Why DAVID RUTKAUSKAS & ROBERT SARTIN Should Sue Themselves (Part 1) by Sean Kelly
May 22, 2013
Why DAVID RUTKAUSKAS & ROBERT SARTIN Should Sue Themselves (Part 1) by Sean Kelly
I am being sued by two bullies from Tulsa, OK: David Rutkauskas, CEO of Beautiful Brands International (BBI), and his “muscle,” respected attorney Robert Sartin of Barrow & Grimm, PC*.
According to an article in The Journal Record, the bullies claim that I made comments that “implied that BBI intimidates and threatens its franchisees, lies about the financial strength and fails to support its franchisees once the agreements have been executed.”
The lawsuit (attached below) alleges that I made comments “with an intent to cause disrepute, public hatred, contempt, ridicule and embarrassment to BBI, to deprive BBI of public confidence, and to injure BBI,” and that I “willfully and maliciously engaged in improper, systematic, concerted and deliberate efforts to destroy the good will and business relationships between BBI and its clients.”
In this regard, respected attorney Robert Sartin gives me WAY too much credit.
Even if I tried my very best, I could never have caused the disrepute, contempt, ridicule, embarrassment, or deprivation of public confidence that David Rutkauskas has brought to himself and BBI through his public rants on Twitter (some posted below) and through the bullying email and text messages he has sent to a female ex-client (not posted here. Yet.).
In fact, I believe that David Rutkauskas should sue himself for the willful, malicious, & irreparable harm he continues to do to his own reputation and to the BBI brand.
I hereby offer my services to serve as an expert witness pro bono in the proposed case of Sartin, Rutkauskas & BBI v. Sartin & Rutkauskas.
I believe respected Tulsa attorney Robert Sartin should name himself as a defendant in this proposed lawsuit for encouraging his arguably unstable client into a volatile, public & unwinnable lawsuit, despite the fact that David Rutkauskas has demonstrated a propensity for public self-destruction via social media.
Additionally, I offer the exhibits below (from my vast gallery of screenshots), to support the proposed contention that CEO David Rutkauskas has systematically and maliciously portrayed himself as an unprofessional and foul-mouthed bully with a gift for antisemitism, homophobia, misogyny and even ailurophobia (hatred of cats).
CEO as Schoolyard Bully: The Rants of David Rutkauskas [WARNING: Offensive Language]
I am confident that the Rutkauskas & Sartin SLAPP lawsuit against me will end in further embarrassment for them, as UnhappyFranchisee.Com mostly provided a forum for the complaints of the many critics of Beautiful Brands. I have been scrupulous in making sure the opinions I share are based on verifiable information from multiple sources. And I am being represented by the formidable, no-nonsense attorney Jonathan Fortman.
However, if David Rutkauskas were to sue himself for defamation, his tweets in the last few months would provide a treasure trove of damaging evidence.
Here are a few of the tweets from a man who holds himself out to be an entrepreneurial business icon, visionary and restaurant industry thought leader:
| CEO DAVID RUTKAUSKAS TWEETS (a sampling) | TWITTER SCREENSHOTS |
| David Rutkauskas @davidrutkauskas fat fuck ugly shit face SK when was the last time u had a women hit on you . HaHa. or u had a women Sean Fuck Fat Face
David Rutkauskas @davidrutkauskas thx Dickface ugly mother fucker who is Sean Kelly thx 4 our press Fathead &your 700 followers #bbitweets #davidrutkauskas |
04/05/13 (Click to enlarge) |
| David Rutkauskas @davidrutkauskas fuck off. Come see me in tulsa… let’s settle like men
David Rutkauskas @davidrutkauskas deleting my tweets ? you punk… I will be waiting for u in Tulsa to spew your lies to my face. FUCK YOU David Rutkauskas @davidrutkauskas all lies U need help. Made up crap from a low life fuck off Sean. Or travel to Tulsa & confront me like a real man David Rutkauskas @davidrutkauskas I dare you to spew your lies and bull shit to my Dads face , my face , my sons face David Rutkauskas @davidrutkauskas my 81 year old father would like to see u Come on down to Tulsa. My treat… would love to see David Rutkauskas @davidrutkauskas FUCK OFF… I will spread media hate about you forever… U started this shit… I will keep the fight against u 4ever David Rutkauskas @davidrutkauskas fuck you kids & family r against u. u need a punch in the mouth. u seriously need help… good boxing gyms in Tulsa I dare u David Rutkauskas @davidrutkauskas hey franchise dick… We have our own media alerts going out targeting U… I’m not scared… not embarrassed David Rutkauskas @davidrutkauskas u will LOVE this.. BBI did deals from OK-CA this week.. David Rutkauskas = $765,000 richer… Sean Kelly = 0 richer. #Funny Shit David Rutkauskas @davidrutkauskas Bring it franchise dick.. I dare you tell me to my face all your fucked up lies and bull shit. u coming 2nite pussy ? David Rutkauskas @davidrutkauskas hey franchise terrorist when u grow the balls 2 show up in Tulsa to tell your lies to my face..bring that punk GayJon with u David Rutkauskas @davidrutkauskas ... Bring your pussy ass 2 OK..I will pay one way to Tulsa.I want to see you spew your LIES to my face…#WUSS David Rutkauskas @davidrutkauskas @JonFortman. come 2 OK this week & call me a Cry Baby 2 my face? easy drive 4 u JonBoy @franchisepick #settlelikemen
|
 (Click to enlarge) |
| Jonathan E. Fortman @JonFortman I have 70+ former Contours Express franchisees who would take a bullet for Sean Kelly
David Rutkauskas @davidrutkauskas @JonFortman @FranchisePick that’s very impressive Fartman .. Bullets, huh? R u a Jew ? |
 (Click to enlarge) |
| David Rutkauskas @davidrutkauskas @claudiarobbins @unhappyz r u a Jew 2 ?
David Rutkauskas @davidrutkauskas@claudiarobbins who the fuck r you ? Cat woman… R u in love with Sean Kelly ? Is he your lover David Rutkauskas @davidrutkauskas JonFortman @FranchisePick so.. Are u a Jew or not ? |
 (Click to enlarge) |
| mr. truth @FuckOffLiars** @FranchisePick .. We are watching U and your lies… we know where u live.&.HaHaHa… #SeanKelly #FranchisePickGay #GunsAreLegal |  (Click to enlarge) |
CEO David Rutkauskas challenged me to come to Tulsa and fight his 81 year old father.
CEO David Rutkauskas publicly asked my attorney “R u a Jew”? Twice.
CEO David Rutkauskas asked a woman he doesn’t know if she is having an affair with me and asked “R u a Jew?”
