Sona MedSpa Franchisee Buys Company
BREAKING NEWS: Sona MedSpa Chain Sold to North Carolina Operator
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (Blue MauMau) - Byron Ashbridge, who operates five Sona MedSpa franchise centers in North Carolina with business partner, Joe Pitt, has purchased the franchisor company for an undisclosed amount. The information was confirmed by his center manager today. Pitt had previously been with Carousel Capital, a financial partner of CEO Heather Rose and father Jim Amos, when they purchased the Sona MedSpa franchise in 2004. Ashbridge had also headed the Franchisee Advisory Council for the company.
According to his office, Ashbridge was unavailable for comment today, as he was away for the weekend.
The Sona MedSpa system has been in the news repeatedly this year, as the company fought legal action brought by franchisees. Last July the company was found guilty of negligent misrepresentation in an arbitration brought by Kempton Coady, and was ordered to pay $400,000.
Developing story. . .
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Related story:
Curious Questions About the Sona MedSpa Purchase
What is it that Ashbridge and Pitt bought? It's my understnding almost all the Sona monthly royalty fees have been reduced to around $1,500 per month per franchise center. They do not own the franchises so they bought no asset value. From what I have read in other Sona Blogs most of the Sona franchisees are failing or trying to find ways to sell their franchises. Certainly with all the previous (still pending???) litigation they must be concerned that they now inherit the legal liabilities??? The name Sona MedSpa cannot have much but a "NEGATIVE" brand value. Just type in Sona and Carousel Capital on Google and see all the dirt that shows up. I wonder if Carousel Capital paid Ashbridge and Pitt to buy Sona MedSpa???
Franchisees (for now)
I had noticed the asymmetry between conversions in the franchise industry:
* for every 99 franchisees becoming franchisors,
* only 1 franchisor becomes a franchisee.
Capos
During WWII in the concentration camps, certain prisoners were "promoted" to a class called capos. These capos were (usually) much more ruthless than the SS guards.
The capos were much more effective in extracting hidden treasures (ie. gold, diamonds, watches, etc.) as their charm disarmed new, naive prisoners.
Likewise, the most predatory franchisors use this false fraternity ("was a franchisee myself": quasi-affinity fraud) to appropriate wealth by guile.
- 30 -
Heather and Jim
They should be hired by the IFA and used as the Poster Children of "How not to Run a Franchise" instead the IFA praises a Loser such as these two, who do nothing but destroy lives with everything they touch.
Heather Rose
It's about time. I dont think that she ever had a job that Jim (Daddy) didnt set up for her. In my op she is not capable of running a company. They looked at a 400k judgement as a win? She is a member of the board because of Daddy and I think that there are many more qualified and ethical folks that are more qualified than she. It will be interesting to see how long that it takes for her to be back in the news for the same thing.
Heathr Rose and Daddy Jim Amos
Looks like they have squeezed everything out of this franchise they can and are on to the next victim. Everyone lookout.
"Sona MedSpa A Rats Nest"
No one includiong Ashbridge and Pitt were making money under the Sona model. Every Sona has particularly huge unfunded patient liabilities. They use the cash from contracts for future services to fund their current business. If you continue to expand it appears to work. But eventually they all run out of money. Oh, what a Rats Nest they have purchased. The most amazing fact is that they both likely know all the flaws. I guess they are just part of the famous "Bigger Fools Theory!!"
Re: Sona MedSpa Franchisee Buys Company
STRIKE ONE---I Can't Believe It's Yogurt--Lot of lawsuits, network destroyed
STRIKE TWO---Mail Boxes Etc--Lots of Lawsuits, network destroyed
STRIKE THREE--Sona Medspa--Lots of lawsuits--network destroyed
And now he has gone back to yogurt with his newest shop.
God help them
Their Not Just Praised
Heather Rose is not just praised she is on the current IFA Board; and Matt Shay defends her role in Sona MedSpa by saying the $400,000 arbitration award in the Coadys' case and outcome is just too small or unimportant to comment on. Her Dad, Jim Amos was the former Chairman of IFA. They have both found a home in franchising which gives them the protections to take unsuspecting peoples money and then to squander it under the guise of current day franchise regulations. What they do to unsuspecting people should be considered a felony crime called GRAND THEFT!!!
Don't assume that Ashbridge/Pitt bought the liabilities
And they may have assets called franchise agreements and the intellectual property.
Elliot Goldberg
Bad History, No Parallel
It doesn't matter who "the man" at the helm is, eh? If he's at the helm, he's the enemy. Silly.
You forgot to mention that the key to the Nazi's success in using "kapos" (Kapo was the Nazi term derived from French for corporal, not "capo") was that they, the Nazis who were clearly still at the helm of the death camps, looked for thugs and hoodlums to make the Kapo positions work. Kapos had privileges for a time, but the Nazis still felt the need to routinely murder and replace them with a new batch before they got too wise. Although there were perks, it wasn't a very good long-term career. (See Wikipedia)
The new CEO is not in a concentration death camp. He doesn't have Nazi overlords. It's not World War II. He isn't French. He isn't a thug. And he is hardly a low level corporal.
