Lenders Loan Capital Drops NY Bagel Cafe
Howard M. Fichman, Lenders Loan Capital, Lake Worth, FL is listed as one of the NY Bagel Café franchise “approved lenders.” However, when Fichman and Lenders Loan Capital’s president reviewed the information about NY Bagel Cafe on UnhappyFranchisee.com, they decided to cut ties with the controversial franchise seller before completing their first deal.
(UnhappyFranchisee.Com) NY Bagel Café franchise ads promise the company provides “100% financing” of their franchise opportunity as long as the franchisee pays a $17,500 – $29,500 franchise fee up front.
Unhappy franchisees claim that once they pay their franchise fee, franchise salesman Dennis Mason tells them it is THEIR responsibility to find funding. Despite the representations made in the ads, Mason simply gives them a list of “approved lenders” that the franchisees are responsible for working with to obtain funding.
Some who are unable to obtain funding claim the company refuses to return their franchise fee, as promised.
UPDATE: Howard Fichman has been terminated as an independent contractor of Lenders Loan Capital. See HOWARD FICHMAN Terminated Over NY Bagel Café Ties
Lenders Loan Capital Does the Right Thing… Without Hesitation
As soon as he learned that NY Bagel Cafe was collecting fees from franchisees prior to them qualifying financially, Lenders President/Partner Joseph Ilardi investigated:
I personally reached out the referrals that were sent to us from NY bagel and they did state that they paid a franchise fee.
No one should charge a fee without having proof of funds to actually start the business, not just the fee.
I also informed them that the right way to start a franchise is to have the funds to start the business and then start spending, not the other way around.
Moments ago, I spoke to Dennis Mason and said I was unaware of them charging upfront fees. He said they have a money back guarantee but I explained it does not matter and people should not be charged a fee without knowing they can afford the business.
After looking into NY Bagel Cafe’s business practices, Ilardi sent us an email stating “We will stop doing business with NY bagel effective immediately.” He announced additional step to ensure that Lenders Loan Capital doesn’t accept clients who charge up-front fees, like NY Bagel Cafe. He wrote::
I will now implement a disclosure to referring organizations that will specifically state that they are not collecting fees or making any promises or obligating us in anyway. We will also have the borrower sign a disclosure stating that they have not paid upfront fees to get funding or any promises related to funding or we will not accept their application.
While we began this story as skeptics, we were mightily impressed by Joseph Ilardi and Lenders Loan Capital’s responsible and swift reaction.
And we don’t mightily impress easily.
Other Lenders Distance Themselves From NY Bagel Café
When we asked other “Approved Vendors” about their relationships with NY Bagel Cafe, those who responded were surprised that they were on a list… and immediately asked to be removed from it.
Most claimed they had never closed a deal for NY Bagel Cafe franchisees.
Sherri Seiber, COO of FranFund, wrote:
“We were unaware that we appeared on this list of funding sources for NY Bagel, but now the random calls we’ve received from folks interested in funding makes a little more sense… We have never had a funding solution for the 5-6 people who have contacted us as they all had poor credit… We do not know Dennis Mason…”
Sherri asked for contact information so she could demand they remove FranFund from their list.
Jerry Jones from Funding Solutions said his firm has never worked with a NY Bagel franchisee.
He said his firm primarily funds through bank loans and would never go the credit card route because it’s too risky.
When asked if he was aware of the high failure rate (90% plus), Jerry wrote:
If we were aware of these details we would have requested that we be removed from the list of financing sources.
If a prospective franchisee called and we were aware of the above, we would have told them that we do not work with the system.
He quickly sent a note to NY Bagel Cafe President Joseph Smith:
Mr. Smith — Funding Solutions is requesting to be removed from the listing of Financial Advisors for the NY Bagel brand. We have never had a completed financial application with any strength and only 1 or 2 a year. We were never asked to be on the list. Our name was found in general listings available to the public such as Restaurant Times or IFA listings.
Now we are aware of materials which, if substantiated, could be harmful to our company. Please remove our name and send a revised list that shows we are excluded. We will not be working with any of your future applicants and we are not working with any at the present time.
