CURVES: Negotiating Curves Closing Fees

322 thoughts on “CURVES: Negotiating Curves Closing Fees”

• I sent many messages to the address you gave me. We need real help. We are in a very bad situation.

• We will be waiting for your call, because it is important for us

• Hello again. We waited all night for your call. They sent a lot of messages on the address you gave us. What do we do? On Monday, we want to send a statement to close the club. Our lawyers say, to the personal property will not come.

• Hi,

  I opened my club in June 2009 in Istanbul, Turkey and for the first few months my club seemed like it would be doing well but by November my membership numbers dropped to 0!!! At the time of my opening my club there were 5 Curves clubs in my city and now there is only 1 left; all the others had to close down including mine…I have been chasing CI since beginning of December, telling them I was having a tough time and that I would most likely end up having to close down. I haven’t been contacted by anyone offering any support, guidance or help so in the end I gave up trying and had to close down in March.

  Funny enough 4 months after my various emails I receive an email from their re-sale department telling me; and I quote, that so-and-so from Curves tried contacting me various times but was unsuccessful in her attempts reaching me…total load of crap! yes there was a lady at re-sale who emailed me and said she would contact but never ever did even though I chased her many times! So I reply back asking for proof as to when and how they tried to reach me as per their claims and the answer was ‘sorry for your frustration but we promise that we will be in contact from now on.now tell us are you still open or closed?’ and I told them that after 4 months I couldn’t afford to wait for them to come back to me any longer and eventually I did have to close down…

  Now they sent me an email, using a very intimidating tone of voice as I expected of course, and told me that I abandoned my club which is a breach of contract ( A.K.A THE CARDINAL SIN – OH FOR GOD’S SAKE, GIVE ME A BREAK!) and that I owe them all the future royalty fees as well as the advertising fees, which come to a total of around 40K Dollars…Hahahahaaaa, really funny! I cannot believe that they actually have the nerves to ask me for the future advertising fees as CI have been telling all the Curves clubs in my country from the beginning that there would be no advertising done (whether local or national) in Turkey because there just wasn’t enough number of clubs to support just yet; so each club had to pay for their own advertising until now. It’s obvious that those half-wits that send franchisees like me those scary-sounding-emails have a template email that they copy and paste and they are not even smart enough to check their policies for individual countries.

  Anyways, I will not pay them a single penny and don’t care how many silly emails they will send me. It already cost me 150K Dollars so far and I had to sell my flat to pay off my loans to the bank. It makes me sick to think of the amount of money I threw away, we have a 7 month-old-baby and my husband, quite rightly, says that it could be her life-time education money had I not got into this business; how very stupid of me! I don’t even want to think about it because it makes me want to literally throw up!

  Does anyone know if they can sue me in Turkey? I know they claim that it was breach of contract from my part but I have been reading the contract thoroughly and it appears that the franchisee does infact have the right to terminate the agreement should CI not support them, offer them advise etc etc and I wonder if I would be OK to go down that route and refuse any payment

  I do feel for everyone that went/goes through the same nightmare but lets all look at the bright side; at least we’ve been there, done that : )))

• I forgot to mention that on their last email, they sent 2 forms for me to fill in, sign and send back within 2 working days (why 2 working days, God knows!) : Club worksheet and Intend to Close Facility Form. But I won’t send them back until I am 100% sure that they OK to sign and send back. What did the other franchisees here do?

