MATCO TOOLS Franchise Complaints

4,850 thoughts on “MATCO TOOLS Franchise Complaints”

• NOV 25th Tommy wrote – “If we can stop anymore potential distributors from signing and screwing up their life, then we have done our job.”

  Junior – But he gave no proof or a scread of evidence to back up such a claim. He just threw it out there. I’m with Bob, where are the facts?

• Junior- Were you the one that was a DM too? IF not you should be. SOunds like you went to the Glenn Vanderwall school of DM’s. Rather than try and right a wrong, deny, discredit and make personal attacks.

  If you have a beef with Tommy, “take it outside”. This is NOT the place for it. My DM did EXACTLY the same thing as well as my RM. Both stopped emailing me becuase that left a “paper trail”, but Jerry got plenty of their emails before they stopped. When they stopped, then came the cell phone assults. I, my wife and my kids were called everything but white folks by DM and RM when I decided to “Seperate”! CLASSY!

  Only honest one was my trainer, Larry Fisher! He is one that sat down with my wife, now ex, atold told us to “get the hell out fast before Matco bleeds you dry”!

  His last day here we sat down and tried to figure out what I could do better or change. We were in tears! Larry apologized over and over to us for what Matco “did to us”. Told us that “as a father and grandfather” he couldn’t tell us to stay in. We were “sold a lemon”!

  Oh, Larry no longer works for them as I understand.

• Richard wrote – “the only time that i have ever seen the company rule book referenced is when the company wants to fire you.”

  Junior – So Richard what did this rule book look like? Was it the original? A copy? Who showed it to you? Did you get a copy? Was it blue? Gray? What can you tell us that proves you infact saw such a book?

• Tommy con’t – “THE BACK OF THE TRUCKS SAY “DRIVE YOUR OWN BUSSINESS”, WITH NOTICE THEY CAN SHUT YOU DOWN WHEN THEY FEEL THEY NEED TO. YOU ARE MORE LESS A SUBCONTRACTOR TO THEM, THEY HAVE YOU BY THE BLEEP. THIS IS LIKE A PYRAMID SCAM. CALL ME AT ANY TIME TO LEARN MY OPINION, MY NUMBER IS [redacted]. RUN,RUN,RUN,AND DONT LOOK BACK, BECAUSE THEY WILL SUCK YOU IN. KEEP YOUR MONEY IN THE BANK. DO NOT BUY A MATCO FRANCHISE. THIS IS STRICTLY MY OPINION. I CAN SUPPLY YOU WITH REFERENCES OF FORMER DISTRIBUTORS WHO WILL TESTIFY TO THESE COMMENTS.”

  Junior – Glad to see it’s just his opinion. No reason for the facts then.

  [Do not post personal contact information in the comments. ADMIN]

• Tom wrote – “Junior- Were you the one that was a DM too? IF not you should be. SOunds like you went to the Glenn Vanderwall school of DM’s. Rather than try and right a wrong, deny, discredit and make personal attacks.”

  Junior – Glenn is a stand up man and he and I have had wonderful conversations. He and I taught classes together for DBR’s at EXPO. It’s my opinion they don’t get any better than Glenn.

  And I would love to take it outside with Tommy sir.

  [Do not make threats or reference violence, Junior. This is your 2nd & last warning. ADMIN]

• here are a few facts
  in december i got stuck with 2 4s 3 bay tool boxes. i onlyu ordered 1. i asked for proof that i had ordered 2 and how. it took them 4 months to come up with proof that i had ordered one . no one could prove the other one but it was left that way. i have both boxes in my garage now.
  then in march they sent out a letterfor the five closest dbrs ride. i was one of the five chosen but all my phone numbers had been changed to a dbrs that does very well. they just swapped hie numbers in my place. this was right after my yearly eval where my dm had told me that he would get me out clean if i wanted and i had agreed.
  brought in 2 more dbrs adjoining me but not for my area. then in sept i got terminated. my business went down hill when i lost 250 head count in one day. i requested a route resurvey. was blown off. and told , at the end of the day it is still your business. there was no place to grow my business. there is not enough to sustain another dbr. im waiting to see what happens.
  i had had a previous route for 2 years, never could get enough customers out of thier headcount. after i left they changed the route before putting in a new dbr. there is alot of room for improvement in their management to keep other people from losing their savings for no reason.

• junior– you missed the point, someone else explain it to him

• Junior- I’m sure you think that of Glenn. All Dm’s and RM’s do. Funny thing though is when I started having problems and got no help from Glenn, no one in Stow was surprised!

  Out of Larry’s own mouth he told me that “another DM would be fired on the spot for the poor job that was done on my LOC”. Glenn was an “untouchable”.

  I was a tech for 20 years prior. Glenn, Tom and Tim were EXACTLY like the “dirty tech” in the shop and management. Glenn is the tech that sells all the unneeded repairs, doesn’t install parts or do job he sold. And mangement is okay with that as long as he’s “making them money”. The rest of the techs bring it to managements attention, but they turn a blind eye. UNTIL they need a scapegoat.

  I suspect that’s what happened to Larry Fisher? He made waves and tried to out Glenn. Rather than deal with Lord Vanderwall, they cut Larry loose. Probably made him sign a no tattle agreement too!

