SNAP-ON TOOLS: When is it Acceptable to Call a Woman the C-Word?
Two young Snap-on franchisee dealers used their company emails to attack a woman with the most degrading and despicable insults they could conjure. Despite never having met her, each independently called her a c*nt… and worse… Is this the new normal for the next generation of business owners? Warning: This post contains vulgar, offensive language.
(UnhappyFranchisee.Com) (Post updated 11/23/16 at 1:45 pm EST) One glance at Sally Regian’s Facebook page (or her husband’s fan page) and you can tell she’s a strong, determined and energetic wife, mother, friend and fund-raiser for a variety of causes.
As tough as she is, nothing could have prepared her for this email she received from [Snap-on Dealer #1]. He replied to the single emailing Sally sent out with this message:
…you are a cunt and you know you husband fucked that’s why you are getting a divorce……wonder what you account and IRS have to say about your dirty books. Stop sending out spam emails, take me off your list and not mention my name on facebook, the internet or anywhere in your legal mess of a scam you are trying to pull so you can walk away with more money from your divorce!
Or this one, from authorized Snap-On dealer Snap-on Dealer #2:
I already know your story. Go suck a bloody dick with aids you old ugly redneck cunt.
Sally was in shock. Speechless. In disbelief.
These were Snap-On franchisees that she had never met. They had had no disputes, that she knew of, with either her or her husband King. King had first been a Snap-On employee then a top franchise dealer in Waco, TX for more than 20 years. They had been Snap-On fans and loyalists for two decades. Yet here were fellow dealers using their Snap-On business email addresses to send the most vulgar, hateful words they could think of.
…you are a cunt…?
…suck a bloody dick with aids…?
…old ugly redneck cunt…?
Sally recounts on her Facebook page that she felt dizzy… and nauseous… and then she broke down… just as [Snap-on Dealer #1] and Snap-on Dealer #2 had likely intended…
Has bullying and misogyny replaced civility in the male-dominated Snap-On system?
Despite health challenges, including two spinal surgeries in the past year and another one coming up, Sally Regian has found the time and energy to wage a protest against the Snap-on Tools franchisor’s treatment of her husband, who was a top tool dealer for the company for decades.
King and Sally Regian believe that Snap-On corporate wanted the lucrative route that King had built up to more than $1,000,000 in yearly collections. King’s franchise agreement was up for renewal and Snap-On corporate had decided to not renew and keep it as a company route – which was their right.
However, the Regians claim that two years before King’s agreement was up, they started to impose rules, restrictions and procedures on him that violated his rights as a franchise owner. They claim Snap-On made untrue allegations of cheating the system, which they put in his file and never gave him the opportunity to address or disprove.
They claim that Snap-On refused to honor their obligation to uphold the lifetime warranty on the tools King sold. According to the Regians, King continued to honor the Snap-On warranty and replace tools at his own expense, incurring more than $100,000 in expense that Snap-on, he contends, is contractually obligated to pay.
Sally set-up the Former Snap-on Franchisee – King Regian Facebook group and a King Regian blog to advocate for her husband.
Sally shared King’s treatment with their fellow dealers both to drum up support, and to warn that the same could thing could happen to them.
While there was great support for the couple, especially from King’s loyal tool customers, Sally was surprised by some angry and demeaning comments by dealers they had never met.
One dealer in particular made hurtful, insulting comments about Sally’s appearance.
Another set up a page calling the couple and their supporters morons.
Some made unfounded accusations that her husband must have been a liar, a cheater and deserved such treatment.
While hurtful, Sally rebuffed these attacks with her normal feistiness and cheerful attitude.
Then came the [Snap-on Dealer #1] email that left her shocked and in tears.
“Why would he call me a cunt?” Sally was taken aback by viciousness of [Snap-on Dealer #1] email.
His other allegations had no basis in fact. There were never any allegations of “dirty books” or accounting improprieties.
She and King were separated, but were on amiable terms and not in the process of divorcing.
What had she done to [Snap-on Dealer #1] other than send a single email?
“Unsubscribe” would have been sufficient.
Snap-On dealers aimed to wound someone’s wife, mother and daughter and succeeded… But why?
Another dealer wrote:
You will most likely win your lawsuit. Good for you.
Cornwell will most likely be next on your lawsuit radar.
Y’all follow a pattern, after all.
Good day and good luck in your miserable life.
What pattern? King Wayne Regian was a hardcore loyalist to Snap-On for two decades, and became a Cornwell Tools dealer only after being forced out of the Snap-On system.
This was their first lawsuit. Sally wondered: Why do they just make things up to hate on us?
Then came Snap-on Dealer #2‘s masterpiece of hate and vulgarity: Go suck a bloody dick with aids you old ugly redneck cunt.
On her Facebook page, Sally wrote “It’s disgusting how ugly people’s hearts are! I hope that you are proud, today I cried over your words. Good job!”
She was right. It seemed clear that Snap-on dealers like Snap-on Dealer #2 and [Snap-on Dealer #1] – who seem like nice normal guys who love their families on their Facebook pages – chose their words to inflict as much pain and distress as possible. And they were successful.
But why?
Is it acceptable to call strong, outspoken women “cunts” in the Snap-On boy’s club?
Why such a strong reaction? Why the overkill?
If a man had sent the email, would it have prompted such anger and outrage?
If we recall correctly, a few years ago an outgoing Snap-On tool dealer named Jim Lager became a very outspoken critic of the company and never experienced such a backlash.
Do Snap-On dealers feel that Sally Regian deserved to be degraded and abused because she dared intrude into the boy’s club of Snap-on and commit the ultimate sin: voice an opinion?
At Snap-On Tools, are women to be seen (preferably in bikinis posing on tool boxes) on tool company calendars, but not heard?
If so, the potty-mouthed tool boys of Snap-On better get ready to up their game, because it looks like Sally Regian was only temporarily stunned.
She’s back on social media, speaking out on behalf of her husband, and setting an example that dealers like [Snap-on Dealer #1] and Snap-on Dealer #2 might do well to learn from.
UPDATE: The two email authors were given a chance to clarify, retract or apologize for their messages to Sally Regian both prior and after publication of this post.
After publication, both Snap-on dealers sent this apologies to Sally Regian:
SNAP-ON Dealer Apologizes for Use of C-Word
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DO YOU THINK IT’S EVER ACCEPTABLE TO CALL A WOMAN THE C-WORD IN A BUSINESS SETTING?
OR IN ANY SETTING?
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TAGS: Snap-on, Snap-on franchise, Snap-on dealers, C-word, Snap-on dealer complaints, Snap-on lawsuit, King Regian, Sally Regian, Gerald Marks, Jerry Marks, Marks and Klein, tool franchise, franchise lawsuit, franchise complaints, unhappy franchisee
well i mean if your a cunt your a cunt and Sally is a cunt , nothing to see here
Bob:
Could you elaborate? What does that actually mean? How do you define “cunt”? What does a person actually have to do to deserve that kind of angry and hateful insult?
Why do (some) Snap-on dealers attack her much more viciously than her husband, King Regian?
I’m sorry Bob, have we met? If so, please refresh my memory. I’m certain that you can ask anyone who actually has met me, and they will disagree on that label. I would say that it’s been a pleasure but …I’m certain that you don’t get that often.
We all have our own style and code of conducting Business as a franchisee. Some are much better at it than others while the others or let’s call them the under achievers bully , bash and criticize others, to get ahead in business and rarely works to get ahead . In this case I’d say take a crash course in business ethics .
✌?️