• Hi Elif! We are very sympathetic to your situation, since we are on the verge of closing and will close soon. We understand you, because we’ve been in your situation, but thank God that we do not have credits. The American dream of own business – it is simply a lie. Real business is not yours, it is the business of the Americans and the master franchise in your country. And we were told about the successful business that can bring from 3000 euros per month and more. We were deceived, just like everyone. The courses we were in Spain, and we noticed that the people who have this is very sad and worried, but people who just bought a carefree and joyful. We are still very surprised at this. But now we know it. The fact that we have sold – this monster, who is infinitely drink and drink your blood. And without it, he’s dead. Thank God that we will soon be able to kill him. Two documents that you sent a waiver of the right to apply to the court to protect your rights and your commitment that you must bring the gym where they would go. Did not sign these papers. We told our closing, but we were told that they were very disappointed and examine the situation of our club. It’s all excuses. I know that I will send 42,000 dollars for royalties. But I will not pay a single dollar for what I sold. I want to sue them and get all the money we spent back, believe that such a possibility. Soon, this infection will be in Poland and the Czech Republic. Poor people who buy it or have already bought. I suggest you join, find more people in Europe and your country, that would speak with the requirements for the return of our money and pecuniary damage. After years of work with this nightmare, I hate this company and want what they can as quickly went bankrupt. We would like to talk with you closer and understand each other as the victims of the curves. How can we contact you? Write to us and we’ll find a way to communicate. Locate your fellow countrymen who have suffered from this plague.

• Hi Elif,
  So sad to hear about your problems with curves but as you can see your not alone. Don’t let them intimidate you and don’t send them any money or sign anything that they may send you. They are nothing but crooks!!!!!!!!

• Hi everyone! Dear users of the forum. We suggest you create an association to assist victims of Curves in Europe. I think that such people there are very many. We were beaten by one and we all remain silent and fight themselves as best we can with this monster. I have read that only in Istanbul was closed four of the club. And everyone is silent, but these crooks they write what they want 42,000 dollars. They brought us to poverty, all while we are silent. As long as we keep quiet we will beat, beat and beat. Waiting for your suggestions by email

• Hello all. My Curves is in the verge of closing as well. We bought it resale 3 years ago. It was good at first, but now it is in RED figures, cannot sustain itself any longer. I have several questions: I incorporated, so all paperwork is through the corporation, how does this affect the closure if I just disolve my corporation? Anyone has any feedback on this? Also, I got the curvessmart equipment, but instead of buying it outright, I leased it, how will that work as far as selling the equipment, am I entitled to do that? Any feedback very appreciated? Thank you very much and hope all of us find peace and forget it all ever happend after is all done!!

• Andres,
  Your idea of an association for UK clubs for support is an excellent one. We can do that right here. Spread the word to all the owners over seas to come and [post here and we will give them all the advice and support they need.

  Abraham,
  When you signed the franchise agreement you singed it with a personal signature so according to curves you are liable not the corporation. You leased the smart equipment on a plan where you would own it after your payments were done. It is your equipment once you close but you may have to take the smart off and send it back to the lease holder.

• Hello friends affected by the one-eyed!
  I’m not talking only about the UK. These clubs have appeared recently in Turkey and in Ukraine and Bulgaria and Romania. Soon there will be in Poland and the Czech Republic. If you look at the statistics for closure – that Turkey closed only 4 clubs in Istanbul. Now people began to intimidation and to demand 42,000 dollars, after ruining them. You can read the story of a girl from Turkey, she had to sell his apartment, that would settle the debts, which were made during the work. Our club has existed for only 6 months. We have 3 months he started to bring to 1500 euro loss in 4 month loss amounted to 2000 euro, for 5 months we decided to close the club. We reported this to the main office of curves. Contact us representative in our country and threatened to pay royalties for 10 years of the contract, the courts and lawyers. I think that once held 60 days from the date of application, we will begin to receive emails from the curves with death threats, and documents that will say that we renounce the right to file them in court. We will not sign anything and intend to defend. The contract we signed the first from individuals, and then sign a document transferring the rights to the franchise company. We can all join together and sue the joint action by competent persons. We are all devastated and we must unite to cut costs all of us at the Bar. I think that in the UK, the contract also says that the dispute shall be settled by the Arbitration Court under the laws of England Wales. Waiting for your reply, I think that we can create together and fight these fraudsters. I heard that the curves are bankrupt, but it’s hidden.
  Think about all of this.

