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2023-09-23 - Demand For Arbitration - Crain
2023-09-23 - Demand For Arbitration - Crain
Claimants,
v.
Respondents.
______________________________________/
Franchising, LLC.
with its headquarters located in Charlotte, North Carolina. Clean Juice Franchisor
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HIRZEL DREYFUSS & DEMPSEY, PLLC, 1200 ANASTASIA AVE., SUITE 240, CORAL GABLES, FL 33134
is engaged in the business of offering and selling business opportunities, including
franchises, to individuals and entities for the operation of a “Clean Juice” franchise.
Carolina limited liability company. CJD is an affiliate of Clean Juice Franchisor and
serves as a distributor of bottled juices and other products to Clean Juice franchisees
and Kinexo.
the Chief Executive Officer of Clean Juice Franchisor. Acting alone or in concert with
participated in the acts and practices of Franchisor, including the acts and practices
set forth in this Demand. Mr. Eckles has advertised, marketed, distributed, and/or
sold Clean Juices franchises to consumers throughout the United States, including
Claimant who is located and operates a Clean Juice franchise in Texas. At all times
material to this Demand, Mr. Eckles formulated, directed, controlled, or had the
Claimant, about the Clean Juice franchise opportunity, entered into agreements, and
negotiated contracts with Clean Juice franchisees, including Claimant. Mr. Eckles is
5) Respondent, DAVID CUFF (“Mr. Cuff”) was at all relevant times, the Chief
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HIRZEL DREYFUSS & DEMPSEY, PLLC, 1200 ANASTASIA AVE., SUITE 240, CORAL GABLES, FL 33134
others, he has formulated, directed, controlled, or had authority to control, or
participated in the acts and practices of Franchisor, including the acts and practices
set forth in this Demand. Mr. Cuff has advertised, marketed, distributed, and/or sold
Claimant who is located and operates its Clean Juice franchise in Texas. At all times
material to this Demand, Mr. Cuff formulated, directed, controlled, had the authority
to control, or participated in the acts and practices of Franchisor. Mr. Cuff has
the Clean Juice franchise opportunity, entered into agreements, and negotiated
contracts with Clean Juice franchisees, including Claimant. Mr. Cuff is a resident of
North Carolina.
6) Respondent, DAVID KERR (“Mr. Kerr”) was at all relevant times, the
the acts and practices set forth in this Demand. Mr. Kerr has advertised, marketed,
distributed, and/or sold Clean Juices franchises to consumers throughout the United
States, including Claimant who is located and operates its Clean Juice franchise in
Texas. At all times material to this Demand, Mr. Kerr formulated, directed,
controlled, had the authority to control, or participated in the acts and practices of
Franchisor. Mr. Kerr has communicated with prospective and existing franchisees,
including Claimant, about the Clean Juice franchise opportunity, entered into
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HIRZEL DREYFUSS & DEMPSEY, PLLC, 1200 ANASTASIA AVE., SUITE 240, CORAL GABLES, FL 33134
agreements, and negotiated contracts with Clean Juice franchisees, including
Agreements entered into between Claimant and Clean Juice Franchisor on January
5, 2017 and December 23, 2017, , annexed hereto as Exhibit “A.” Such arbitration
provision requires that Claimant and Clean Juice Franchisor resolve their disputes
STATEMENT OF CLAIM
LLC (“Clean Juice Franchisor”) and arises from an illegal, fraudulent, and deceptive
business scheme orchestrated by Clean Juice Franchisor and its affiliated entities
and individuals who control and operate the Clean Juice franchise System (the
“System”).
9) Clean Juice Franchisor, along with its Chief Executive Officer, Chief
Cuff, and David Kerr, respectively, have leveraged their power to induce Claimant to
purchase and operate a Clean Juice franchise and extracted exorbitant and
unjustified fees while unilaterally imposing material changes to the Clean Juice
10) As a result, Respondents have reaped inflated sales and profits while
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HIRZEL DREYFUSS & DEMPSEY, PLLC, 1200 ANASTASIA AVE., SUITE 240, CORAL GABLES, FL 33134
11) Claimant has suffered, and continues to suffer, extensive financial losses
committed by Respondents.
12) Clean Juice Franchisor has abused its economic power and control over the
unneeded goods and services, to work with mandated suppliers at exorbitant prices,
and to pay marketing and advertising fees that are misused for purposes other than
13) Clean Juice Franchisor preyed upon ordinary consumers, like Claimant,
14) Using manipulative marketing tactics that promised the “American Dream”
and confidence the Clean Juice brand. Franchisor’s sales pitch included statements
such as: “Welcome to our family”; “Our success is based on your success”; “We are a
(the “FDD”), that was disclosed to Claimant prior to the franchise sale, touted that
its business model was focused on “100% USDA certified organic vegetable and fruit
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HIRZEL DREYFUSS & DEMPSEY, PLLC, 1200 ANASTASIA AVE., SUITE 240, CORAL GABLES, FL 33134
16) However, after Claimant was lured to purchase a Clean Juice franchise,
Clean Juice Franchisor engaged in a bait and switch sales tactic and abandoned the
18) For example, Franchisor represented in Item 8 of the FDD that Franchisor
would negotiate purchase arrangements with suppliers and that revenues from
19) In 2022, and all years prior, Franchisor represented that its affiliates “do
not derive revenues from required purchases or leases. We have chosen to use 100% of
these rebates/referral fees for Juice Jam, our annual convention, and/or the Brand
Fund”.