Right next to family pictures of his wife, his kids and his parents, CEO David Rutkauskas posted the words “fat fuck ugly shit face SK when was the last time u had a women hit on you . HaHa. or u had a women Sean Fuck Fat Face” and “thx Dickface ugly mother fucker.”
If we do get to court and someone asks me: “Did you damage the reputation of David Rutkauskas?” won’t the answer be obvious?
With CEO Rutkauskas’ social media meltdowns and his respected attorney Sartin holding his coat, goading him to fight all his detractors, why would I need to defame him?
He’s doing a superlative job defaming himself.
Also Read:
Beautiful Brands International, LLC vs. Sean Kelly (Link. Document is clickable mid-page)
BEAUTIFUL BRANDS INTERNATIONAL (BBI): Behind the Hype
DAVID RUTKAUSKAS Are His 500,000 Twitter Followers Fakes?
CAMILLE’S SIDEWALK CAFE Franchise Complaints
* Technically, I’m being sued by Beautiful Brands International (BBI), but the seasoned bully-boy team behind it is the arguably unstable CEO David Rutkauskas and his well-compensated enabler and enforcer Robert Sartin.
** I was also threatened on Twitter by user account @FuckOffLiars & insulted by @MissTroothBeTold. Is @FuckOffLiars is a Rutkauskas pseudonym? Compare writing styles and decide for yourself.
ARE YOU FAMILIAR WITH THE DAVID RUTKAUSKAS, ROBERT SARTIN, BBI OR BARROW & GRIMM PC? SHARE A COMMENT BELOW.
Tags: David Rutkauskas, Beautiful Brands International, BBI, David Rutkauskas Twitter, Robert Sartin, attorney Robert Sartin, Barrow & Grimm PC, Unhappy Franchisee lawsuit, Sean Kelly Lawsuit, David Rutkauskas lawsuit, BBI lawsuit, Beautiful Brands lawsuit, SLAPP lawsuit, Jon Fortman, Jonathan Fortman
BEAUTIFUL BRANDS: QSR Magazine Pulls BBI Articles
May 3, 2013
Responding to an UnhappyFranchisee.Com Media Alert for Beautiful Brands International (BBI), QSR magazine has taken more than a dozen news stories offline.
It’s not clear at this time whether the stories are being reviewed and/or edited, or whether they have been removed permanently.
The media alert issued by UnhappyFranchisee.Com was prompted by our concern that numerous potentially incorrect and/or misleading claims regarding BBI had been submitted via press release to media outlets, which had then been published by respected business and restaurant industry publications.
David Rutkauskas, CEO of Beautiful Brands International, claims his representations to the press are accurate: BEAUTIFUL BRANDS’ David Rutkauskas Defends BBI’s PR Claims
Group Publisher Greg Sanders wrote to UnhappyFranchisee.Com:
Thank you for expressing your viewpoint.
It is the policy of QSR magazine to ensure the complete accuracy of all stories posted and not to post comments made off the record.
We are undergoing a review of stories posted to ensure these goals were met.
Best,
Greg Sanders
Group Publisher
Food News Media
QSR | FSR
We thank Greg Sanders for taking this matter seriously, and applaud QSR magazine for taking steps to ensure that its readers, who may be prospective franchisees or franchise services clients, receive accurate information on which to base their investment decisions.
It appears that QSR has taken more than a dozen BBI articles offline, including:
To Support Global Growth, BBI Opens Three New Offices April 29, 2011 – QSR
BBI Breaks Records in 2011, Preps for Big 2012 November 1, 2011 – QSR
Beautiful Brands Reports Record-Breaking Q1 June 6, 2012 (QSR)
FreshBerry Breaks Sales Records with Store Openings June 25, 2012 (QSR)
FreshBerry Launches its 20th Store in the Middle East November 30, 2012 (QSR)
BBI Reports Record 2012 January 4, 2013 (QSR)
FreshBerry’s Market Share in Middle East Now 53 Percent February 13, 2013 (QSR)
We believe that QSR and other publications that have recently investigated BBI claims (Tulsa World, Franchise Times) are sending a strong message to franchisors who provide questionable claims in their press materials: It might work short term, but it will likely come back to bite you in the end.
Also read:
BEAUTIFUL BRANDS INTERNATIONAL (BBI): Behind the Hype
BEAUTIFUL BRANDS Partner Program: Behind the Hype
ARE YOU FAMILIAR WITH BEAUTIFUL BRANDS INTERNATIONAL (BBI)? SHARE A COMMENT BELOW.
tags: David Rutkauskas, Beautiful Brands International, BBI, Camille’s Sidewalk Cafe, Unhappy Franchisee, QSR, QSR magazine, Greg Sanders,
BEAUTIFUL BRANDS: UnhappyFranchisee.Com Letter to The Journal Record
April 22, 2013
UnhappyFranchisee.Com asked The Journal Record (in February of this year) to stop putting the public relations agenda of Beautiful Brands International (BBI) ahead of the welfare of its readers and the credibility and reputation of its own publication.
We specifically asked Mary Melon and TJR to print corrections to the inflated BBI franchise sales and units counts that it has been printing at BBI’s behest for several years.
Instead of breaking with their role as BBI propagandist, The Journal Record chose to highlight the inane, silly lawsuit BBI filed to try to intimidate its Internet critics, and included the statement that BBI has ““297 locations around the world,” which they know to be false.
We sent this letter to The Journal Record President & Publisher Mary Melon:
April 22, 2013
VIA Email & Registered Mail
Mary Mélon
President & Publisher
The Journal Record Publishing Co.
101 N. Robinson Ave. Suite 101
Oklahoma City, OK 73102
Dear Ms. Melon:
My name is Sean Kelly. I have 24 years of experience in the franchise industry, having been VP of an international franchise consulting firm, an executive with a successful franchise company, founder and President of a franchise advertising agency, an expert witness in franchise litigation, and, currently, as publisher of UnhappyFranchisee.Com. I am frequently quoted in national publications on franchise matters, and am a contributor to trade and industry publications.
On February 13, 2013, I sent you a detailed email (attached) alerting you to what I believe are a large number of inaccurate and misleading statements about Beautiful Brands International (BBI) published by The Journal Record. I pointed out that these misleading statements could be potentially damaging to your readers, some of whom may rely on your articles to make significant franchise investment or partnership decisions.
In my opinion:
- For several years, The Journal Record has consistently misled its readers as to the success of Beautiful Brands International by overstating the number of franchise locations BBI has open.
- For several years, The Journal Record has consistently misled its readers as to the success of Beautiful Brands International by overstating the number of franchise locations BBI has “in development.”
- For several years, The Journal Record published “earnings claims” that franchisors are prohibited from disclosing, bypassing protections put in place by the Federal Trade Commission.