  There are a lot of GOOD DBR’s. Kevin is one of the good ones! I will stand behind that no matter what.

  Same with Glenn during training in Stow. I was sent without a budget made out. Ole Glenn told us Matt would help us do that. Boy were MAtt AND Tracy PISSED when they found out what Glenn had told us! Both marched down to Tom and Tim ready to rip ass! They came back with tails between their legs and told us that they were sorry that Glenn would help us with it when we got home!

  Same with credit card machine. Ole Glenn said “Matt will show you in Stow”. WRONG! Again Matt was PISSED! Glenn NEVER did help me set that up. I spent a MONTH trying to get it up and running.

  Now I’m not saying that Glenn is not a swell neato keen guy when he’s with his “million dollar boys” the WIldhogs. BUT Ole Glenn DOES have TWO SIDES!

  I’m not asking you guys that have been or are successful to abondoned your experiences and accpet what we others have experience. I accept what you experienced. But I do ask that you keep an open mind and at least accept that there is a chance that all of us, from all over this counrty who tell the EXACT same story, DID experience what we say we have.

  I have TONS of “PROOF”! And I used it , with Jerry, to right a wrong. Don’t just dismiss us. Do what you do best. Attempt to bully and take your ball and go home because we don’t agree with you.

• It seems that Lenny has more common sense than most. He looked at the “business model” and saw right through hype. He read all the posts about DBR’s that were churned and burned and knows it’s true.

  He tried to get input from the Matco plants and figured out pretty quick they were all just posers trying to re-rail the topic………..”I just hit the 100K mark”………”I have a half a million $$$ home”………”Look at all the medals on my truck”………..ZZZZZZZZZZZZ.

• Bob, he has no info on me, he dosent even know how I am, he only wishes he did.Just like Lenny and everyone else put it,he” s a little boy with a screen name who wont publish his real name.He has no info on me at all, but he claims to have been up my D.M’s azz when I signed the paperwork, like normal, he is an azz kisser.

  He is jealous, because I posted the original complaint and got all this started.I am not going anywhere and I will continue posting, he ignores most of the questions, because he is a you know.

  I will continue posting everywhere and if makes him mad, tell him to do something about it.

  Bob, I agree with you ,we need to stick to the facts, as you can see , lemonjuice , tries to pick on everyone, I am ignoring him.

• I guess Chuck Bergen is making up all the info on the lawsuit, a matco insider, telling us how it really is, yea right, no one is commenting on Chuck,why?

  Chuck has alot of info on matco, why wont anyone challenge what he is saying?

  Chuck is on our side and he will shed alot of light on matco and the current distributors are really concerned, that is why they are trying to defend matco.

• At first I mistakenly had a shred of respect for Junior.
  After I saw the post below, I realized how meanspirited, petty & despicable a person could get.
  This guy is the lowest of the low, the scummiest of the scummy to post something as vindictive as that..
  I hope Junior gets with Jerry first thing tomorrow, because creating fake, slanderous job postings in someone’s home market is probably legally actionable.
  Junior’s been bragging about his deep pockets and rubbing everyone’s face in his big money car dealerships.
  What a scumbag thing to do.

  “Junior on December 20th, 2011 6:08 pm
  Tommy is looking for work I guess – http://www.laborjobcentral.com/jacksonville/2011/12/tommy-cheung-needs-work-jacksonville/
  Junior – Now that’s creative.”

• It dosent affect me , he’s not a man. I am ignoring him.

• Tom:

  Of course Junior thinks Glenn is a stand-up guy. He thinks of himself as a stand-up guy, yet look at how low he stooped to slander Tommy.

  Putting up a great front and acting like your best friend to your face, then being coldhearted and vindictive behind your back must be a requirement for the DM job.

  Imagine how low someone with successful car dealerships who hunts down a failed businessperson and makes fake, slanderous posts on local employment sites must be.

  That takes a special kind of sleaze.

• Just read “Junior’s” job listing for Tommy…………DEFINITELY DM attitude. Junior, really ? Did you just walk off the set of Hee Haw or what ?

  By the way………… WTF is a “sky-scrapper”?

• what makes me laugh is,my first post was 4 weeks ago.my shop has not seen our matco man in 4 weeks.Is it pressure or me being an x dist,no mayby x dm said dont go there, its a stange thing wow. because our matco guy is or was great a person.keep selling the best overseas tools in the world dont forget the american flags on them. is it yours, dont think so. wont reply back to the do gooders tonight

• Guest said: “Still waiting for your analysis of Awuah v. Coverall North America lawsuit and why Matco is not at risk of the same type of action.”

  Sorry it took so long to get back to you- I was out on my TOOL ROUTE, but you wouldn’t understand anything about that. You’re going to be waiting a little longer. I’ve got better things to do than search for hours on the net for things to copy-and-paste here. I will say though, your case you found has as much to do with Matco as O.J. Simpson’s murder trial has to do with any other ex-wife murderer. He beat the murder rap, so to you, that probably means that anybody else that murders their ex-wife will get off, too. Your logic, not mine. Might be a problem for ex-wives.

• Gary and Guest, no worries, he dosen’t have the balz to come to Jacksonville and face me man to boy, he hides behind a made up name.

