Opportunism: strip cash from the defenseless
1,001 ways to make your life miserable
101 ways to terminate a contract
20 terminations turn into 200
30 different programs of kickbacks, shelf allowances and inside money
Accept the new contract or you're terminated
Advertising fund buys franchisor’s assets
Advertising fund paid to executives
Advertising fund put into general franchisor's coffers
Advertising fund use disagreements
Bad faith and unfair dealings
Bank account access by franchisor
Build up the business so they can take it
Cannibalization of sales
Central commissary
Centralized order taking system problems
Change in store format
Close store if staff unionizes
Company-owned stores given preferential treatment
Concept is a fad
Controlling, trapping or defeating the franchisee
Corporate stores competing with franchisees
Corporate stores get better deal than franchisees
Coupon programs (forced) destroy franchisee margins
Denied expansion for inappropriate reasons
Deny expansion because of media, political or association involvement
Different deals for different dealers
Discount programs destroy retail margins but boost wholesale profits
Encroachment, internet
Eviction cheaper and faster than termination
Exclusive territory endangered
Expands too quickly
Expropriation without compensation
Forced to sell
Franchised store converted to corporate store
Franchisee-on-franchisee opportunism
Franchisees who are related to franchisor have advantage
Franchisor abandonment
Franchisor bankruptcy
Franchisor controls retail prices
Franchisor has right to buy outlet before anyone else
Franchisor insolvency
Franchisor is wholesaler and retailer
Franchisor keeps best sites for corporate stores
Franchisor must approve new buyer
Franchisor overcharges for required products
Franchisor sells out
Franchisor sells to competitor
Franchisor sues candidate franchisee for not taking store
Franchisor takes back high-volume store
Franchisor takes franchisee store, gives to relative
Franchisor takes franchisee store, resells to new dealer
Franchisor takes franchisee stores
Franchisor takes store and converts to corporate
Franchisor trade association confirms franchisor opportunism is appropriate
Franchisor tries to break franchisee association "union"
Franchisor tries to take store without legal authority to do so
Franchisor uses brand ownership to try to bust franchisee association
I own the assets but the franchisor controls them
Language shortcomings create a vulnerability
Lease controlled by franchisor
Loyalty program
No franchisor support
Opportunism Test: If asset ownership were reversed, would decision likely change?
Pooled money
Rebranding usually hides real objective
Refusal to acknowledge independent franchisee association
Refuses to back loan applications
Related company transactions
Relative of franchisor owns construction company
Resale or transfer store through franchisor to new franchisee
Resale permission unreasonably withheld
Resale value set by franchisor
Resales as a profit center
Sabotage
Saturates markets through multiple distribution channels
Sets up competing distribution channel
Starts 2nd system from insolvent 1st
Stock market pressures make franchisor push system sales higher and higher
Telephone number controlled by franchisor
Unilateral fines
Were in default for some time: why terminate now?
