Terms & Conditions

LINK & THRIVE MEMBERSHIP AGREEMENT

Effective upon enrollment

Welcome to Link & Thrive. This agreement explains what your membership includes, how your membership term and payments work, how renewal and cancellation work, and the standards that protect the community. Please read it fully before enrolling. By signing or accepting this agreement electronically, you confirm that you understand and agree to it.

1. What Link & Thrive Is

Link & Thrive is a business support and educational community built around referrals, accountability, visibility, and real member-to-member collaboration. Chef Rene Johnson founded Link & Thrive and participates in the community as a fellow member and business owner, not as a licensed coach, advisor, or authority above the group. Community facilitators hold specific roles to keep meetings structured and running well, but they also participate as members of this community, not as licensed professionals acting in an advisory capacity.

Meetings, guest speakers, conversations, worksheets, templates, and resources serve educational and informational purposes only. Chef Rene, facilitators, and members share from personal experience and perspective. Nothing shared in Link & Thrive constitutes legal, tax, financial, mental health, or other licensed professional advice. Consult the appropriate licensed professional when making decisions that require professional advice.

Link & Thrive does not guarantee business growth, revenue, referrals, clients, or any specific result. Each member remains responsible for their own business decisions, actions, and outcomes.

2. Individual Membership and Initial Term

Link & Thrive memberships belong to the individual who enrolls. A membership is personal, non-transferable, and does not automatically extend to employees, contractors, business partners, or other people connected to the member's business.

Each new membership begins with a 12-month initial term starting on the enrollment date. The initial term remains in effect whether the member chooses monthly billing or annual payment in full.

3. Founding Member Pricing and Payment Options

During the Founding Member period, Link & Thrive offers the following pricing to eligible new members:

Monthly billing: $49 per month for 12 months, for total initial-term dues of $588.

Annual payment: $540 paid in full for the 12-month initial term.

Monthly billing provides a payment schedule for the 12-month membership commitment. It does not create a month-to-month membership during the initial term. A member who stops attending, stops using the membership, or decides the membership is no longer a fit remains responsible for the initial-term dues unless Link & Thrive approves a written exception under this agreement or applicable law requires otherwise.

Link & Thrive may end the Founding Member enrollment period at any time. Members who complete enrollment before it ends receive Founding Member pricing.

4. Founding Member Rate Protection

A Founding Member keeps the $49 monthly rate and the $540 annual prepayment option while they maintain continuous active membership. An approved hardship pause does not by itself end Founding Member status.

If a Founding Member cancels, Link & Thrive terminates the membership, or the membership otherwise ends, the Founding Member rate ends. If that person later rejoins, the then-current membership price applies unless Link & Thrive expressly agrees otherwise in writing.

5. Renewal After the Initial 12-Month Term

At the end of the initial 12-month term, the membership automatically continues month-to-month at $49 per month for a Founding Member who maintains continuous membership. A member who paid the initial year in full also converts to $49 month-to-month unless the member affirmatively chooses to prepay another 12 months at the available Founding Member annual rate of $540.

After the initial term, a month-to-month member may cancel before the next billing date to prevent the next charge. Link & Thrive does not prorate or refund a billing period that has already started, except where this agreement expressly provides otherwise or applicable law requires otherwise.

During the initial 12-month term, a member may turn off future automatic renewal at any time. Turning off renewal means the membership will end at the conclusion of the current 12-month term. It does not cancel remaining payments that belong to the initial 12-month commitment.

6. Membership Benefits

Link & Thrive offers members access to a community of business owners and to the gatherings, programs, and resources that Link & Thrive makes available from time to time. These may include member meetings held virtually or in person, educational programming, guest speakers, a member directory, a resource and template library, a member workbook, Member Spotlight opportunities, and, for members who enroll during the Founding Member period, a welcome conversation with Chef Rene. Anything shared in these settings is personal business experience, not licensed professional advice.

Link & Thrive decides what to offer, when, how often, and in what format. Link & Thrive may add, change, reschedule, replace, or discontinue any meeting, program, facilitator, platform, resource, speaker, or benefit at any time as the community develops. No particular meeting, resource, feature, or number of meetings is guaranteed.

