Is Snappy Auctions a Great Franchise Opportunity?
April 20, 2007 by Sean Kelly
Filed under Business
While the largest, most celebrated eBay drop-off store franchise concept , iSold It, has closed 60 stores, suspended domestic franchise sales and warned it may be on the verge of collapse, its next-largest competitor remains upbeat and continues to promote its franchise program.
In a company press release, Snappy Auctions celebrates inclusion on the list that made iSold It famous:
Snappy Auctions has been listed in Entrepreneur Magazine’s Franchise 500 list for the first time… With over 63 units open, Snappy Auctions ranked 309th in the survey, in only its 2nd full year of operation. The Nashville, Tenn. based franchise enables customers to make money off of items that are sold on eBay…
Snappy Auctions CEO Debby Gordon claims that Snappy Auctions is not suffering the same fate as competitor iSold It. In fact, snappy Auctions is doing phenomenally:
“We are poised for a phenomenal 2007, after an incredible 2006,” Gordon continued, “and this accolade is just the beginning.” In 2006, Snappy Auctions launched Snappy Sales Solutions, S3, which has contributed to its recent success. “S3 is yet another step toward our goal of changing the way businesses get value from retired equipment and inventory.”
Snappy Auction also boasts having been named one of Franchise Business Review’s Franchise 50, which honors franchise systems based on outstanding franchisee satisfaction through owner surveys and comments.
According to a Ina Steiner’s column on AuctionBytes.com, “Despite the challenges, Snappy Auctions CEO Debbie Gordon believes in the concept and says it’s all about execution.”
Can Snappy Auctions really be succeeding while iSold It, with much the same business model, is fighting for survival? Have they successfully overcome the challenges that eBay drop-off store critics contend make the concept unworkable? What do you think?
YOU’RE INVITED TO LEAVE A COMMENT ON WHETHER YOU THINK SNAPPY AUCTIONS IS A GREAT FRANCHISE OPPORTUNITY.
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Get Real you nailed it!
Instead of posts showing facts to make this concept work, there seems to be alot of excuses by “profiting” stores labeling others who have closed as negative. Actually the people who have closed their stores and gotten on with their lives, are positive too. They took positive steps toward making there life less miserable. That is commendable – not negative!
If the stores are failing, not prospering, then that is what you will hear, and what you have been hearing! If there REALLY is proof of successful stores-what are they afraid of…a thankyou!
PS. Gene and Karen said they would gladly post the “positive” data (if you can back it up), except that in the last three years there hasn’t been any! Imagine that!
I just ran the numbers again for the existing Snappy stores. It’s not much better than last time. I’m guessng the numbers got better since several “lower performing” stores are no longer open.
So over time, the numbers should look better as more stores drop off only leaving the higher performing stores.
Lone Texan, I feel your pain. And I agree that most of the time I emailed or talked to Snappy I got a condescending reply and rarely got the info I needed. However, I rarely dealt with the nice ones there so I can only comment on the other people in support who treated me like a child. I stopped listening to the weekly calls long ago since I got really tired of the BS and the fact that anyone who disagreed got a call later from someone at HQ, so no one ever disagreed.
Location is not a panacea. In most cases, it’s an albatross franchisees have to bear. My ex-employee has gone out on her own with no overhead and is doing fine. No high priced rent, no 12-20% of your sales/freight going to Snappy.
I know I’m flogging a dead horse, but IT DOESN’T WORK AND SNAPPY WILL NEVER EVER EVER EVER EVER IN A MILLION YEARS ADMIT TO ANYTHING!!!! It’s not in their DNA. That dog won’t hunt.
There. I feel better, except for that huge whole in my wallet where my life savings used to be.
Any update on a group action against Snappy? I’m in.
Been There,
I’d love to see one of the lawyers that read this blog to pick up the ball and start filing papers against snappy and become involved. Not being a lawyer myself, but watching lots of lawyers tv (now that I’m unemployed) – I would think that once an action is initiated they would be able to obtain any info via discovery and snappy corp would be required to comply – THEN WE WILL KNOW THE TRUTH.
As you know, Hillary and I are both attorneys with offices in Little Rock, AR, NY, NY and Climax Michigan.
Although there are over 250 comments on this blog, indicating some real pain, suffering and financial losses by a rather significant number, here is my opinion from under my desk. Until someone presents an arguable case against Snappy Auctions that those affected can believe in to seek remedy, along with creating a strong organized front, no one will come forth, identify themselves, provide evidence and be subject to what would be all the defense Snappy can afford.
