Franchise structuring
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Sector advisory · franchising and retail
Legal advisory for franchising and retail: network, premises, consumers and operations
Retail runs on thin margins and many contracts: with the mall, the franchisor, suppliers, platforms and the consumer. The advisory organizes that set so that operations do not stop.
Straight answer: which legal fronts a retailer must cover
Six fronts concentrate most problems: the franchise agreement, when the store belongs to a network; the commercial lease, especially in shopping malls, with percentage rent, promotion fund and renewal; consumer relations, with exchanges, warranties, delivery and advertising; online sales and marketplaces, with joint liability and cancellation rules; protection of customer data and loyalty programs; and labor relations, with shifts, commissions and outsourcing.
This page is for franchisors, franchisees, shopkeepers, physical and digital retail chains, e-commerce businesses and mall store operators in Brazil. We serve companies throughout the State of São Paulo, Brazil, with meetings at our Paulista or Tatuapé offices or by video call, and act before the São Paulo courts (TJSP), the labor courts (TRT-2, TRT-15), the federal court (TRF-3) and administrative bodies.
Work fronts in advisory for retail
Commercial and mall leases
Minimum and percentage rent, key money, promotion fund, compulsory renewal and renewal suits.
Consumer relations
Exchange policy, legal and contractual warranty, delivery deadlines, cooling-off in online purchases and advertising.
Marketplaces and payments
Platform contracts, holdbacks, chargebacks, joint liability for defects and account suspension.
Data and loyalty
LGPD in customer records, points programs, cookies and campaigns. Legal basis, consent and responses to data subjects.
Labor in retail
Shifts, Sundays and holidays, commissions, cash shortage deductions and outsourcing of security and cleaning.
Where risk usually arises
Lease renewal
The renewal suit has a strict window: between one year and six months before the end of the contract. Missing it means negotiating without protection.
Unrecorded after-sales service
Complaints handled informally turn into consumer agency cases and small claims. A flow with tickets and deadlines resolves most of them earlier.
Commissions without a written rule
An informal commission policy generates wage differences and knock-on effects. The rule must be written and applied uniformly.
How the advisory works
1. Diagnosis
Map of contracts, complaints and internal procedures of the operation.
2. Structuring
Review of contracts and policies, with training for store and service teams.
3. Litigation
Defense and negotiation in disputes with the franchisor, the mall, platforms, consumers and workers.
Keep complaints and the answers given to consumers. In court, proof that the store tried to resolve the issue usually reduces or removes compensation.
Frequently asked questions from retailers
Must the store exchange a product without a defect?
No. Exchanges for taste, size or color are a courtesy, except in purchases made outside a physical store, where the consumer may withdraw within seven days. The adopted policy must be clearly disclosed.
Is the marketplace liable together with the store?
As a rule yes, for product defects and delivery failures, jointly. The relationship between store and platform is defined by their contract.
Can I renew a mall lease even against the manager's will?
Yes, if the requirements of Brazil's Tenancy Act are met, through a renewal suit filed within the legal window. Mall contracts have particularities that must be checked.
Official references and related pages
Brazilian rules of reference for retail. Application depends on the sales channel, the business model and the contracts.
Want to organize the legal side of your network or store?
Describe the operation through the secure channel. The screening identifies the priority fronts among franchise, lease, consumer and operations.