- For several years, The Journal Record has consistently misled its readers as to the success of Beautiful Brands International by printing only positive stories and self-serving announcements provided by the company, and turning a blind eye to the lawsuits, widespread franchise closures, skyrocketing SBA franchise loan default rates and the near-complete failure of the BBI partnership program.
In my email of February 13, 2013, I cited specific examples of inaccuracies and requested that you, at the very least, print corrections or clarifications to ensure that your readers receive accurate information. I copied your senior editorial staff, your business editor, and writer D. Ray Tuttle on the email. You responded by instructing Mr. Tuttle to look into these allegations and to keep you informed as to what he found. Mr. Tuttle sent me an email, saying “Thank you for alerting me to BBI, these practices and the projections. You raise good points and something that needs attention.”
Not only did neither you nor your writer ever follow up with me on this matter, The Journal Record continued its tradition of faithfully serving the public relations interests of BBI by publishing the story “Beautiful Brands sues anonymous Internet critic” on March 12, 2013.
The unfounded lawsuit against the “Internet critic” (me) is, in my humble opinion, BBI’s cynical & transparent attempt to send a public warning to discourage whistleblowers from sharing their experiences with and opinions of Beautiful Brands International. Beautiful Brands International, CEO David Rutkauskas, and/or their attorney Robert Sartin of Barrow & Grimm, obviously hand-fed Ray Tuttle the lawsuit and their quotes.
It seems quite telling that, over the years, The Journal Record did not consider a sexual harassment lawsuit against Camille’s Franchise System, Inc. involving Mr. Rutkauskas (2007), a lawsuit filed by an international Camille’s franchisee (2010), a lawsuit filed by a local Camille’s Sidewalk Café franchisee (2010), or a lawsuit from an international master franchisee (2012) against BBI to be newsworthy, yet considers a frivolous, bullying lawsuit designed to silence a critic of BBI to be priority news. Ray Tuttle’s “Internet Critic” story appeared days after the lawsuit was filed, complete with polished quotes from attorney Sartin and details regarding the potential financial penalties for expressing negative opinions toward BBI.
Remarkably, Mr. Tuttle not only continued to describe the troubled and embattled BBI as if it were a success story, he repeated the false claim that “BBI has 297 locations around the world, including franchised units for CherryBerry Self-Serve Yogurt Bar, Camille’s Sidewalk Café, Rex’s Chicken and FreshBerry Frozen Yogurt Cafe.”
Having read my email, Mr. Tuttle knows that BBI does not have “297 locations around the world” and that BBI has no ownership stake in CherryBerry Self-Serve Yogurt Bar (CherryBerry principals recently told Franchise Times that they only use BBI for “legal work.”) Mr. Tuttle and The Journal Record continue to mislead readers by inflating BBI’s franchise sales and unit counts, and deceptively attributing locations that belong to other companies to BBI.
The Journal Record is not the only publication that has helped to create the illusion that BBI is an international franchise powerhouse with the Midas touch. However, The Journal Record is the only publication that has continued to intentionally deceive its readers about Beautiful Brands International after being informed of the truth. After your counterparts at Tulsa World and Franchise Times read my reporting on BBI at UnhappyFranchisee.Com, they each published excellent articles (Kyle Arnold’s "Camille’s empire copes with setbacks" and Julie Bennett’s "Reality Check," respectively) that provided reality-based overviews of BBI’s recent track record.
Ms. Melon, I hope this letter will help motivate you to accept my offer of assistance in helping you and your writers correct the misinformation and inaccurate impressions you have communicated regarding both the track record and current performance of the Beautiful Brands International franchise ventures and partnership programs. If The Journal Record chooses instead to continue to serve as an unfiltered public relations propagandist for David Rutkauskas, Beautiful Brands and their attorneys, I will continue to do your fact-checking for you and publicly debunk the BBI fairy tale you seem so intent (at least to this point) on communicating.
All the best,
Sean Kelly
President, Relentless, Inc.
Publisher, UnhappyFranchisee.Com
UnhappyFranchisee[at]gmail.com
Attachment: Emails dated February 13, 2013
Also read:
BEAUTIFUL BRANDS: UnhappyFranchisee.Com Email to The Journal Record
BEAUTIFUL BRANDS INTERNATIONAL (BBI): Behind the Hype
BEAUTIFUL BRANDS Partner Program: Behind the Hype
ARE YOU FAMILIAR WITH THE JOURNAL RECORD, THE DOLAN COMPANY OR BEAUTIFUL BRANDS INTERNATIONAL? SHARE A COMMENT BELOW.
Tags: The Journal Record, The Dolan Company, Mary Melon, Ray Tuttle, Kirby Lee Davis, Beautiful Brands International, BBI, David Rutkauskas, Robert Sartin, Barrow & Grimm
BEAUTIFUL BRANDS: UnhappyFranchisee.Com Email to The Journal Record
April 20, 2013
For the past several years, Beautiful Brands International (BBI) persuaded several media outlets to portray it as a vibrant, growing international “franchise powerhouse,” even as it became increasingly obvious that BBI’s franchise efforts and franchise partner program are anything but an entrepreneurial success story.
Once they were confronted with the truth by UnhappyFranchisee.Com, both Tulsa World and Franchise Times reported on BBI’s woes. However, The Journal Record continues to communicate misleading information on BBI despite having had the truth delivered to them on a silver platter.
UnhappyFranchisee.Com sent a detailed email to The Journal Record President & Publisher Mary Melon on February 13, 2013 (see below).
Melon instructed TJR writer Ray Tuttle (author of some of the most gushing BBI fiction) to look into the allegations.
Mr. Tuttle emailed UnhappyFranchisee.Com: “Thank you for alerting me to BBI, these practices and the projections. You raise good points and something that needs attention. After reviewing the website, I’d be interested in speaking with you.”
Not only did Ray Tuttle not get in touch with UnhappyFranchisee.Com, he demonstrated his dedication to faithfully serving the public relations interests of BBI by publishing some of the same false statements in “Beautiful Brands sues anonymous Internet critic” even after we informed him of their inaccuracy.
For example, Tuttle he repeated the false claim that “BBI has 297 locations around the world, including franchised units for CherryBerry Self-Serve Yogurt Bar, Camille’s Sidewalk Café, Rex’s Chicken and FreshBerry Frozen Yogurt Cafe.”
Having read my email, Mr. Tuttle knows that BBI does not have “297 locations around the world” and that BBI has no ownership stake in CherryBerry Self-Serve Yogurt Bar. Mr. Tuttle and The Journal Record continue to mislead readers by inflating BBI’s franchise sales and unit counts, and deceptively attributing locations that belong to other companies to BBI.
Here’s the email that we sent to The Journal Record, which Mary Melon and Ray Tuttle apparently have chosen to disregard.
