Franchise Graveyard Archive

Meal Assembly & Botox Kitchen Franchise

– June 13, 2008Posted in: FEATURED 5, Franchise Graveyard, FRANWORST FRANCHISE 500, SPOTLIGHT 2

(FranWorst.com) Beloved Millionaire Richard Quick, Esq. has announced the debut of the first Meal Assembly & Cosmetic Surgery Kitchen Franchise: Make & Fake Gourmet. Make & Fake Gourmet combines the consumer appeal of paying hundreds of dollars to prepare ones own meals, and the booming demand for such cosmetic enhancements as botox injections, face peels, microderm abrasions, and liposuction… all in a festive, upscale, and social setting.

More details were not available at press time, as Mr. Quick just thought of the idea and had other things to do.

Said millionaire-maker Quick: “I am proud to be able to offer this exciting franchise opportunity to qualified individuals. As you know, 99% of franchise owners are wildly successful compared to 99% of independent business owners who fail in the most public, humiliating ways possible. QuickCo is proud to offer another exciting opportunity that’s truly too good to be true.”

Tags: botox franchise, make & fake gourmet, make & take gourmat, meal assembly franchise, meal prep franchise

Franchise Graveyard: Mike Schmidt’s Philadelphia Hoagie

Richard Quick

– December 23, 2006Posted in: Franchise Graveyard

Mike Schmidt played his entire career for the Philadelphia Phillies, and is widely regarded as the greatest third baseman in history. He was decidedly less talented at deciding whom to license his name to. Schmidt reportedly lent his name and support to a Philly-style sandwich chain in exchange for $1000 per year per unit. It was one pitch Schmidt should have passed on, since the chain made it to ten units and then struck out in a rather ugly fashion. They left the franchisees stranded, one of whom detailed her tale of woe in FTC hearing testimony that’s posted online.

IF YOU HAVE ANY INSIGHT OR EXPERIENCE WITH THE MIKE SCHMIDT’S PHILADELPHIA HOAGIE FRANCHISE, PLEASE LEAVE A COMMENT.

Franchisee Diane Mousely’s testimony transcript from 1997 FTC ANPR public hearing.

Excerpt from Mike Schmidt’s Philadelphia Hoagie Shortchanging Its Franchisees. (Originated from The Philadelphia Inquirer. Publication Date: 29-SEP-97 Author: Briggs, Rosland) COPYRIGHT 1997 Knight-Ridder/Tribune Business News

Sep. 29–Dianne Mousley and her husband, Richard, bought a Mike Schmidt’s Philadelphia Hoagie franchise for $12,500 in March 1995.

They liked the idea of owning a business and having a support system a phone call away.
But on Sept. 19, the Mike Schmidt’s Philadelphia Hoagies sign outside their Lancaster restaurant was replaced with a Poor Richard’s Philadelphia Hoagies sign: They were no longer franchisees, but independent business owners.

The Mousleys had operated one of 10 franchises bearing the Mike Schmidt name, all in eastern Pennsylvania and South Jersey. Now, all but one of them have closed — victims of lagging sales and, the franchisees say, too little help from the company.

The retired Philadelphia Phillies star never was involved in day-to-day management of the hoagie chain. Schmidt gave his name to the business in exchange for $1,000 annual royalty for each franchise. But Schmidt hasn’t received payments from the business in two years, according to his business agent.

The Mousleys and the other franchisees blame management for their failure.

“There was no support. They sent newsletters at the beginning about other (restaurant) openings and tried to get new products on the menu,” said Dianne Mousley. “It was a general decline….”

Franchise Graveyard: Dial-A-Husband

Richard Quick

– December 22, 2006Posted in: Franchise Graveyard, Hall of Shame!

More like Dial-A-Deadbeat…

The August 29, 2006 edition of the Montreal Gazette carried this story of an alleged franchisor scammer who sold Dial-A-Husband International handyman franchises then split with the fees. Two of the franchisees have carried on under the same name, and the franchisor is on the run.

Moral of the story: Do background checks on the principals before handing over your check.

Excerpt from the Montreal Gazette story:

“It’s been a real interesting struggle,” said Carmine Maurizio, the first Quebecer to invest in a Dial-A-Husband International Services Inc. franchise in July 2004.
Stephen McCavour followed suit three months later to become the second Dial-A-Husband in the province.

“We dished out $70,000 and $60,000 each,” Maurizio said.

Besides the $35,000 franchise fee, he invested that much again on trucks, tools, advertising and workers, only to be left high and dry along with about a dozen other franchisees in Ontario and Calgary by Dial-A-Husband founder Jim Gillingham.

“He has closed his doors and disappeared with all monies franchisees gave him,” Ontario franchisee Garry Shearer said yesterday from his Peterborough operation.
“When we confronted him and asked to look into the (company) books, he vanished.”

He is thought to be in Canada, but nobody knows where he is, including the police.

Maurizio recalled cornering Gillingham at a Home Depot convention in Toronto last September and having him run out of the building.