  Keep posting anywhere and everywhere, we are being heard.

  espesially hit craigslist in all cities possible and be real loud, it may make him pissed, but whats he gonna do, nothing.

• MATCO TOOLS A FRANCHISE OR NOT?????

  Distinguishing Franchise and
  Nonfranchise Independent Contractors

  Franchise and nonfranchise relationships are
  similar methods for enabling a company to
  enlist others—presumed to be independent
  contractors—to offer, sell, or distribute the
  company’s goods and services at retail or
  wholesale.

  Operationally, little separates franc h i s e a n d non franchise arrangements. ever, from a regulatory perspective, franchises and nonfranchises are as different as night and day.

  Franchises are strictly creatures of statute.
  They are classically defined by the presence
  of three elements:

  1) a trademark license,

  2)significant assistance offered to, or control
  over, the licensee’s business, which may take
  the form of a prescribed marketing plan or
  what some jurisdictions more broadly describe
  as a community of interest, and

  3) payment of a required fee to the brand owner for the
  right to use or associate with the brand owner’s trademark.

  If any one statutory element is missing, the relationship is not a franchise.

  IF ANY ONE STATUTORY ELEMENT IS MISSING – THE RELATIONSHIP IS NOT ‘
  A FRANCHISE

  ***********so which is it?? IF IF IF Matco does NOT charge a franchise fee*****
  ***Well then, by definition – it is NOT a franchise*************

  OK, worker’s comp here I come!!

  Another two dozen states restrict the
  conditions under which a franchise may be
  terminated or not renewed.

  RESTRICT THE CONDITIONS UNDER WHICH A FRANCHISE MAY BE TERMINATED? REALLY, WOW, A LOT OF FRANCHISES HAVE BEEN TERMINATED —– WONDER IF THEY MET THE CONDITIONS???????????

  A franchisee cannot waive
  t h e s e s t a t u t e s e v e n i f i t w a n t s t o .

  ***SO MATCO DECIDE……. ARE YOU A FRANCHISE OR NOT????****

  THESE STATUES CANNOT BE WAIVED, SO IF YOU ARE NOT CHARGING A FRANCHISE FEE, ,,,,,,,, YOU ARE **NOT** A FRANCHISE

  guess that makes Matco an Employer…………………..

  SO, OK, still think you’re a FRANCHISE???

  what about number 2 significant assistance????

  SIGNIFICANT ASSISTANCE – WELL, I can certainly document the LACK of assistance………………………………

  SO, then Matco, IF you ARE a franchise then
  YOU ARE GUILTY OF BREECH OF CONTRACT

  EITHER WAY, MATCO HAS DONE SOMETHING WRONG………..

• Matco#1

  If I had to guess who you are I might think you are a RM who is going to be in deep POOH when he has to take the stand at trial and tell the truth about the fraud he performed against my franchise. The fraudulent survey you had my DM perform to back up your story to Matco about what a failure of a distributor I was to corporate. Yes Mr. Novak time will tell. My day in court will come. Oh did I mention theat fraud is punishable with prison time in Arkansas. You just got to have money, a good attorney and the truth on your side. I got the tri fecta.

• How do you people make any money being on this all day and all night ????
  Are you on this while your at work if so I hope you get fired. You wonder why you failed or are failing as a tool distributor because you didn’t work you stay up all night on the internet. Instead of selling tools you whine all day about how Matco is out to get you to bad your to foolish to see you got yourself. Matco might do things that piss you off but not working will only cause more problems. In court Matco will have your daily start and stop times and they will have records of you on the internet at 2 am just how do you sell tools when you are tired from all that crying.

• Tommy said: “Kevin, I am trying to screw matco, the same way you screw your customers. Go sell some tools made from overseas, not made in the U.S.A. LOL”

  So I screw my customers? How so? Is that how I’ve stayed in business for 22 years? And aparently you think Matco is doing something wrong by marketing tools from other countries? Find me a tool company that doesn’t do that, or even one that does it less than Matco. If ANY mobile tool company decided to sell only U.S. made products, they would be out of business within a year. Similar products to many of the tools we have made in other countries are not even produced here. You can thank the unions for that. And if I’m screwing my customers by selling them these products, then so is your sidekick Debbie, and so were YOU.

  On a side note, I’ve changed my mind on the viability of this website, and I’ll now thank you for starting it. This is the best site for potential distributors to view. The idiots will fall for your foolish rants, along with the rest of the WMD, and will stay away from Matco. The intelligent ones will see right through all your idiocy, and see exactly what kind of people fail in this business. It’s a great situation for Matco, since they really don’t need any more of those kind of distributors. So please, keep posting. The more you post, the clearer it becomes.

• So how are we going to make Matco pay for the things they have done to our businesses?

  I have no attorney as of yet but I got money.

  Honestly I have looked and talked to lots of attorneys but noone wants to take on Matco where I live.

  I talked to Kassoff out of New Jersey but his retainer agreement looked like a Matco contract.

• Relentless- I’m from IL and used Jerry Marks. Use him! You wil NOT be dissappointed! Best choice I ever made!

• yes call Jerry, he will be the best move for you.Just google snaponwives and see what he did to snapon.

• Kevin you are right on target. If anyone believes what Tommy says, we definately do not want them as fellow distributors.