• Andres,
  Keep spreading the word about the site as that way we can hopefully prevent this from happening to other good people. Good luck and god bless

• Andres and Unhappy, thanks for your encouraging emails : )

  Andres, I am so sorry to hear about your sitation too. What country are you from? Are you from Bulgaria? [del]

  Like I said, I am not sending them any money or signing any documents! They told me I had 2 days to sign them and that if I didn’t they would pass my case to their legal department. They seem to think that by using words like ‘ our legal department’ they are going to scare me off and that I will obbey their orders. It’s so obvious that by telling me that I only have 2 days, they want to make sure that I don’t have enough time to seek legal advise on the consquences of signing those papers and that I will simply panick and do what they want!

  So here is what I did this afternoon; I sent them an email pointing out the following;
  – I asked them to tell me where in the contract it stated that I had to respond their inquiries within 2 days
  – I copied and pasted all the emails I sent to Curves where I was asking for guidance and advice in the past when I was having problems and was worried about closing down
  – I asked them to explain why I never received any meaningful respons from them until such time that my club was eventually forced to close down
  – I told them that my current situation was a direct result of serious negligence from CFW side and that they didn’t fulfill their responsibilities that were outlined under certain sections of the franchise agreement
  – Alsofrom last year they owed me some money (around 1,100 USD) due to some shipment error they made when they were delievering my equipment . I was promised (by email) that they would reimburse me when I sent them the receipts. So today, I also told them that I would be posting the receipts on Monday and asked them to make the payment within one month!

  It’s true that there are 4 clubs that closed down in Istanbul since last June. One of them is mine, the other 2 belonged to non-Turkish citizens (I think they are Americans actually) who lived in the US and from what I heard from their former manager they ended up paying CFW some settlement money after they closed. The 4th club belonged to another Turkish lady like me, she said that on paper she still owed them a lot of money

• I forgot to mention that I also told them that I would be consulting my lawyers if needs be

• Make sure to tell the other Turkish lady about this site and not to pay Curves and Howie anything not one dime. Keep up the good work and don’t let them intimidate you as it is a form of extortion. Howie is nothing but a crook and so is his wife Diane. I can’t help but wonder how they sleep at night. They are sociopaths.

• they must be counting sheep dressed up in USD customes : )

• Do not give them NOT ONE PENNY

• Elif,
  That was a good one and brought a smile on my face. Thanks for the humor I need that.

  Andres.

  That’s right not one cent more !!!! You know the old saying sucker, me once shame on you , sucker me twice shame on me.

• “You know the old saying sucker, me once shame on you , sucker me twice shame on me.”

  Funny I was just thinking about that quote in relation to franchisees who were too stupid/cheap to hire a lawyer before buying a franchise, then compounding their problems by being too stupid/broke to hire a lawyer now that they’re failing… and listening to anonymous internet commenters instead.

  You can’t get out of a problem using the same thinking that got you into it.

• Andre:

  Someone should tell you that what you are posting is ridiculous in English. Some of it’s funny. Some of it’s bizarre. Lots of it makes no sense. Here are a few:

  “60 days from the date of application, we will begin to receive emails from the curves with death threats” Seriously? Death threats?

  “I understand that I must return the money to people who do not use their time for study.”

  “I have started to intimidate lawyers”

  “As long as we keep quiet we will beat, beat and beat.”

  “Contact us representative in our country and threatened to pay royalties for 10 years of the contract, the courts and lawyers.”

  “Hello friends affected by the one-eyed!”

  Andre, you really should have someone translate your comments before posting.

• Andre,
  Don’t let this guest upset you it is probably jd or someone like him so just disregard his posts. If they can’t understand what you are saying let them go elsewhere. We appreciate your posts and understand that English is not your native language.

• I understand that my English is very funny, because it is not my family and at school I was teaching another foreign language. Maybe some of the phrases sound funny and absurd, but who had curves, I think a few more months will be to think in full of porridge in your head, spilling all their emotions and devastation that remains from this nightmare. Yes, we are remaining with no money, but we were left alone at one of our children and we are all healthy and happy that we will no longer curves. And about the association and the curve of the confrontation, it is a good idea. No country in the world in which a person buys it, was not injured and did not survive the pain. We dllzhny all know if we are together we have power, but to single them we will blackmail, intimidate.

• Andre: unhappy will encourage anything that’s negative about Curves but trust me your English is not understandable.