Member Spotlight and similar visibility opportunities are offered at Link & Thrive's discretion and depend on the member providing requested materials by the stated deadline. Link & Thrive may place a spotlight on social media, the Link & Thrive website, in a newsletter, during a meeting, inside the community, or through another Link & Thrive channel.

7. No Guarantee of Specific Benefits

Link & Thrive does not guarantee any particular meeting, schedule, speaker, resource, feature, number of members, level of member participation, or referral activity. Benefits are provided as available. A member's decision not to attend or use the membership, or dissatisfaction with offerings, referrals, outcomes, or other members, does not reduce or release the member's payment obligations under this agreement, and a change in offerings does not entitle a member to a refund, credit, or release.

A member who has a concern about the membership may raise it in writing. Link & Thrive leadership may address the concern as it sees fit. Any accommodation, credit, release, or refund is at Link & Thrive's sole discretion and takes effect only when Link & Thrive confirms it in writing.

8. Payment Authorization

A member who chooses monthly billing authorizes Link & Thrive and its payment processor to charge the payment method on file on the enrollment date and on the same calendar date each month during the initial term, subject to processor limitations for dates that do not occur in every month.

Monthly members must keep a valid payment method on file. Updating or replacing a payment method does not cancel the membership or change the membership commitment.

9. Failed Payments, Grace Period, and Suspension

If a scheduled payment fails, Link & Thrive or its payment processor may notify the member and retry the charge. If the account remains unpaid 10 days after the original due date, Link & Thrive may pause membership access.

If the account remains unresolved 30 days after the original due date, Link & Thrive may place the account in default and terminate membership access.

During a payment-related suspension, the member cannot attend member meetings or access the community, directory, or resource library. Suspension for nonpayment does not erase the member's initial-term payment obligations.

Link & Thrive does not charge a late fee under the current membership model. Link & Thrive reserves the right to pursue past-due amounts and other amounts legally owing under this agreement through a collection agency or another lawful recovery method. Link & Thrive may restore access after the member brings the account current, subject to any separate termination decision.

10. Refunds and Change-of-Mind Cancellations

Link & Thrive does not offer an introductory refund period or a general change-of-mind refund. Except for a written accommodation that Link & Thrive leadership approves under Section 7 or Section 11, or a remedy that applicable law requires, dues already paid are non-refundable and the initial 12-month commitment remains in effect.

11. Extraordinary Hardship Requests

A member may submit an extraordinary-hardship request in writing. Link & Thrive leadership may review requests case-by-case. A hardship request does not create an automatic right to a pause, refund, or release.

Link & Thrive leadership may approve a temporary pause, a payment accommodation, a partial or full early release from remaining payments, or another written arrangement. Any approval becomes effective only when Link & Thrive confirms it in writing. If leadership approves a pause, the membership end date moves forward by the length of the pause unless the written approval states otherwise.

12. Member Directory

The member directory may include the member's name, business, industry, and services. Members may choose which additional contact details to share, including email address, phone number, website, and social media accounts. Members must keep their directory information reasonably current.

Members may use the directory to support genuine member-to-member connection and referrals. Members may not use directory information for mass marketing, unsolicited list-building, resale, or another use that violates this agreement or a member's stated preferences.

13. How We Expect Members to Show Up

Link & Thrive works because members show up consistently, contribute generously, and treat each other with respect. By joining, you agree to:

Attend meetings regularly.

Come ready to contribute through referrals, resources, encouragement, and participation.

Treat meetings as professional environments by arriving on time, staying present, and engaging respectfully.

Communicate with respect, including during disagreements.

Represent Link & Thrive responsibly when speaking about the community outside meetings.

Avoid gossip, malicious conduct, or behavior that undermines another member's reputation, confidence, business relationships, or livelihood.

14. Referrals

Referrals are central to the Link & Thrive culture. The question we live by is: "Who can I send business to today?" To protect that culture, members agree to:

Only give referrals they genuinely stand behind.

Follow up on referrals they receive with professionalism and timeliness.

Disclose any financial arrangement tied to a referral they make within the group.

Show up to give, not only to take.

All referrals exchanged in this community are peer-to-peer. Link & Thrive facilitates a referral culture but does not endorse, guarantee, or warrant a member's services or the outcome of a transaction between members. Members must conduct their own due diligence. Members involved in a referral-related dispute remain responsible for resolving that dispute directly.