• Relentless, not a RM, never have been, never will be. Did work under novak as a DM, and a DBR. I appreciate the promotion to RM, but I think I will pass.

  I can tell you I know most everyone that is on here, and nobody is an employee of MATCO, except for the one guy that got on a while back and said he was a DM and mentioned the Chrysler program…that’s your employee of MATCO, and that isn’t me, Tommy can tell you I already tried to change my name and got yelled at by ADMIN.

• Funny thing is I never posted the ad about Tommy in Craigslist. It was pointed out to me, very funny, but wrong guy. Funny how it was assumed I did it just because I found it.

  Also funny that when somethings posted about you on craigslist it’s no longer cool.

• Guest wrote – “Of course Junior thinks Glenn is a stand-up guy. He thinks of himself as a stand-up guy, yet look at how low he stooped to slander Tommy.”

  Junior – Jeez Guest, get a grip. I copied the ad not posted it. And slander? Are you kidding me? You don’t consider what you just said about Glenn or me slander? You are above such an act aren’t you?

• Tommy con’t – “I PERSONALLY BELIEVE MY DIST MANAGER NAMED, DARRYL PRITCHETT AND REGIONAL MANAGER, MIKE RAMEY HAD PERSONAL MOTIVES IN PUTTING ME OUT OF BUSSINESS.”

  Junior – NOW WAIT…earlier you said for “NO REASON” and now you say they have a reason?

• Dec 11th 2011 Tommy wrote – (this website) “This so true. it has happened to all of us in one way or another, the American dream has been shot down by matco.”

  Junior – Not all of us Tommy. You really should choose your words better.

• Tommy con’t – “We all wanted to own our own business, well it is not just your business, you are a subcontractor to ,matco.”

  Junior – So you agree that Debbie has incorrectly stated whether we were employees or contractors?

• Nov 30th 2011 Tommy wrote – “Just for the record, as I stated before, all my post on this site are my opinions and have never been stated as factual”

  Junior – WE FINALLY AGREE ON SOMETHING TOMMY. Yes, you are free to say whatever you want because NONE of it is based on FACTS!

• Tommy Snap On did what you wanted MATCO to do for you. When a dbr got behind on his toolbill, Snap On would “help” the dbr out and add his OPA to his note, clearing up his opa to buy again. Great plan, because now dbr was off hold and could order more tools.
  Unfortunately, after doing this a few times, a dbr would owe snap on $150,000 on a note, but would have $30,000 in inventory. Then the dbr would go out of business and owe $120,000 with no way to pay. This is why the wives got together and started the lawsuit.
  So Jerry sues Snap On, now you want him to sue MATCO for not doing what he sued Snap On for doing….hmmm.

• Tommy wrote – “making my rounds, and people were not buying or paying.”

  Junior – So it was the customer base not Matco is a SCAM. Which is it?

  Tommy wrote – “He did not give any advise on ways to make more sales or to convince people to pay.”

  Junior – And you continued doing the same thing over and over hoping what would happen? You’d fail so you could claim it’s a SCAM, spend the rest of your life posting your “opinion”?

  Tommy wrote – “Then at the district meeting, he comes out and says, yes the economy is in bad shape to all of us. What a way to change his story. Never once mentioned any way to keep sales going or any support at all.”

  Junior – Are these basically the same meetings I went too? The ones where Matco Corp built the slides of how to change your business in challenging times? Where tools were discounted? You know, the ones where you buy ten and go out and run a promotion? None of this worked for you I take it?

• Gary wrote – “”Just read “Junior’s” job listing for Tommy…………DEFINITELY DM attitude. Junior, really ? Did you just walk off the set of Hee Haw or what ?

  By the way………… WTF is a “sky-scrapper”?””

  Junior – Sorry ’bout that Gary. I get kicked in the head once in a while in sparring, makes me a little crazy here and there. But I gotta ask, what makes you think I posted it? I’m dieing to know. I liked it, I thought it was funny, but…

• Tommy wrote – “Cary, I will continue to kick them where it counts. The truth hurts, and the way matco does business is deceitful and illegal.”

  Junior – Just in your opinion right Tommy? We wouldn’t want to slander anyone without proof now.

• Do you want change?Have you considered a Matco Tools Franchise? Did you know
  Matco Tools is the #1 Rated Tool Franchise according to Entrepreneur Magazine? In
  addition we are the #5 Rated Home Base Business and #19 of the top 500 Rated
  Franchises.

  Following are just some of the many features and benefits an exclusive Matco Tools
  Franchise offers:

  *No initial Franchise Fee.
  *No Roylalty or Franchise Fees.
  *No exprerience necessary.
  *Owner Operated. No Employees necessary.
  *Exclusive customer base and territory.
  *Nationally respected brand.
  *Stability. 60 years of industry experience.
  *Home Base/low overhead.
  *Low Start-up cost. Matco Financing available for qualified applicants.
  *Unparalleled training and customer support. World Class rated customer service offered
  by a staff of approximately 500 employees to support 1500 franchisees.

  Are you ready for change? Are you ready to join a franchise which solely supports itself
  based on the success of its franchisees? If you’re ready to become your own boss and run
  your own business, then Matco Tools is the answer for you.

  To find out if your credentials match Matco Tools’ requirements, contact Rick Yoder, at
  http://www.gomatcotools.com, today to request a no obligation franchise packet.

