Effective Date: October 15, 2026 Version: 1.0 Applies to: All prospective Franchisees, all Franchisees, and the Company as franchisor under the Franchise Program.
Article 1: Introduction and Scope
1.1 This Policy is the umbrella instrument for the Franchise Program. The Policy governs the administration of the program under which the Company licenses independent operators to operate Pawz Shop locations and services under the Company's brand, systems, and standards. The Policy states the structure of the program and incorporates the program documents in Article 4.
1.2 A franchise relationship between the Company and a Franchisee is created only by a signed franchise agreement, executed after delivery of the Franchise Disclosure Document as Article 3 requires. No provision of this Policy, no other program document, no portal page, and no statement by a representative of the Company creates a franchise, offers a franchise, or grants operating rights. Operating rights arise only under a signed franchise agreement that has become effective in accordance with the Franchise Agreement Policy.
1.3 The signed franchise agreement controls the relationship between the Company and the Franchisee for that Franchisee. If a provision of this Policy conflicts with a signed franchise agreement, the signed agreement controls for that Franchisee, except that no agreement waives, narrows, or contracts around the regulatory duties in Article 3. If a provision of this Policy conflicts with the Terms of Use, this Policy controls for the subject it governs.
Article 2: Definitions
2.1 Account: the account a person or business establishes with the Company to use the Platform.
2.2 Company: All About Pawz, LLC, a Tennessee limited liability company, acting as franchisor under the Franchise Program.
2.3 Franchise Agreement: the written franchise agreement between the Company and a Franchisee, signed by both parties after delivery of the Franchise Disclosure Document.
2.4 Franchise Disclosure Document: the disclosure document the Company furnishes to a prospective Franchisee under the Federal Trade Commission Franchise Rule, 16 CFR Part 436.
2.5 Franchisee: a person or business that holds a signed Franchise Agreement, or, where the context requires, a prospective Franchisee that has applied under the Franchise Eligibility & Approval Policy.
2.6 Franchise Location: one franchised unit operated by a Franchisee under a Franchise Agreement, identified by business name, address, and operating status in the Company's records.
2.7 Platform: the websites, applications, and services the Company operates under the name All About Pawz, including aapawz.com.
2.8 Products: goods offered for sale through the Platform.
2.9 Program: the Franchise Program governed by this Policy.
2.10 Services: services offered through the Platform, including grooming, veterinary, pharmacy, and fulfillment services, as applicable.
2.11 User: any person who accesses or uses the Platform, whether or not the person holds an Account.
Article 3: Franchise Offer and Sale; Controlling Disclosures
3.1 The Franchise Disclosure Document controls the offer and sale of franchises. Every statement in this Policy and in each program document is subject to the Franchise Disclosure Document for the offer and sale it describes. In any conflict between a program document and the Franchise Disclosure Document concerning the offer or sale of a franchise, the Franchise Disclosure Document controls.
3.2 No policy, portal page, or representative of the Company makes any earnings claim or financial performance representation. A financial performance representation, if made at all, appears only in Item 19 of the Franchise Disclosure Document, with the substantiation the Franchise Rule prescribes. A statement outside Item 19 that characterizes the sales, earnings, or profitability of a franchised or Company-owned location is not authorized by the Company and shall not be relied on.
3.3 Where the franchise law of the state in which the franchised business is located gives the Franchisee rights greater than this Policy or any program document, that state law prevails to the extent of the conflict.
3.4 The Company shall furnish the Franchise Disclosure Document at least fourteen (14) calendar days before the prospective Franchisee signs any agreement or pays any amount to the Company, in accordance with the Franchise Rule. The period runs in calendar days from delivery of the document. The Company shall maintain records proving delivery. No agreement is signed and no fee or other amount is collected before the period has run.
3.5 The Company shall maintain each state franchise registration and disclosure filing required in a state where a franchise is offered, before the offer is made in that state. An offer in a registration state precedes registration only where that state's law permits the offer before registration.
Article 4: Program Documents Incorporated
4.1 This Policy incorporates the following program documents by name, each of which governs the subject its title states: the Franchise Agreement Policy, which states the structure and required contents of the Franchise Agreement; the Franchise Eligibility & Approval Policy, which states qualification and approval; the Franchise Onboarding Policy, which states the steps after signing; the Franchise Territory Policy, which states territory and exclusivity; the Franchise Fees & Royalties Policy, which states payment mechanics for amounts stated in the Franchise Disclosure Document and the Franchise Agreement; the Franchise Marketing Fund Policy, which states fund contributions, administration, and accounting; the Franchise Brand Standards Policy, which states operating standards; the Franchise Training Policy, which states training requirements; the Franchise Audit & Inspection Policy, which states audit and inspection rights; the Franchise Renewal Policy, which states renewal; the Franchise Transfer Policy, which states transfer; the Franchise Termination Policy, which states termination grounds, cure, and post-termination duties; and the Franchise Dispute Resolution Policy, which states the program dispute procedure in addition to Article 10.
