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SonaMedSpa failure and Spin by Press Release
Let's talk about Truth in Advertising and The Sona MedSpaTragedy Article submitted by RCoady8482 yesterday --The Sona MedSpa Tragedy Continues.
Apparently, because the "law" hasn't decided whether or not franchisees are consumers, the "truth in advertising laws" of the FTC do not apply to franchisors. How convenient!
Mr. Coady wonders how Ms. Rose could have spun the Press Release in such disregard for the truth of the history of the failure of the SonaMedSpa franchisees.
In further protection of the franchisors, the government permits them to advertise and sell their franchises by way of Press Releases and other advertising material that are not governed under the FTC's rules on Advertising.
This circumvention of Truth in Advertising Laws is a further subsidy of franchising by the FTC, who advises the following under the Federal Trade Commission Act ---General Advertising Policies:
"Advertising must be truthful and not deceptive"
"Advertisers must have evidence to back up their claims, and
"Advertisements cannot be unfair."
"What makes an advertisement deceptive?" According to the Federal Trade Commision Act and the FTC's Unfairness Policy Statement, an ad is deceptive if it contains a statement - or omits information - that
"is likely to mislead consumers acting reasonable under the circumstances; and is - "Material" - that is, important to a consumer's decision to buy or use the product."
The government UFOC, in keeping with the rule, permits franchisors to indulge in untruth in pre-advertising literature and Press Releases because the franchisor is permitted to disclaim all prior statements and representations, including olutright lies, because of the adhesory contract that accompanies the UFOC or the FDD, as the case will be.
The Rule, the UFOC's, act as a red herring to permit franchisors to circumvent regulation of advertising laws and are a further subsidy of the franchisors who are protected 100% from fraudulent inducement to contract and misrepresentations because of the combination of the UFOC and the Adhesory Contract Agreement.
Franchising needs to be regulated as well as securities are regulated by the SEC as Mr. Coady has commented in his posts.
- forums:
Heather Rose
Dont forget the Daughter Heather Rose, she also is to be steered clear of. Read any Sona blog and you will see fine examples of her character and ethics. She to also uses the bible and christian spin as part of her image. I can tell you first hand it is a charade. She is on the IFA board through her fathers cronies. She is an embarrasment to franchising through her behavior at IFA functions. She has a reputation within franchising and it's really sad to have such a person on the board. He (Amos) gave her everything except character and ethics. Looks like a family tradition.Heather Rose
Sona Med Spa purchase= expensive Sona Med Spa Business= painful Heather out of Franchising= pricelessHeather Rose
Lets hope that she is finished with franchising. Not quite as good as Jim. She only has one lawsuit to date. Without her daddy putting her in the position she would more than likely not have risen above a department head. Maybe she has learned from her poor performance and taking from the posts that I have seen lack of business/personal ethics. I wouldnt be surprised to see her at Tasti D Lite. He wont let his little girl linger to long.Heather Rose
Whatever happened to Ms. Rose. I assume that she is out of franchising? Is she working with Amos again? It looks like that she is no longer on the IFA board. Or is she just keeping a low profile until the internet is replaced. Has anyone heard how the SONA brand is doing? What a mess.Will you please move on!
Sona MedSpa is stronger than ever with Corporate and Franchise locations doing a wonderful job in sales and marketing. This looks like another jerk phishing for bad publicity that is just not there. Leave Heather Rose's name out of your mouth. She was a great leader for Sona and an even better person. Current Sona MedSpa EmployeeHeather Rose Elrod Placecol USA
Guess you as an employee did not have to close your business because of a faulty business plan sold by Heather Rose. A great leader to put you out of business. I think the lawsuit speaks for all of us. We hope that she finds her way out of franchising. Thought for sure she would be with Pa Amos by now. Dont think she commands a lot of respect these days. We will see if she can attract any new franchisees to her new endeavor. I would be very surprised if that were to happen. There is just to much information out there. Make your decision on your own but do your homework on Heather Rose Elrod or whatever name she uses these days. I believe the name of her company is Placecol USA and I think that it is a Spa service or product that they market out of South Africa. Lots on BMM on her and Amos.
