Struggling, failing, soon-to-close and closed Curves franchise owners regularly share information, advice and mutual support to each other on the Unhappy Franchisee website.
One of the frequent topics is the club closing procedures, and how to negotiate with Curves International in regard to their demands for a $10,000 “failure fee,”  often tens of thousands of dollars for “future royalties,” and the Curves International policy that forbids Curves franchisees from selling their own equipment.
From the post CURVES: Robert Lay’s Story, here’s a recent exchange regarding the $10,000 closing fee:
Donna  Submitted on 2009/10/08 at 2:41pm
HELP!!! I have read some of the horror stories …read more

Outspoken Curves for Women critic and franchise owner Robert Lay will close the doors of his Las Vegas club this Friday.  Robert Lay’s journey as a Curves Owner is chronicled and discussed on Unhappy Franchisee (Read CURVES: Robert Lay’s Story)
Writes one of the Las Vegas Curves members:
… as members we are surely sorry that they had to close as it was a beautiful club and we will all miss it very much. The owners were excellent and the trainers were all very nice and motivating. It is a shame that the franchisor has turned out to so crooked. We …read more

Comments continue to come in from struggling and distressed Curves franchise owners.
On a Curves franchise post on UnhappyFranchisee, Another Curver wrote 2009/08/16 at 5:40pm:
I hope someone will buy my Curves franchise. Not because it is such a great thing to deal with CurvesInternational (CI) but because the Curves concept is fabulous, and the clubs themselves do a huge service in the community. I have to sell mine because of going thru bankruptcy because of closing my second club. Otherwise, I was trying to hold onto my club. I wasn’t making alot of money (about $1500/month for 50-60 hrs/week of work) …read more

rogers7808 writes:
I was interested in purchasing a Curves until I read some of the posts.
If Curves is such a bad deal, why has it been named “Franchisor of the Year for 2009?
Rogers7808:
There are no valid franchise awards/rankings that I know of (Though FranSurvey.Com at one time seemed to be useful and well-intentioned.  I’m not sure of its status currently). All are somehow driven by a self-serving motive. For Entrepreneur magazine, the 800 lb. gorilla of franchise rankings, it is ad sales and perpetuation of the franchise myth of great opportunities galore.
The 2009 Franchisor of the Year award was …read more

When you’re considering a particular franchise opportunity, most franchisors will provide you with a wealth of sales literature, marketing brochures, videos, and legal documents (FDD), as well as an ample supply of timeworn cliches (”You’ll be in business FOR yourself, but not BY yourself”).
Franchisors should provide you with one more thing: The email or certified letter they’ll send you if you fail.
Ask for it. Get it. Read it. Think about it.
Don’t listen to the franchise salesperson when he tells you If you think negative thoughts you will kill the success fairy!
Realistic ain’t negative.  And this letter contains an important …read more

That wacky AAFD is at it again!  The American Association of Franchisees & Dealers (AAFD) has named Curves International its 2009 Franchisor of the Year!
(In other news, Bernard Madoff has been named Investment Advisor of the Year and Kim Jong Il has won the Nobel Peace Prize…)
You may remember the AAFD as the supposedly pro-franchisee organization that gave Cuppy’s Coffee the “fair franchising” award and public praise it needed to help scam many more out of $30K – $40K deposits before completely abandoning the lucky franchisees who managed to get open (and lose hundreds of thousands).
According to the breaking …read more

Curves International Inc. chief executive Gary Heavin, recently said that high SBA loan defaults were a result of “the overpriced resales of franchises between third parties.” (See QUIZNOS, COLD STONE, SUBWAY & CURVES TOP FRANCHISE LOAN DEFAULTS)
On the Unhappy Franchisee website (See CURVES: Disturbing Resale Story), a Curves franchise buyer of two existing clubs provides an example of how a resale business can be artificially, even fraudulently, inflated.  The results can be disastrous for the unsuspecting buyer.
The Curves franchise owner writes:
I am a Curves resale. I bought 2 clubs from a friend of the family, who I thought was …read more

As the recent closing of the Kailu, HI Curves for Women fitness center shows, a failed franchise location is a loss for many involved.
In this case, franchise owner Robbi Ugini must deal with the personal and financial agony of defeat.  Her 5 employees are suddenly jobless.  Her 270 members are without a fitness club.  Her landlord has a vacant space, and her lender will, most likely, have a defaulted loan.  And the franchisor will not be receiving future royalties, revenue from purchases or advertising contributions.
What started as a dream ended in disappointment
According to the story by Nina Woo in …read more

(Franchise Pick)  Also read:  Is Curves for Women a Good Franchise Investment?
Franchise Dreams Becoming Nightmares for Many Fitness Club Owners
When Curves for Women franchise owner Logan Chung abruptly closed his two Chicago area fitness clubs, he left his employees without paychecks and members without a fitness program.  However, a group of members have banded together to possibly buy and reopen the Elmwood Park location, and Curves International is hoping to find a buyer for the Oak Park club.
According to the Wednesday Journal:
Two local Curves women’s fitness centers closed their doors, Aug. 31. But a spokesman for the company says they’re …read more

Curves franchise owners and ex-franchise owners:
What’s it like to own a Curves for Women franchise?
Was it a good investment decision?   Was the Curves franchise ownership what you expected?
Has it enriched you financially?  Emotionally?
Would you recommend the Curves franchise to would-be franchise owners?
 SHARE YOUR STORY, EXPERIENCES, INSIGHTS WITH A COMMENT.