Cork & Olive Franchise & Why I Love the Tampa Bay Tribune
June 11, 2008 by Sean Kelly
Filed under :-) Humor, CORK & OLIVE
(FranchisePick.Com) Headline: Cork & Olive Franchise & Why I Love the Tampa Bay Tribune. Alternative headlines: Cork & Olive Franchise: Daze of Whine & Closes; Cork & Olive: ‘You should’ve seen the monkey trying to put the cork back in!”
Some call bloggers “Citizen Journalists,” a term that conjures up images of, say, a freckle-faced Norman Rockwell boy with plastic fireman’s helmet and “Honorary Fire Chief” badge, a snoopy old Neighborhood Watch coot perched in an apartment window with police scanner and binoculars, or the innocuous bystander/extra whose television career amounts to the single line: “He went that way, Batman!”
In reality, bloggers are not journalists at all. Unlike professional journalists, most of us are not encumbered by such things as, say, professional training and ethics, the laws of grammar and syntax, editors and/or the editing process, or anything that remotely resembles a paycheck.
(Another difference is that it’s difficult for a blogger to become a journalist, but easy for a journalist to become a blogger. All a journalist has to do is propose “Daze of Whine & Closes” in a headline and he or she’ll be blogging in no time.)
Today’s story in the Tampa Bay Tribune really made me feel like a loser non-journalist. It never would have occured to me to describe the implosion of a franchise chain, in which many individuals have their life savings invested, as if it were a Chamber of Commerce beach party.
Tampa Bay Trib headline: “Cork & Olive Franchises Get Taste Of Independence”
Brilliant. I’d never have thought of the old When life gives you sour grapes… cheeriness. I would have gotten hung up on the fact that if they’d wanted independence, they wouldn’t have bought a franchise.
Tampa Bay Trib writes: There’s some good news after all for fans of Cork & Olive wine shops… Despite the shutdown of the corporate offices and eight company-owned stores last week and the dismantling of the management structure that supported nine franchises, those franchisees say they’re eager to continue in the business.
Brillianter! Stephen Colbert couldn’t have read that with a straight face. If only the other Tampa Bay Tribune stories of the day were similarly written: “There’s some good news for fans of the 5 year old boy left unattended in a closed car. The boy is eager to remain his son when Dad beats the neglect charge!” and “There’s some good news for fans of the Tampa children left in a car unattended. They’re eager to continue as family when Mom gets out of jail!”
Tampa Bay Trib writes: Cork & Olive franchisees have decided to strike their own deals with wine distributors and other vendors and keep their stores open. Some owners say getting away from the franchise is positive – they’re not tied to the corporate wine portfolio.
This lowly blogger would have missed the “wine portfolio” motivation. I would’ve thought it was a positive to not be tied to a bankrupt franchisor with $1 Million in judgements against it.
Tampa Bay Trib writes: …owner Michael Probst said he hopes to reopen at least four of the company-owned stores by the end of this week, although they will be scaled back and won’t have a corporate support staff… He added that he’s “very pleased” his franchisees intend to carry on.
Are the franchisees - who paid a $60,000 franchise fee and to whom one would assume Michael Probst is contractually obligated to provide 10 years of “corporate support” - “very pleased” that Mikey’s “carrying on”?
Related stories: Cork & Olive Wine Franchise Co. Files for Bankruptcy
Cork & Olive Wine Franchisor Folds; Franchisees Scramble to Survive,
Cork & Olive Franchise Corp. Collapse: What’s the REAL Story?,
What REALLY Uncorked Cork & Olive Franchise Corp? (Unhappy Franchisee),
Cork & Olive Wine Shop Franchise Owners Left High & Dry (Unhappy Franchisee)
WHAT DO YOU THINK? SHARE A COMMENT BELOW.
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Yeah, everyone franchise paid the fee in order to smell the sweet breeze of independence - no support, no advertising, and f*all for their fee.
Nice.
Michael:
All this for a franchise fee of $60,000 - easily 2X the average - for a start-up franchise and an untested concept.
If a franchisee closes, the franchisor can sue for future royalties. Can the franchisee sue for loss of future services? Shouldn’t they get their franchise fees back at a minimum?
I don’t understand why TBT poses the story in this way. Do they think they are helping the franchisees keep their chins up? A father leaves his kid in the car and runs into WAL-MART (He DID lock the door) and they print his picture and felony charges. Probst threatens the financial future of multiple families and investments in the millions, and they print a picture of a happy wine tasting.
If they had any editorial integrity at all, they’d point out the obvious solution to both problems: Parents should drop their kids off at Cork & Olive before going to WAL-MART. The kids will be safe and the franchisees could use the babysitting tips.
I also think it’s probably less cruel to a child to leave him in the car than to subject him to the inside of WAL-MART. I know I’d rather be left in a hot car for an hour than to wait in one of those scary lines.
Sean, as you know the franchisor’s contractual obligations in 98% of all franchise agreements are: we will help you open your store, unless we are Quiznos and then we won’t do anything.
After that, all of the franchisor’s assistance is discretionary - meaning at law they can pretty well do any god damn thing they want.
(Why on earth nobody explains this to a franchisee is another matter.)
As for getting the fee back, it would depend upon the franchise agreement. Was it earned immediately?
One good avenue to explore would be whether the state required them, or would have required them, to put up a bond for franchisor performance.
I have an article on this on my website, if you are interested.
I have an article on this on my website, if you are interested.
Feel free to post the link here, Michael. I’m sure these franchisees are interested in all the info they can get.
Unfortunately, some franchisors bestow an extensive learning experience upon their franchisees that are not mentioned in the marketing materials. You will learn a lot from the experience, just not the lessons you had hoped for.
Sean,
Well yes the story has taken an interesting spin. The real story should be Probst opens co. wine stores. Sells franchise with the promise of big returns. Takes $60,000. from people thinking they are going in to a wonderful business for themselves with co. training and support. In reality Probst steals $60,000. and gives the franchisees nothing but grief. He stole, borrowed, and swindled from anyone he could. Takes the money to Miami and puts it into an offshore account and then goes bankrupt. Remember I told you before he said if the heat gets to much “he would just leave.” He also was heard saying how the Americans legal system takes so long he wouldn’t get caught and by the time they did he wouldn’t be in trouble he would just leave. He also thought he would have sold the whole franchise company by now. I have new info on Ronzino. Seems CEO comes with a price of half a million. Also has a employ. contract thru 2008. So he worked for several months and then was fired, of course for no reason. Probst took his money and then fired him. To me sounds like another scam. Illegal!
Wanda,
Is that the same Tom Ronzino that is opening Put a Cork In It in the Villages? sounds like he is opening the clone of C&O. I dont know who is was, but though it was interesting.
Former Employee,
Yes, Ronzino is opening in the villages. Although not a clone. Was told NO franchises! Also the wine is purchased from distributors and small vineyards. Also was told he and his friend used their money. NO hanky panky business deals. Been told he is a nice guy. Wish him well. After what Probst put him through he deserves to be successful!
You are right! Good for him! Thanks for clearing that up. When I was there, the warehouse was out back and Probst was looking for more room.
So, a lot had changed since I was there, except for bad behavior on Probst’s part. Ms. N had known him years before the whole Oldsmar thing. You would think she would have known better. Or so it went.
I just hope the local community supports these stores and owners who have been misled and robbed! Go buy a couple of bottles of wine from them.