Privacy Policy

This policy explains what Direct PM Systems Inc.("we", "us") collects through franchisefactbook.com (the "Site"), why, and who it's shared with. We never sell reader information to brokers or lead-generation networks — see our sponsorship policyfor what is and isn't for sale on this Site.

Newsletter signup. If you subscribe to The Factbook Brief, we collect your email address and, if provided, which brand or category page you signed up from. Signup uses double opt-in — an address is added to the list only after you click the confirmation link we send it.

FDD review requests. If you request that a filing be read for you, we collect the contact details you submit for that request.

Franchisor introduction requests.If you ask to be put in touch with a franchisor, we collect your name, email, phone number, the country/state/city you'd want to open in, the brand you named, whether you said you're open to similar franchises, and any notes you add — together with the time of the request and the IP address it came from. We pass your contact details and location to that franchisor's franchise development team so they can contact you: that is the entire point of the request, and it is the one case where we hand your details to a third party. We do it only for the brand you named (plus, if you ticked that box, brands we suggest to you — never the reverse), we are not paid for it, and it never goes to a broker or a lead network. The time and IP are kept as a record that the request was genuinely made.

Sponsorship and profile-claim enquiries. If you contact us as a franchisor or advertiser, we collect the details you submit in that form.

Shortlist.Brands you shortlist are stored in your browser's local storage only — this never reaches our servers unless you choose to submit it through a form above.

Usage data. Like most sites, we automatically collect aggregate usage data (pages viewed, referring site, approximate location from IP, device type) through the analytics tools listed in Section 4.

To deliver the newsletter and confirm subscriptions; to respond to FDD review, sponsorship, and profile-claim requests; to make the franchisor introductions you ask for; to understand which pages are useful and fix what isn't; and to detect abuse of the Site, including the automated access restricted under our Terms of Service.

We use the following processors, each under its own privacy terms:

• Resend — delivers confirmation and account-related email.
• Google Analytics (GA4) and Vercel Analytics — aggregate, cookieless usage measurement.
• Ahrefs Analytics — aggregate traffic measurement.
• Our own CRM — newsletter, sponsorship, and FDD-review submissions are mirrored into our internal customer-relationship system so a member of our team can follow up. This is us, not a third party we sell your details to.

The Site itself does not set marketing or advertising cookies. Google Analytics may set first-party cookies to distinguish sessions; Vercel Analytics is cookieless. You can block cookies entirely in your browser without losing access to any page on the Site.

We keep subscriber and enquiry records for as long as your subscription or business relationship with us is active, and for a reasonable period after to comply with legal, accounting, and reporting obligations. You can ask us to delete your data at any time — see Section 7.

Depending on where you live, you may have the right to access, correct, or delete the personal information we hold about you, or to withdraw consent to future contact. Every email we send includes an unsubscribe link, and you can ask us to delete your record entirely by contacting us as described in Section 10. As a Canadian company, we handle these requests consistent with the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA).

The Site is intended for adults researching a business purchase and is not directed at children. We do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 16.

We use industry-standard safeguards to protect the information we hold, including encryption in transit and access controls on our database. No method of transmission or storage is perfectly secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

We may update this policy from time to time; the effective date above reflects the most recent revision. Material changes will be reflected on this page.

Direct PM Systems Inc.
100 University Ave, 5th Floor, Toronto, ON M5J 2Y1, Canada

To exercise any right described above, reach us via our contact form.