MINT CONDITION Franchise Complaints
Mint Condition franchise complaints include dirty tactics, jacking up fees by moving accounts from one franchisee to another, not delivering promised revenue, forcing franchisees to work without compensation, and retaliating against franchisees who stand up for their rights.
Have you had experience – good or bad – with the Mint Condition commercial cleaning franchise company? If so, please share your opinion with a comment below.
(UnhappyFranchisee.com) Jack Saumby and his wife Marcy Saumby founded Mint Condition Franchising in Charlotte, South Carolina, in 1996.
According to Entrepreneur, Mint Condition Franchising had 287 franchisees in 2014.
The Mint Condition Commercial Cleaning franchise website claims that “There is minimal risk associated with owning a commercial cleaning franchise through Mint Condition.”
It claims that “At Mint Condition, we treat our owner-operators like family; you will always receive the respect and commitment from us that you deserve. As our success depends on your success, we do everything possible to ensure that your ownership in Mint Condition is one that leaves you satisfied.”
However, a lawsuit filed by six franchisees against the franchisor tells a very different story.
We received a list of complaints regarding Mint Condition cleaning franchise from one of the plaintiffs in the suit. The complaints beneath each sub-headline are from the Mint Condition franchise owner.
NOTE: We invite all, including Mint Condition Franchising, Inc., Jack Saumby, Marcy Saumby, and both Master and Unit franchisees to provide their opinions, statements, rebuttals, clarifications or other statements. It is out goal to give voice to both sides so prospective franchisees can make up their own minds.
MINT CONDITION Franchise Complaints Received by UnhappyFranchisee.Com
1. Mint Condition Franchising Preys on Lower Middle Class Individuals
Mint Condition Commercial Cleaning Franchise located at 1057 Red Ventures Dr. Suite 165 Fort Mill, SC 29707 engages in a systematic pattern of abuse and fraud against its franchisees who are overwhelmingly poor to lower middle class individuals and generally cannot afford to fight them in court. Mint Condition exploits their advantages over their franchisees and rules their operations with an iron fist.
2. Mint Condition Churns Franchisee Cleaning Accounts to Boost Its Fees
Mint Condition takes money from their franchisees in the form of “replacement fees” which amounts to 9% of the gross receipts of each account (of course franchisees only get paid on the net proceeds) then at their choosing and more often than not without justification, they pull franchisees out of these accounts and do not replace the accounts or refund the monies paid as the original replacement fee.
Then to add insult to injury, Mint Condition resells the accounts to other franchisees, wherein they make additional monies from the “sale” of the contract by collecting or financing at 10% APR, a second fee for the same account. Mint Conditions has resold many accounts 5 – 10 times, each time collecting a new “sales” fee and each time restarting the clock on a new notes payable for the sale of the business to another franchisee.
3. Mint Condition Forces Franchisees to Work for Free
Mint Condition routinely forces its franchisees to perform work over and above the work specified in their cleaning contracts, for no additional compensation. Furthermore, if a franchisee complains, he is blacklisted and offered no new business and again replacement business is not made available.
4. Mint Condition Does Not Deliver Promised Revenue
Mint Condition has a history of not meeting the monetary business levels that franchisees pay for. Many former franchisees became disenchanted with Mint Condition’s bullying tactics and simply walked away, never realizing the earning potential that was presented to them. In most of these instances, Mint Condition offered little to nothing in the way of refunds and still made handsome profits from the egregious mark-up they place on their cleaning package, which franchisees are required to purchase through the company as well as the 70/30 split on any work performed during the tenure of these people.
5. Mint Condition “Engages in “Dirty Tactics” & Treats Franchisees Differently
Mint Condition engages in dirty tactics including creating fictitious complaints to justify taking work from existing franchisees to meet the obligations of new franchisees, when their sales efforts are inadequate to meet a new franchisees’ paid level of expected business. Mint Condition has openly admitted to its franchisees that it favors new franchisees over existing franchisees who have already paid their dues and have helped grow the business.
6. Mint Condition’s Insurance Requirements Are Overpriced & Deceptive
Mint Condition claims to allow its franchisees the freedom to secure their own insurance except that no franchisee (not one of more than 100 active or probably 200 + that has ever existed) has ever been able to find a company that offers an exact replica of the coverages that Mint Condition offers. Therefore, Mint Condition’s claim that franchisees have the freedom to secure their own insurance is a falsehood. Mint Condition franchisees have no say-so about the price of the insurance they are forced to purchase through the company and are never given the opportunity to competitively shop for the best deal possible. Also, did I mention that Mint Condition franchisees pay a flat 4% (of the gross) fee for each and every account they get. Depending upon the size of one’s franchise, the insurance costs alone can be several hundred dollars per month. Additionally, Mint Condition does not provide its franchisees with copies of the insurance policy and makes all insurance decisions with consultation from their insurance agent, never involving franchisees in these matters. I know of a situation where a franchisee made a claim and had an attorney review the matter and offer his opinion about which clause the matter fell under. Mint Condition ignored the franchisee’s attorney recommendation and went with the recommendation of their insurance agent and against the wishes of the franchisee took monies out of his check after the franchisee explicitly told Mint Condition not to do as much.
7. Mint Condition Retaliates Against Franchisees Seeking Legal Action
Mint Condition, unlike some other cleaning franchises does not offer arbitration. I suspect that this is part of their business strategy to further deter franchisees from challenging their imperial rule. However, 6 present franchisees have retained an attorney and have filed suit against them in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina. As of the writing of this communication, I am a plaintiff and I have seen my monthly income reduced by over $10,000 per month since early 2014. I can only attribute this to the retaliation .
8. Mint Condition Commercial Cleaning is an Unscrupulous Company
Your readers need to know how unscrupulous this company is.
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Can someone share the law office or attorney used by the six plaintiffs in the lawsuit? I’m a current Franchisee and I have and I am currently experiencing the unfair business tactics shared in the article.