In a nut shell, much sabre rattling, but no real organization nor plan forward seen at this point.
Call 1-800-SLY-BILL if you need me.
Dear Bill:
Formal organization is constantly thawted by HQ, and misrepresentation and breach of contract are obvious out here! Unfortunaetly, lawyers tend to represent the franchisors who have the money for litigation. Out of work, broke franchisees are not high on their priority list. What we need is to get this story and all the other stories picked up by national news. So franchisees, GET YOUR STORY OUT HERE! It is hard to ignore a group!
Alright, you all are getting flat out ridiculous. You’re going to sue the company for what?
Please feel me in, I’m a bit lost reading this.
When Bill Clinton starts talking about rattling his saber, I get nervous.
Sean, I’m more afraid of Hilary!
“Alright, you all are getting flat out ridiculous. You’re going to sue the company for what?
Please feel me in, I’m a bit lost reading this.”
Let me show you “R”
http://www.nashvillepost.com/news/2006/6/26/nashville_businesswomans_california_entry_marks_26th_state
According to this article, “112 other franchises, altogether in the hands of 56 franchisees in 26 states.”
Do the math, 112 total sold say at a very conservative $15k = $1.68 Million
112 @ $20K = $2.24 Million
Plus Japan @ $750k and on-going royalties, so there is some money there! We need to organize!!!
But again, I ask you…on what basis would you sue? Why? I can see there’s money, but what would be accomplished?
R. I beginning to think you are not among the ranks of ex-owners. We want compensation for being sold a faulty product. If you bought a product from someone who told you it was in perfect working order and you did your due diligence and it looked OK, but you found out later it wasn’t what you paid for, what would you do?
You can say we knew what we were getting into, but that doesn’t hold up. We were told this was a tested franchise. That we could expect to show a profit after 2-3 months and pay off our investment in 18 months.
We were sold a faulty product and we want our money back.
The basis…misrepresentation. Like if I tell you I’m a skilled surgeon and I cut you open and later when you’re really sick you find out I only went to part of medical school. What would you do?
R……did you own a Snappy store or do you currently own one?
“R”, you are trying to get legal information on something which you are NOT part of, which tells us you are NOT a franchisee.
However, “Turnkey & proven system” are the key words for today! Neither apply to what was purchased by franchisees. Perhaps a group action could bankrupt the company, and then no one would have to pay royalties (yeah), and bad press could keep others from buying into a misrepresented store (one less family to bankrupt). Ya gotta admit, these sound like good reasons for a law suit!
If Snappy is continuing to monitor these posts they are staying strangely quiet.
Yoooo hooooo…..Snappy….come out to play……Sean laid out a challenge. Where are you? Show us the numbers. Prove it works.
I guess they took their ball and went home.
Nice logic Chance (Uh, I mean K&G). bankrupt the company so no one pays royalties: Let’s say Snappy ends up with 10 franchises left that are doing ok for their owners. You bankrupt Snappy. They’ll be no more royalties to pay, and no more software for the owners to use . YOU (and your group) just put 10 families out of business. Nice. I doubt they’ll want to buy/subscribe to another management software and transfer all their customer data along with it. It will put them – innocent franchisees – out of business too. And btw, whatever your experience (with ISI ), your posts only hurt the remaining people that are trying to run their business. I understand your frustrations, but there are other people trying to make a go of this and you, Get Real, and the rest of the naysayers are just hurting them (innocent people). For the record, I am a friend of an owner.
P.S. If stores are closing as fast as you all say, and the model doesn’t work, ISI and Snappy will be out of business eventually and there will be no new “families to bankrupt.” Wlll you (all) be happy then? Or after you put people out of business?
Please go back and look at my posts, never claimed to be an owner; just interested. I just think you all are nuts for the lawsuit thing, is any of that information in writing about being profitable and so forth? That’s the only way it would be feasible.
Other than that, you are just suing because you’re upset and lost money. Am I wrong?
Well R. it’s like this. You tell franchisors they will be profitable in 2-3 months and be able to pay off their investment in 18 months, you kinda open yourself up. Also, when you look at litigation against other franchisors like Quiznos and ISold-it, you have a leg to stand on when it comes to suing these bozos.
