Last Modified: October 30, 2026
Acceptance of the Terms of Sale
These Terms of Sale are entered into by and between you and National Restaurant Association ("Company", "we" or "us"). The following terms and conditions, together with any documents they expressly incorporate by reference (collectively, these "Terms of Sale"), govern the purchase and sale of products and services from us, other than TrendMapper subscription services, which are set forth in our written Subscription Services Agreement.
BY AGREEING TO THESE TERMS, THE PARTIES AGREE TO RESOLVE MOST DISPUTES SOLELY ON AN INDIVIDUAL BASIS AND NOT AS A CLASS ARBITRATION, CLASS ACTION, ANY OTHER KIND OF REPRESENTATIVE PROCEEDING, OR BY JURY TRIAL. IF YOU DO NOT WISH TO ARBITRATE DISPUTES WITH US, YOU MAY OPT OUT OF ARBITRATION BY FOLLOWING THE INSTRUCTIONS PROVIDED HERE. IF YOU DO NOT AGREE TO THESE TERMS, DO NOT ACCESS, OBTAIN, PURCHASE, LICENSE, OR OTHERWISE USE OR OUR PRODUCTS OR SERVICES.
By placing an order for such products and/or services, you agree to be bound by and accept these Terms of Sale. These Terms of Sale include a Class Action Waiver. If you do not agree to these Terms of Sale, you should not obtain products or services from us. These Terms of Sale are subject to change by us without prior written notice at any time, in our sole discretion. The latest version of the Terms of Sale will be posted on this website, and you should review these Terms of Sale prior to purchasing any product or service from us. These Terms of Sale are an integral part of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy that apply generally to the use of our website, which you should carefully review before placing an order for goods or services through this website.
Order Acceptance
Your receipt of an electronic or other form of order confirmation does not signify our acceptance of your order, nor does it constitute confirmation of our offer to sell. We reserve the right at any time after receipt of your order to accept, decline, or limit your order for any reason.
We make every effort to maintain the availability of our website. However, should we experience technical difficulties, we are not responsible for orders that are not processed or accepted.
Payment Terms and Sales Taxes
Terms of payment are within our sole discretion and, unless otherwise agreed by us in writing, payment must be received by us prior to our acceptance of an order. We accept VISA, MasterCard, American Express, Diner, and Discover credit cards for all purchases. You represent and warrant that: (i) the credit card information you supply to us is true, correct and complete; (ii) charges incurred by you will be honored by your credit card company; and (iii) you will pay charges incurred by you at the posted prices, including all applicable taxes, if any.
Changes in Products and Pricing
We are constantly updating and revising our offerings of products and services, and we may discontinue products and services at any time without notice. To the extent that we provide information on availability of products or services, you should not rely on such information, and we will not be liable for any lack of availability of products or services.
All pricing for the products and services is subject to change. For all of our prices and products, we reserve the right to make adjustments due to changing market conditions, product discontinuation, manufacturer price changes, errors in advertisements and other extenuating circumstances.
Return Policy
All purchases of our products are final, nonrefundable, and nonreturnable.
Disclaimer and Limitation of Liability
ALL PRODUCTS AND SERVICES ARE PROVIDED “AS IS” WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, OR THE WARRANT OF NON-INFRINGEMENT. WITHOUT LIMITING THE FOREGOING, WE MAKE NO WARRANTY THAT THE PRODUCTS AND SERVICES WILL MEET YOUR REQUIREMENTS; THE RESULTS THAT MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE USE OF THE PRODUCTS OR SERVICES WILL BE EFFECTIVE, ACCURATE OR RELIABLE; OR THE QUALITY OF ANY PRODUCTS OR SERVICES WILL MEET YOUR EXPECTATIONS. WE DO NOT ACCEPT LIABILITY BEYOND THE REMEDIES SET FORTH HEREIN, INCLUDING ANY LIABILITY FOR PRODUCTS AND SERVICES THAT ARE NOT AVAILABLE FOR USE OR FOR LOST OR CORRUPTED DATA OR SOFTWARE. IN NO EVENT SHALL WE OR OUR AFFILIATED COMPANIES, AGENTS, EMPLOYEES, OR OFFICERS (COLLECTIVELY, OUR “AFFILIATES”) HAVE ANY OBLIGATIONS OR LIABILITIES TO YOU OR ANY OTHER PERSON FOR LOSS OF PROFITS, FOR LOSS OF BUSINESS OR USE, OR FOR INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, WHETHER BASED ON CONTRACT, TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE), PRODUCT LIABILITY, OR ANY OTHER THEORY OR FORM OF ACTION, EVEN IF WE OR OUR AFFILIATES HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY THEREOF, ARISING OUT OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SALE, DELIVERY, USE, REPAIR OR PERFORMANCE OF THE PRODUCTS OR SERVICES. OUR SOLE AND ENTIRE MAXIMUM LIABILITY (AND THE LIABILITY OF ANY OF THE PROVIDERS OF PRODUCTS AND SERVICES), FOR ANY REASON, AND YOUR SOLE AND EXCLUSIVE REMEDY FOR ANY CAUSE WHATSOEVER, SHALL BE LIMITED TO THE ACTUAL AMOUNT PAID BY YOU FOR THE PRODUCTS AND SERVICES.
SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW THE LIMITATION OR EXCLUSION OF LIABILITY FOR CERTAIN DAMAGES, SO THE ABOVE LIMITATIONS AND EXCLUSIONS MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU TO THE EXTENT SUCH JURISDICTION’S LAW IS APPLICABLE TO YOUR PURCHASE OF PRODUCTS AND SERVICES.
Force Majeure
In addition to any excuse provided by applicable law, we shall be excused from liability for non-delivery or delay in delivery of products and services arising from any event beyond our reasonable control, whether or not foreseeable by either party, including but not limited to, labor disturbance, war, fire, accident, adverse weather, inability to secure transportation, governmental act or regulation, and other causes or events beyond our reasonable control, whether or not similar to those which are enumerated above.
Governing Law, Venue, and Jurisdiction
All matters relating to these Terms of Sale and any dispute or claim arising therefrom or related thereto (in each case, including non-contractual disputes or claims), shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the internal laws of the State of Illinois without giving effect to any choice or conflict of law provision or rule (whether of the State of Illinois or any other jurisdiction).
Any legal suit, action or proceeding arising out of, or related to, these Terms of Sale shall be instituted exclusively in the federal courts of the United States located in Cook County, Illinois or the courts of the State of Illinois. You waive any and all objections to the exercise of jurisdiction over you by such courts and to venue in such courts.
Dispute Resolution; Binding Arbitration
PLEASE READ THIS SECTION CAREFULLY BECAUSE IT REQUIRES THE PARTIES TO ARBITRATE CERTAIN DISPUTES AND LIMITS THE MANNER IN WHICH THE PARTIES CAN SEEK RELIEF FROM ONE OTHER. ARBITRATION PRECLUDES THE PARTIES FROM SUING IN COURT OR HAVING A JURY TRIAL. THE PARTIES AGREE THAT ARBITRATION WILL BE SOLELY ON AN INDIVIDUAL BASIS AND NOT AS A CLASS ARBITRATION, CLASS ACTION, OR ANY OTHER KIND OF REPRESENTATIVE PROCEEDING. EACH PARTY IS WAIVING THE RIGHT TO TRIAL BY A JURY. EACH PARTY ACKNOWLEDGES THAT THE TERMS OF THIS SECTION ARE INTENDED TO REDUCE THE FINANCIAL BURDENS ASSOCIATED WITH RESOLVING DISPUTES AND ARE NOT INTENDED TO DELAY ADJUDICATION OF EITHER PARTY’S CLAIMS. FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS BELOW, IN SUBSECTION (J) BELOW, IF YOU WISH TO OPT OUT OF THE REQUIREMENT OF ARBITRATION ON AN INDIVIDUAL BASIS.
a. Claims This Section Applies To. This Section applies to all Claims between us. A “Claim” is any dispute, claim, or controversy (excluding those exceptions listed in Subsection (c), below) between you and us, whether based in contract, tort, statute, fraud, misrepresentation, or any other legal theory, for which either party wishes to seek legal recourse and that arises from or relates to these Terms, our products, or the Website, including any claims related to the use or operation of our products or the Website, the purchase of any products or services made available through our Site, all privacy or data security claims, and all claims related to the validity, enforceability, or scope of this Section or any portion of it.