• Helping Tommy get to that toaster at 2000 posts..

• Excellent post, guest17

• *****Franchise? Or Not??****

  Distinguishing Franchise and
  Nonfranchise Independent Contractors
  Franchise and nonfranchise relationships are
  similar methods for enabling a company to
  enlist others—presumed to be independent
  contractors—to offer, sell, or distribute the
  company’s goods and services at retail or
  wholesale.
  Operationally, little separates franc h i s e a n d non franchise arrangements. ever, from a regulatory perspective, franchises and nonfranchises are as different as night and day.
  Franchises are strictly creatures of statute.
  They are classically defined by the presence
  of three elements:
  1) a trademark license,
  2)significant assistance offered to, or control
  over, the licensee’s business, which may take
  the form of a prescribed marketing plan or
  what some jurisdictions more broadly describe
  as a community of interest, and
  3) payment of a required fee to the brand owner for the
  right to use or associate with the brand owner’s trademark.
  If any one statutory element is missing, the relationship is not a franchise.
  IF ANY ONE STATUTORY ELEMENT IS MISSING – THE RELATIONSHIP IS NOT ‘
  A FRANCHISE
  ***********so which is it?? IF IF IF Matco does NOT charge a franchise fee*****
  ***Well then, by definition – it is NOT a franchise*************
  OK, worker’s comp here I come!!
  Another two dozen states restrict the
  conditions under which a franchise may be
  terminated or not renewed.
  RESTRICT THE CONDITIONS UNDER WHICH A FRANCHISE MAY BE TERMINATED? REALLY, WOW, A LOT OF FRANCHISES HAVE BEEN TERMINATED —– WONDER IF THEY MET THE CONDITIONS???????????
  A franchisee cannot waive
  t h e s e s t a t u t e s e v e n i f i t w a n t s t o .
  ***SO MATCO DECIDE……. ARE YOU A FRANCHISE OR NOT????****
  THESE STATUES CANNOT BE WAIVED, SO IF YOU ARE NOT CHARGING A FRANCHISE FEE, ,,,,,,,, YOU ARE **NOT** A FRANCHISE
  guess that makes Matco an Employer…………………..
  SO, OK, still think you’re a FRANCHISE???
  what about number 2 significant assistance????
  SIGNIFICANT ASSISTANCE – WELL, I can certainly document the LACK of assistance………………………………
  SO, then Matco, IF you ARE a franchise then
  YOU ARE GUILTY OF BREECH OF CONTRACT
  EITHER WAY, MATCO HAS DONE SOMETHING WRONG………..

• WOW! Kevin!

  That is bold. So I guess I will explain just in case someone is watching our site.

  Here is what Matco did for my FRANCHISE.

  First the Distributor before me only worked 3 days on a Matco route and yes I bought it. I also bought his truck. I could have taken a route closer to where I lived but I liked the truck and established customers. Did not want the Isuzu Matco was cramming down my throat.

  So I went to this distributors house and I saw his financials. I cringed he was not doing well. Of course, he only had 3 days on route per week the other two and Saturday he was restoring vintage cars.

  I talked to DM who had told me this was a great business opportunity and explained to him I had my doubts about the route. I told him I didn’t think by looking at the financials and the amount of customers on the books I could be competitive with the 333 customers I was given which was largely made up of very few shops:

  Monday- 13 shops 68 customers (One shop had 5 customers and while I was riding around with Trainer the first week he informed trainer and myself that he had told DM he didn’t want a Matco truck on his property) So -5 equals 63

  Tuesday- 6 shops 73 customers (5 shops were part of 1 Auto Park) it was really two shops.

  Wednesday-3 shops 68 customers

  Thursday- 4 shops 76 customers

  Friday- 7 shops 48 customers

  Grand total of 33 shops and 328 customers.

  So I explain to DM that this is a very low number and I think that distributor I did ride with has a lot more customers and definitely a larger route.

  He tells me “that Matco usually gives Distributors a minimum head count and leaves it up to them to grow their own route.” That made sense to me. People who work hard succeed and those who start up a franchise and don’t work will fail. He assures me that I will pick up shops that need a Matco distributor because they will call me when they see my truck on the road and get the number off the back and side of truck. He also tells me to call him if I want to add a shop so that I don’t pick up shops that belong in someone elses area or on an open route.

  So i go to training come back load up my truck and start my franchise. Things were terribly slow in the begining. Learning the computer, talking about tools instead of turning them. But after two months I found myself going home early every day two days by 2:00 and 2 days by noon. The other day 7-5.

  I was hitting all the shift jobs during the daytime when other distributors serviced them and I got to thinking when I was a tech and how it made me feel when other tool guys would not come and service me on a third or second shift. So, I restructured my route and started working longer hours and as people called me and needed service I would add them to my route calling my DM for approval first.

  After about 6 months I was kicking ass! My customers loved and respected me. I would work late come on their shift and not in between shifts. My DM was plastering my walls with sales achievements plaques from meetings. Life was good.

  I filled the holes in my day with shops I added with DM approval.

  Things are going so well I was inventory rich. I was putting on my truck 3/4 in drive everything. I was stocking specialty tools out my butt. I was adding pliers and all kinds of tools I thought I would need when I turned wrenches. I was living the Matco dream.