Date: Wed, Feb 13, 2013 at 11:50 AM
Subject: Your coverage of Beautiful Brands, corrections and criticism
To: mary.melon@journalrecord.com
Cc: ted.streuli@journalrecord.com, kirby.davis@journalrecord.com, ray.tuttle@journalrecord.com
Ms. Melon:
Since 2007, The Journal Record has published approximately 67 positive articles and news items about Beautiful Brands International (BBI) and its CEO David Rutkauskas. Over time, this one-sided portrayal of BBI has likely communicated to your readers that BBI is both an inspirational success story, and a company that they can feel comfortable investing with either as a franchise owners or as one of their “partner” brands.
In recent investigations, I have found a wide disparity between the facts about Beautiful Brands International, and the statements made in your numerous articles and news items. I believe that The Journal Record may have been provided with inaccurate and misleading information regarding BBI, which you have then passed along to your readers as verified fact. I believe that BBI may, in turn, use the reprints of your articles as a 3rd party endorsement and a way to obfuscate the troubled and, IMHO, possibly dubious nature of their enterprise.
I believe TJR’s coverage of Beautiful Brands does damage to your publication’s credibility and journalistic ethics, and may even be creating legal liability. I am writing to request not that you take my word for it, but that you have your executive or editorial staff look into this matter and decide for yourselves, that you issue corrections and clarifications for your most recent story, and that, in the future, you provide more balanced and accurate coverage of BBI and the purported “success story” of David Rutkauskas.
Here are a few examples of misleading and/or downright incorrect representations made about BBI in your recent article “It’s a Beautiful Brands world: Franchiser crossing borders and breaking records” by Heidi Brandes:
1/21/13, The Journal Record reported: “Beautiful Brands has 297 locations in Arizona, Arkansas, California, Kansas, Florida, North Carolina, Minnesota, Colorado, Missouri, Texas, South Carolina, Nebraska, Iowa and Oklahoma.”
Beautiful Brands “has” three franchise brands: Camille’s Sidewalk Café (29 US locations), FreshBerry frozen yogurt (16 US locations), and Rex’s Chicken (2 US locations). If you add the U.S. locations on the three websites, you will see that BBI has 47 domestic locations, not 297 as you claim.
1/21/13, The Journal Record reported: “In 2012 alone, BBI opened 114 stores and has 79 new stores under construction. It has a total of 297 locations around the world, including franchised units for CherryBerry Self-Serve Yogurt Bar, Camille’s Sidewalk Café, Rex’s Chicken, and FreshBerry Frozen Yogurt Cafe.”
BBI does not own CherryBerry. The CherryBerry Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD) prospectus does not have any mention of any ownership by BBI, and does not list Rutkauskas among its management team. It seems that BBI is solely a service-provider to CherryBerry, a vendor of sales-support services, a franchise broker. It would be inaccurate and misleading for a franchise broker to refer to its client’s locations as part of his/her company.
As far as I can tell, Camille’s is a chain in decline (only 137 or so ever opened and most of those have closed), FreshBerry’s domestic growth is flat, and Rex’s Chicken has gone nowhere. Adding in a growing outside company to the mix might give the illusion that the company is growing, but is not accurate. Additionally, Ms. Brandes uses the same number for global locations as domestic locations (297).
“Now 12 brands and growing…”
I don’t believe BBI “has” 12 brands. August 30, 2012, The Journal Record stated: “Beautiful Brands International’s franchised brands also includes Camille’s Sidewalk Cafe, FreshBerry Frozen Yogurt Cafe, Rex’s Chicken, Caz’s Chowhouse, Dixie Cream Donut Co., Ludger’s Bavarian Cakery, Sushi Freak, Top That! Pizza, Roxberry Juice Co., Smallcakes A Cupcakery, MyCamille’s and Fresco Wood Fired Italian Kitchen.”
Of those 12 brands, half are no longer BBI partners (Caz’s Chowhouse, Dixie Cream Donut Co., Ludger’s Bavarian Cakery, Sushi Freak, Top That! Pizza, Smallcakes A Cupcakery) and two appear to be concepts that were never developed (MyCamille’s, Fresco Wood Fired Italian Kitchen).
Why does The Journal Record keep publishing BBI “projections” and promoting the BBI success story?
Last March, Ray Tuttle elevated David Rutkauskas to business legend status, portraying Mr. Rutkauskas as a sports hero who went on to build BBI into a global powerhouse. But Mr. Tuttle’s hero worship was based (again, my opinion) on misleading and/or incorrect information.
Ray Tuttle’s article in March 2012 borders on idol-worship, and contains many misleading statements. He claims that BBI employs “20 people at each location, for a total of 4,160 employees.” He is counting employees from companies that BBI does not own. Yet the impression is that BBI employs 4.000+ people worldwide.
Ray Tuttle praises David Rutkauskas’ social media savvy and enormous Twitter following, yet there is strong evidence that Rutkauskas’ purported 500,000+ Twitter followers are fake (See http://www.unhappyfranchisee.com/david-rutkauskas-twitter-followers-fakes/)
What is most mind-boggling is Mr. Tuttle’s acceptance of David Rutkauskas record-breaking sales figures and his projections of BBI having 500 franchises in the next few when the BBI projections previously reported by TJR have not proven accurate.
All Mr. Tuttle and his editors need to do is look back in the Journal Record archives to see that your publication has been promoting projections that never happened, partnerships that soon failed, and the signing of thousands of franchises that would never open.
As a somewhat random example, here are claims TJR made in the article “Franchisee opens five Camille’s in Middle East” January 23, 2009:
1/23/09, The Journal Record reported: “…That brought Camille’s to 137 units at the end of 2008, up six from 2007. BBI President and Chief Executive David Rutkauskas said his Tulsa firm has more than 900 locations in development.”
There are currently 29 Camille’s locations listed on the Camille’s website. What happened to the 108 cafes that are no longer open? Did 108 franchisees lose the hundreds of thousands of dollars they invested in Camille’s franchises?
What of the franchisees who paid BBI franchise fees for the 900+ cafes that never opened? Did they also lose their money?
Why does Ray Tuttle tell the story of the Camille’s franchise as a success story, when it appears that well over 1000 franchise investors may have lost money, and only 29 stores have survived?
1/23/09, The Journal Record reported: “The gourmet hamburger and hot dog concept Coney Beach added its first franchised unit last year, a November opening in El Paso by Milap Maniar.
Rutkauskas said BBI has more than 30 Coney Beach restaurants in development across the country and portions of the Middle East.”
Coney Beach appears to have been a dismal failure. The original franchise closed and it doesn’t appear that the 30 Rutkauskas said were in development ever opened.
1/23/09, The Journal Record reported: “Last year BBI opened its first FreshBerry Frozen Yogurt Café, a company-owned shop placed alongside the original Coney Beach in Bixby. Lee and Vanessa Kellough and Anthony and Jacqueline Taylor opened the first franchised FreshBerry last week in Houston.