b. Informal Dispute Resolution Before Arbitration. If you believe you have a Claim against us or if we believe we have a Claim against you, the parties will first attempt to resolve the Claim informally to try to resolve the Claim more quickly and reduce costs for both parties. The parties will each make a good-faith effort to negotiate the resolution of any Claim for 45 days (“Informal Resolution Period”), from the day either party receives a written notice of a dispute from the other party that satisfies the requirements of this Subsection (b) (a “Claimant Notice”). The Informal Resolution Period is designed to allow the party who has received a Claimant Notice to make a fair, fact-based offer of settlement if it chooses to do so. The Informal Resolution Period may be extended by the parties’ mutual written agreement. You must send any Claimant Notice to us by certified mail, addressed to National Restaurant Association, Attention: General Counsel, 2055 L Street NW, Suite 700, Washington, DC 20036, USA and to legal@restaurant.org. We will send any Claimant Notice to you by certified mail or email using the contact information you have provided to us. The party sending a Claimant Notice (the “Claimant”) will ensure it includes: (i) the Claimant’s name, address, email address (including the email address used to register on our Site, if applicable), and telephone number; (ii) a description of the nature of and basis for the Claim, including the date(s) on which the Claim arose and the facts on which the Claim is based, any remedy they have already received or a statement that no remedy has been received yet for such Claim; (iii) the specific relief sought; and (iv) a personally signed statement from the Claimant themselves (and not their counsel) verifying the accuracy of the contents of the Claimant Notice and that they authorize the filing of the Notice.
During the Informal Resolution Period for each Claimant Notice, the parties will engage in at least one individualized video settlement conference, which both parties will personally attend (with counsel for both parties, if represented, invited to attend). If a party is unable to participate in the settlement conference by video, that party may attend telephonically upon showing of good cause warranting telephonic participation (e.g., inability to afford equipment or insufficient Wi-Fi due to indigent circumstances). You and we agree that the parties (and counsel, if represented) will cooperate to schedule the conference at the earliest mutually convenient time.
No arbitration demand (“Arbitration Demand”) may be filed or proceed before a Claimant Notice is sent and the Informal Resolution Period has concluded. If you or we file an Arbitration Demand without complying with the requirements in this Section, including the requirement for the parties to conference and to wait for the Informal Resolution Period to conclude, the other party may seek relief from a court to enjoin such filing and for such other relief as the court deems proper. The prevailing party in any such action will be entitled to recover its costs and reasonable attorneys’ fees incurred in seeking such relief. To facilitate the parties’ efforts to reach an efficient resolution of any Claim, the applicable statutes of limitation will be tolled, and all deadlines associated with arbitration fees deferred, from the commencement of the Informal Resolution Period through the date when suit or arbitration may be filed under these Terms.
c. Claims Subject to Binding Arbitration; Exceptions. Except for individual disputes that qualify for small claims court (provided that the small claims court does not permit class or similar representative actions or relief) and any disputes exclusively related to the intellectual property rights of either party, including any disputes in which you or we seek injunctive or other equitable relief for the alleged unlawful use of your or our intellectual property (“IP Claims”), all Claims, including Claims that are not related to intellectual property or intellectual property rights but are jointly filed with IP Claims, that are not resolved in accordance with Subsection (b) must be resolved by a neutral arbitrator through final and binding arbitration rather than in court. Claims subject to binding arbitration include, without limitation, disputes arising out of or relating to the interpretation or application of this arbitration provision, including the enforceability, revocability, or validity of this arbitration provision or any portion of it.
d. Binding Individual Arbitration. Except as otherwise expressly permitted by this Section, any Claim may be resolved only through binding individual arbitration conducted by the American Arbitration Association (the “AAA”), https://adr.org/, according to the Federal Arbitration Act, 9 U.S.C. § 1, et seq., (“FAA”). If you are a “Consumer,” meaning that you only use our Products or the Site for personal, family, or household purposes, the then-current version of the AAA’s Consumer Arbitration Rules, as modified by these Terms (the “Rules”), will apply to Claims between the parties. If you are not a Consumer, the then-current version of the AAA’s Commercial Arbitration Rules and Mediation Procedures, as modified by these Terms, will apply to Claims between the parties. These Terms affect interstate commerce, and the enforceability of this Section will be substantively and procedurally governed by the FAA to the maximum extent permitted by law. As limited by the FAA, these Terms, and the Rules, the arbitrator will have exclusive authority to make all procedural and substantive decisions regarding any Claim and to grant any remedy that would otherwise be available in court, including the power to determine the question of arbitrability. As allowed by applicable law, the arbitrator may only award legal or equitable remedies that are individual to you or us to satisfy one of our individual Claims (that the arbitrator determines are supported by credible relevant evidence).
e. Arbitration Procedure and Location. Either party may initiate arbitration of any Claim not resolved during the Informal Resolution Period by filing an Arbitration Demand with AAA in accordance with the Rules. Instructions for filing a demand with AAA are available on the AAA website. You will send a copy of any demand for arbitration to us by certified mail addressed to National Restaurant Association, Attention: General Counsel, 2055 L Street NW, Suite 700, Washington, DC 20036, USA and to legal@restaurant.org. We will send any demand for arbitration to you by certified mail or, if no physical address has been provided, by email using the contact information you have provided to us. The arbitration will be conducted by a single arbitrator in the English language. The parties both agree that the arbitrator will be bound by these Terms.
