Tim Hortons owner strips dissatisfied franchisee of his licence

Great White North Franchisee involvement president is no longer a franchisee, company says

The parent company of Tim Hortons seized ownership of four locations from a restaurant owner heading an unsanctioned franchisee group after he allegedly leaked susceptible corporate news to the media.

The president of the Great White North Franchisee Association, which has served as a prickle in Restaurant Brand International's side since its setting up more than a year ago, denies the accusation he's acted as an anonymous source and claims the company is yet again attempting to intimidate franchisees.

David Hughes received a phone call Sunday afternoon, roughly four minutes before the corporation locked him out of his four Lethbridge, Alta., coffee shops, he said.
He rushed to the nearby location from his house.

"unluckily, by the time I got there, security people had locked the doors. We weren't allowed in," he said.

Between four and eight years remained on the franchisee agreements for every location, Hughes said.
RBI complete the four shops stay open, but are under corporate management until the company selects a new franchisee to run them. It declined to provide financial details of the termination agreement.

"The Tim Hortons franchisee agreement clearly states it is not allowable for any restaurant owner to share confidential company information with the media; disparage the company or the Tim Hortons brand in the media or with community associates and vendors; or ultimately harm the Tim Hortons brand in any way," wrote spokeswoman Jane Almeida in an email.

The company's conclusion has nothing to do with Hughes's place with the association, she added.
• Government probing franchisee complaints against Tim Hortons
• Tim Hortons accuses disgruntled franchisees of leaking confidential info, breaching contracts

Last week, The Canadian Press conventional a copy of a letter from the franchisee group's lawyer to the head of legal at the coffee chain alleging coffee pots have been shattering and injuring employees. RBI denied the accusation, as did the company.
Almeida declined to respond to questions about whether RBI believes Hughes leaked the letter, other information or both.

"Besides our original statement, we have nothing further to add," she wrote.
Last year, RBI accused Hughes and association board members of leaking confidential information to the former chief executive officer of Tim Hortons, who then provided it to one of Canada's national newspapers. Hughes, the association and the former CEO all denied the accusation at the time.

Hughes denies leaking any information to the media, saying this is the first time he's been allowed to speak with a journalist "forever." Hughes last spoke to the Canadian Press in 2017.

Still, he's been outspoken about RBI's alleged mismanagement of the coffee-and-doughnut chain.
He's critiqued the high cost of new espresso machines, for example, and accused RBI of trying to intimidate franchisees — a claim the company has denied.

The company offers multiple avenues to raise issues with management, said Almeida, noting the team under new brand president Alex Macedo is more open.


"Sometimes we agree and sometimes we don't, but we have no tolerance for any owner that knowingly damages our brand," she wrote.