“We have six cafes opening by the end of the first quarter,” said Rutkauskas. “FreshBerry will continue to be a major growth vehicle for BBI, with over 200 projected FreshBerry cafes open in 36 months.”
There is no longer a Coney Beach in Bixby and no FreshBerry listed in Houston. The 200 projected FreshBerry’s never happened and, four years later, there are only 42 FreshBerry locations worldwide. Yet TJR continues to publish BBI “projections” as credible.
1/23/09, The Journal Record reported: “Rutkauskas, who would not provide revenue figures, expressed targets for two other concepts yet to debut. He projects 15 Rex’s Chicken restaurants will open by 2010, while Dixie Cream Donuts franchisees open 300 of those pastry shops by 2012.”
There are currently 2 Rex’s Chicken locations (co-branded) listed on the website and it doesn’t look like BBI got ANY of the 300 Dixie Cream Donuts franchises open it said it would have by 2012. In fact, Rutkauskas, BBI & Dixie Cream are being sued by their Middle East master franchisee EABG.
You can learn much more about BBI here:
http://www.unhappyfranchisee.com/beautiful-brands-ugly-shams/
I hope that you will look into these matters, print corrections as you deem appropriate, provide more balanced reporting on BBI with more thorough due diligence in the future.
Thanks for your consideration,
ADMIN
Also read:
BEAUTIFUL BRANDS INTERNATIONAL (BBI): Behind the Hype
BEAUTIFUL BRANDS Partner Program: Behind the Hype
ARE YOU FAMILIAR WITH THE JOURNAL RECORD, THE DOLAN COMPANY OR BEAUTIFUL BRANDS INTERNATIONAL? SHARE A COMMENT BELOW.
Tags: The Journal Record, The Dolan Company, Mary Melon, Ray Tuttle, Kirby Lee Davis, Beautiful Brands International, BBI, David Rutkauskas, Robert Sartin, Barrow & Grimm
BEAUTIFUL BRANDS: Why Franchise Bullying Backfires
April 11, 2013
David Rutkauskas, CEO of Tulsa-based Beautiful Brands International (BBI), publicly unleashed a string of insults and expletives on me that would have been shocking coming from a 7th grade boy, much less the founder of an international franchise company.
On his Twitter page, right next to the picture of his wife Camille and their two children, Mr. Rutkauskas (without the use of asterisks) called me a “#@!* face,” “fat ugly #!@* face,” and “ugly mother #!@*.”
(I have withheld the screenshot of the attack for the moment, but may include it in a future post).
What specifically set Mr. Rutkauskas off was Julie Bennett’s unflattering Franchise Times article (Reality Check), which had been prompted by my reporting about BBI on UnhappyFranchisee.Com.
But the deeper source of David Rutkauskas’ rage, in my humble opinion, is that his attempts to bully writers, his former franchisees, employees, service providers and partners is backfiring, big time.
Mr. Rutkauskas and his attorney, Robert Sartin of Barrows & Grimm P.C., haven’t caught on that bullying, in the Internet age, will do much, much greater damage to their reputations than the original criticism.
Old School Bullying Backfire #1
Last July, UnhappyFranchisee.Com published a post on the high SBA franchise loan default rate (58%) of Beautiful Brands’ Camille’s Sidewalk Café (CAMILLE’S SIDEWALK CAFE Franchise Complaints). The posting prompted numerous former Camille’s franchisees to share their experiences and their complaints alleging deceptive franchise sales tactics, lack of support, and overall indifference to their success on the part of BBI and Rutkauskas.
Franchisees who posted with their real names almost immediately received threatening letters demanding they retract their comments. UnhappyFranchisee.Com removed the franchisees’ names, but refused to take down the comments.
In fact, the bullying of the franchisees by Beautiful Brands & Sartin prompted several more posts, and encouraged UnhappyFranchisee.Com to look deeper into what else BBI was so intent on hiding.
Bullying Backfire #1.
Twitter Threats & Libelous Attacks
In addition to its own franchise brands (Camille’s, Freshberry, Rex’s Chicken), BBI provides franchise development and outsourced sales services to “partner brands.”
After UnhappyFranchisee.com reported on the seemingly high attrition and low success rates of BBI “partner brands,” (BEAUTIFUL BRANDS Partner Program: Behind the Hype) two anonymous Twitter accounts (@MissTroothbeTold, @FuckOffLiars) posted threats, insults and libelous comments about several former BBI partner brands, the former President of BBI, a former franchise sales service provider to BBI, and me.
These Twitter attacks falsely alleged that one former BBI partner’s stores were closing and its founder had been ousted, and another partner brand was being sued for food poisoning.
@FuckOffLiars threatened me directly using both my real name and Twitter name: “…We are watching u and your lies… we know where you live.&.HaHa…#GunsareLegal.”
I reported the threat to the FBI with my suspicion* that it could possibly be David Rutkauskas or a close associate. Bullying Backfire #2.
David Rutkauskas and Robert Sartin have reached the moment that every bully dreads: when that one crazy kid doesn’t run, even when his nose is bloodied and his jeans are torn.
The truth is, in America we have this thing called the 1st Amendment. We have the right to state facts, as long as they are true. We have the right to express our opinions, as long as they are clearly stated to be our opinions.
BBI Files Suit Against “John Doe” (aka Me)
BBI’s hometown paper, Tulsa World, published an article (Camille’s empire copes with setbacks) on the decline of Beautiful Brands which included a scathing commentary on Camille’s franchise support by a franchisee who lost everything, including his marriage, in the ordeal. Posting as Unhappy Franchisee, I left four pretty innocuous comments on the article. Many of the other 29 comments left on the article were less innocuous.
BBI attorney Robert Sartin filed suit against “Unhappy Franchisee” (as “John Doe) and subpoened Tulsa World and Google demanding my identity. It’s no big secret that I run UnhappyFranchisee.Com, so I believe the real motive was to send a bullying threat to those who dare express their opinions about BBI, even anonymously. A story and the suit itself appeared in the Tulsa Journal Record (along with the obligatory deception that BBI has “297 locations around the world,” when their websites list 72 locations) the day after the complaint was filed .
Attorney Jonathan Fortman, of St. Louis-based Fortman Law, has agreed to defend me against the bullying tactics of David Rutkauskas, BBI and Robert Sartin. I waived my anonymity, as I am not afraid to defend my views and actions out in the open. I hope David Rutkauskas is ready to do the same. I expect the discovery process will prove to be Bullying Backfire #3.. (and more).
Why Franchise Bullying Backfires
On UnhappyFranchisee.Com, I expressed my opinion that David Rutkauskas and Beautiful Brands International have used four publications in particular (Tulsa World, The Journal Record, QSR, Fast Casual) to promote the illusion that BBI is a thriving, successful, growing franchise company when, in fact, more BBI-owned franchises have closed than are successful and many of its “partner brands” have parted ways without selling a single franchise.
