posted on July 28, 2001 03:00:25 PM
About a year ago I rented a small booth in a co-op in my town. I make a lot of the things I sell using vintage fabrics and found objects.
Anyway, about 6 months ago another dealer moved into the same co-op. Her merchandise was very similar to mine, except while her colors tend to be rich, bold and dark - the colors I use lean towards the softer tones.
So, we had booths that essentially looked indentical. That really didn't bother me and I have enjoyed looking at her booth from time to time.
Not long after she moved in, she began selling at item that she makes that I used to make but had not stocked in my current booth. The item in question is a tote bag made from vintage fabrics. They are really popular now and I even see them on eBay. Other dealers in the co-op were also selling them, though for the most part the other tote bags were/are manufactured in China.
Last week while cleaning my fabric room, I decided I would start making some tote bags with the scrap fabrics I had acquired. I poured over some of the current magazines and websites to get an idea of what type I wanted to make. I made a point of designing the bags so they would be as different from my competitors bags as you can make a tote bag and still have it be a tote bag.
My design featured a very different and adjustable shoulder strap, lighter colors, wider side panels - lined in cream canvas (where hers are lined in calico prints). I didn't attempt to 'undercut' her price - as I felt she had already established a going rate - so I priced them the going rate.
Ok, so I proudly loaded my totes into my car and spent the day on Monday re-arranging my booth and displaying my new totes.
Friday morning I returned to the co-op to photograph some items for my website when I noticed that something was different about my booth. But, I couldn't place what it was.
Late Friday evening, it dawned on me, all of my tote bags were missing. Yippee!!
Saturday morning, I returned to the co-op and asked for a 'print-out' of the weeks sales for my booth. I got the print out and noticed the tote bags were not listed as having been sold. I asked "Where are my tote bags"? To be told, one of the owners of the co-op 'pulled' them - there was a complaint by the other dealer that I was copying her merchandise.
I never received a phone call from the owner of the co-op to discuss this, they just pulled the items from my booth and placed them in the back office. The bags are no where near the same as the other dealers.
This feels very unfair and I am not sure what I can do about it. Please offer your advice. I explained to the owner that 'tote-bags' were everywhere not only in the co-op - which they are, but in every magazine you read now-a-days. There are other dealers selling manufactured tote-bags, but this one and I are the only people who make the ones we sell. And as I said, I have gone out of my way to ensure that my bags are different in style and design from hers, well as different as you can make - and still have a tote bag.
I don't feel they had the right to remove something from my booth without my permission and then to not even attempt a call or schedule a talk for discussion. I feel like I am being singled out and treated very unfairly.
When I first moved into the co-op, all the dealers received a letter 'memo' from the owners saying essentially 'after talking to their lawyers, they could not keep dealers from selling the same merchandise'. The co-op is mainly filled with dealers who buy new items at 'market' and then re-sell there.
Please, any help with this would be appreciated - I want to fight this, but not sure what steps to take.
posted on July 28, 2001 03:07:43 PM
Based on the facts as you have laid them out, there is a real problem with what the owners of the co-op did. First look at your contract to see if there is ANYTHING pertaining to like merchandise. Then think
about this, you pay rent so that you can make money...they are accepting your rent but [b]they restricted your right to earn money (retricting trade) from sales by removing your goods...without even letting you know. This has to be very wrong.
posted on July 28, 2001 03:19:31 PM
There is nothing in my contract that mentions 'like' merhcandise. In fact, as I mentioned, they sent out a memo that stated they could not prevent dealers from selling the same items, according to their lawyers. But, as I also mentioned - these are not even alike - the designs are totally different.
I am so mad, I am shaking right now. The excuse I have been given - is 'well you can sell those at your shows and on your website - she only sells here'.
posted on July 28, 2001 03:59:44 PM
This is really crazy! If like merchandise were bannned from co-op selling areas there would be one or two tables left.
If she is renting the same space and paying the same rent, why is the co-op favoring her business? Is she giving them a percentage of her sales?
I don't know enough about this situation to make a suggestion but I can understand why you are so frustrated and angry!!!
posted on July 28, 2001 04:21:02 PM
Hi Helen,
Thanks for responding.
I am unsure what her rent agreement looks like or says - mine gives the owner of the co-op 20% of my sales. I suppose she has almost the same agreement - perhaps less as I think she 'works' one day at the co-op.
