If your lease does not include the Collateral Assignment of Lease in the form set forth in Exhibit 2, or if there are other material deviations in your lease that require our review, as we determine in our sole discretion, we reserve the right to charge you the reasonable attorneys' fees we incur in such review. You must deliver an executed copy of the Lease and the Collateral Assignment of Lease to us within fifteen (15) days of execution of the Lease. If you are approved to go outside our approved master real estate broker network, we reserve the right to require you to pay us or our designated supplier
Source: Item 23 — RECEIPTS (FDD pages 93–309)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Nothing Bundt Cakes' 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, the "Site Selection Addendum," attached as Exhibit 1 to the Franchise Agreement, governs the parties' obligations regarding site selection. Upon signing the Franchise Agreement, the franchisee must also enter into this addendum. The franchisee is then required to secure an Approved Location that meets Nothing Bundt Cakes' standards and specifications within 90 days of the agreement's effective date. This location must be used exclusively for operating a Nothing Bundt Cakes bakery.
Nothing Bundt Cakes retains the right to review, evaluate, and approve the franchisee's lease for the Approved Location before it is executed. As part of the lease approval, Nothing Bundt Cakes requires the execution of a "Collateral Assignment of Lease," outlined in Exhibit 2. This assignment grants Nothing Bundt Cakes the right, but not the obligation, to assume the lease if the franchisee defaults or if the agreement terminates or expires. It also allows Nothing Bundt Cakes to request sales and other relevant information from the landlord.
If a franchisee is approved to use a real estate broker outside of Nothing Bundt Cakes' approved network, Nothing Bundt Cakes reserves the right to require the franchisee to cover any attorney's fees incurred during the lease review process if there are material deviations from the standard lease agreement. The franchisee must provide Nothing Bundt Cakes with an executed copy of both the lease and the Collateral Assignment of Lease within 15 days of the lease's execution. It is important to note that Nothing Bundt Cakes' approval of a location does not guarantee the commercial value or financial success of the bakery at that location.