David Rutkauskas responded with tactics that have worked, to a limited degree, in the past: bullying and legal threats.
But David Rutkauskas and Robert Sartin have reached the moment that every bully dreads: when that one crazy kid doesn’t run, even when his nose is bloodied and his jeans are torn.
The truth is, in America we have this thing called the 1st Amendment. We have the right to state facts, as long as they are true. We have the right to express our opinions, as long as they are clearly stated to be our opinions.
In my opinion, none of the fact-based criticisms that I have expressed come close to impuning the reputation of Beautiful Brands and David Rutkauskas as do their remarkable personal and unprofessional Twitter attacks (Bullying Backfire #4) and their attempts to use the legal system to strip good people (the former franchisees and partners who bought Rutkauskas his house and Mercedes, and who provided the funds for Sartin’s invoices) of their 1st Amendment right to free speech.
Potential franchisors would do well to watch how well bullying works out for David Rutkauskas and Beautiful Brands International.
As is so often the case, the attempted cover-up will, IMHO, prove to be much more damaging than the initial allegations.
* I don’t have proof that Mr. Rutkauskas posted these threats directly. I hope to find out the identity of the Tweeter via subpoena if our lawsuit advances.
Also read:
BEAUTIFUL BRANDS: Standing Up to Corporate Bullies
BEAUTIFUL BRANDS INTERNATIONAL (BBI): Behind the Hype
DAVID RUTKAUSKAS Are His 500,000 Twitter Followers Fakes?
ARE YOU FAMILIAR WITH DAVID RUTKAUSKAS, BEAUTIFUL BRANDS OR THE 1ST AMENDMENT? SHARE A COMMENT BELOW.
TAGS: Beautiful Brands, BBI, Beautiful Brands International, David Rutkauskas, FreshBerry, Camille’s Sidewalk Cafe, Rex’s Chicken, Robert Sartin, Jon Fortman, Sean Kelly, franchise opportunities, franchise hype
BEAUTIFUL BRANDS David Rutkauskas Admits to Franchise Failures
February 19, 2013
David Rutkauskas, Founder and CEO of Beautiful Brands International (BBI), admitted to his system’s franchise failures in a revealing interview with Tulsa World.
UnhappyFranchisee.Com has been harshly critical, both publicly and privately, of Tulsa World and other media outlets for their publication of (in our estimation) of misleading, corporate-supplied propaganda portraying Beautiful Brands as a vibrant, dynamic success story.
It’s our opinion that BBI and its CEO David Rutkauskas have effectively manipulated the media to regularly report misleading sales growth figures without reporting that the vast majority of the franchises BBI sold either never opened or opened and failed, and that the vast majority of “partner” brands severed their relationship with BBI after seeing little-to-no results.
In past posts, we were especially hard on Beautiful Brands’ hometown publication Tulsa World:
TULSA WORLD: Intentionally Deceptive or Exceedingly Lazy?
Letter to Tulsa World Writer Kyle Arnold
Franchisee Questions for David Rutkauskas
On Sunday, February 17, 2013, Tulsa World responded to our request and published an unprecedentedly forthright article that brought their local franchise success story crashing down from its pedestal.
In Camille’s empire copes with setbacks, reporter Kyle Arnold documented how Rukauskas’ firm managed to sell and open 106 Camille’s Sidewalk Café franchises, most of which subsequently closed.
Arnold recounted the experience of a franchisee who ended up divorced and in bankruptcy after buying a Camille’s franchise, and alluded to the dozens of angry franchisees who blame Rutkauskas and his firm for their financial devastation.
Arnold’s interviews with franchisees revealed the common complaint of lack of franchise support and general neglect of franchise owners by Beautiful Brands (“Once that check had cleared, I couldn’t get anyone to take my calls.”).
And, importantly, Arnold got David Rutkauskas to acknowledge Beautiful Brands’ franchise failures and to even accept a little of the blame for the personal and professional losses that followed.
Camille’s Sidewalk Café is NO Success Story
The Tulsa World article contained information that we have reported all along. (Read: BEAUTIFUL BRANDS INTERNATIONAL (BBI): Behind the Hype)
Still, it is significant that it is now being reported in the hometown publication that inadvertently helped perpetuate the myth of Beautiful Brands’ success for so long.
Tulsa World wrote of Camille’s Sidewalk Cafe:
…nearly two-thirds of the chain’s locations have been shuttered since 2008, leaving just 36 nationwide after a high-water mark of 107 in 2009.
Those closures left a string of angry franchisees, many of whom sunk their life savings into a location.
Some former franchise owners have taken to the Internet to air various complaints, blaming Rutkauskas and BBl for the lack of success. Those allegations range from questions about how Rutkauskas represented the financial viability of his restaurant brands to charges that he painted a rosy picture to prospects while other franchise owners were going out of business.
It would not be a BBI story if it didn’t contain some number-fudging. While Rutkauskas claims there are 36 Camille’s, the website only lists 29.
In addition, Tulsa World neglected to mention that Rutkauskas had reported selling – and collecting money for – more than 1000 Camille’s franchises that never opened.
In addition to the Camille’s closures, Tulsa World also exposed the failure of BBI’s expansion of other brands, and its consulting for companies it call referred to as “partner brands”:
…Rutkauskas began acquiring and creating other concepts, such as the failed Coney Beach restaurant, FreshBerry Frozen Yogurt and Dixie Cream Donuts, a partnership with Tulsa’s Daylight Donuts Co…
Most of the companies that once partnered with BBI have since parted ways, however, including Dixie Cream Donuts, In the Raw Sushi and Ludger’s Bavarian Cakery.
In addition to Dixie Cream Donut Co., In The Raw Sushi, and Ludger’s Bavarian Cakery, other BBI “partner” brands no longer associated with the company include The Crusty Croissant, Greenz Salads, Caz’s Chowhouse, Sonny Bryan’s BBQ, Café Ole, The Bread & Butter Bistro, St. Michael’s Alley, Le Beau Rouleau Crepes and Croissants, Top That Pizza, Blazing Onion Burger Company, Smallcakes A Cupcakery, and Sushi Freak.
“…It’s just the way that business goes sometimes.” David Rutkauskas on Camille’s Franchisee Closures
As we reported in BEAUTIFUL BRANDS Franchise Complaints, dozens of Camille’s franchisees lost their savings, their retirement accounts, went bankrupt or saw their marriages crumble under the stress of the traumatic business failures.
The Small Business Administration reports that 58% of the SBA-backed loans ended in default… leaving the American taxpayers to pick up the tab and repay the banks.