“We had security chasing him and he knocked over my partner, Stephen, who was trying to take photos of his licence plate.”

Dial-A-Husband, which Gillingham ran with his wife Sharron out of Mississauga, Ont., was dissolved at the end of 2004.

Maurizio, McCavour, Shearer and the few other remaining franchise owners have launched a lawsuit against Gillingham in Ottawa, claiming breach of contract and breach of Ontario’s franchising act for not fully disclosing his history.

Shearer noted the Gillinghams are wanted on fraud charges and warrants are out for both for not appearing in court to face the charges against them.

A January 2005 letter from the Suffolk County bureau of licensing in Hauppauge, N.Y., states that there were five open complaints and one closed complaint against Gillingham’s Ottawa-based JTG Construction Management LLC.

R.I.P. Dial-A-Husband,
Posthumously entered into the FranWorst Hall of Shame

ARE YOU FAMILIAR WITH THE DIAL-A-HUSBAND FRANCHISE? LEAVE A COMMENT!

Skipper’s Skipped Tax Payments; Files Bankruptcy

Richard Quick

– December 18, 2006Posted in: Franchise Graveyard, Franchise Watch

[Pictured, left, Skipper the Parrot]

According to the Associated Press and other news sources, franchisor Skipper’s Inc., which operates 59 seafood restaurants in five Western states, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, mostly because of unpaid federal taxes.

Skipper’s filed for reorganization in U.S. Bankruptcy Court, listing the Internal Revenue Service as its biggest creditor with $2 million in unpaid federal employment taxes and penalties out of $6.7 million in debt.

Skipper’s Inc. plans to close five of its Skipper’s Seafood ‘n Chowder House restaurants. According to company lawyer James L. Day, bankruptcy protection would allow Skipper’s to break long-term leases on the five unprofitable stores and on six others that were closed earlier.

Of the 54 remaining outlets, 32 are in Washington state. Four other Skipper’s restaurants are operated under franchise agreements, and the company also sells a line of clam chowder, tartar sauce and other packaged products through retail outlets.

Something Fishy Going on in Accounting

Kenneth Williams, principal owner of Skipper’s, said that neither he nor other principals knew federal employment taxes went largely unpaid for more than a year. He accused former Skipper’s finance director Eric Li of arranging to “cover up the accruing tax debt” through false financial reports to senior managers. He claimed that Li “abruptly disappeared” a month after the problem became known.

Skipper’s, known mostly for fried fish, was founded in Bellevue in 1969 and at its peak grew to about 220 restaurants around the Western U.S. Meridian Capital bought Skipper’s in 1995 and the chain was down to 78 outlets in 2002 when it was sold to Seafood Restaurants Northwest LLC, the current owner. According to court filings, sales have declined from $30 million in 2004 to $23 million in the first 11 months of 2006.

Franchise Graveyard: Fratelli Ravioli

Richard Quick

– December 17, 2006Posted in: Franchise Graveyard

The Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce awarded the founders their 2004 Entrepreneur of the Year Award. Entrepreneur Magazine named Fratelli Ravioli one of their “Hot for 2006″ franchise concepts. Their concept was celebrated with positive media coverage from Crain’s New York Business to the Food Channel. Even post-mortem, the Fratelli Ravioli website showed happy franchisees, promised “success and fun all under one roof” and stated “‘Our success is your success’”

November, 2006, all five Fratelli locations reportedly closed, five families lost their investments, and the franchisor moved to Arizona to be a “business consultant.”

FRANCHISE AUTOPSY: The cause of death is not entirely clear. In news articles from the New York Post and The Brooklyn Papers, and in comments on Franchise Pick, Fratelli Ravioli Co-Founder Larry Vivola blamed the franchise industry for brainwashing him into thinking franchising his business was “safe,” and blaming his franchisees for not running the stores well and for skimping on “quality and portions.”

Comments left on Franchise Pick and A Brooklyn Life question the founders’ business ethics and practices. On the Brooklyn website, Fratelli customers bemoaned the closures, praised the food, but complained of increasingly poor service and rudeness.

Moral of the Story: Even after Fratelli Ravioli went to that big pasta bowl in the sky, the Entrepreneur website still celebrated Fratelli Ravioli as a hot concept, and the company website still stated “Success will be assured… The company builds a strong lasting relationship with it’s [sic] franchisees, employees and the local community.” So… Look behind the hype… even seemingly credible hype.

R.I.P. Fratelli Ravioli

If you know more about the cause of death of Fratelli Ravioli, and the lessons to be gleaned, feel free to leave a comment.

Franchise Graveyard Archive

Meal Assembly & Botox Kitchen Franchise

Franchise Graveyard: Mike Schmidt’s Philadelphia Hoagie

Franchise Graveyard: Dial-A-Husband

Skipper’s Skipped Tax Payments; Files Bankruptcy

Franchise Graveyard: Fratelli Ravioli

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