10. Related Party Transactions

SGRP's policy respecting approval of transactions with related persons, promoters and control persons is contained in the SPAR Group Code of Ethical Conduct for its Directors, Senior Executives and Employees Amended and Restated (as of) August 13, 2015 (the "Ethics Code"). The Ethics Code is intended to promote and reward honest, ethical, respectful and professional conduct by each Covered Person (as defined in the Ethics Code in his or her position with the Company anywhere in the world, including (among other things) serving each customer, dealing with each vendor and treating each other with integrity and respect, and behaving honestly, ethically and professionally with each customer, each vendor, each other and the Company. Article II of the Ethics Code specifically prohibits various forms of self-dealing and collusion and Article V of the Ethics Code generally prohibits each "Covered Person" (including SGRP's officers and directors) from engaging in any business activity that conflicts with his or her duties to the Company, and directs each "Covered Person" to avoid any activity or interest that is inconsistent with the best interests of the SPAR Group, in each case except for any "Approved Activity" (as such terms are defined in the Ethics Code). Examples of violations include (among other things) having any ownership interest in, acting as a director or officer of or otherwise personally benefiting from business with any competitor, customer or vendor of the Company other than pursuant to any Approved Activity. Approved Activities include (among other things) any contract with an affiliated person (each an "Approved Affiliate Contract") or anything else disclosed to and approved by SGRP's Board of Directors (the "Board"), its Governance Committee or its Audit Committee, as the case may be, as well as the ownership, board, executive and other positions held in and services and other contributions to affiliates of SGRP and its subsidiaries by certain directors, officers or employees of SGRP, any of its subsidiaries or any of their respective family members. The Company's senior management is generally responsible for monitoring compliance with the Ethics Code and establishing and maintaining compliance systems, including conflicting relationships and transactions, subject to the review and oversight of SGRP's Governance Committee as provided in clause IV.11 of the Governance Committee's Charter, and SGRP's Audit Committee as provided in clause I.2(l) of the Audit Committee's Charter. The Governance Committee and Audit Committee each consist solely of independent outside directors.

SGRP's Audit Committee has the specific duty and responsibility to review and approve the overall fairness of all material related-party transactions. The Audit Committee receives affiliate contracts and amendments thereto for its review and approval (to the extent approval is given), and these contracts are periodically (often annually) again reviewed, in accordance with the Audit Committee Charter, the Ethics Code, the rules of the Nasdaq Stock Market, Inc. ("Nasdaq"), and other applicable law to ensure that the overall economic and other terms will be (or continue to be) no less favorable to the Company than would be the case in an arms-length contract with an unrelated provider of similar services (i.e., its overall fairness to the Company including pricing and the ability to provide services at comparable performance levels). The Audit Committee periodically reviews all of the related party relationships, agreements and transactions described below.

SPAR Business Services, Inc. ("SBS"), SPAR Administrative Services, Inc. ("SAS"), and SPAR InfoTech, Inc. ("SIT") are affiliates of SGRP but are not part of the consolidated Company. Mr. Robert G. Brown, a Director, the Chairman and a major stockholder of SGRP, and Mr. William H. Bartels, a Director and the Vice Chairman of the Company and a major stockholder of SGRP, are the sole stockholders of SBS. Mr. Brown is the sole stockholder of SIT. Mr. Brown is a director and officer of SBS and SIT. Mr. Bartels is a director and officer of SAS. During 2014 the stockholders of SAS were Mr. Bartels and Mr. Brown, and as of January 1, 2015, Mr. Brown had transferred all of his ownership to parties related to Mr. Brown (his children and nephew), each of whom are considered affiliates of the Company for related party purposes because of their family relationship with Mr. Brown.

SBS, through the use as needed of up to 7,300 of its available field merchandising specialists, provided approximately 82% and 81% of the domestic merchandising specialist field force used by the Company (as a percentage of the total cost for such field force, including field force provided by NRS, as defined below) for the year ended December 31, 2015 and 2014, respectively, and SAS, through the use of its 57 full-time national, regional and district administrators, provided approximately 92% of the direct domestic field administration used by the Company for both years (as a percentage of the total cost for such field administrators). In addition to these field service expenses, both SBS and SAS also incur other administrative expenses related to benefit and employment tax expenses of SAS and payroll processing, legal and other administrative expenses paid by either of them. The total cost recorded by the Company for the expenses of SBS and SAS in providing their services to the Company, including the "Cost Plus Fee" arrangement (as defined and discussed below) and the legal and other expenses paid directly by the Company on behalf of both SBS and SAS, was $25.7 million and $26.9 million, for the year ended December 31, 2015 and 2014, respectively.