4.2 A program document states program terms only. A program document does not amend a signed Franchise Agreement, and in any conflict the signed Franchise Agreement controls for that Franchisee, subject to Article 1.3 and Article 3.
Article 5: Program Administration and the Franchisee Account
5.1 Each Franchisee operates as a franchise account linked to the Company's franchisor account. The link is the structural record of the franchise relationship: billing relationships, brand standards, and program rules apply to the Franchisee through the link, and the Franchisee's operational data is held separately from the data of other Franchisees under the Platform's access controls.
5.2 On execution of a Franchise Agreement, the Company records: (a) the franchise account, linked to the franchisor account and designated as a franchise account; (b) the Franchise Location record for the initial unit, stating business name, address, contact details, and operating status; (c) the Franchise Agreement record, stating agreement type, status, the royalty rate, the fee schedule, the term dates, and the location of the stored signed agreement; and (d) the Franchisee's owner user account for portal access. The agreement record holds status pending until countersignature, and active on countersignature, as the Franchise Agreement Policy provides. A pending agreement confers no operating rights.
5.3 A franchise account designation is structural. A Franchisee account does not convert to another account type without a new agreement signed by both parties.
5.4 The Franchisee receives access to the Company's operating systems for the franchised business: customer management, appointments, accounting, and inventory: scoped to the Franchisee's business, as the Franchise Agreement states. Access is a license for the franchised business only and ends as the Franchise Termination Policy provides.
Article 6: Liability
6.1 Exclusion of certain damages. To the fullest extent permitted by law, neither party is liable to the other for indirect, incidental, special, punitive, or consequential damages, or for lost profits, lost revenue, or loss of goodwill, arising out of or relating to this Policy, even if the party has been advised of the possibility of those damages.
6.2 Cap. To the fullest extent permitted by law, the Company's total liability arising out of or relating to this Policy shall not exceed the greater of (a) the amounts the Franchisee paid to the Company under the Franchise Agreement in the twelve months before the event giving rise to the claim, or (b) one hundred dollars ($100).
6.3 Carve-outs. This Article does not limit (a) a party's indemnification obligations under this Policy; (b) liability for fraud or willful misconduct; (c) amounts the Franchisee owes under the Franchise Agreement, including fees, royalties, fund contributions, and amounts owed on termination; or (d) liability that cannot be limited under applicable law.
6.4 Essential purpose. The parties agree that this Article allocates risk between them, that it is an essential part of the basis of their bargain, and that it applies even if a limited remedy fails of its essential purpose.
Article 7: Indemnification
7.1 Duty. The Franchisee shall indemnify, defend, and hold harmless the Company and its members, managers, employees, and agents from and against every claim, demand, action, loss, liability, judgment, settlement, cost, and expense (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising out of or relating to: (a) the Franchisee's breach of this Policy or of the Franchise Agreement; (b) the Franchisee's operation of the franchised business, Products, Services, listings, or content, including product liability claims and claims arising from services performed at a Franchise Location; (c) the Franchisee's violation of any law or of the rights of any person; and (d) taxes for which the Franchisee is responsible under the Company's documents or the Franchise Agreement.
7.2 Procedure. The Company shall give prompt written notice of a claim under this Article. The Franchisee shall control the defense with counsel reasonably acceptable to the Company. The Company may participate in the defense at its own expense. The Franchisee shall not settle a claim in a manner that imposes any obligation or restriction on the Company, or that does not release the Company fully, without the Company's prior written consent.
7.3 Survival. This Article survives the termination of this Policy.
Article 8: Enforcement and Appeals
8.1 Investigation. The Company may investigate any suspected violation of this Policy. The Franchisee shall cooperate with an investigation and shall produce the records this Policy and the program documents require the Franchisee to keep.
8.2 Notice. If the Company determines that the Franchisee has violated this Policy, the Company shall give written notice stating the provision violated and the facts relied on, except where notice would compromise an investigation of fraud, a safety risk, or a legal obligation.
8.3 Opportunity to cure. Where a violation is capable of cure, the Franchisee has ten (10) business days from notice to cure it and to confirm the cure in writing, except that a cure period stated in the Franchise Agreement or in the Franchise Termination Policy for the same ground controls over the period in this clause. No cure period applies to fraud, a risk to the safety of a person or an animal, unlawful conduct, or a violation that by its nature cannot be cured.