Heather Rose
Glad to hear SONA is doing fine. They have some realy good franchisees and they have good leadership now.I must say in my opinion Ms.Rose was not qualified to operate the company with the limited amount of experience she had. I feel really bad for the folks in SAC who closed and the many people who were left with no services. The main thing that I noticed is that she had no empathy for anyone other than herself. She is the second generation of lawsuit waiting to happen. I think that the record speaks for itself $400,000 settlement for the franchisee with a release from further franchise obligations. Just do a google on Amos and Rose and you will see mulitple lawsuits that he has been involved with. She wanted to grow the business at any cost (pre-selling services to raise str) that the franchisee could not support without accural. I have heard that she is no longer involved in franchising and maybe that is a good thing.Heather Rose Pacific Marketing Services
I guess it doesnt matter how many people were left with no services under her astute leadership. They had pre-paid for services they never recieved. The company went quickly down under her tenure. You are naive to think different. Do you think that she left on her own? She was fired. She never had an ounce of the character that Joe and Byron has. She has hurt many but that didnt stop her from cashing out. Just follow her past. She is a serial franchise killer just like a certain family member. She may be easy to like but she has no moral fiber. It is a big presentaion with nothing behind it. She is more concerned about her nails than she is about any franchisee. I worked with that company from the start and I can tell you I never saw her take a stand that was just for the customer or the franchisee. It was about growth and I have heard her saw the first five are not as important as the next five franchsees. She will tell you anything to sell you a franchise. She is of the lowest caliber. I would advise all to stay away from her and any business that she may be involved with. Anyone would be crazy to hire her without a lexus. She never even had a job on her own. She only went to the IFA board meeting to party and hook-up. Take a look at other blogs. I am sorry to keep seeing her name. I thought that with her behavior exposed we had gotten her out of franchising. Let's keep it that way. She gives other professional's a bad name. She should stop the christain spin. I think that she had been married 3 or 4 times already and were are on to that. She had a good run. Franman69@Yahoo.comMove on
Sound a bit touchy concerning the matter. I was just asking for information. The purpose of these blogs is the free exchange of information. I in no way asked or stated anything insulting. Sorry you find my posting so insulting.Atta boy
keep it up and she might slip you another fifty!Too easy
"Leave Heather Rose's name out of your mouth" The punch line to that is too easy.More Priceless Yet...
Beyond Priceless = Heather Rose's father out of franchising.Heather Elrod Placecol USA
There are enough posted comments to fill a book on Heather Elrod (Rose). I have no idea what her new venture (Placecol USA) does but it is so easy to garner information these days. I would encourage anyone considering do any business with her to please consult the numerous postings prior to making any decision. I would have thought that she would have considered her path along side her father (Jim Amos) with his new company. I am only guessing that with so much bad pr it would have been a tricky move for that to happen. In my opinion she lacks leadership qualities that are required for building a franchise and also the business ethics needed to sustain solid realtionships. Also very much like Jim in demeanor and character. Surpised to hear that she is back in franchising. Maybe better results this time.
Sona Med Spa Spin is Legal and Further Subsidy
Obviously, the subsidy of the Press Release will really enable fraud in franchising by way of Internet Press Releases by franchisors.Sona Spa Spin protected by UFOC and Rule
I believe that the status quo of FTC regulation of franchising permits all franchisors like Amos and his daughter to spin and sell unproven concepts with immunity and impunity under current laws. Apparently, if a concept only works 50% or less of the time, the SBA will guarantee the franchises, and the preferred lenders will make the loans.
Maybe the advertising and spin of the franchisors, that is not regulated under law, gets to the lenders as well, who do not practice due diligence for their stockholders in the area of franchising and/or who believe that the SBA guarantees give the lenders almost 100% protection from losses. But, do the banks have 100% protection when they loan on home equities?
Sadly the Truth Will be Born Out by the Failures
The Sona failures will continue. Luckily there are not that many left to fail. Unfortunatley although franchisors like Amos and Rose can say anything in a press release, when you speak honestly with a Sona franchisee they will almost all tell you that they are in financial trouble.Mtg is securitized
Mortgages are bundled into a pool and then securitized. The security is then sold off to investors. Also, if a mortgage is "conforming" (nowadays, I think thats under 417K) Fannie Mae will buy them. Of course, the banks' limited or non-existent liability in the event of default encouraged some of the toxic waste obligations out there right now.
Bear in mind that the franchisee places his/her personal property at risk. So it's not like the zee can just walk away and let the SBA pay out... in the end, the f'zee will either have to pay up or declare bankruptcy.
Paul Steinberg, Franchisee Attorney, New York City, Ph: 212-529-5400
Another Tribute to the Amos - Rose Team
History continues to repeat itself again and again insofar as these two are concerned. No organization can rise above the level of its leader, in any essential manner and especially as to character. Every system they have touched has been minimally diminished to badly damaged...depending upon how rapidly they are removed or moved along.