  In June of 2005 I had a fire on my truck and found myself in a bit of a pickle on a tool truck. It seems that no companies(Not Matco’s Vendors) except for the manufacturer of my truck would take my truck in trade. So I did trade my truck in and got a bigger one because I had grown my inventory to over $200,000 my cost. I bought a 26′ Peterbilt.

  So although I was without an actual tool truck for 6 months I had acheived a top 50 ranking with Matco Tools in 2005. I worked out of a temp truck and it was such a piece of crap that I ended up working out of my Jeep Cherokee a bunch.

  So at Cancun, Mexico Expo in Feb. 2006 I receive an award from Matco being 41 out of over 1500 distributors from my new RM Tim Novak. I also received a GOLD sales excellence ring as well. Our whole District received awards for being a #1 District. Our DM was pumped. He was talking about growing our District and helping our Region become #1 in 2006. I purchased around $25,000 at Expo.
  I remember Tim Novak asking me to tell the other distributors in our Region what I did that made me so successful. I told them say hi and talk to every customer in the shop every week. Work longer hours than your competiton. Tote and promote Matco products.

  In less than 3 months after Expo my DM was fired. A fellow distributor would quit has franchise (I believe he was 45 out of 1500+) and I would be threatened by Tim Novak to surrender shops I had established with my Ex DM (of which I had PSA written and credit apps approved and denied.) or I could lose my franchise.

  Having Tim Novak in my home and knowing that I am heavily invested in tools and truck and with Tim threatening my franchise I caved. He left me with Rick Pena to decide what shops I would be surrendering and I did.

  Before Rick Pena came to me he and another DM surveyed our entire area and only found around 100 shops not getting service between me and another distributor Bud Cook. Rick explained to me that during his surveys he only found two shops that had negative things to say about me and that over 95% of my customers were happy to have me as their distributor. But he also explains to me that one of the reasons my DM had been terminated was because he had promised a new distributor Michael Johnson a Distributor Franchise but had not surveyed a route to put him in. Rick had been tasked with the duty of finding this Distributor a route. I suggested to Rick that there were at least three different routes available in Little Rock and I knew that there were others elsewhere but Rick said that this distributor was promised a route in NWA. I told him I didn’t care and that everything I had had been approved through my DM to call on. I even told him about shops I had picked up temporarily to help prep a route Kevin Hodges dad Gerald had taken so that TP would be established and customers broken tools would get serviced before Gerald got there.

  He showed me his survey sheets and I asked him if I could keep them. I DID!

  He showed me sheets with tacks on them in different colors showing shops with no service, shops with my “LOC”, shops I was calling on but had not been signed into my route list. I asked if I could keep them. I DID!

  I told him that I wasn’t giving up one shop and that I was servicing them all and he himself said my customers were happy. He said that is all true but this distributor was promised a route and my shops that I had added were not secured on my route list. I told him my DM gave me approval to call on them. He informed me according to my contract that they have to be in writing and signed by me and DM. I told him I didn’t care. I also told him maybe it was time to talk to a lawyer.

  Fact of the matter is I was still paying off tools ordered from Expo. I owed over 10,000 on deferred payments of inventory that was rolling in months after Expo. I couldn’t afford an attorney at that time.

  But soon Tim Novak flew in from Texas and threatened me with my franchise. Showed me the same tacks on a route maps (which I kept Yes I have Tim and Rick copies of the same goople map crap) I ask him point blank “Can I lose my franchise if I don’t surrender shops” he says “Yes”.

  So I surrender because although I was sure I was right and I new my fired DM gave me those shops it did say it had to be in writing. I felt it would be better to float in the boat than hire an attorney and maybe sink it.

  Tim left and I gave Rick enough customers to give Michael 338 customers on his “LOC”.

  So I am thinking it is a shitty deal but it is over. Not so. Rick comes back to my house and tells me that I gave Michael “JUNK SHOPS” and tells me “Michael deserves the same opportunity you had to become a successful distributor.” I tell him. Yeah he is right and that him being successful is going to destroy me. He tells me I am a good salesman and that I can build it agian but this time make sure your DM does his job. I tell him I am “but I have a large inventory and a new truck. How am I going to make it with the bills I have. He tells me I will manage. Then he tells me he has been authorized to give me 3 MB4725 for my trouble. I told him I could buy four in one month with the over $2000 a week in TP I was being forced to give up before I give up more customers. He tells me well you can take the boxes and surrender the shops or not take the boxes and surrender the shops either way Matco was going to give him more of my shops.

  So, I gave him every 2nd and 3rd shift shop I had. My thinking was if this guy wanted my success he was going to have to work the same way I did to get it. So Mike ends up with over 450 customers to call on. I am reduced to 350 and a lot of what I was given were shops that Bud Cook didn’t want to call on. Yeah I can say that too because I have Matco route sheets to prove it.

  One of the last things I asked Rick to do was when I found new shops that I would be allowed to call on them. He told me he wasn’t my DM and he thought that my new DM Anthony Kramer (who was a previous Snap-On distributor and had been in my District as a Distributor for less than a year) could help me establish new shops on my route list.

