What agreement will a potential franchisee sign while evaluating a franchise relationship with The Standardx?
The_Standardx Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
You will sign the Confidentiality Agreement while we and you are evaluating whether to start a franchise relationship. You must keep confidential all information concerning development plans for particular sites or markets and information concerning our plans, strategies, operations, processes, and System Standards, including any information in the PIP that we conduct or prepare for your hotel. These obligations continue even if we and you do not sign a Franchise Agreement. You must take reasonable measures to ensure that your employees, agents and advisors comply with these restrictions and are responsible if they fail to do so. You also must promise us that our and your discussions and, if applicable, your signing a Franchise Agreement do not violate any laws, breach any agreements or require any consents.
Source: Item 14 — PATENTS, COPYRIGHTS AND PROPRIETARY INFORMATION (FDD pages 68–71)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to The Standardx's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, a potential franchisee will sign a Confidentiality Agreement while the franchisee and The Standardx are evaluating whether to start a franchise relationship. This agreement ensures that the potential franchisee keeps confidential all information concerning development plans for particular sites or markets and information concerning The Standardx's plans, strategies, operations, processes, and System Standards, including any information in the PIP that The Standardx conducts or prepares for the hotel.
The obligations within the Confidentiality Agreement continue even if the franchisee and The Standardx do not sign a Franchise Agreement. The potential franchisee must take reasonable measures to ensure that their employees, agents, and advisors comply with these restrictions and are responsible if they fail to do so. Furthermore, the potential franchisee must promise that their discussions with The Standardx and, if applicable, their signing a Franchise Agreement do not violate any laws, breach any agreements, or require any consents.
This is a standard practice in franchising, as franchisors need to protect their proprietary information and trade secrets during the evaluation phase. The Confidentiality Agreement protects The Standardx's sensitive business information, preventing potential franchisees from using it for their own purposes if they decide not to move forward with the franchise. It also ensures that the franchisee is not violating any existing agreements or laws by entering into a franchise agreement with The Standardx.