Is a Pearce Bespoke franchisee required to participate in advertising and promotional programs established by the franchisor?

According to Pearce Bespoke's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, franchisees are required to participate in advertising and promotional programs established by the franchisor. Specifically, franchisees must use their best efforts to promote and advertise their Pearce Bespoke business and participate in all advertising and promotional programs that Pearce Bespoke establishes. This includes participating, at their own expense, in the Pearce Bespoke national (electronic) gift card program and approved e-mail marketing and loyalty programs. Franchisees also agree to use only approved advertising and marketing materials. If a franchisee wants to use unapproved materials bearing the Pearce Bespoke name, they must obtain written approval from the franchisor.

In addition to participating in programs established by the franchisor, Pearce Bespoke franchisees have local marketing expenditure requirements. If a franchisee's annual contributions to cooperative advertising programs are less than 5% of gross sales, or if a regional cooperative advertising program isn't available in their area, the franchisee must conduct local advertising and marketing activities. These local marketing expenditures include advertising, merchandising, sales promotion, and other forms of marketing at the local level.

Pearce Bespoke franchisees must provide the franchisor with an accounting of their spending on approved regional cooperative advertising and local marketing each quarter. If a franchisee fails to spend at least 5% of their gross sales on approved advertising, they may be required to deposit the difference with the franchisor. The franchisor will then spend that amount on advertising or marketing deemed appropriate for the franchisee's business, with reasonable efforts to spend it in the franchisee's local area. This ensures that all franchisees are actively contributing to marketing efforts, whether at the national, regional, or local level.

Pearce Bespoke also collects a Brand Fund Fee from franchisees, which is 2% of weekly gross sales. The franchisor reserves the right to increase this fee to 3% of gross sales with 30 days' notice. This fee is in addition to the cooperative and local advertising obligations. Franchisees are also required to use approved vendors designated by Pearce Bespoke for broadcast media placement and online advertising during their pre-opening and first-year marketing activities.