  So within two or three months of surrendering shops I have two brand new shops opening up on a street where Bud Cook and myself overlap on Moberly Lane in Bentonville. I call and ask Anthony about a month before they actually open if I can call on them and he says to get him an address when they open with the name of the shop and customer count and he will add them to my route list.

  So I swing by on Wednesday, the day I service that area , and they inform me they already have a Matco distributor and he came by the day before. So I call Anthony and ask him if he gave the shops to Bud Cook and he tells me “No”. I remind him that he told me I could call on them and he tells me to call Bud.

  So I call Bud Cook and ask him if he is calling on the new shops. He tells me “No. I gave those shops to Michael Johnson.” I say “Okay” and I call Anthony back. I ask Anthony “Since when do distributors assign shops to other distributors?” Anthony tells me “They can’t” and I tell Anthony “Then why did Bud tell me he gave the shops to Michael Johnson?” He tells me “He can’t do that.” I tell him “That’s your job. Right?” and he says “Yes”. So we hang up with the understanding that I will be calling on those shops. Then I get a call from Anthony telling me that “things are going to stay the way they are.” I can’t believe it.

  So I don’t give up I tell him I need to talk to him. He comes to my house and tallks with me and my wife. I tell him that is wrong to let a distributor call on shops when he doesn’t have any shops on that street already. Not to mention the fact that I put him in business and he already has more head count than I do. Anthony once again tells me those shops are mine and that I am right and this should never have happened.

  Two days later Anthony tells me that this decision is not his and that “It is out of my hands.”

  Over the course of the next two years I will lose a large percent of my customers due to an ailing economy. I will have multiple shops close and work reduction in every shop I have. Hardly no new businesses will open doors and many will open and close within a years time.

  Sometime in the Spring of 2009 I will tell Anthony I need a route resurvey done because I do not have anywhere near the minimum a new distributor has to start a new franchise. He tells me he is very busy but can get it done around the fall.

  In Nov. 2009 I will call Anthony and plead with him that I am fixing to lose an Important dealership who is closing their doors forever Bob Maloney Ford and that it is imperative that my route be resurveyed. I am told once again that it is the Holidays and in the New Year it will happen.

  Then in January of 2010 Anthony sends me an email stating I am at a YTD purchase average of $1,608.02 and that I am not at 80% of the National average. It also states that “Our end-user customers expect and deserve Matco products from their Matco Tools Distributor. Since I didn’t find this email until after I was terminated because Anthony knows I have never communicated by email. I ask you why would a DM who’s job is supposed to be supporting distributors not at least call me? Is it because I had already asked once and begged another time in the same year for a resurvey?

  So Anthony said resurvey in the new year. It never happened!

  On July 12, 2010 I get “THE LETTER” stating I have 90 days to cure a violation of my purchase average. Not being at 80% of the National Average. If I do not cure within 90 days Matco has good cause to separate. If I repeat same violation within a year Matco can terminate my franchise.

  As soon as I get the letter I come home and start raising hell with Tim. I told him that it was pretty shitty that He would separate me from Matco after I had been begging for a resurvey of my route Anthony said he would perform. I also told him that I had not received one shop added to my route list since he ruined my business in 2006.

  I felt like I was getting nowhere so I started calling corporate and gathering route list to prove I had a low head count to corporate.

  Thats when I received a letter from Anthony stating he had performed a survey of my route and found I was only servicing 67% of my of 328 customers. A totally fraudulent survey. There were shops on the survey that had not been open for over 9 months, there were shops I never heard of, there were shops that he asked me to call on but never added them to my route list. There were shops with inflated numbers.

  Again, I RAISE HELL. I try to talk with Tom Willis and Ernie Lauber but I am not getting any returned phone calls with messages I leave.

  Then, on July 28, 2010 I get a call from Anthony. He has good news and wants to meet me the next day. We set up a meeting at McDonalds because when he lied to my wife and I over those two shops on Moberly Lane my wife told him to never set foot on our property again.

  At the meeting he hands me a route list to sign which says I will have 405 customers to call on. I am overjoyed! I felt someone at Matco had heard of the fraud and made it right. I ask Anthony “Why did it have to come to this for them to take care of me.” He told me “I have more freedom than I did in the past and I deserved this opportunity.

  So I go right to work. I take a purchase average of 620 per week off the false survey performed on July 26, 2010 and turn it into a 1,472 per week purchase average by the end of the year. I was above the 13 wk National Purchase average at the end of the year.

  Yes, I did take three weeks off at the end of the year. One Thanksgiving week and Two Christmas into New Years. I have two kids who were 10 and 11 who were at home as well. The weather would not be kind in the new year having over two weeks of snow days in which I would have to take care of my kids because my wife has worked full time every since Tim cut my route in 06.

  On February 11, 2011 I would receive a conference call from Tim Novak with Anthony Kramer in attendance where Tim informed me that I was no longer a Matco Distributor. When I asked why he told me I had gone back to doing what I did before. I asked specifically and he told me I was not at 80% of the National Average. I told him what about the four feet of snow in my driveway. He told me its too late. I asked if I could start another route somewhere else where their wasn’t a distributor. He told me “I don’t care what you do you won’t be doing it with Matco.” I asked him what about moving to Kansas and selling tools for Matco their? He said “I don’t care what you do you won’t be doing it with Matco.” I asked him if I could at least service my customers till Matco found a replacement. Again he said “I don’t care what you do you won’t be doing it with Matco.”