  When you say “I have started to intimidate lawyers” that means that you are threatening and instilling fear in lawyers.

  When you say you “receive emails from the curves with death threats” that means that Curves is literally threatening to kill you. Is that true?

  ““As long as we keep quiet we will beat, beat and beat.” Is really too crude to explain.

  “threatened to pay royalties for 10 years” means they threatened to pay you money. If so, take it!

  ““Hello friends affected by the one-eyed!” means nothing except maybe a cyclops reference or an insult to the physically disabled.

  As the forum is in English, you should probably get an English speaker to post for you. That may keep you from getting sued for accusing the company of attempted murder and intimidating lawyers! :)

• Andre,
  You are so right we do have strength in numbers and don’t let any fool try to intimidate you into not posting on this site. Get the word out about Curves so other individuals won’t make the same mistake so many other have by trusting Howie” the sociopath “

• “guest”
  How many languages do YOU speak?
  How can you assume that because someone is not as fluent in his second or perhaps third language as the native tongue that he is stupid?
  And just what country were you referring in the use of “third world country” Turkey?? Then you also require a few lessons in global studies.
  You may have made some good points, but lost all credibility when you attacked someone and demonstrated your bigoted ignorance.
  You sound much like Howie with his egotistical stances. I think perhaps you are a Howie plant and were just attempting to shift the blame from him to anyone else.
  I believe Andre, like many Curves owners, entered into the agreement in good faith at least. -Unlike Howie who knows better and focuses on deception , lies, and intimidation.
  And who gave you the right to regulate who posts here?

• Frazzled,

  Thank you for putting your words of wisdom in on this as those types of post make me so upset I would like to well I better not say but you get the impression I’m sure. I have personally talked to Andre and he is a honest and decent human being and I for one am proud that he has taken the time to try to post his story and opinion here.

  So again thanks and God Bless you and your family!!!!!!!

• frazzled:
  Too bad this website doesn’t give an award for how many incorrect statements one can make in a single comment, cuz you’d be a sure winner!

  “who gave you the right to regulate who posts here?” Reread my comments and you’ll see I suggested Andre have an English speaker help him with his comments before posting. My suggestion was meant to help him participate more meaningfully, not to stop posting. Perhaps someone can help you comprehend English.

  “just what country were you referring in the use of “third world country” Turkey??”
  Andre never said he was from Turkey, just an Eastern European country. Elf guessed Bulgaria but Andre never answered.

  “You…lost all credibility when you attacked someone and demonstrated your bigoted ignorance.”
  I never attacked Andre, merely informed him he was posting gibberish. That’s kind, not bigoted nor ignorant. So, wrong again.

  “I think perhaps you are a Howie plant”
  I understand he goes by the name of Gary. Is “Howie” supposed to be derogatory? How old are you? And no, I’m 100% mammalian, not a plant.

  Andre wrote: “I see that this plague dbiraetsya in all countries….Now it poyavmlos Bulgaria Romania Ukraine Kazakhstan, people want more shopping-muck in Poland.”

  Andre wrote “… in our country, this product is generally sold illegally…. The contract that we signed has no legal effect, for many reasons But it’s all null and void or in America nor in our country. So what else can I arrange an international scandal, most likely will do that, that would be me my money back and told all the owners in my country that they can make a shit.

  Perhaps frazzled and unhappy can explain to me the meaning of “plague dbiraetsya,” why people want “shopping-muck in Poland” and why franchisees were told to “make a shit”?

  I think it’s cruel to let the guy waste his time posting nonsense (albeit humorous) without so much as telling him.

  And, by the way, I only speak English… which is why I’m not posting on Eastern European blogs.

• Frazzled,
  I think you hit it right on the head guest is probably a plant from Howie but in either case we have found that people like that should just be ignored, not responded to and eventually they will act like they are, a fart and blow in the wind!!! don’t even waste your time responding to the obvious bigoted and ignorant a hole. Obviously this is a free site and who ever it maybe can post here but if we just ignore their posts in time they all just act like cow pies that they are and hit the trail. Even when they try to get you to respond by asking idiotic questions or make outlandish stupid statements just don’t respond. There not worth the time or effort Hell I don’t even bother to read their posts anymore they are so pathetic it is sick that they are so lonely that they have to come here to post .