Thank you.
Jerry
Funding Solutions, LLC.
Ami Kasar of MultiFunding wrote:
I do not know how our company got on the list of “approved” financing vendors for this company. We have received several phone calls over the years and never been able to finance any of them or been able to take any of them on as clients. We have never taken a penny from any of these people.
So who is Providing This 100% Financing…?
We know that NY Bagel Cafe is aggressively running ads claiming that they provide “100% financing beyond the franchise fee.”
We know that they are meeting with and signing up prospects and aggressively collecting franchise fees.
Who is providing all this funding if those on their “Approved Lender” list aren’t?
We’ll continue to investigate and report on NY Bagel Cafe and share what we find.
Read what we’ve learned so far here: NY Bagel Café Franchise Scam Overview
Here are some of the other “approved lenders” in the NY Bagel Café network. Please share what you know about them:
| Don JohnsonDiamond Financial262 Hwy 36
Keansburg, NJ 07734 (877)508-2274 (732)787-9191
Hemal Patel First Empire Group 163 Washington Valley Road Unit #104 Warren, NJ 07059 (732)369-6626 (732)369-6628 fax (732)261-5735 cell |
Jim SaiaSeed Capital3037 E. Warm Springs
Suite 400 Las Vegas, NV 89120 (866)988-7333 X111 Kari Aragon, Processor (866)988-7333 X106 Fax: (866)713-6206 james@seedcapital.com
Kevin Hicks (646)408-3284 blackmanassoc2@hotmail.com
Nicholas Joseph Leaf Now Funding Account Manager njoseph@leafnow.com (267)402-5310 |
Ted C. KennedyUnsecured Funding SourceSr Account Manager
(866)475-4254, Ext. 302 (954)416-2929 Direct Line (888)245-0875 fax ted.kennedy@theufs.com Unsecuredfundingsource.com
FRANFUND 777 Main St. Ft. Worth, TX 76102 c/o Jenny (877)372-6386 www.franfund.com
Red = Have asked to be removed from list |
Jerry JonesRandy JonesFunding Solutions
199 N. Main St. Suite B1 Plymouth, MI 48170 (734)207-0800 (734)207-0815 fax (248)259-5168 cell funding-solutions.biz
Ami Kassar MultiFunding P.O. Box 356 Ambler, Pa. 19002 1(800)276-0690 1(215)460-1950 cell 1(800)276-2030 fax |
Note: We don’t know whether these are legitimate, ethical lenders or not, or what their relationships are to NY Bagel Café, which is why we invite them and others to share information and opinions.
Also read:
NY Bagel Café Franchise Scam Overview (INDEX OF POSTS)
NY BAGEL CAFÉ Franchise: How Many Have Closed? [UPDATED]
NY BAGEL CAFÉ Franchise Graveyard
Joe Smith, Dennis Mason & NY Bagel Café Franchise Exposed: 10 Things You Should Know
NY BAGEL CAFÉ & DELI Franchise Complaints
DENNIS MASON Franchise Complaints
Is NY BAGEL CAFÉ Ocean City MD an Illegal Franchise?
Is NY BAGEL CAFÉ Violating Multiple State Franchise Laws?
NY BAGEL CAFE Kicked Off Franchise Sites for Deceptive Ads
NEW YORK BAGEL ENTERPRISES INC. Franchisor’s Corporate Status Revoked
NY BAGEL CAFÉ Franchise a Scam? MA Woman Says Yes
ARE YOU FAMILIAR WITH NY BAGEL FRANCHISE LENDERS, HOWARD FICHMAN OR LENDERS LOAN CAPITAL?
PLEASE SHARE YOUR OPINION BELOW or
TAGS: Howard M. Fichman, Lender’s Loan Capital, Don Johnson, Diamond Financial, Jim Saia , Seed Capital, Ted C. Kennedy, Unsecured Funding Source, Jerry Jones , Randy Jones, Funding Solutions, NY Bagel Cafe, NY Bagel franchise, NY Bagel Cafe franchise, Joe Smith, Joseph Smith, Dennis Mason, franchise scam
Jerry Jones from Funding Solutions (included on the NY Bagel Approved Lenders List) contacted us to clarify a few things.