15. Respecting Member Boundaries

Members may share business challenges, client relationships, financial details, and personal goals in a spirit of trust. Members agree not to:

Solicit another member's clients or customers without that member's knowledge and consent.

Use information shared in meetings or private conversations to compete against a fellow member.

Recruit Link & Thrive members into other communities or programs without prior written approval from Link & Thrive leadership.

Use member contact information for mass marketing without consent.

Publicly disparage, defame, or maliciously attack a fellow member's business, character, or reputation based on information shared or experienced within the community.

Use a member's personal challenges, vulnerabilities, or business struggles shared in confidence to undermine, compete with, or damage that member.

Link & Thrive takes these boundaries seriously and may respond to a reported breach with a conversation, written notice, suspension, or termination, depending on the circumstances.

16. Confidentiality

What members share inside Link & Thrive should stay inside Link & Thrive. Members agree to keep personal and business information shared by fellow members and facilitators confidential. Members may not repeat, screenshot, record, or share confidential discussions or private conversations without explicit permission from the person involved, except when law requires disclosure or when a member reasonably reports misconduct to Link & Thrive leadership or appropriate authorities.

17. Link & Thrive Content and Brand

The Link & Thrive name, logo, taglines, meeting structure, community structure, worksheets, templates, curriculum, facilitation frameworks, member directory, and materials shared within the community belong to Link & Thrive or its licensors. Members agree not to:

Reproduce, distribute, publish, or sell Link & Thrive materials outside the community.

Use the Link & Thrive name or brand without written permission.

Replicate Link & Thrive materials or protected community systems to launch a competing program or community.

Record meetings or events without express written consent from Link & Thrive leadership.

When membership ends, access to the online resource library ends. A former member may continue using copies of materials they legitimately downloaded while active for that member's own internal business use, but may not redistribute, resell, publish, share, or use the materials to create a competing offering.

18. Photos, Video, and Promotional Content

Link & Thrive generally does not record regular member meetings. Link & Thrive may use built-in note-taking or AI summary features within a virtual meeting platform to capture key discussion points for internal use and member recaps. The platform provider controls its own data handling under its privacy terms.

Photography and video may occur at community events and public or semi-public gatherings. When Link & Thrive announces in advance that a Zoom or other virtual gathering, or part of one, will be recorded, photographed, or captured in screenshots, this section applies to that gathering too. By participating, the member grants Link & Thrive a royalty-free right to use the member's name, likeness, business name, voice, image, and voluntarily submitted testimonial in Link & Thrive promotional content, subject to the opt-out below and applicable law. Link & Thrive will not sell a member's image or likeness to third parties or knowingly misrepresent the member's words.

A member who wants previously published promotional content removed may submit a written request. Link & Thrive reviews such requests at its discretion and may decline to remove content that has already been published or distributed. California law may require all-party consent before recording a confidential conversation. Members may not make unauthorized recordings of confidential Link & Thrive meetings or conversations.

Promotional feature opt-out: a member who prefers not to be featured in promotional content may say so by email to linkandthrivepartner@gmail.com at any time.

19. Suspension and Termination for Misconduct

Link & Thrive leadership may address conduct that harms members or the community through a private conversation, written notice, temporary suspension, or immediate termination. Serious misconduct, including malicious or intentional harm to another member's reputation, business relationships, or livelihood, may constitute a material breach of this agreement and may result in immediate termination without refund.

To the extent permitted and enforceable under applicable law, termination for a member's material breach does not automatically erase payment obligations that arose under the initial 12-month commitment. Link & Thrive may refer unlawful conduct to appropriate authorities when warranted.

20. Electronic Enrollment, Notices, and Contact Information

A member may accept this agreement through an electronic checkbox, electronic signature, or another electronic enrollment method used by Link & Thrive. Electronic acceptance has the same effect as signing a paper copy to the extent permitted by law.

Members must keep their email address and payment information current. Link & Thrive may send billing notices, renewal reminders, policy updates, and other membership notices electronically to the contact information on file.

21. Governing Law

California law governs this agreement, without limiting any non-waivable rights that another applicable law gives the member. Any dispute arising from this agreement will be resolved in California unless applicable law requires otherwise.