• Hello friends!
  I want to thank you for your understanding. It does not matter from which country we see the color of our skin, what languages we speak and in what country we live. This does not prevent us from being together and unite against these fraudsters. We read here the terrible story of the girl from Turkey, which can not now make ends meet. My history a little better, but still very sad. We all need to be strong and resist them. It can not scare us. I want to sue the company and get their money back. I found lawyers who deal with franchises. Who wants to can join us. Nick Guest – this is most likely from the curves, which examines and elicits who, when and where is going to close. I receive many letters and the only question being asked where you live and when you are locked, so be careful that they would not have been able to hinder you to accomplish everything you want

• Andre:

  What do you mean when you write: “… in our country, this product is generally sold illegally…. The contract that we signed has no legal effect, for many reasons But it’s all null and void or in America nor in our country.”

  Did you actually purchase directly from Curves or a broker or master franchise in your country? How was it sold illegally and why is your contract invalid? Who would you sue?

  I don’t care which country you’re in, but it’s not clear who you bought from, why it’s illegal and who you think wronged you.

• Andre,

  Don’t even respond to guest as it just encourages them to make stupid, ridiculous posts and it’s obvious from previous post that they are a shill for Howie. Most of us here have had to put up with nut cases like this one in the past and have found that if we just ignore them they fade away and go to some other board and try to stir up trouble. They obviously have never had a curves franchise and for that matter never had the balls to be in business for themselves Unfortunately, Andre, many people in the US are crack pots and just try to stir up the masses even though they have no idea what actual curves owners have had to endure with Howie’s sociopath ways. Tell your lawyers our lawyers in the States would love to work with them in bringing this crook to justice and would be more than happy to talk to them concerning how to deal with this unethical, immoral, and crooked CEO, Howie.

• “Don’t even respond to guest… if we just ignore them they fade away and go to some other board”

  unhappy… is this your website? Are you the moderator or just another commenter – like me? Where exactly did you get the authority to decide whose opinion counts and who should be ignored? Shall we ask the moderator whether you have this kind of authority?

  This is obviously an open forum where both sides are welcome to voice their views. What I have posted is both logical and constructive (It is you not I who reverts to name calling and fart jokes). You have already said you don’t read opposing views, which is why you mischaracterize my points.

  I believe that unhappy is reckless in that he likes to play lawyer yet does not have the education nor an iota of experience in law. He speaks as an authority and advises others but has no track record of successfully dealing with Curves. He is engaged in litigation with CI and lost his clubs – that does not make him an authority. His personal ire against the founder clouds his judgement and he demeans anyone who offers an alternative viewpoint as a shill.

  Believe me, if I were a shill I would be encouraging you to listen to the ramblings of unhappy rather than seeking real legal counsel from an actual attorney.

• BREAKING NEW ALL CURVES OWNERS NEED TO BE AWARE OF………
  It has become obvious that the owners who have bonded through this site and have taken the time to file complaints against Curves International and Howie for the intimidating , unethical and immoral business tactics they use on Curves owners is having a major impact on many states who have passed statutes which may supersede the Franchise Agreement between owners and Curves International in the area of termination and renewal of owners franchises as well as states that limit Curves International ability to restrict owners activity after the Franchise Agreement has ended. Here is a list of those states.
  Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, New Jersey, South Dakota, Virgina, Washington, Wisconsin, Florida, Montana, Oklahoma, and North Dakota.

  Curves owners in those states that have been intimidated into paying fees for closing, that have been charged excessive transfer fees, or threatened with legal action for closing need to contact franchise lawyers in their states to see what remedies are available to them.

  In the near future we will be starting a new campaign to shed light on the atrocities that are being done to Curves owners by Howie so stay tuned.

  By curves owners working together to send a strong message to Howie we are helping to make sure that one million women continue to get stronger.