Why would we want to do this? One, I need to pay my bills and these people misrepresented themselves when they sold us these franchises. It’s been written up in several articles and I know several lawyers who have reviewed the situation and they say there’s a case. But there’s one catch: how much money do these bozos have? Lawyers don’t work for free. At least none I know.
R., maybe you have a ton of money laying around but I don’t and I feel it’s only fair that Snappy owes us some money back on a defective product.
Anyone else smell a rat?
Flawed thoughts said:Nice logic… bankrupt the company so no one pays royalties… put 10 families out of business.
FT: Thanks for your comment. Your point raises a valid concern. However, if (or when) these companies go bankrupt it will not be because of blog discussions about their franchise opportunities; it will be because they are selling dreams, clouds, ideas of success, not a viable business model. Scan these comments to see how many times I’ve asked for data on profitable stores, or for the specific strategies store owners can use to achieve profitability. Silence. The problem is that Chance’s & the “naysayers’” complaints are very specific and factual Those in defense of the franchisors are very vague.
The current franchisees should be participating in these discussions and using this forum to put pressure on the franchisors to help them find viable solutions, new strategies, new ideas. The entire concept needs to be rethought. Have these franchisors reduced or discontinued royalties for troubled stores? Are they providing the necessary marketing tools? Are they putting pressure on eBay for fee concessions? Shouldn’t these franchisors need to step up and fight for the survival of these franchisees. You paid for it and you should demand it. Sheep are for shearing, FT, and that’s what silence buys you.
How much time did Snappy Auctions put into orchestrating their license in Japan? Do you think you put together a deal like that without spending hundreds of man-hours and tens of thousands of dollars with attorneys? Are you OK with that kind of focus being put on expansion into another country when it could have been put into support for the domestic franchisees, and fixing the problems for those who invested and believed in the company?
If those last ten families go baa-baa, lose their investments and their homes, it won’t be because of Chance’s warnings to would-be franchise owners. It’ll more likely be because the Snappy Auctions corporate office is focused on selling Snappy China, Snappy Saudia Arabia or Snappy Atlantis.
Yeah what about the 10 that are doing well? There are not 10 doing well, maybe 2. What about the other 50 that have lost their life savings, homes, health and so on? What about them Flawed Thoughts? Please tell us. While the Gordon Gang all gets paychecks and Adrienne is off jet setting probably opening offshore bank accounts to hide money in, owners are on the verge of losing everything they have ever worked for, store owners past and present are left to suffer because of lies, misrepresentation, and fraudulent transactions by Snappy Auctions. That expansion in Japan is really paying off for all of us here in the States! Why hasn’t anyone from Snappy chimed in? So far one store owner and the friend of a store owner have had positive things to say out of 271 posts. That’s after Gordon called for everyone to fight back on these blogs and tell it like it really is. Owners’ silence as well as the silence from the corporate office speaks volumes….
A most interesting post from Flawed Thoughts! Must be someone deep inside Snappy. A Franchisor with a proven concept who has sold more than 112 turn key franchises with statements of being profitable in 2-3 months and being able to pay off their investment in 18 months, should have no worries about bankruptcy. That is if there is any truth to the claims that they have made.
The 10 store number mentioned in FT’s post looks very much like what Debbie Gordon said in a story that appeared on GLOBESPAN Capital Partners In the new section on their web site10 March 2004. Initially the thought seemed to be to open 10 corporate stores, but selling franchises to make some quick money was a much better idea.
For a real eye opener read the section on what Debbie sees as her goal for store performance. Run the numbers based on what you know. Is it possible to turn a profit considering rent, overhead, labor and processing time required to reach these numbers?
The answer appears to be in the number of sores that have closed, or that will close in the next couple of months. My sympathies are with the long suffering Snappy franchisees that have put everything that they have into making this flawed concept work. I am still waiting for just one post with supporting data from a successful store owner or from Snappy corporate that can show that even one store is profitable.
…Gordon called for everyone to fight back on these blogs and tell it like it really is….
Tim: When did she do this? How?
Who is Adrienne?
An acquaintance of mine was on a call with Debbie and she spoke of it. Adrienne is an employee of Debbie’s.
Sean, nice to come to K&G’s (uh, I mean Chance’s) defense! I’m glad to see you’re the “FOX News” of moderating a blog. (You’re obviously quite biased about this. “…that kind of focus being put on expansion into another country when it could have been put into support for the domestic franchisees, and fixing the problems for those who invested and believed in the company.”) I thought a “moderator” doesn’t take sides?