  What really blew me away was sometime in late November 2010, after my cure period Anthony shows up out of the blue on my truck. I ask him “Oh No! What did I do now?” Anthony proceeds to tell that I am “doing great”. I ask him what about the letter and he tells me “forget the letter ever existed” “your doing great” “just keep doing what you been doing.” I ask him specifically about the one year clause in the letter and he tells me if anything is going to happen he will contact me first. Just like he always did he lied again. Noone ever called and asked if I had a Death in the family. Noone asked if I was sick. Noone called to tell me what a terrible distributor I am.

  Matco didn’t do a damn thing to help me and lied to me every chance they got.

  Did I mention again that Anthony Kramer and Tim Novak hired Robert Demers a long time Snap-On distributor who won a Harley Davidson and a BMW Mini-Cooper for his sales excellence with Snap-On to come on board with Matco as a District Manager in San Antonio Texas less than 6 months after he filed bankruptcy in Arkansas.

  Did I mention Bob told me personally that he hated being a Manager for Snap-On for the year he did it and he told me he would never do that agin.

  Did I mention that Bob was made a Distributor a few months after I received my Separation letter from Matco?

  Guess where Bob assumed his route where two failed distributors had ran a franchise?

  Yes. Bob is back in his home town in Michael Johnson’s old route.

  Now! You smart intellegent people can probably find something to smart off about I am sure. But anyone who has a brain can figure out this is one SCREWED UP FRANCHISE.

• You wanted facts!

• Do you want change?- Get screwed by matco-yea
  Have you considered a Matco Tools Franchise? -yes and got screwed by them
  Did you know- yes, you can get screwed by by them at their discretion.
  Matco Tools is the #1 Rated Tool Franchise according to Entrepreneur Magazine? – chek unhappy franchises and sba ratings
  In addition we are the #5 Rated Home Base Business and #19 of the top 500 Rated- they paid the magazine for that rating
  Franchises.

  Following are just some of th every few features and no benefits an exclusive Matco Tools
  Franchise offers:

  *No initial Franchise Fee.-built in tool prices
  *No Roylalty or Franchise Fees-built in tool prices
  *No exprerience necessary- exactly, and they wont train you either- 2 weeks in class and two days on the road and a D.M. that cant write a contract and didnt even seed my full week before going out, just ask D.M. John Clark.
  *Owner Operated. No Employees necessary, you put together the foreign made carts.
  *Exclusive customer base and territory- until they cut your route and they reserve the right to do it.
  *Nationally respected brand- well known overseas and manufactured overseas
  *Stability. 60 years of industry experience- no stability, they can terminate when they want, they will find a bogus reason.
  *Home Base/low overhead- cant park a truck in subdivision, against rules of city.
  *Low Start-up cost. Matco Financing available for qualified applicants- dont go through SBA, you will be screwing American Taxpayers, screw matco.
  *Unparalleled training and customer support. World Class rated customer service offered- what training, D.M. was no support, and customer service, check wait time for answers to a problem, won’t happen.
  by a staff of approximately 500 employees to support 1500 unhappy franchisees.

  IS this where you want to invest your money?

• The total amount of people unhappy with matco- 1793

  The total amount of people happy with matco- 79, wow this number hasn’t changed, why,thats right I shouldn’t ask questions, they won’t get answered.

  These numbers are outstanding that soo many people are pissed at matco, even the obc club, they are posting and hiding behind us to see what the outcome will be.WOW

  MATCO, GUESS WHAT, THE FEDS ARE COMING TO STOW, AND SO IS JERRY AND THE GANG, INCLUDING THE DEFENDERS, THEY WANT A REFUND ALSO, THEY HIDE BEHIND US, UNHAPPY FRANCHISEES AND SCREEN NAMES.

• NOT opinion —– FACTS:

  Inflated call lists – SEVERAL DBRs document
  False surveys – some not done at all!
  Repeated requests for assistance – all unanswered
  Lie after lie after lie……

  All Facts, documented by SEVERAL DBRs – the
  accounts told are eriely similiar, sadly similar – the
  SAME fraudulent business practices were repeated
  Over and Over

  Churn and Burn……..,.. FACT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

• Churn and Burn, Non Factual…if it was Debbie, you would be gone!

• ************CHURN AND BURN – FACT******************

  http://www.unhappyfranchisee.com/matco-tools-franchise-distributor-churning/

  In Item 20 of the Disclosure Document, MATCO discloses information which suggests a fundamental failure of its franchise system is taking place.

  The information contained in the Disclosure Document paints a picture of failure on large scale, year after year ………..

  MATCO Tools has, nonetheless, continued to offer and sell Distributorships despite the pattern of early failure

• ****************DISTRIBUTOR CHURNING – FACT*********************

  In Item 20 of the Disclosure Document, MATCO discloses information which suggests a fundamental failure of its franchise system is taking place.

  The information contained in the Disclosure Document paints a picture of failure on large scale, year after year ………..

  MATCO Tools has, nonetheless, continued to offer and sell Distributorships despite the pattern of early failure

• Tommy wrote – “I was in the top 200, for your info”

  Junior – With Matco? I can’t seem to find this anywhere Tommy.