• unhappy says “It has become obvious that the owners who have bonded through this site… [are] having a major impact on many states who have passed statutes which may supersede the Franchise Agreement between owners and Curves International…”

  Can you substantiate this statement by naming one state that has passed a statute superseding the Curves franchise agreement as a direct result of those who have bonded through this site?

  unhappy says ““there are plenty of lawyers that are taking these cases on a contingency where we don’t have to pay a dime in legal fees”

  We are still waiting for a list of lawyers who are taking Curves owners cases on straight contingency. Just 3 will suffice.

  [Beware of people who make statements as facts but ignore requests for substantiation. There are a lot of opinions here being dressed up as facts.]

• Here are some interesting facts on some polls that were taken from actual Curves owners. The results are very interesting and quite telling on weather a Curves is a good investment .

  Have you considered selling your Curves? A whopping 90% said yes

  If any owners are actually making money? 60 % of owners said no

  This question should be a real eye opener to you as well as Howie ……….. Do you plan on renewing your franchise agreement? A whopping 86% said NO

  Are you making money from your Curves income? 75% said no

• I don’t see the point of classifying any country as a 3rd world one on the basis of one’s limited standarts. I am the girl from Turkey (it’s Elif by the was not Elf) and to be frank, and excuse my french, don’t give a monkeys to such bigoted comments. It’s just sad to see that unfortunately it’s the viewpoints of such individuals that bring a lot of unhappiness into the world today but starting this argument will open another can of warms and since this forum is not the place to do it, I’m going to leave it at that.
  I wasn’t aware that Curves operations were limited to 1st world countries and/or English-speaking ones??? Please can you (the guest) enlighten me as to if there was any language tests to be passed to qualify being a Curves franchisee? All along, I was under the impression that this forum was open to anyone who owns/owned a Curves club regardless of their language skills?

  ”And, by the way, I only speak English… which is why I’m not posting on Eastern European blogs.” – so you’re suggesting that if one doesn’t speak English, maybe they should not be posting here either? I thought the focus of this blog/forum was Curves franchisees, not demonstrations of personal language skills. Forgive me if I’m mistaken but it’s obvious that one of us is in the wrong blog.
  It’s clear that Andres is not very fluent in his English and yes to be honest I don’t literally understand some of his comments either but I seem to have something that you (guest again) lack; common sense. So I’m simply putting 2 and 2 together and coming to an understanding. Let me show you how I do it:
  – so far it’s been clear to me that Andres is an unhappy francisee and is having troubles with regards to closing his club
  -he is trying to express his anger and frustration, though I admit not always in perfect English and sometimes using words from his own langauge
  – so my conclusion is; he is clearly upset. He also sounds very desperate to put an end to his current troubles that he doesn’t even care about getting someone to translate his feelings to perfect English but is obviously writing all his comments in a very emotional state (which explains odd referrals to words in his language…he most likely doesn’t know how to say those words in English but instead tells them in his native language out of sheer frustration)

  Mocking or bullying doesn’t get you anywhere and sometimes a simple apology in case of offending anyone makes you a bigger man/woman

• I apologize if anybody thought I was calling their country a 3rd world country (unless theirs is). It was an off-the-cuff remark. Since Andre is obviously too timid to disclose his country (despite his bold calls to rise up in arms!) there was no specific country named. But if it sounded derogatory or was offensive I apologize.

  And I apologize for leaving the “i” out of Elif. It was an egregious typo.

  Other than that, how was I mocking? When did I discourage him from posting? All I did was point out to him that he needed help with translation because no one has any idea what he’s saying. He may have some very valid points that aren’t being communicated because you’re all too polite to tell him. Why let him go on wasting his time posting gibberish when he could tell his story effectively if he had some help?

  After all his posts, does anyone know where he’s located? Who he purchased from? Why the sale was supposedly illegal? Why the contract is supposedly invalid? Who he wants to sue? Who is supposedly making death threats? Why he’s intimidating lawyers? Why people want more travel-muck in Poland?

  I may be curt but I’m trying to help him get his story out – not suppress it.