Anyway, my comment on the last 10 was purely regarding K&G’s comment about suing which would put other franchisees out of business. I have no idea what is involved with a deal like Japan. (Aren’t you the franchise guru?) Maybe Japan came to them? (If you’ve ever been to Japan, you would know Snappy’s logo does go better there than ISI.) You’d think for the money they spent, they did their due diligence. Snappy didn’t pay them to open stores. Anyway, maybe Snappy is also doing the things you suggested (helping with marketing, trying to work with eBay, etc.). But honestly, if I was the owner of Snappy or a franchise owner, I wouldn’t post here and fuel the flames. This is not an objective forum by any means. It truly is a place for people (mostly K&G) to rant, and seemingly kill a lot of time on their hands.
Interesting day Sean.
“Flawed thoughts”, there is plenty of good software available for ebay drop off stores, in fact some of them are MUCH BETTER than what the franchisees are using now. No one will go out of business unless the concept doesn’t work.
As for the 10 successful stores, they don’t exist. Those still hanging in there need to radically change the concept to breakeven or to turn a profit! In fact many are selling outside the system, so it won’t make much of a difference whether they are part of a franchise or not.
Pertaining to this blog and others, no one is being hurt except possibly the franchisor who is STILL selling stores knowing they don’t work! Those being hurt by the franchisors are the franchisees that are being threatened (did you forget about that), or those bankrupting, or divorcing. Did you consider the other 200+ franchisees that have closed?! I don’t think so! If legal action will get the problems out in the open, where the franchisors will have to help these stores somehow succeed, what is your issue?
As for Gene and Karen, they have owned a store (as well as other successful businesses), been working with stores, worked with some franchisors, worked with the attorneys, and been a friend to many for longer than your friend has been in business.
Being a friend of an owner is a nice place to be, (huh Ken), it is not your money, not your time, and not your problem, and I will take a bet that your friend and his ego are NOT giving you the full scoop. So tread lightly on issues you know nothing about!
“Flawed thoughts”, perhaps you should be speaking to the corporate folks about all the energy they are putting in to selling franchises abroad, instead of helping their folding franchisees!
Flawed Thoughts said:…I’m glad to see you’re the “FOX News” of moderating a blog.
Great line. I’ve never been accused of “Conservative bias” before!
…I thought a “moderator” doesn’t take sides?
I am on America’s side. I am on Justice’s side. And, yes, I am on God’s side.
…This is not an objective forum by any means. It truly is a place for people (mostly K&G) to rant, and seemingly kill a lot of time on their hands….
(Present company excluded, of course)
Flawed thoughts: Instead of posting under different names with the same message (that this is a gripe session not worth participating in, which no one reads anyway), help me silence these critics with an example of a successful, profitable store… real numbers, real results.
You’re wrong about my bias. I’m eager for someone to step forward with evidence that this isn’t a doomed ship. I’m a marketing guy, not an undertaker. I don’t agree with Chance that the concept can’t work… but i see no evidence that it can without a major overhaul. And the call for someone to help disprove Chance’s contentions go unanswered. Help me out here, Flawed.
I’ve read and understand your frustrations, but come on guys….ANY new business has to be given a chance before expecting to see a profit. Just because you purchased a franchise you can’t reasonably expect to see an instant return on your investment without proper advertising, networking and a lot of hard work. If your overhead is reasonable, your labor costs are reasonable and you have any sort of business sense, the concept can work. Did any of the angry former store owners run the numbers before getting into their franchise? Did they know before hand, how much $ they would have to bring in before they would make a profit after expenses? If that number seemed ridiculous to you, then I ask…why did you do it? If you knew how much you needed to sell in order to make it and you just couldn’t get that amount through the door to sell, then I can only say maybe if you had spent the same amount of energy you’ve used complaining on this blog into running your store, you might be…..oh, I don’t know….NOT BLOGGING.
Well, it’s my chance to chime in.
1) “Gordon called for everyone to fight back on these blogs and tell it like it really is….
– all I can say is BWAAAAA HA HA HA HA HA!!!!
– where are they?!?!?!?!
2) If there were 10 stores left, do you REALLY think DG would stick around to support them??
– NOT!!!!
3) We’re all about innocent franchisors. That’s who we are/were. We’re trying to help them get out before they lose any more. When I decided to shut down, where was Snappy other than spending money on lawyers threatening me? I can tell you K&G got me in touch with a good lawyer, showed me how to handle my lease and helped me thru the rest of shutting down. All Snappy did was threaten me.