He said their firm has never worked with a NY Bagel franchisee.
He said his firm primarily funds through bank loans and would never go the credit card route because it’s too risky.
He said that if he was aware of the high failure rate (90% plus) and a NY Bagel franchisee called them “”If we were aware of these details we would have requested that we be removed from the list of financing sources. If a prospective franchisee called and we were aware of the above, we would have told them that we do not work with the system.”
He said they do not pay referral fees or kickbacks to franchisors, and would not do so for NY Bagel Cafe.
I am not sure whether these credit card type lenders do, but a few NYB casualties I’ve spoken to suspect they get a piece of everything. Perhaps Joe Smith or Dennis Mason will address that some day.
Just received this message from Joseph Ilardi, President & Partner, Lenders Loan Capital:
“I am very concerned about these allegations and I hope to shed some light on the matter. We receive referrals from all types of businesses. NY Bagel has referred us a handful of prospects that need more access to capital. We consult with the prospect and identify their options with various lending products. We have NOT accepted any funds related to NY Bagel or Franchisees nor did we conduct one transaction yet. We have not had knowledge of these complaints that pertain to NY Bagel nor them having a “90% failure rate.”
“We do not charge any upfront fees to our clients. We are paid by performance based on the loan amounts issued to the borrower. We do not participate in any way, the setting up of their franchise. To make such a statement that our services can be why NY Bagel has a 90% failure rate is a big reach with little to knowledge. We would appreciate that your article is based on truth without prejudice.
“We have been in communication with NY Bagel for just a few months and if you have any evidence that can support any wrong doings on behalf of NY Bagel, we will stop accepting referrals from them.
Joseph Ilardi, PA, President & Partner, Lenders Loan Capital, 1926 10th Ave N #304 B, Lake Worth, FL 33461”
To clarify, Lenders Loan Capital claims to have not provided funding to any NY Bagel Cafe franchisees and has only been communicating with them a few months. If true, they have not played a role in the failure of any of the 30+ closed stores. We did not state directly that they had, but we don’t mind clarifying that point. We appreciate their response, and hope they will check out what we have posted here about NY Bagel Cafe’s track record. – ADMIN
Received this note from FranFund COO Sherri Seiber.
This is the third company from the “Approved Lender” list that said they didn’t know they were on the list and have never provided funding to a NY Bagel franchisee.
Hello,
1.) We were unaware that we appeared on this list of funding sources for NY Bagel, but now the random calls we’ve received from folks interested in funding makes a little more sense.
2.) We have never had a funding solution for the 5-6 people who have contacted us as they all had poor credit.
3.) We do not know Dennis Mason, and since we have not completed any funding for this company, have certainly not paid any fees.
I would be interested in the outcome of your questionnaire.
Thanks,
Sherri Seiber
COO & Director of Strategic Relationships
FranFund
Ami Kassar of MultiFunding wrote:
“I do not know how our company got on the list of “approved” financing vendors for this company.
“We have received several phone calls over the years and never been able to finance any of them or been able to take any of them on as clients.
“We have never taken a penny from any of these people.”
These reactions seem to confirm our suspicion that NY Bagel Cafe is accepting franchise fees from many, many people who do not qualify for reasonable business loans. From what we hear, it is unlikely their franchise fees are being returned, as promised.
Buyer Beware – ADMIN
Kevin hicks is one I paid money to for initiation of a credit line and heard nothing furthering the process. When i initially reported what happened with Chris Gregoris I was told he’d be taken off the list of lenders and I remember that phone call with Chris and Dennis Mason aka Ken Mason aka Mr malinksy. It seems from this list the same creditor are use to get funding and with seed capital it was a process of getting line of credit cards which you liquidate within a certain window. From the appearance of this list it seems yofresh and NY bagel uses the same lenders, I’ll dig in my emails to find the correspondences.