For Claims in which the Claimant seeks less than USD $10,000, the arbitrator will decide the matter based solely on written submissions, unless the arbitrator decides that a formal hearing is necessary. For Claims in which the Claimant seeks USD $10,000 or more, or smaller matters in which the arbitrator determines a hearing to be necessary, hearings will be conducted by video or telephone, unless the arbitrator determines an in-person hearing to be necessary. If an in-person hearing is determined to be necessary, the site of any in-person hearing will be determined by the applicable Rules. The arbitrator (not a judge or jury) will resolve all Claims in arbitration. Unless the parties agree otherwise, any decision or award will include a written statement stating the decision of each Claim and the basis for the award, including the arbitrator’s essential factual and legal findings and conclusions. Any arbitration decision or award may be enforced as a final judgment by any court of competent jurisdiction or, if applicable, application may be made to such court for judicial confirmation of any award and an order of enforcement.
f. Arbitration Fees. Each party will be responsible for arbitration fees in accordance with the applicable Rules and these Terms.
g. Frivolous or Improper Claims. To the extent permitted by applicable law, a Claimant must pay all costs incurred by the defending party, including any attorney’s fees and arbitration fees, related to a Claim if an arbitrator determines that (i) the Claim was not warranted by existing law or by a nonfrivolous argument, (ii) the factual contentions for the Claim lacked evidentiary support when filed or were unlikely to have evidentiary support after a reasonable opportunity for further investigation, or (iii) the Claim was filed in arbitration for any improper purpose, such as to harass the defending party, cause unnecessary delay, or needlessly increase the cost of dispute resolution.
h. Confidentiality. If either party files a Claim in arbitration, that party agrees to cooperate to seek from the arbitrator protection for any confidential, proprietary, trade secret, or otherwise sensitive information, documents, testimony, and other materials that might be exchanged or the subject of any discovery in the arbitration. The parties agree to seek such protection before any such information, documents, testimony, or materials are exchanged or otherwise become the subject of discovery in the arbitration.
i. Mass Disputes. If twenty-five (25) or more Claimant Notices are received by a party or parties that raise the same or similar Claims and have the same or coordinated counsel or law firms, these will be considered a “Mass Dispute” and the provisions of this Subsection(i) will apply to all such Claimant Notices. A Claimant Notice provided as part of a Mass Dispute may proceed to arbitration only as set forth below.
i. Applicable Rules. Any Arbitration Demands based on these Claimant Notices filed in arbitration will be subject to the AAA’s then-current Mass Arbitration Supplementary Rules, as modified by these Terms. Any disputes over whether an Arbitration Demand should be considered part of the Mass Dispute will be decided by the AAA as an administrative matter. The following procedures are intended to supplement the AAA’s Mass Arbitration Supplementary Rules, and to the extent the procedures conflict with those Rules, to supersede them.
ii. Initial Arbitrations. The parties will identify an initial set of 20 Claimant Notices (“Initial Arbitrations”) to proceed as Arbitration Demands in order to maximize efficiencies in the management, investigation, and arbitration of the remaining Claimant Notices in the Mass Dispute. The initial set will be selected as follows. Counsel representing the Claimants in a Mass Dispute must notify the other party in writing (email will suffice) when all or substantially all Claimant Notices for the Mass Dispute have been provided. Counsel for all Claimants and counsel for the responding party each will then select 20 Claimant Notices to proceed as Arbitration Demands. Claimants will then file Arbitration Demands for the 20 selected Claimant Notices. No Claimant Notice or Arbitration Demand may be filed or deemed filed, and no related arbitration fees may be assessed, until the Claimant Notice is selected to proceed to arbitration following the process set forth in this Section. A single arbitrator will preside over all Arbitration Demands included in the Initial Arbitrations, deciding each Arbitration Demand separately, unless the parties agree otherwise.
iii. Mediation. Upon conclusion of the 20 Initial Arbitrations (or sooner if the parties agree) and before proceeding with any other Arbitration Demands, the parties must engage in a single mediation applicable to all Claimant Notices in the Mass Dispute. The parties will have thirty (30) days following the conclusion of the last of the Initial Arbitrations to agree on a mediator. If they are unable to do so, the AAA may appoint one as an administrative matter. No additional Arbitration Demands may be filed until thirty (30) days after such mediation concludes or ninety (90) days after the appointment of a mediator, whichever is sooner.