The owner and the other dealer are both female - I am male. I don't know if that has anything to do with it, but it is the only glaring difference.
posted on July 28, 2001 11:09:52 PMThe owner and the other dealer are both female - I am male. I don't know if that has anything to do with it, but it is the only glaring difference.
rue2u....Claim bias, and I am not talking the cut of the cloth. There is no logical reason for those items being removed, it makes no difference how many other outlets you have to sell your wares, this is space you are paying for and a different market. Diversity is the key to your earning a living and they should not take that away from you under circumstances which smack of
Bias or favoritism.
What Helen, said is very true, if there were no similar or duplicate items in a co-op it would be a two table shop!!
posted on July 28, 2001 11:22:55 PM
If you still have the letter that states about their is nothing they can do about like merchandise....take it with you and demand a reason for them being pulled.
posted on July 29, 2001 04:36:28 AM
If you find it difficult to present things verbally without wandering off topic, etc just print out your post.
If the other person "works" there it sounds like they are allowing personal relationships to effect fairness.
If it is a co-op isn't everyone required to put in time?
Are there other places you could take your business? Sounds like it would be a loss if they want to trade you for the other. These kind of problems are seldom resolved well without bad feelings.
Personally if they had removed my things without talking to me I would have told them that that works both ways - If you want your things to be safe keep your #$$##%% hands OFF my stuff.
It's flat-out favoritism...... you may need to find out WHY this happened or it WILL happen again.
Personally I would talk to the owner of the co-op and say "so, you don't want me here anymore? I wish you'd tell me to my face. I pay to display my merchandise as I see fit and I deserve the courtesy of a conversation before being 'punished' (having done no 'wrong' anyway). Please keep us updated. Remain civil. Be cool and firm. They have a competitor, somewhere, even if you have to drive to the next town. Gosh this makes me mad, please let us know.
posted on July 29, 2001 07:09:53 PM
I would definately point out the differences in the bags - and the similarities in the other items you both sell.
Is it legal for them to remove merchandise from your tables? I'll bet not.
Personally, I might be inclined to play hardball a bit with that other seller. How about a few killer specials? Buy 10 get 1 free cards? Anything to build customer loyalty to you - and away from the other seller. You could also have a promotion with tickets attached to your merchandise - the prize could be one of the items from your table. You pick a winning ticket once a month of so. The word FREE is very powerful ...
Just a thought ... good luck to you.
Geez, this ticks me off!
BECKY
[ edited by MrsSantaClaus on Jul 29, 2001 07:11 PM ]
posted on July 29, 2001 09:53:39 PM
Thank you all for your encouragement and help.
Let me see if I can update you on what has transpired since my last post.
First off there are three owners of this co-op. All women. It seems that two of the owners were talking to the other dealer and she (the dealer) 'mentioned' that my tote bags were identical to hers. According to this dealer, they then said 'they absolutely agreed and that since this was an original design they would only allow hers'. (Honestly, the bags are absolutely nothing alike - I will try to get a pic of the two for ya'll to see. But, believe me, they are not identical, but they are both tote bags. They both have shoulder straps, a front side, a back side, two end panels and a bottom with a removable cardboard panel for the bottom and an interior pocket. And as far as I know she does not hold the copyright on the design of tote bags.)Anyway, at that point, one of the owners pulled my totes from my display rack and marched them to the back office - where they stayed from Monday afternoon until Saturday when I retrieved them. This owner then took off for a vacation and the other owner that was with her left over the week-end. Neither of them attempted to call me. I live less than 5 minutes from the shop.
When I became aware of the situation. I spoke with the remaining owner and there was a degree of yelling on both ends. The end result, the tote bags were returned to my space until the other two owners return and we can sort this out. I have insisted on an apology. We are supposed to meet sometime this week.
I reminded the 'owner-in-attendance' about the memo they sent everyone concerning 'restriction of trade' and how I was under the impression from the tone of the letter that according to what their very own lawyer had said, they could not tell any of their dealers that they could or could not sell such and such merchandise. (Her brow twitched just a little.)
So, as it stands now, my totes are back in my booth - until a meeting. I am determined to sell those totes more than anything at this point. It may mean being 'kicked-out' of the co-op, which I hate to think about because right now I am making really good money there and there really is no other place around.
Incidentally, I received an email from the other tote bag dealer - after I emailed her asking why she filed a complaint. That's when she told me she felt I was copying her. When I pointed out the differences, she backed down and said 'well, we don't sell anywhere else - you can sell them at your shows'. (I have sold them at the shows previously, but in this particular co-op - they sell in excess of $70.00 - and at a rapid rate I might add - and I felt I could offer my clientel an alternate look for tote bags and increase my monthly income.) So, she then emails again and goes on to tell me she doesn't want to cause hard feelings but she intends to 'stand her ground' and insist I not be allowed to sell my tote bag designs. So, I replied and informed her about the little memo we all received prior to her moving into the co-op. And how their(the co-op owners) own counsel had advised them they could not prevent people from selling particular items just because someone else was selling them. And how, this was considered 'restriction of trade' and how I was under the impression this was a federal law. And also, how I did not want to cause hard feelings either.