I have no idea how much of a saint or devil the new guy is. The Sona franchisees can pipe in about that.
But who has the most at stake here? The man with the most franchises to lose, right? If the old leader didn't understand the operations, who better to understand the day to day operations and get it right? The franchise guy, right? Who's the guy who will instinctively concentrate on the operating business and less on selling franchises before he gets it right? The franchise guy, right?
Come on -30-. You can do better.
Franchisor Becomes Franchisee
In your calculation, you forgot to consider the huge body of franchisors who are also franchisees.
Heather Rose
I had a partner whose grandpa was one of the original spindletop wildcatters way back in the early part of the 20th century.
My partner inherited an absolutely obscene quantity of productive assets plus a mountain of liquid assets, but, since he is also brilliant, he quadrupled the value in ten years.
Not all of the members of the "Lucky Sperm Club" as he referred to himself are stupid, but most of them are.
I once represented one such, whose grandpa had been one of the founders of General Motors, all of which fortune my client had managed to fritter away. He thought he was an entrepreneur, and every shark in Detroit delighted in taking advantage of him. I managed to bail him out of a few scrapes, but he was hell bent for total destruction.
One of his predators was a law school classmate of mine who is now under indictment in Nevada for felony shystering. Cross examining an old drinking buddy is a wierd experience. He had a notorious reputation in Oakland County, Michigan, and when word got around the courthouse that he was being roasted on the stand, the courtroom quickly filled to overflowing with gleeful spectators. I kept him up there for a day and a half trip into degradation before he simply capitulated.
Hence the expression, "Shirtsleeves to shirtsleeves in three generations". The fortunes of brilliant men seldom last beyond three generations. The inbecile grandchild or great grandchild eventually gets back to zero.
Richard Solomon
www.FranchiseRemedies.com
JIMBO AMOS & THE LITTLE SHRUB HEATHER ROSE
LOOK OUT WORLD THE 2 "MOST HONEST" PEOPLE IN THE FRANCHISE BIZ ARE ON THE LOOSE AGAIN..ANY BETS ON HOW LONG IT TAKES THE NEXT FRANCHISE THEY ARE INVOLVED IN BEFORE THE FRANCHISEE'S FILE SUITE AGAINST THEM...AT LEAST AMOS & FAMILY ARE CONSISTANT...AT BEING LOSERS THAT IS!!!!!
Look at Statistics on SonaMedSpa
Terminations and transfers at pennies on the dollar and even rumors of attempted suicide and yet I'm sure Sona Med Spa must be on the SBA Franchise Registry eligible for "quickie" government guaranteed loans.
I'm going to go look on the Registry right now.
Do Jim Amos and Heather live well -- doesn't she keep horses and live the good life? Hasn't franchising been a real blessing for them and a curse for so many of their franchisees?
Girl gone wild
Is it no wonder that she got dumped. I have seen her at finctions where she just about was hanging over men. It is my view that she was at Sona only because she had nice looks, family connection and that she didnt have a whole lot of ethics or any real world experiance. I would be surprised if she's back in the business unless Dad can hook her up. She preachs all the Christian spin but she sure does not seem to carry through with it. Ethics in business is of the utmost importance and one would hope they would value a position on the board and be aware of how their conduct appears to the rank and file. I know first hand as a person that worked with her in the past. Maybe she will be good in the ice cream business. Joe Pitt will be an outstanding leader and will bring ethics and a honest approach to Sona and it's franchisees.
K
Spelling correction (separating pepper from...)
Bob,
I used the spelling from an eye witness to 4 death camps, including Auschwitz, Viktor E. Frankl.
As a trained psychiatrist he wrote a little book called Man's Search for Meaning which sold a lousy 6 million copies, established a branch of existential psychology called logotherapy.
One of Us-itis
The point is that by appearing to be "one of us" wealth can be re-allocated with less drama.
I prefer first-hand accounts of history and find the Frankl's approach (starting with the question: Why do you not commit suicide?) a useful way back from the violence that some experience in franchising.
To think of a franchise agreement as a form of imprisonment is not a very novel thought, Bob. If you have never experienced that, that you are indeed fortunate.
Effective remedies to the inevitable decompression of surviving that ordeal are few and far between. Frankl offers a pragmatic approach to alleviating human suffering.
But compared to making money...well, I now see your point.
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It Is A Shame
It is a shame that Heaher Rose appears to have inherited the same moral values as her Father Jim. This just means that there is another "Amos" generation who can hurt unsuspecting franchisees. The good thing is that there is increasing press (especially on the Web) about their chicanery with Sona Med Spa and previously with Mail Boxes, etc and ICBY. Finally their reputations are catching up with them. I feel so sorry for the potential franchisees at Jim Amos's new Tasti Delight company. Boy are they in for a rude awakening and "the emptying of their wallets!"
Ice Cream Anyone?
I guarantee you that Rose will be selling ice cream with daddy within 60 days. I am surprised she didn't get fired sooner.