iv. Second Batch. If mediation concludes with unresolved Claimant Notices, a second batch of 20 Claimant Notices (or all remaining Claimant Notices if the remaining number is less than 20 will proceed as Arbitration Demands, and the parties will select, file, and arbitrate such Claimant Notices in the same manner as the Initial Arbitrations described in clause (ii) of this Subsection (i).
v. Remaining Claimant Notices and Arbitrations. If, following completion of the second batch of Arbitration Demands described above in clause (iv) of this Subsection (i), 100 or more Claimant Notices remain unresolved, any remaining Claimant or the receiving party to a remaining Claimant Notice may opt out of arbitration of all Claimant Notices that were not resolved in arbitration or mediation. Such an election may only be for all Claimant Notices remaining in the Mass Dispute, not a portion thereof. To be effective, such election must be communicated in writing (email suffices) to counsel for the other party within thirty (30) days of the conclusion of the last arbitration in the second batch. Claimant Notices released from the arbitration requirement must be resolved according to the Venue and Jurisdiction provision above. If complaints based on Claimant Notices that were released from the arbitration requirement are filed in court, then, to the fullest extent allowed by applicable law, such claims may be brought only on an individual basis and not as a class action or any other class, collective, consolidated, or representative proceeding. If, following the conclusion of the last arbitration in the second batch, fewer than 100 Claimant Notices remain unresolved or if no timely election to opt out of arbitration is made, the AAA will randomly select 40 Claimant Notices (or the total remaining if less than 40) that comply with Subsection (b) above to proceed in arbitration in the same manner as described in clause (ii) of this Subsection (i) above. Once such arbitrations have concluded, the parties will repeat this process until all Claimant Notices in the Mass Dispute have been resolved.
j. Opting Out of Arbitration. You have the right to opt out of binding arbitration within thirty (30) days of the date you first accepted a version of these Terms by emailing legal@restaurant.org. To be effective, the opt-out notice must be on your own behalf and include your full name, mailing address, and email address. The notice must also clearly indicate your intent to opt out of binding arbitration in order to be valid. By opting out of binding arbitration, you are agreeing to resolve disputes in accordance with the Venue and Jurisdiction provision above.
k. Rejection of Modifications to this Section. You may reject any change we make to this Section (except changes to addresses at which notice must be given under this Section) as to you, by emailing legal@restaurant.org within thirty (30) days of the date of the change. To be effective, you must send the notice or rejection on your own behalf, and you must include your full name, mailing address, and email address. The notice must clearly indicate your intent to reject changes to Section. You may reject changes to Section only as a whole. You may not reject only certain changes to Section. If you reject changes to Section, the most recent version of Section that you have not rejected will continue to apply.
l. Two Years to Assert Claims. To the extent permitted by law, any Claim by you or Company against the other must be included in a Claimant Notice within the lesser of two (2) years after such Claim arises or the applicable statute of limitations; otherwise, the Claim is permanently barred, which means that you or we will no longer have the right to assert that Claim.
m. Severability. If any portion of this Section is found to be unenforceable or unlawful for any reason, including but not limited to because it is found to be unconscionable: (i) the unenforceable or unlawful provision will be severed from these Terms; (ii) severance of the unenforceable or unlawful provision will have no impact whatsoever on the remainder of this Section or the parties’ ability to compel arbitration of any remaining claims on an individual basis pursuant to this Section; and (iii) to the extent that any claims may proceed on a class, collective, consolidated, or representative basis, such claims must be litigated in a civil court of competent jurisdiction, in accordance with these Terms, and not in arbitration. The litigation of those claims will be stayed pending the outcome of any individual claims in arbitration. Further, if any part of this Section is found to prohibit an individual claim seeking public injunctive relief, that provision will have no effect to the extent such relief is allowed to be sought out of arbitration, and the remainder of this Section will be enforceable.
Waiver and Severability
No waiver of by the Company of any term or condition set forth in these Terms of Sale shall be deemed a further or continuing waiver of such term or condition or a waiver of any other term or condition, and any failure of the Company to assert a right or provision under these Terms of Sale shall not constitute a waiver of such right or provision.
If any provision of these Terms of Sale is held by a court or other tribunal of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, illegal or unenforceable for any reason, such provision shall be eliminated or limited to the minimum extent such that the remaining provisions of the Terms of Sale will continue in full force and effect.
Entire Agreement
The Terms of Use, our Privacy Policy and Terms of Sale constitute the sole and entire agreement between you