To a limited extent, David Rutkauskas does acknowledge that he failed his franchisees:
Rutkauskas said he may have oversold the Camille’s franchise…
Rutkauskas takes some blame for the closure of many of the locations. He said the company should have done more to make sure that potential franchisees were prepared to run a restaurant.
Rutkauskas also blames the economy, the banks, and the franchisees themselves.
Despite the fact that significantly more of his franchises met with financial ruin than success, Rutkauskas (who reportedly lives in a $1M mansion and drives a new $100K Mercedes), is unapologetic.
Says Rutkauskas:
“Those restaurants that didn’t make it are just looking for someone to blame.”
ARE YOU FAMILIAR WITH CAMILLE’S SIDEWALK CAFE OR OTHER BEAUTIFUL BRANDS VENTURES? SHARE A COMMENT BELOW.
TAGS: Beautiful Brands, BBI, Beautiful Brands International, David Rutkauskas, FreshBerry, Camille’s Sidewalk Cafe, Rex’s Chicken, franchise scam, franchise fraud, Tulsa World, franchise failures, Kyle Arnold, John Stancavage
BEAUTIFUL BRANDS INTERNATIONAL (BBI): Behind the Hype
January 16, 2013
BEAUTIFUL BRANDS INTERNATIONAL (BBI): Behind the Hype Read more
David Rutkauskas, Beautiful Brands Sued by Master Franchisee
January 14, 2013
David Rutkauskas, founder and CEO of Beautiful Brands International (BBI), is being sued by Emirates Associated Business Group (EABG), an Abu Dhabi Corporation.
Also named in the suit are:
- Beautiful Brands International, LLC
- Dixie Cream Donuts Franchise Systems, LLC
- Daylight Donut Flour Company, LLC
- Freshberry Franchise Systems, LLC
- Camille’s Franchise System, LLC
- Blazing Onion Franchising, LLC
The suit was filed September 28, 2012 in the Superior Court of Washington for Snohomish County by Howard Morrill & James Jackson of Simburg, Ketter, Sheppard & Purdy, LLP, the attorneys for the Plaintiff.
The lawsuit alleges that on or about December 27, 2010, EABG entered in a Master Franchise agreement for the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Qatar, Iraq, Jordan, Turkey, Bahrain, Lebanon and Syria.
EABG alleges it paid an initial fee of $500,000 for the right to develop Dixie Cream Donuts and other BBI-owned and BBI partner brand franchises in the Middle East.
The complaint against David Rutkauskas and BBI states “the Agreement explicitly conveys the rights to develop eight additional “Dixie Cream Donuts/Beautiful Brands International franchise brands.”
Those brands include:
- Rex’s Chicken
- FreshBerry
- Greenz Salads
- In The Raw Sushi
- Le Beau Rouleau
- Camille’s Sidewalk Café
- Blazing Onion Burger Company
- Top That Pizza
The suit alleges that EABG was not provided with a Uniform Franchise Offering Circular (UFOC) or a Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD) in connection with its purchase of the franchise rights of the named brands.
The lawsuit against Mr. Rutkauskas & BBI states:
EABG has learned that a third party has been sold franchise rights by Beautiful Brands that conflict with rights purportedly conveyed to EABG under the Agreement.
Beautiful Brands has disavowed material terms of the Agreement and has demanded additional compensation as a condition of fulfilling its obligations…
The foregoing acts and omissions of Dixie Cream, Beautiful Brands and Mr. Rutkauskas constitute actual or anticipatory breaches of the Agreement…
The foregoing acts and omissions constitute violations of the Oklahoma Business Opportunity Sales Act, the Washington Franchise Investment Protection Act and/or the Federal Trade Commission Franchise Rule…
The EABG lawsuit seeks rescission of the master franchise agreement, an award of EABG’s damages, an award of EABG’s costs and attorneys’ fees, and “additional relief as the Court deems just and equitable.”
Read the complaint here (PDF): EABG v. David Rutkauskas, Beautiful Brands et al
Related post: BEAUTIFUL BRANDS Partner Program: Behind the Hype
Also read our posts about:
ARE YOU FAMILIAR WITH DAVID RUTKAUSKAS, BEAUTIFUL BRANDS INTERNATIONAL OR BBI FRANCHISE OPPORTUNITIES?
PLEASE SHARE A COMMENT BELOW.
TAGS: David Rutkauskas, David Rutkauskas lawsuit, David Rutkauskas sued, Beautiful Brands lawsuit, BBI, Emirates Associated Business Group, EABG, Dixie Cream Donuts, Camille’s Sidewalk Café, FreshBerry frozen yogurt, Freshberry lawsuit, Blazing Onion Burger Company, Rex’s Chicken, Howard Morrill attorney, James Jackson attorney, Simburg Ketter Sheppard & Purdy franchise lawsuits, master franchise lawsuit, breach of contract, franchise litigation
FRESHBERRY Franchise Closures
January 11, 2013
FreshBerry frozen yogurt franchise opportunity is aggressively marketed and sold by Beautiful Brands International (BBI).
In our opinion, Beautiful Brands has done a masterful job getting publications such as Tulsa World, QSR & Fast Casual to promote FreshBerry as a franchise success story.
However, it appears to UnhappyFranchisee.Com that BBI has sold hundreds of FreshBerry franchises that have not opened – and likely never will.
It also appears to us that the number of U.S. FreshBerry locations that have opened and closed is nearly the same as the number of FreshBerrys that are still open for business.
Of course, we are drawing this information from publicly available sources (the company franchise disclosure document, websites, articles). We have asked the company for verification of accuracy and completeness, but have not yet heard back from them.
Almost as many U.S. FreshBerrys have closed as are currently open, it seems
According to the 2012 FreshBerry Franchise Disclosure Document, the total investment necessary to open a FreshBerry franchise unit is $165,750 to $386,200, including a $25,000 franchise fee and a $5,000 to $6,000 for materials, payable to BBI.
Each FreshBerry franchise closure potentially could represent the loss of the approximately $165,750 to $386,200 initial investment, and also the capital added while trying to keep the business open, a settlement with the landlord on the remaining lease term, and other expenses and liabilities. It could mean personal bankruptcy and loss of assets and credit scores for the franchisee.
