Blue MauMau – by Jeffrey M. Goldstein, November 12th, 2018 Franchisors love rankings. Visit any well-known franchisor’s website, and you are bound to see a laundry list of rankings purporting to provide third-party validation of the franchisor’s superiority in its niche, if not in the franchise industry as a whole. Similarly, a Google search for […]
Franchise Owners Say Jack in the Box CEO Needs to Go, CMO Wanted
While there are no Jack in the Box outlets in Maine, it’s important that franchise owners are taking actions to advance their causes. Their strength comes from such a high percentage of outlets active as members of their association. Blue MauMau – by Don Sniegowski, October 9th, 2018 Franchise owners of Jack in the Box […]
Can Dickey’s BBQ Franchise Owners Survive? Franchisees Claim They Received Misleading Numbers
Franchise owners of Dickey’s BBQ are closing at an alarming rate. Why is this, and can a franchise owner really make a profit owning a Dickey’s BBQ? Despite this, up to now, the franchisor has continued to sell a high number of new franchises. Can they continue that pace and keep their financials strong? And, […]
NLRB Chairman Proposes Overhaul of Current Joint Employer Standard
Blue MauMau, by Janet Sparks, September 17th, 2018 Following the National Labor Relations Board administrative judge’s recent decision to reject McDonald’s proposed settlement to resolve all cases that called it a joint employer with its franchisees on labor law violations, the NLRB announced Thursday that it will overhaul the current joint-employer definition. Continue reading on […]
DOL Exempts Franchisees from Joint-Employer in Healthcare Plans
Blue MauMau – by Janet Sparks, August 27th, 2018 Among other safeguards, the Department of Labor (DOL) has now issued a ruling that small business owners and franchisees who ban together to form groups under the Association Health Plan to provide low-cost healthcare to their employees will be exempt from joint-employer liability. Continue reading on […]
Franchisees, Is Your Operations Manual Changing Your Franchise Agreement?
As franchise owners, we all sign franchise agreements that set the terms and conditions of our business, and the relationship with our franchisor. Most of those franchise agreements contain a condition that you will follow the then current Operations Manual. While it is understandable that the Ops Manual must change, a new sandwich is introduced, […]
California Enacts Strongest Franchise Protection Rules in the U.S.
BLUE MAUMAU– Governor Jerry Brown of California signed a new franchise protection law Sunday afternoon that gives California franchise owners the strongest rights in the United States. The law protects franchise owners from franchisors who seek to terminate their business on a whim or who desire to take possession of a lucrative franchise without compensating the […]
Friendly’s franchisee files for bankruptcy
Nation’s Restaurant News reports that J & B Restaurant Partners, a Friendly’s franchisee based in Long Island, N.Y., closed a third of its 36 locations and filed for bankruptcy protection this month amid steeply declining sales and financial losses. The move marks the second major closure of Friendly’s locations in recent months. In November, a […]
Making small-business owners’ concerns heard in the political process
Franchise owners are small business owners and they can have a big political impact, which is our experience in Maine. Franchise owners in Maine will continue to have the opportunity to educate their lawmakers, which we have learned do not know much about franchising, but we have shown them the importance of franchisees in Maine, to invest and create […]
Gov. Brown vetoes bill to protect franchisees
Patrick McGreevy of the Los Angeles Times reports that Gov. Jerry Brown vetoed legislation to protect small-franchise owners against fast-food giants and convenience store chains, saying he needs more proof there is a problem before considering changes that would “significantly impact California’s vast franchise industry.” The measure by Sen. Hannah-Beth Jackson (D-Santa Barbara) would have […]