4) I’ve tried some of the software available now. It’s better than Snappy’s and you don’t have to deal with the bozo at Snappy support (not the nice one). Check this software out…it ROCKS!!
http://www.auctionsound.com/
5) WE’RE STILL WAITING FOR THE PROOF!! SHOW ME THE MONEY!!!!!!
6) Instead of calling this a bitch session, send some solid proof that the model works. I can get some right now that says it doesn’t….and it’s available to the public. It’s an old strategy – attack the messenger when you can’t defend yourself against the message.
7) I know where my store was in the rankings and many of the stores out there were doing worse than me. I appreciate your tenacity, but there’s a time to face reality. Flogging a dead horse won’t make it run.
All you franchisees sitting out there worrying about losing more and afraid of what Snappy will do to you ( I know…I used to be one), contact Karen and Gene at:
http://www.amitheonlyone.org
They can help you and their ego is not as big as Montana.
Does anyone have a transcript of the infamous call to the stores telling them to hit this blog? I’d love to know what was said.
I’m so proud of this blog….sniff…..it’s a giant killer, kinda like my 76 Mustang with the 350.
My turn to chime in. I must reply to the comments from Snappy HQ, I mean Flawed Thoughts.
1) …Gordon called for everyone to fight back on these blogs and tell it like it really is….
All I can say is “BWAAAAA HA HA HA HA HA!!” What is “like it is”? I think we’ve already done that. You see, most of us are no longer tied to Snappy anymore. We don’t have to be told to “tell it like it is”. We lived it (suspense music) and we’re telling it like it is: it stinks!
2) Do you REALLY think Snappy will stick around to support 10 stores??? Not likely. They would look bad with only 10 stores and looking good is VERY important to them.
3) Flawed Thoughts says we don’t care about innocent franchisees. Excuse me. We are/were innocent franchisees. Obviously an attempt to show how “bad” we are. It’s an old strategy: if you can’t fight the message, attack the messenger. Make them look bad so people won’t pay attention to the message.
4) We’ll put the 10 stores out of business??? OK, for a fleeting moment let’s pretend there are 10 stores out there doing well. Well if they’re doing well, they probably don’t need Snappy anymore. Also, the support you get from Snappy usually stinks, so what do they have to offer other than software? Guess what? Things have changed since Snappy opened. The market caught up with them and passed them by. This software ROCKS:
http://www.auctionsound.com/
You can run a store WITHOUT SNAPPY and you don’t have to deal with the “support” idiot (not the nice one). Auctionsound uses a tiered price structure so if you’re REALLY doing that well, you be much better off to use this software. What else does Snappy offer? Hmmmm, discounts on shipping: you have that now. It doesn’t depend on Snappy. Snappy can’t get eBay to lower rates or give you any better treatment that eBay gives anyone else. So why stay with Snappy? One of my former employees is using the software listed above, took what she learned from my store and is doing much better than most Snappy stores, but she uses a different model:limited product sets and no expensive retail location.
5) Quote from Flawed Thoughts “Snappy didn’t pay them to open stores”. No…Snappy bamboozled them like they did the store owners in the USA. This sounds like what I would expect from a Snappy groupie: it’s societies fault.
6) “But honestly, if I was the owner of Snappy or a franchise owner” DING DING DING DING…we have a winner! Obviously, if what you state is true, you have NO CLUE WHAT YOU’RE TALKING ABOUT!!! Just like I have no clue about what it takes to be a professional quaterback. so I don’t flame pro football players.
7) “Or after you put people out of business?” Woooo hooooo, we have a dang Rhodes Scholar here! I never knew I had this much power. I’m going to run outside jump up and fly to Nashville to see Snappy for myself because I am SUPER FORMER OWNER……TA DA!!! One blog does not have that much impact…except on DG’s ego.
8) SHOW ME THE MONEY!!! Come on Snappy….SHOW ME THE MONEY!!! and quit sending out spies to find out what we’re doing. Snappy, I challenge you to a duel: You bring your numbers and NUMBER CRUNCHER will bring hers.
All I ask for is for 1, count ‘em 1 store to show me tangible verifiable proof that it works. If only one store can prove that (and verify it with eBay numbers), I’ll eat my words….and like it….with a light vinegerette and a smattering of parmesan.
No go away before I taunt you a second time.