The more I think and talk about this today with a few select friends the angrier and more determined I have gotten. Turns out, another dealer in the co-op was selling a particular item some months before I moved there - the co-op owners promptly placed an order for the exact same item from the exact same suppliler and began selling the exact same item. From what I understand this is in part how the Memo from their lawyers came about.
Also, after researching this situation over the week-end. If I wanted to get really nasty with them - I have found that just maybe, my agreement to price my tote bags (one I made on my own with no input from them) the exact same price as theirs could possibly be construed as 'price fixing' which is also federal. Or, I could at least lead them to believe that is true and that's why I MUST price my items cheaper than hers.
At one point I did consider several options or paths of revenge - like giving them away (but they aren't that easy to make) and making a 'cheaper' line to sell at a reduced price (but, I 'creatively' can not bring myself to do that). But, I have come to the conclusion - I want the right to sell the items I create, I want to be treated with respect and professionalism and I want an apology. Not a 'get down on your knees and kiss my foot' apology - just an "I apologize, I should have called you to a meeting for discussion prior to 'acting out'".
I am not difficult to get along with. Though, I really feel my stand will leave me without an income. So, what have I gained? Oh boy, I can at least say 'no one pushes me around'. Seriously, I am glad I stood up to them - they have pushed me a lot in the last year and I just couldn't 'back down' on this one. The items are not identical - other than being tote bags. And I am in the right here. What they did was WAY wrong and totally uncalled for.
So, in essense, I feel I may 'take one' for the men/people in the world who get pushed around by those in a position of money and power. (which if I didn't mention - the owners and the other dealer have a lot of - it has been said the other dealer 'doesn't have to work'- read 'wealthy husband'- and the co-op owners are floating on a 'women-in-business' loan. So, I feel a little 'burned' by women at the moment and find myself wondering why on earth do people who have a lot of money come from such a postion of scarcity? One of the comments the other dealer made was she felt by having my totes bags there - it would decrease her sales. ? Duh?
I will update you on the situation and again, Thank you for your help.
Now any thoughts on how to stop them from 'kicking me out'.
posted on July 29, 2001 10:52:09 PM
i'd sure hate to see this escalate, especially since you said:
It may mean being 'kicked-out' of the co-op, which I hate to think about because right now I am making really good money there and there really is no other place around
i think the problem is that the other seller thought you'd deliberately set out to 'copy her design,' which she perceived as a direct threat to her livelihood. or one source of it anyway. so, she brought it to the attention to the owner, who then made the mistake of not talking with you about it first.
the other seller didn't know you'd gone to considerable lengths to not tread on her toes, as an ethical person who also sees a trend and naturally wants in on it. especially since it was an item you used to produce.
i'd try explaining to her and the owners, when you meet, that you had no intention on cutting the other seller out on this item, and in fact went to great pains to design the tote bags (which you used to make anyway) just so there wouldn't be a problem. in other words, explain to them exactly what and how you explained all this here. it's worth a shot. with any luck both the seller and the owners will see your intentions were honorable, and all will be well again, no need to get kicked out of there, and good feelings reestablished. good luck
posted on July 30, 2001 12:02:26 AM
A thought - Do you have records and or photos of the bags you have sold in the past there?
Showing them could document that this is not a recent thing you have not done before.
That said I will venture to stick my neck out and say that how women run and organize a venture is usually different than how men do so, and if you expect them to follow the same form you have seen men use to run a business it is just not going to happen and the culture clash may make it impossible to stay there.
Women deal in personalities and loyalty more keeping a supplier when a man will dump them for a 5¢ a gross cheaper price from another guy he doesn't even like.
Men think rules are made because they reduce conflict and save time. They are tools to decide what to do INSTEAD of using their authority for each decision. It saves face to be able to change a rule when it doesn't work anymore rather than reverse a personal decision. It is THE rule.
Women look at rules as an expression OF authority and if you want to change one you are challenging the authority behind it. They also view consensus of opinion as validating a rule more than a man will. So if the 3 owners decide you should remove the item they will regard it as shockingly agressive if you don't agree to a group decision. It is not THE rule it is OUR rule.
There is a different perception of what YOUR MOTIVE is in how you follow or challenge rules.