  On the plus side, Andre, your posts have more clarity and authenticity than unhappy’s. Would it be bigoted and bullying of me to point out that unhappy is still dodging requests for:

  1) Even one state that has passed a statute superseding the Curves franchise agreement as a direct result of those who have bonded through this site… as he claimed

  2) A list of lawyers who are taking Curves owners cases on straight contingency (he claims there are “plenty”).

  Don’t be afraid of truth, people. It supposedly will set you free.

• I agree that it would make it easier for us to comment if Andres communicated his problems and story more effectively. Copying and pasting bits of his posts that are difficult to understand and using a sarcastic/ mocking tone-of-voice commenting on them will only make him feel bad . If you’re sincerely interested in what he’s actually trying to say you can always send him a personal email and ask him though; but if you’re not then let him write whatever he wants and post in chinese if he wishes too.

  I very much doubt that anyone here treats it as a legal-advice-forum. I personally wanted to see if there was anyone else in the world who went/goes through similar experiences as myself. Obviously, it won’t be solving any of my financial problems but seeing that I am not the only one somehow makes me feel like less of a fool. After all, misery loves company and sometimes hearing similar stories from different people makes it easier to deal with the problems that we’re facing.

  On a seperate note, it was good to see your apology from whomever was offended and I’m sure your apology will be accepted

• Elif:
  Seems that there are a few different types of people here. Some, like you, are here to commiserate, to feel better just to know you’re not alone and offer encouragement.

  There are people like unhappy who is filled with rage and really just wants to get back at Howie and would like to see the whole thing burn.

  There are others, like me and jd, who have followed this situation and are more interested in getting to the truth about what’s happening, why, and who’s to blame.

  But aren’t the most important people here are those the point of deciding whether to close their clubs and, if so, how to proceed?

  A feel-good pity party doesn’t help them, and neither does English practice with Andre. unhappy spouting fiction as fact so he can send them into a losing lawsuit or wasting time looking for a contingency lawyer certainly doesn’t help them.

  I guess telling it like it is is not the popular thing to do. Sorry about that, too. Maybe the truth about the situation is more useful than patting each other on the head and saying it’s going to be all right.

• guest,
  do you mind me asking how you came across this forum? are you or have you too been a franchisee? I’m only asking because I wouldn’t be posting here if I didn’t have any business connection, past or present, with Curves. You sound like a smart enough person who would have better things to do than sending posts at a forum that are irrelevant to your business. Unless you too are somehow related to Curves that is…I am genuinely curious, that’s all.

  I do not know anybody on this forum on a personal level that includes unhappy too. However from the way I see it his comments are intented to:
  1- either give troubled franchisees emotional strength (it’s irrelevant whether you, I or an X person here agrees with his figure of speech)
  2- warn potential future franchisees about the potential downsides of the business they consider entering ( again irrelevant whether you, I or an X person here agrees with his figure of speech unless any of us are trying to sell our club or are working in Curves sales department)
  3- express his dislike of the business and its CEO ( again the same things above unless any of us here is the CEO himself or are related to him)

  You may have some valid points i.e. unhappy not being a qualified legal advisor etc but I didn’t come accross any post where he claims that he is. Again, I don’t know him/her personally but his stance here seems non offensive to anyone. Again, you may have good and valid points that could benefit some people but your tone-of-voice shadows those points and make you look rather like an uncaring person. I don’t suppose anyone would expect a nicely painted picture of Curves here given the name of the website and it makes more sense to visit a ‘happyfranchisee’ website should anyone wish find such a picture.

  You may not wish to answer my questions above, like I said I am just curious to know your Curves experience/relation.

• Elif:
  Suffice it to say that 1) I have experience in franchising & fitness industries both from a franchisee & franchisor perspective, 2) I am not connected with CI in any way. Anything other than that’s just a distraction from the points I make.