I too smack Snappy in the face with a gauntlet. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my credit rating. Prepare to di-vulge the truth.
Like Death by Franchise said, “Show me the money!” or rather the numbers. Or at least come out to engage in debate.
I unclog my nose at you, you tiny brained wiper outer of other peoples bank accounts. I don’t wanna talk to you no more, you empty headed franchisee credit wiper! I type in your general direction! Your mother was a hamster and your father smelt of elderberries, i.e. Snappy Auctions.
So, what kind of monthly number do you all consider to be successful?
Ummmmm….more than your costs???
I use the old fashioned formula:
Revenue-costs=profit
Where revenue should be greater than costs, unlike the Snappy model.
Soooooo…you have to show revenue AND costs.
Have you ever run a business?
I meant overall revenue number you brainiac. Like $10K or $20K? What constitutes success in everyone’s eyes? Of course, besides the profit piece.
So, R., tell me if you are not or never have been a franchisee, what brings you to this blog other than a fascination with information on why we would sue Snappy (including questions for details)?
Let’s clear this up. Are you affiliated with Snappy Auctions (like I really expect an answer)?
I suggest we do not discuss any legal action on this site and handle all correspondence off line.
Sean, is there a way to set up an invitation only forum for ex and current owners who agree to a NDA?
R there is no “set number”. You should know this; it depends on Rent, labor and overhead. Stores that do from $30k-$50k are not cutting it. The average store does $10,000 – $13,000 a month. This is right from someone in the know, AN EX SNAPPY CORPATE EMPLOYEE! Terapeak proves this. If a single person can run $25k by them selves without any employee, they can expect to take home maybe $3,000. BIG MAYBE 99% of the store owners have never taken home anything. After working 60 hours a week this is a kick in the face. Forget paying startup cost back!
Sure is funny how DG asked franchisees to come on here and put some positive words in, those words must be invisible.
Do we have two shills here? R and Flawed Thoughts? Here’s what FT said, “Maybe Japan came to them? (If you’ve ever been to Japan, you would know Snappy’s logo does go better there than ISI.)”
What’s funny? DG and A spent a month in Japan (mind you not helping domestic stores but spending time and money in another country to further benefit themselves while stores stateside were left to suffer). So they would know firsthand what colors look good in Japan, because FT (uhh DG) was there.
I realize there are 270+ comments here, but I’ve explained my interest before. Interested eBay seller.
I would certainly hope you all would not discuss your ingenious plans to sue here, that may get Sean involved in something he wants no part of.
Again, what are you going to sue about? All of these promises you have in writing? Good luck, let us know how it goes.
R, just stating 20k in sales tells us nothing. An honest attempt at a profit and loss statement would be a good start. If you don’t know what one is, ask “flawed thoughts” friend. He will be an Isoldit franchisee, but they have the same problems!
Sean doesn’t need to take sides, there aren’t any, it is obvious that no one is succeeding, and that is exactly why things seem one sided. However, to bring others who have not owned one of these stores up to snuff, understand that the franchisees of these stores have already tried all kinds of things. ie: charity, b2c, warehouses, large items, expensive items, overstock, importing, mobile pickup, various auction platforms, more hours, less hours, no staff, too much staff, no salary, no benefits, mailers, flyers, networking, public speaking, news paper ads and articles, and just about anything else you can think of!
THE CONCEPT DOES NOT WORK!
A radical change from the obvious only confirms this fact, and if I had wanted to be a pawn shop, junkyard, or used car salesman I and others would have bought into another franchise system. The point here is that not only is THIS system unproven, but it was misrepresented as well!
PS Am I the only one has a hidden forum, contact them for a password and verification.
Oh joy, a hidden forum. What happiness I’m sure that brings.
R., now I see that you’ve never owned a business or at least are phishing for legal details. Have you ever run a P&L?
What you’re asking for is only part of the equation. But since it’s unlikely I’ll beat this into your head, let’s set a monthly baseline cost.
Rent – $3500
Insurance – $150
Utilities – $200
Phone/internet – $150
Payroll – $5500
Supplies – $150
Interest – $600
Marketing – $400
TOTAL $10,650 per month
and that’s not paying down your debt, just paying the interest. I’ll leave out shipping since the stores did good to break even on this. And I’ll leave out shrinkage (R., look it up on the internet since you’ve “never run a business” LOL)
So if you did an average of 25% overall commission (after Snappy’s cut and I’m being generous) that means you have to sell $42K a month or better each and every month to break even and not service your debt.
