Former AAMCO franchise owner Robert (Bob) Romano has submitted a lengthy account of his experience with the AAMCO franchise organization, from the good old days with the Morgan family in the nineties to its current ownership by American Driveline, Inc., which he characterizes as corrupt, unscrupulous and deceitful.
You can read a summary below, or Bob’s full, detailed account here: AAMCO Transmission Franchise: Bob Romano’s Story
According to Bob Romano, he opened his AAMCO in Hollywood, Florida in 1992, the company truly cared about the success of its franchisees.
When Bob had concerns about encroachment on his territory by a proposed franchise, the CEO himself worked to protect Bob’s franchise by expanding his territorial protection. The encroachging site was taken by a smaller competitor, Cottman Transmission.
In 2006, AAMCO was sold to American Driveline, Inc., which also owned competitor Cottman Transmission.
According to Bob, American Driveline, Inc. embarked on a strategy of cannibalization in which it converted Cottman Transmission locations into AAMCO locations and armed the competitor with the means to take significant business from the original AAMCO franchises.
The Cottman location the original franchisor had protected Bob’s Hollywood AAMCO from was converted into a directly competing AAMCO, according to Bob.
Bob Romano also contends American Driveline’s strategy is to “churn” AAMCO franchise locations for profit:
AAMCO’s mission is to run the old AAMCO Dealers out of business…one by one…by putting unjust financial strain upon them, take over their stores, create Profit and Loss Statements and Resell the stores to new prospects.
Bob watched this happen first hand, to many of his fellow, longtime AAMCO Dealers.
Bob Romano claim he sold his AAMCO franchise and his wife started a small independent transmission shop 100 mile from his former AAMCO location.
He claims AAMCO has continued to torment him, and is now suing him for allegedly violating the non-compete terms of his franchise agreement:
When Bob left AAMCO, his credit was ruined from incurring so much debt from AAMCO. Bob, and his wife Linda, are trying to move on with their lives. They have moved almost 100 miles away from Bob’s old AAMCO Center, into Martin County, Florida. Linda has opened a small Transmission and Auto Repair Shop in an industrial park area. The business is new and struggling to succeed, as new businesses will …
AAMCO has served a lawsuit upon both Bob, their ex-franchisee, and his wife Linda, in effort to shut her new business down. AAMCO states that Bob is now competing with the local AAMCO in Martin County. Its Bob’s conclusion that he has not had a valid Franchise Agreement, since Aug 2007, when his original contract expired. Bob is honoring his non-competition agreement with his buyer, AAMCO deliberately failed to carry out proper and timely franchise renewal procedures for Bob’s AAMCO Center, in a fraudulent attempt, to convert the Pembroke Pines Cottman Center to an AAMCO, which was out of zone, too close to Bob’s AAMCO…
In his account (written in the third-person point-of-view), Bob Romano wrote:
Bob wanted to share his experience of dealing with such deceitful, corrupt, people, as are these people at AAMCO.
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If you are considering the purchase of an AAMCO Franchise, please consider his Story.
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In addition, be sure to review the details of the AAMCO Dealers Class Action Criminal Lawsuit, against its Franchisor, AAMCO Transmissions Inc., Bob’s is just one story, of many financially devastated ex AAMCO Franchisees.
Read Bob Romano’s entire AAMCO franchise story here: AAMCO Transmission Franchise: Bob Romano’s Story
Further reading & discussion:
AAMCO Transmission franchise posts
AAMCO TRANSMISSION Franchise Complaints
AAMCO Franchise Called a “Financial Nightmare”
AAMCO Franchise Complaints: Terrible Site Selection
COTTMAN TRANSMISSION Franchise Complaints
ARE YOU AN AAMCO FRANCHISE OWNER OR FRANCHISEE? ARE YOU FAMILIAR WITH THE AAMCO FRANCHISE OPPORTUNITY? SHARE A COMMENT BELOW.
Tags: AAMCO, American Driveline, Inc., Cottman transmissions, Cottman franchise, Bob Romano, AAMCO Robert Romano, AAMCO lawsuit, AAMCO franchise lawsuit, aamco complaints, AAMCO Transmissions Franchise, AAMCO Transmissions, AAMCO Transmissions Franchise complaints, AAMCO Transmissions Franchise info, AAMCO Transmissions Franchise information, transmission Franchises, AAMCO florida
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