Pursuant to the terms of the Amended and Restated Field Service Agreement with SBS dated as of January 1, 2004, as amended in 2011, and the Amended and Restated Field Management Agreement with SAS dated as of January 1, 2004 (each an "Prior Agreement"), defined reimbursable expenses and established the "Cost Plus Fee" arrangement where the Company paid SBS and SAS for their costs of providing those services plus a fixed percentage of such reimbursable expenses (the "Cost Plus Fee"). The Cost Plus Fee percentage markup was 4.0% reimbursable expenses in each Prior Agreement. The parties have had negotiations respecting replacement agreements since the Prior Agreements expired on November 30, 2014, at first primarily with SBS and more recently with SAS. The Company and SBS have agreed in principle to reduce the Cost Plus Fee to 2.96% for SBS while making certain other adjustments to SBS's reimbursable expenses and previous credits for the year ended December 31, 2015. The Company's net expense for SBS services during that period would have been approximately the same if the Cost Plus Fee of 4% and previous credits under the Prior Agreement, that expired on November 30, 2014, had been used instead. New agreements are being prepared, which in each case would be subject to contractual terms and provisions reasonably acceptable to the parties (each a "Pending Agreement").

No salary reimbursements for Mr. Brown or Mr. Bartels have been included in such reimbursable expenses or Cost Plus Fee during 2015 and 2014, as such salary reimbursements were not permitted under the Prior Agreements and have not been authorized by the Audit Committee (as required under related party transaction rules) since those agreements ended. However, since SBS is a "Subchapter S" corporation and owned by Messrs. Brown and Bartels, all income from SBS is allocated to them. A similar approach has been taken for SAS, which is partially owned by Mr. Bartels and parties related to Mr. Brown.

National Merchandising Services, LLC ("NMS"), is a consolidated domestic subsidiary of the Company and is owned jointly by SGRP through its indirect ownership of 51% of the NMS membership interests and by National Merchandising of America, Inc. ("NMA"), through its ownership of the other 49% of the NMS membership interests. Mr. Edward Burdekin is the Chief Executive Officer and President and a director of NMS and also is an executive officer and director of NMA and the sole member and manager of National Retail Source, LLC ("NRS"). Ms. Andrea Burdekin, Mr. Burdekin's wife, is the sole stockholder and a director of NMA and a director of NMS. NRS and NMA are affiliates of the Company but are not consolidated with the Company. NMS commenced operations as of September 1, 2012.

During the fourth quarter of 2015, Mr. Burdekin made advances to the Company totaling $418,000. These amounts were included in accrued expenses and other current liabilities as of December 31, 2015, and have been subsequently paid back in 2016.

NRS provided substantially all of the domestic merchandising specialist field force used by NMS. Pursuant to the terms of the Master Field Services Agreement dated as of August 1, 2013 (the "NRS Services Agreement"), NMS will receive merchandising services from NRS through the use of approximately 700 field merchandising specialists. For those services, the Company has agreed to reimburse NRS for its total costs of providing those services and to pay NRS a fee equal to 2% of its total costs (the "Plus 2% Fee"). Those costs include all field and administrative costs and expenses (effectively including net workers compensation insurance expenses) of NRS but exclude certain legal and other administrative expenses. Accordingly, no salary reimbursement for Mr. Burdekin or Ms. Burdekin are included in such reimbursable costs or Plus 2% Fee.

NRS provided substantially all of the domestic merchandising specialist field force used by NMS and 5% and 8% of all of the domestic merchandising specialist field force used by the Company (as a percentage of the total cost for such field force, including the field force provided by SBS) for the year ended December 31, 2015 and 2014, respectively. The total Plus 2% Fee earned by NRS for services rendered was approximately $26,000 and $44,000 for the year ended December 31, 2015 and 2014, respectively. As of December 2015, NMS no longer uses NRS but uses field merchandising services from a non-affiliated third-party provider, but NMS could once again use NRS in the future.

SGRP Meridian (Pty), Ltd. ("Meridian") is a consolidated international subsidiary of the Company and is owned 51% by SGRP and 49% by the following individuals: Mr. Brian Mason, Mr. Garry Bristow, and Mr. Adrian Wingfield. Mr. Mason is President and a director and Mr. Bristow is an officer and director of Meridian. Mr. Mason is also an officer and director and 50% shareholder of Merhold Property Trust ("MPT"). Mr. Mason and Mr. Bristow are both officers and directors and both own 50% of Merhold Cape Property Trust ("MCPT"). Mr. Mason, Mr. Bristow and Mr. Wingfield are all officers and own 46.7%, 20% and 33.3%, respectively of Merhold Holding Trust ("MHT") which provides similar services like MPT. MPT owns the building where Meridian is headquartered and also owns two vehicles both of which are subleased to Meridian. MCPT provides a fleet of 126 vehicles to Meridian under a 4 year lease program. These leases are provided to Meridian at local market rates included in the summary table below.