So, to be success (and service your debt) would be in the $60K or so a month and that is at 25% commission which will go down if you sell cars or mobile homes. So then you’d need to do in the $75 range or so.
OK R…(i.e, Snappy mole), how many stores are doing this on a regular basis? And keep in mind, all we have to do is look at sales numbers on eBay.
Any Snappy stores out there who want to chime in about these numbers?
“My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my credit rating. Prepare to di-vulge the truth….”
HAVE FUN STORMING THE CASTLE!
Gene or Karen (BEEN THERE): Why would anyone divulge their numbers publicly, good or bad? What good would that do for this blog?
R: Hidden forums allow the franchisees to talk freely between themselves without censorship or threats from the franchisor. If you were a franchisee you would be aware of this. I am sure you would agree that operating a store under intimidation and threats is no way to run a business.
As for running numbers “wantsomecheese”, for many of these franchisees the numbers were not available because the concept was brand new(back a couple years ago), so potential franchisees had to rely on the franchisors for real numbers. Unfortunately the franchisors didn’t have much for numbers either, and quite often misrepresented them (imagine that!). As for sales vs. costs, you obviously are not in this business, or you would know that there are too many variable and hidden costs, and that this is a labor intensive business where the return per item is less than the cost of processing. You might want to read the AM I THE ONLY ONE . org website to understand it all much better. It is not a matter of getting enough items or high priced items in the door. The franchisees had crappy software to deal with (with more work arounds than plausible), the ebay market was changing, and the financials never balanced at the HQ level much less at the store level (yes the franchisors handle the stores numbers!).
As for “ANY new business has to be given a chance before expecting to see a profit”, I do not agree with your comment. I have had a couple of businesses that turned a profit in less than a year, and I know of many others. These franchisors told the franchisees they would be profitable enough to open 2nd, 3rd and 4th stores very quickly. That has NOT happened, and it has been long enough for MANY franchisees to see a profit, however, it appears NONE have broken even, especially on any long term basis. I strongly suggest you take the time to read all the blogs on snappy, isoldit and other franchises here on Franchise pick! As for the people commenting on these forums, they have lived the life and walked the talk, and they have a right to feel as they do. There was no chance of survival for them as it was set up. The franchisors failed them!
R: You just don’t get it do you?! You obviously haven’t anything to offer!
PS “Been there” is NOT Karen and Gene-you definetly need to do more reading!
“R” or shall I say Ken? And “Flawed Thoughts”, or should I say Debbie, why don’t you have enough honesty, integrity and respect to post as yourself? You were cold hearted enough to lie and steal from future franchisees. Oh, could it be you have ABSOULTLY NOTHING in retribution to the comments posted here to the blogs?
“Snappy Auctions is poised for fast growth and dedicated to the highest standards of customer and franchisee satisfaction.” – Direct from the SnappyAuctions.com
The empires you tried so hard to build by lying, cheating, misrepresenting and stealing people’s savings and livelihoods are crumbling down at an astonishing rate. How you sleep at night is beyond me. I may lose everything I ever had due to this endeavor, and I may not sleep at night but at least it’s not from the guilt of the being a CEO of one of these scams knowing how many lives I single handedly WRECKED!
Oh, something else, snappyauctions30, used to be in Bellevue TN and did a lot of “S3” stuff, but snappyauctions30 is now located in Pennsylvania. Strange!
I have store sales data from February on EVERY Snappy store and it is bad.
Oh by the way, it is all public information via Terapeak, and store id numbers are all public on Snappys website.
Who was it saying Snappy is going around seeing what the stores are up to? Elaborate on that please. I wouldn’t put it past them.
Can you imagine, Snappy doing something that actual helps stores? HA! Is what I say to that.
OK, wantsomecheesewithurwhine, I’m going to have to guess you have not been reading this forum long because we already covered the
” Just because you purchased a franchise you can’t reasonably expect to see an instant return on your investment without proper advertising, networking and a lot of hard work.”
issue a long time ago. So I have to guess you’re calling all the ex-store owners a bunch of lazy bums who are not capable of running a business. After all, how could we miss when Snappy provided a guaranteed business model? I’ll break it down for you:
1) This is not a new business built from the ground up, it’s called a FRANCHISE, I’ll say it slow for you FRAAAAANNNNCHIIIISSSSE. By definition a franchise is a proven tested business model. You pay for the model because it’s supposed to be tested and has a high probablility for success if you follow the guidelines. I know I followed the guidelines plus some. Did any of you other people not follow the guidelines?!?!
