ITEM 1.����� THE FRANCHISOR,
ITS PREDECESSORS AND AFFILIATES
To simplify the language in this Offering Circular,
"we," "us," "our," or "CruiseOne" means
CruiseOne, Inc., the Franchisor. "You" means the person who purchases
a CruiseOne Franchise, the franchisee. If you are a corporation, partnership or
other business entity, you also means your owners.
The Franchisor, its Predecessors and Affiliates
We are a Florida corporation and maintain our
principal place of business at 1415 NW 62nd Street, Suite 205, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida 33309-1955. We were incorporated on July 16, 1992. At that time,
our corporation name was CruiseSpecialists, Inc. We changed our name on January
15, 1993, to CruiseOne, Inc., our current corporate name. We do business under
the name "CruiseOne" and do not currently do business under any other
name.
CruiseOne''s agent for service
of process is disclosed on the last page on the Acknowledgment of Receipt or on
Exhibit "A".
In 2006, we became a wholly-owned subsidiary of World
Travel Holdings, Inc. ("WTH"), which is based at 10 Harbor Park Drive,
Port Washington, New York 11050. WTH owns a number of other travel
service-related companies. None of them do business as "CruiseOne," nor
offers franchises for sale. WTH or its subsidiaries may offer goods or services
to CruiseOne franchises or offer cruise services to the general public similar
to those that you offer. None of them currently does so, however.
The Business of CruiseOne
We operate a vacation cruise
travel company offering products and services provided by cruise lines and
other travel providers. We award CruiseOne Franchises to Franchisees who market
and sell vacation cruises and air/sea and related tours to the general public,
companies, trade and business associations, civic organizations, religious
groups, social clubs and other groups. Cruise sales by you are subject to terms
and conditions established by the cruise lines and other travel providers. Our
business philosophy is to provide local full service cruise expertise backed by
favorable pricing and support available only through a national company.
Because of our back-office administrative and sales support and our affiliation
with WTH, CruiseOne Franchisees can offer specialized cruise expertise and
customer service, coupled with favorable pricing for cruise packages.
We are not presently engaged
in business activities other than the operation of a cruise travel agency
representing cruise lines and other-related travel, providing administrative,
marketing and sales support for our Franchisees, and the growth and development
of the CruiseOne Franchise system.
CruiseOne Franchise
You will establish and operate a CruiseOne Franchise
specializing in sales of vacation cruises and cruise packages, cruise tours,
and other-related travel arrangements that we periodically authorize. You will
be licensed to use the service mark "CruiseOne" and logo as well as
related trademarks, service marks, logos, and slogans (the "Proprietary
Marks") and the proprietary operating system ("System") we have
developed for the operation of a CruiseOne Franchise. You also will be licensed
to use our confidential operations manuals (the "Manuals") which
covers your operations and procedures for marketing, selling and booking
cruises and which sets forth the standards and specifications for the
management and operation of a CruiseOne Franchise.
The sales of cruises by you
are subject to terms and conditions established by the cruise lines.
Your customer base will include the general public
(individuals, couples and families), as well as larger corporate, religious,
social and other groups seeking vacation cruises and related travel packages.
You will be provided with specialized training and ongoing support in a wide
variety of areas including: marketing and promotion, sales and bookings, cruise
line operations, specialized industry resources, software training,
administrative and financial management, and pricing strategies.
The general market for a CruiseOne Franchise will be
the entire community of leisure travelers. Your competition will include other
independent travel agencies and in-house travel departments including both
general and cruise-only providers, and, more generally, other leisure vacation
and entertainment providers. Competition with other companies in the travel
services industry is based primarily on customer service and price.
Some states have laws
regulating certain sellers of travel. You also will be required to comply with
federal, state and local laws applicable to businesses generally.
You may operate your franchised business from your
home or a commercial location using CruiseOne training, marketing, and
operations concepts to promote your business.
We
do not sell franchises in any other line of business.
Prior Business Experience of the Franchisor
CruiseOne has conducted the same type of business and
offered franchises continuously since June 1992. It conducted its first
training class in September 1992. CruiseOne has never offered franchises in
other lines of business.