  My tone is curt and sometimes abrasive, but here’s the deal that franchisees need to come to grips with: They made the decision to become business owners. They signed a big fat legal agreement that completely rules the relationship. If you read all the feel-good marketing hype about “we’re all in this together” but didn’t read the actual agreement you were entering into, you’ve just learned an expensive lesson. I’m not saying it’s right – it’s just the way it is.

  unhappy takes this personal and to him it’s all about “howie” and how unethical he is. But that’s irrelevant. The situation is ruled by that big legal doc with your signatures on them and a legal system that basically says you’re on your own – you’re big boys and girls and need to honor your agreements.

  I’m sorry to be the one to say this, but business is business.

  Where does it say in your legal agreements that the franchisor has to give a damn about you or your family? Where does it say that they don’t have the right to be successful and fly in personal jets and helicopters even if and when you can’t make rent or feed your families? It doesn’t. It does say that the total expectations from either party are contained in that agreement. Expectations outside the agreement, matters of right and wrong, ethical and unethical is really irrelevant.

  It’s a game. You all entered it without really understanding the rules, but you’re in it now. Get yourself the meanest nastiest attorney, protect your assets as best you can, get over “right & wrong” and get out as quick and cleanly as you can.

• guest,
  thank you for your concern

• You’re welcome.

• I closed 2 Curves franchises in NC in late 2009. We had both clubs about 5 years. The last 2 years we were pouring money in to try to keep them afloat.
  It was a painful decision, as we loved our members and staff. We bent over
  backwards to make the transition smooth for our members and receiving clubs.
  One club (5 miles away from us) received 75 members, and I honestly feel like
  if it weren’t for that, the owner would be in the same boat we found ourselves in.
  We are in debt up to our eyeballs because of our franchises. We tried our
  best to build our business. Curves answer to everything? “Keep putting out
  lead bags and getting those buddy referrals.” Gary even had the nerve to say
  at the last regional convention I attended (spring of 2009) that unemployment
  was “not really that bad” and basically if you were failing it was your fault. I am
  so relieved to be out of this, even with the massive amount of debt I still owe.
  I did not pay the “settlement fee” thank goodness. If I had that kind of money
  I would not have closed. I tried to do everything in my closing as professionally as I could. I am still in contact with former members, former staff, and current owners. Last week I received a letter from a firm in Illinois wanting to negotiate
  a settlement for my remaining franchise fees. Thank goodness I was directed
  to this site and received some wonderful information and advice. Curves is trying to bully former owners and get anything they can get from you. DON’T DO
  IT!!

• Thanks for your post and you are certainly right that curvestries to indimidate owners but fortunatly by the knowlege gain from coming here owners are informed on what to do.

  By curves owners working together to send a strong message to Howie we are helping to make sure that one million women continue to get stronger

• 1. Here is the text of an email I received:

  I haven’t heard from you regarding the above closed club. Curves International, Inc. (“Curves”) has attempted to work with you through a proper closing. Unfortunately, you have failed to comply with our Closing Program. The closure of the club will now be handled by our Legal Department. Curves will pursue available legal remedies against you for the breach of your franchise agreement.

  2. Is this some idle threat? The agreement does not describe any damages or any closing procedures.

  3. Suggestions?

• To Francine Smith,

  It is their way of trying to intimidate you into paying them more of your money and to try to prevent you from joing a lawsuit against them. there are some that you need to be aware of that other owners are doing and if you send an email to; admin at unhappyfranchisee@gmail.com with your phone number I will call you and go over your options.

• I just received a list of what I need to do after I close in 15 days. I was like everyone else and sent in the intent to close packet. For anyone that is going down this path, DON’T DO IT!!
  I have been in contact with someone who has given me excellent advice, not to be threatened by CI.
  I bought my Curvessmart machines and now CI is sending me boxes to my club so that I can send them the smart back.
  O.K. has anyone had to do this? Then why am I still paying on this. I didn’t lease, I bought from another closed club.

• Lori,
  thoses machines are yours so why send them back?. Send the boxes filled with trash back to curves and have them pay the shipping. do not be intimidated by these crooks.

• Francine Smith,

  I received the same email you did. It’s funny to see that they have a template email that they obviously copy and paste regardless of what the individual cases are. Just goes to show how little they care about us, they can’t even be bothered to send emails appropriate to each case