SGRP NDS Tanitim Ve Danismanlik A.S. ("NDS") is a consolidated international subsidiary of the Company and is owned 51% by SGRP and 49% by Mr. Medet Yilmaz and Ms. Nurgül Yilmaz. Mr. Yilmaz is President and a director and Ms. Yilmaz is an officer and director of NDS. They are both officers and directors of NDS Tanitim Danismanlik Hizmetleri Gida Tekstil Turizm Pazarlama Ticaret Limited Sirketi ("NDS Tanitim") and NDS Reklam Tanitim Ve Danismanlik Hizmetleri Pazarlama Ticaret Limited Sirketi ("NDS Reklam"). Mr. and Ms. Yilmaz, in total, own 40% of NDS Tanitim and NDS Reklam. NDS Tanitim provided NDS field administration services while NDS Reklam provided NDS field merchandising services both at local market rates through May 2015 at which time NDS assumed these service responsibilities.

SPAR Todopromo is a consolidated international subsidiary of the Company and is owned 51% by SGRP and 49% by the following individuals: Mr. Juan F. Medina Domenzain, Juan Medina Staines, Julia Cesar Hernandez Vanegas, and Jorge Medina Staines. Mr. Juan F. Medina Domenzain is an officer and director of SPAR Todopromo and is also majority shareholder (90%) of CONAPAD ("CON") which supplies administrative and operational consulting support to SPAR Todopromo in 2015.

The Company continues to purchase services from SBS, SAS, NRS, MPT, MCPT, MHT, NDS Tanitim, NDS Reklam and CON because it believes the value of services it receives from them are at least as favorable to the Company as it could obtain from non-affiliated providers of similar services. The Company believes it is the largest and most important customer of SBS, SAS, NRS, MPT, MCPT, MHT, NDS Tanitim, NDS Reklam and CON (and from time to time may be their only customer), and accordingly the Company generally has been able to negotiate better terms, receives more personal and responsive service and is more likely to receive credits and other financial accommodations from SBS, SAS, NRS, MPT, MCPT, MHT, NDS Tanitim, NDS Reklam and CON than the Company could reasonably expect to receive from an unrelated service provider who has significant other customers and business. SBS, SAS and NRS affiliate contracts and arrangements are annually reviewed and considered for approval by SGRP's Audit Committee, subject to the ongoing negotiations as described above.

The following costs of affiliates were charged to the Company (in thousands):

	Year Ended December 31 ,
	201 5		201 4
Services provided by affiliates:
Field merchandiser expenses * (SBS)	$	20,538	$	21,848
Field administration expenses * (SAS)	$	4,492	$	4,380
Field merchandiser expenses* (NRS)	$	1,323	$	2,259
Office and vehicle rental expenses (MPT)	$	70	$	57
Vehicle rental expenses (MCPT)	$	1,108	$	597
Office and vehicle rental expenses (MHT)	$	90	$	90
Field administration expenses* (NDS Tanitim)	$	15	$	44
Field merchandiser expenses* (NDS Reklam)	$	117	$	962
Consulting and administrative services (CON)	$	283	$	–

Total services provided by affiliates	$	28,036	$	30,237

* Includes substantially all overhead (in the case of SAS, SBS and NRS), or related overhead, plus any applicable markup.

Accrued expenses due to affiliates (in thousands):	December 31 ,		December 31,
	201 5		201 4
Total accrued expenses due to affiliates	$	78	$	487

In July 1999, SPAR Marketing Force, Inc. ("SMF"), SBS and SIT entered into a perpetual software ownership agreement providing that each party independently owned an undivided share of and had the right to unilaterally license and exploit their "Business Manager" Internet job scheduling software (which had been jointly developed by such parties), and all related improvements, revisions, developments and documentation from time to time voluntarily made or procured by any of them at its own expense. Business Manager and its other proprietary software and applications are used by the Company for (among other things) the scheduling, tracking, coordination and reporting of its merchandising and marketing services and are accessible via the Internet or other applicable telecommunication network by the authorized representatives of the Company and its clients through their respective computers and mobile devices. In addition, SPAR Trademarks, Inc. ("STM"), SBS and SIT entered into separate perpetual trademark licensing agreements whereby STM has granted non-exclusive royalty-free licenses to SIT and SBS (and through them to their commonly controlled subsidiaries and affiliates by sublicenses, including SAS) for their continued use of the name "SPAR" and certain other trademarks and related rights of STM, a wholly owned subsidiary of SGRP. SBS and SAS provide services to the Company, as described above, and SIT no longer provides services to and does not compete with the Company.

Through arrangements with the Company, SBS, SAS and other companies owned by Mr. Brown or Mr. Bartels participate in various benefit plans, insurance policies and similar group purchases by the Company, for which the Company charges them their allocable shares of the costs of those group items and the actual costs of all items paid specifically for them. All such transactions between the Company and the above affiliates are paid and/or collected by the Company in the normal course of business.

In addition to the above, SAS purchases insurance coverage for worker compensation, casualty and property insurance risk for itself, SBS and (through SBS under contracts with them) its field merchandising specialists and the Company from Affinity Insurance, Ltd. ("Affinity"). SAS owns a minority (less than 1%) of the common stock in Affinity. The Affinity insurance premiums for such coverage are ultimately charged to SAS, SBS (and through SBS to its covered field merchandising specialists) and the Company based on the contractual arrangements of the parties.