Heather
Ms. Rose is not qualified to be an executive. I have worked with her in the past. She has 0 operations background. She is an H/R person. Her daddy sets everything up for her. He gets the money and then gets her the job. They are lucky to have walked away with just a 400k judgement. She thumps the bible on one hand and is ready to jump in the bed with the next one. I was on hand at many meetings where I got to wittness first hand her behavior. This is just my op but I know she is married, know her husband and found it very upsetting to be in his presence because of what I knew. He was like a deer with his head in car lights. He had no idea of what she was really like out of town. I worked with her at Soan and what a joke she is. We would have prayer meetings at the office and she would go on the road and party it up. She is also on the IFA board thanks to her daddy (Jim) what a shame to use up a spot on the board with the Barbie Doll. Everything about her is fake, fake breast, fake hair, Botox and not an ounce of ethics. It wont take long before shes back in the news for the same thing. Also she seems to be moving down with each new position. Beware of the Amos clan. I use to be a believer but I have seen the light. Take a look at Daddy's office, looks like a shrine to him. What bullshit.
K
Yes! Sona MedSpa, The UPS Store, Quiznos, CSCreamery
Are all on the SBA Franchise Registry eligible for "quickie" guanteed SBA loans with preferred lenders and all have high failure rates of first-generation franchisees that can be obscured in the transfer columns of the UFOC's.
The SBA Franchise Registry is used as a sales tool by the brokers and the advisors and the franchisors, themselves. The implication is, although there is a faint disclaimer, that those franchises on the SBA Registry must be viable and worthy to be approved for government guaranteed loans.
Fran Data, a private corporation, who runs the SBA Registry for the SBA and who sells risk profiles to the public may be putting out false information to the public when they don't define the failure or success rate in Item 20 of the UFOC of these franchises who are listed in the SBA Franchise Registry.
Would a bank really loan money to buy a Sona Franchise, or a The UPS Store, or a Quiznos, or a CS Creamery, or a Coffee Beanery --or doesn't it matter to the bank as long as there is good collateral from the prospective franchisee and a government guarantee?
What is going on here? Are franchisees just a calculated sacrifice to the government subsidy of the franchising industry?
Heather Rose Tasti D lite
There is no doubt that she will be working at Tasti. Who would hire her unless it's some IFA cronie of her father's. She really set a new standard at Sona. She might distance herself from Dad, all she needs is a name change and a move to Europe. So much for the bible thumping and prayer meetings at work.
Franman58
The IFA
Any organization that would allow the likes of Amos and his daughter, Heather Rose, to ascend within it to high levels of leadership/exposure is an organization that is suspect. Clearly, there are precious little standards in place within the IFA, other than cronyism.
Absolutely pathetic and reckless...
Have you no shame? You compare Nazi death camps to franchise contractual relationships. You dishonor the victims of genocide and insult franchisors.
Again I ask you have you no shame?
The Truth Shall Set You Free!
TIF
Item 20 Ranter lists franchises he thinks are poor investments
So we see he can make a list of franchises and indicate they are of poor investment quality, but when will he list five franchises that are worthy of at least consideration by prospective franchise buyers?
The Item 20 Ranter has no credibility. He despises all of franchising without exception. Heck he has had numerous opportunities to prove that there are at least a few franchises that are good potential investments. The Item 20 Ranter is so consumed by his UPS Store failure that he wants to forever prove his victimhood and blame franchising/FTC/IFA/SBA/FranData/AAFD.
The Truth Shall Set You Free!
TIF
Heather Rose
After coming accross this blog I thought I would add my two cents. I have been involved in many transactions with Heather. It seems that you are really getting a Jim Amos in a skirt. In my opinion her character had always been a factor starting from the MBE days. She expects litigation. I understand that she is now involved in an additional lawsuit concerning her divorce and her misrepersentaion/fraud of the value of assets. What goes around comes around. A keen sense of fair play seem's to absent in todays world. We cant hide behind the symbols we throw out there to create a marketbal/sales image. At the end of the day we have to live with ourselfs and inside the truth is always known. From the start at Sona it was all fluff, large salaries and perks for a startup (go figure). A 400k settlement plus legal and the realted cost of p/r and image damage to the brand. I simply believe that it was a burn and slash from the start. Lot's of franchisee's lost everything they owned. Check out the SONA blogs they are very insightful.
Call the metaphor police
TIF & Bob,
I did not compare any such thing so I have no need to profess shame.
Human suffering manifests in at times, a desire to end your own life. To try to look to seek to lower that incidence is more humane, in my opinion, than to deny or scapegoat.
A metaphor (eg. being a franchisee can seem like being a prisoner) can help in understanding the motivations why someone would end their life. A metaphor is NOT saying "one thing is identical to the other".
An analogy is useful because it looks at something from a slightly different angle so as to increase understanding.
- 30 -
Way Out Metaphors
Sorry 30. I dare say that you lost most of us with the Nazi metaphor and psycho-babble a while back.
"30" - Obfuscation does not increase understanding...
And false intellectualism and pedanticism is not at all becoming. You have insulted, you have done harm and you should apologize.
The Truth Shall Set You Free!
TIF