8.4 Measures. If a violation is established and is not cured within the period allowed, the Company may, proportionate to the violation and subject to the Franchise Agreement and the Franchise Termination Policy: (a) issue a written warning; (b) remove or suppress a listing or content; (c) suspend the Account or program participation, in whole or in part; (d) terminate the Franchise Agreement as Article 9 provides; and (e) exercise any other right or remedy available under the Company's documents or at law.
8.5 Appeal. The Franchisee may appeal a measure under this Article by written notice to legal@aapawz.com within thirty (30) days of the measure, stating the grounds and attaching the records relied on. The appeal is decided by a person who did not make the original decision. The Company's decision on appeal is final. A measure remains in effect during an appeal unless the Company directs otherwise in writing. An appeal under this Article does not replace a right the Franchisee holds under the Franchise Agreement or under applicable franchise law.
8.6 No waiver by delay. The Company's delay in acting on a violation is not a waiver of the violation or of any later violation of the same kind.
Article 9: Term and Termination
9.1 The term of a franchise, the grounds for termination, the cure periods by ground, and the post-termination duties of the parties are stated in the Franchise Agreement and in the Franchise Termination Policy, which are incorporated into this Policy by reference and govern in place of a general termination article. Termination of a Franchise Agreement is effective only as the Franchise Agreement and the Franchise Termination Policy provide, and subject to Article 3.3.
9.2 This Policy takes effect for a Franchisee on execution of the Franchise Agreement and continues while the Franchise Agreement remains in effect. The Definitions, Liability, Indemnification, Enforcement and Appeals (for measures taken before termination), Dispute Resolution, and General Provisions Articles, and the duties stated in the Franchise Termination Policy as surviving duties, survive the end of the franchise.
Article 10: Dispute Resolution
10.1 Any dispute arising out of or relating to this Policy, or to the relationship it governs, is governed by the Dispute Resolution Policy, which is incorporated into this Policy by reference. The Franchise Dispute Resolution Policy states the program procedure that applies in addition to the Dispute Resolution Policy.
Article 11: General Provisions
11.1 Amendments. The Company may amend this Policy by posting the amended Policy in the Document Center and giving notice to the Franchisee at the email address in the Account. An amendment that materially increases the Franchisee's fees or obligations takes effect thirty (30) days after notice; other amendments take effect on posting. Continued participation in the Program after the effective date of an amendment is acceptance of it. An amendment to this Policy does not amend a signed Franchise Agreement; an amendment to the economic or territory terms of a Franchise Agreement requires a signed amendment as the Franchise Agreement Policy provides.
11.2 Notices. Legal notices under this Policy shall be sent to legal@aapawz.com. Operational notices and all other communications shall be sent to support@aapawz.com. A notice to the Company is effective when the Company acknowledges receipt or, for email, one business day after sending, whichever is earlier. Notices to the Franchisee are effective when sent to the email address in the Account or posted to the Account's notice facility in the portal, whichever occurs first. The Franchisee shall keep the email address in the Account current.
11.3 Governing law. This Policy is governed by the laws of the State of Tennessee, without regard to its conflict-of-laws rules. Subject to the Dispute Resolution Policy, any proceeding arising out of this Policy shall be brought in the state or federal courts located in Shelby County, Tennessee, and the parties consent to personal jurisdiction there. Where the franchise law of the state in which the franchised business is located gives the Franchisee rights greater than this Policy, that law prevails to the extent of the conflict.
11.4 Severability. If any provision of this Policy is held unenforceable, the provision shall be enforced to the fullest extent permitted, and the remaining provisions continue in full effect.
11.5 Entire agreement. For the subject of program administration, this Policy, together with the documents it incorporates by reference and the signed Franchise Agreement for the Franchisee, is the entire agreement between the Company and the Franchisee for that subject and supersedes every prior or contemporaneous statement, communication, or agreement on that subject, whether written or oral. No statement excluded by Article 3.2 forms part of the agreement between the parties.
11.6 Assignment. The Franchisee shall not assign this Policy, the Franchise Agreement, or any right or obligation under either document without the Company's prior written consent, as the Franchise Transfer Policy further provides, and an assignment without consent is void. The Company may assign this Policy to an affiliate or in connection with a sale of all or part of its business, on notice to the Franchisee.
11.7 Waiver. A waiver of any provision of this Policy is effective only in writing and only for the instance stated. No waiver is a waiver of any other provision or instance.
11.8 Interpretation. Headings are for convenience only. "Including" means "including without limitation." This Policy shall not be construed against a party as its drafter. The English-language text controls over any translation.
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