The nation’s antitrust watchdog is considering imposing sanctions against SPC Group, a leading franchise conglomerate that operates bakery chain Paris Croissant and Paris Baguette, for enforcing unfair contract conditions on store owners.

The Fair Trade Commission said Monday it has found some 300 Paris Croissant store owners out of the total 3,200 nationwide have been forced to carry out refurbishments every year.

For those who cannot afford the cost for expansion or refurbishment, the head office has allegedly proposed they take loans through SPC Capital, the group’s financial unit.

The FTC said it plans to bring the issue to the agency’s regular session next month.

If any fines are imposed, it would be the first case since the introduction of the nation’s franchise business law that bans franchise owners from abusing their dominant position. Violators can face up to 2 percent of related profits as fines.

“We are looking into whether all the remodeling requests were made illegally,” said an FTC official.

SPC Group, however, denied all the allegations, saying that store remodeling is carried out only when the owners feel necessary.

By Lee Ji-yoon (jylee@heraldcorp.com)