Investigation by UnhappyFranchisee.Com has revealed that the number of FreshBerry franchises that have closed is approaching the number that are open:
| FreshBerry Stores Open (US)* | Freshberry Stores Closed (US)* |
| CA Bakersfield | AZ Scottsdale |
| CA Fremont | CA Carson City |
| CA Roseville | CO Denver |
| FL Hialeah | FL Orlando |
| FL Miami (Flagler St.) | FL Wellington |
| FL S. Miami (SW 57th Ave) | LA Marrero |
| IL Chicago (E. Ontario) | NC Charlotte |
| NV Reno | NC Mooresville |
| NV Sparks | NC Raleigh (Six Forks Rd.) |
| NC Raleigh (Hillsborough St.) | OK Jenks |
| NC Wilmington | OK Stillwater |
| OK Tulsa (11085 S. Memorial) | TX Dallas (Park Lane) |
| SC Charleston | TX Houston (Vintage Pk Blvd) |
| SC Mount Pleasant | |
| SD Rapid City | |
| TX Farmer’s Branch/Dallas | |
| Updated 1/10/13 |
Hundreds of FreshBerry franchises were reportedly sold, but not opened
For the past few years, we have read the gleeful announcements of huge expansion deals and franchise packages sold by Beautiful Brands, yet haven’t seen much about the franchise units ever opening.
On 12/23/09, QSR wrote that BBI announced that it would be expanding into Virginia & Maryland through a 100 unit franchise expansion deal.
“Virginia and Maryland are a big part of our overall expansion strategy,” David Rutkauskas, Beautiful Brands founder, president, and CEO, was quoted as saying.
As of 1/10/13, the number of FreshBerry locations open in Virginia and Maryland is 0.
April 1, 2010, BBI announced a franchise deal to open 275 Freshberry franchises and 275 Rex’s Chicken franchises throughout throughout Oklahoma, Colorado, New Mexico, Kansas, Missouri, Texas, and Arkansas.
“Without a doubt, this is the largest deal in BBI’s history,” David Rutkauskas told QSR magazine. “The appeal of both concepts tops the charts as golden opportunity franchises and solid investments in two clearly defined industry segments.”
As of 1/10/13, the number of FreshBerry locations open in Oklahoma (1), Colorado (0), New Mexico (0), Kansas (0), Missouri (0), Texas (1), and Arkansas (0) is 2.
Rex’s Chicken has 1 company store in OK, and 0 in the other states mentioned.
6/17/10, BBI announced “a major five-state development deal between BBI and Frozen Dreams Franchise Group (FDFG), which calls for at least 300 new FreshBerry Frozen Yogurt Cafés within Central California, Northern California, Arizona, Nevada, Idaho, and Utah. “
QSR quoted David Rutkauskas as saying “We’re thrilled to be partnering with Frozen Dreams to reach this geographical milestone and continue making our western growth strategy a sweet success.”
As of 1/10/13, two and a half years later, the number of FreshBerry locations open in California (3), Arizona (0), Nevada (2), Idaho (0), and Utah (0) is 5.
In 2010 & 2011, QSR magazine repeatedly reported that Beautiful Brands International had more than 1000 FreshBerry franchises “in development.”
As of 1/10/13, the FreshBerry website lists 16 U.S. Freshberry locations and 26 International FreshBerry locations: a total of 42 locations.
What happened to the more than 958 locations that were announced, then never mentioned again?
UnhappyFranchisee.Com extends its condolences and best wishes to the owners and staff of the closed FreshBerry franchises, and to the investors in FreshBerry franchises that never opened.
* Estimated, as of 1/10/13. We have asked the company for verification of accuracy and completeness, but have not yet heard back from them.
ALSO read about CHERRYBERRY Franchise Closures 2012
ARE YOU A FRESHBERRY FRANCHISE OWNER OR FRANCHISEE?
ARE YOU FAMILIAR WITH THE FRESHBERRY FRANCHISE OPPORTUNITY OR BEAUTIFUL BRANDS?
SHARE A COMMENT BELOW.
DISCLAIMER: Our posts contain the personal opinions of UnhappyFranchisee.Com, based on publicly available information… and we could be wrong about anything and everything. We invite our readers and the companies we discuss to set us right.
TAGS: FreshBerry, FreshBerry Frozen Yogurt, FreshBerry franchise, FreshBerry Frozen Yogurt Franchise, Froyo, Froyo franchise, Frozen Yogurt franchise, Beautiful Brands International, David Rutkauskas, franchise failures, franchise closures, franchise graveyard, Unhappy Franchisee, QSR magazine, Fast Casual, Tulsa World
BEAUTIFUL BRANDS FreshBerry Smallcakes Franchise Closes
January 8, 2013
Beautiful Brands International’s (BBI) FreshBerry & Smallcakes franchise in Charlotte, North Carolina closed its doors, according to the Charlotte Observer.
The cobranded FreshBerry & Smallcakes franchise, (still listed on the FreshBerry website as located at 1300 East Blvd., Charlotte, NC) closed Sunday, December 16, 2012.
The Beautiful Brands International’s (BBI) franchise location was owned by veteran franchisee Nick Smith, who has been successful with such franchises as Moe’s Southwest Grill and Jersey Mike’s.
The failure of the FreshBerry & Smallcakes franchise was due to “slow traffic,” according to the observer story.
BBI CEO David Rutkauskas claims BBI’s franchise brands are “performing beautifully.”
David Rutkauskas, CEO of franchisor Beautiful Brands International’s (BBI), claimed in a recent QSR article that ““Despite the downturn economy, our brands are performing beautifully and experiencing explosive growth every day…”
However, UnhappyFranchisee.Com has found evidence of a number of BBI franchise brands, namely CherryBerry frozen yogurt and Freshberry frozen yogurt franchises have suffered numerous store closures.
BBI claims that since January 2012, they have sold more than 500 franchised units worldwide.
We ask: How many of these franchise locations will actually open?
How many of those that open will survive the length of their franchise agreements?
Read more about recent Beautiful Brands store closures:
CHERRYBERRY Frozen Yogurt Franchise Closure: Pearland, Texas
CHERRYBERRY Franchise Closure: Blue Springs, Missouri
CHERRYBERRY Franchise Closure: Springfield, Missouri
CHERRYBERRY Franchise Closure: Sand Springs, Oklahoma
CHERRYBERRY Franchise Closure: Fayetteville, AR
CHERRYBERRY Texas Franchise Failures
CHERRYBERRY Franchise Closure: Claremore, Oklahoma
CHERRYBERRY Franchise Closes, Cites Poor Sales
UnhappyFranchisee.Com extends its condolences and best wishes to the owners and staff of the closed CherryBerry franchises.
ARE YOU A FRESHBERRY FRANCHISE OWNER OR SMALLCAKES FRANCHISEE?
ARE YOU FAMILIAR WITH BEAUTIFUL BRANDS FRANCHISE OPPORTUNITIES?
SHARE A COMMENT BELOW.
TAGS: FreshBerry, FreshBerry Frozen Yogurt, FreshBerry franchise, FreshBerry Frozen Yogurt Franchise, Froyo, Froyo franchise, Frozen Yogurt franchise, Beautiful Brands International, David Rutkauskas, franchise failures, franchise closures, franchise graveyard, Unhappy Franchisee, Freshberry Charlotte NC, Smallcakes franchise, Nick Smith