2) In the presentation for a Snappy store we were told and it’s mentioned in several published articles that the stores should break even in 2-3 months and pay back for the initial investment should take 18 months. OK, so we’re idiots. WE don’t understand that 18 months is really 3-5 years. I don’t get the math. Snappy math is soooo hard.
3) Yes, we ran the numbers and had Snappy review them and say “yes that looks right”. I even had one Snappy employee tell me the average store was doing $40K a month within 3-4 months. Well, if you do the math and you cost management is at least average, that can work. At least you’ll pay most of your hard costs.
4) Then you say “I can only say maybe if you had spent the same amount of energy you’ve used complaining on this blog into running your store, you might be…..oh, I don’t know….NOT BLOGGING.”
GUESS WHAT?!?! We don’t have stores anymore and we want to make sure anyone out there with sense will see a pattern here. Of course, Snappy would like us to quit blogging and your post tells me you never ran a store or you would begin to sound like you know what you’re talking about. I blog therefore I am…and I know I was a store owner and that you never were.
Preach it BEEN THERE….preach it! R. and wantsomecheesewithurwhine needs some HEALIN’ cause her brain has been possessed by the demon of Snappy. That’s right…that’s right. Mmm mmm mmm…that girl needs some HEALIN!!!!
Demon of Snappy…COME OUT!!!!!
Love the bitterness. This has just been the same three pissed off ex-owners and a couple current pissed off ones!
I’ll tell you what. I lied. I’m really the Easter Bunny. No, Bill Clinton. No wait, Joseph Maslow. Or maybe…someone else.
I could be anyone, and frankly you all could care less which is great. You’re just jumping all over anyone who gives you all a hard time.
Fun reading. Maybe someone should post why they think how the concept could make some money in a perfect world. God forbid someone inject some positive comments into this, I know Sean has been looking for it.
R. you go first. Tell us how it should work. We’ve already told you how it doesn’t.
Oh and after you’ve finished your “gloating” (cough loser cough) and trying to show us how smart you are, why don’t you show us what a business genius you are. Please enlighten us if you can….if you can….if you can…. I dare you….
Is there anybody better to inject some positive comments than Ken or Debbie? I think we would all agree. Why has no one seen any comments from them?
Please explain R, we are all waiting!
If anyone at all has anything positive, it would be one of these two, wouldn’t you agree? What about the Snappy owners that were asked to come here and blog positive thoughts? Why has that not happened? Strange, if the concept worked and people were happy, you think they would be here defending Snappy. I know I would if there was a positive.
Boy R, your posts seem to be getting more aggressive and less objective. Did someone hit a nerve with you?
I’ll give you $.50 to call someone who cares, oh wait, Snappy owner, having money. Those two do not go together.
R: Do not mistake honest statements as bitterness. Some people are and have earned that right, others are not bitter, and are just stating facts that you don’t like hearing. Your last post skirted the real issues once again! Lets hear the positives, if you have any! Sean, AmITheOnlyOne, Blue Mau Mau, Auctionbytes, Business week and others have all expressed an interest in seeing the successful side of these stores, yet YOU and the franchisors continue to put NOTHING on the table other than satire. Could it be that there is NOTHING! Lets see facts, R, facts!
Now “Tim aka flat broke”, be aware that the God’s themselves HAVE spoken out here (under other names, like Flawed Thoughts or R). And please notice that NO “positive” facts have been given by them. However, they do continue to mock everyone else out here who have the guts to speak out. They attempt to label all of us as negative, yet isn’t it “negative” of them to find so much fault in others?! (I know I said this same thing earlier this month, I think on the Isoldit blog… I hate being right all the time! LOL)
As for ex franchisees blogging, most of us work more than one job to pay back the debts these stores created. We make the time to blog in hope of helping just one more person. I don’t see the franchisors considerering anyone other than themselves.
In fact, if ALL these stores are closing (and the numbers back this up R), then WHY are the franchisors continuing to advertise, wine and dine, and sell more stores (here or internationally)? Doesn’t this border on FRAUD, and MISREPRESENTATION? Do you still not get it R? If you are part of or an example of HQ, then I see why the franchises are doomed!
PS. I believe the saying that applies is…
PUT UP OR SHUT UP!