20) In all years prior to 2023, Clean Juice Franchisor promoted its franchised
business as follows:
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HIRZEL DREYFUSS & DEMPSEY, PLLC, 1200 ANASTASIA AVE., SUITE 240, CORAL GABLES, FL 33134
Business permits customers to place orders at the in-store counter. Most
products are made to order while the customer waits. Orders may also
be placed over the phone or through use of electronic devices with a
pickup time specified. For phone-in or electronic orders, products are
made to order and waiting for the Customer when the customer arrives
at the store. A guest may enjoy the product purchase from the
Franchised Business by utilizing the in-store dining area or taking the
product to go.
of transparency as to whether these revenues have been used for the betterment of
has circumvented its disclosed business practices of contributing its earnings from
the supply chain back into the Clean Juice brand for the benefit of the Clean Juice
system.
through which it accrued revenues totaling $1,172,279 within a short period at the
end of 2022.
24) It is especially telling that in 2023, Clean Juice’s changed its ITEM 8
disclosure to state:
2 Notably, “as of December 31, 2022, and 2021 the Company has advanced to its parent
$4,946,458, $4,538,598, and $2,952,824, net of expenses paid by the parent of $3,915,332, $3,108,731,
and $2,798,974 for the years ended December 31, 2022, 2021 and 2020, respectively.” 2023 FDD, p. 213.
In Item 8, quoted above, Clean Juice Franchisor represents that it generated total revenues of
$2,867,748.43 as of December 31, 2022. This is inconsistent with its profit and loss statement on page
203 of the 2023 FDD showing revenue in excess of $7 million.
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HIRZEL DREYFUSS & DEMPSEY, PLLC, 1200 ANASTASIA AVE., SUITE 240, CORAL GABLES, FL 33134
We and our affiliates have the right to receive rebates or other payments
from distributors, suppliers and other service providers, based (directly
or indirectly) on sales to franchisees and company-owned stores.3 We
received rebates/referral fees from two vendors. For Vendor 1, as of
December 31, 2022, we received $69,292.50 in rebates/referral fees,
which represents 2.40% of our total revenues of $2,867,748.43 as of
December 31, 2022, from required purchases or leases, and other
revenue from franchisee purchases during our previous fiscal year. For
Vendor 2, as of December 31, 2022, we received $34,275.12 in
rebates/referral fees, which represents 0.30% of our total Sysco
purchases of $11,930,892.85 as of December 31, 2022, from required
purchases or leases, and other revenue from franchisee purchases
during our previous fiscal year. We have chosen to use 100% of these
rebates/referral fees for Juice Jam, our annual convention, and/or the
Brand Fund. During our fiscal year ended December 31, 2022, we
did not derive any revenue from required franchisee purchases
or leases. During its fiscal year ended December 31, 2022, our
affiliate, CJD, derived revenues of $1,172,279 from required
franchisee purchases or leases.”
25) Clean Juice Franchisor has created a captive and artificial market in which
franchisees, such as Claimant, are obligated to purchase essential goods and services
26) When exercising its discretion to change its business model, Franchisor had
an obligation of good faith and fair dealing. Franchisor did not have carte blanche to
with its obligation of good faith and fair dealing, by imposing a drastic and material
3 Item 8 no longer says “which will be deposited back into the Fund”.
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HIRZEL DREYFUSS & DEMPSEY, PLLC, 1200 ANASTASIA AVE., SUITE 240, CORAL GABLES, FL 33134
change to its business model, by introducing High-Pressure Processing (HPP), also
28) This change enabled the Franchisor to profit directly from Franchisees’
purchases of bottled juices, in violation of Clean Juice’s own FDD Item 8 disclosures.
29) Such material changes to the business model, which Clean Juice has forced
upon its franchisees, created a myriad of issues, including but not limited to, customer
dissatisfaction, distribution chain shortfalls that fail to properly account for customer
supply and demand, increased costs, decline in store sales, decline in profit margins,
all of which have negatively impacted the franchisees’ ability to run a successful and
approach”, which was announced at Juice Jam, resulted in multiple operational and
financial challenges for Claimant, including outdated inventory and increased costs.
30) To that end, at Juice Jam 2022, David Kerr suggested that the new cold
press system would result in increased product profit margins from approximately
40% to over 45%. This statement has proven to be false. Rather, the shift from in-
dissatisfaction.
initial investment was spent on equipment, including a cold press machine, and other
products that were necessary to offer and sell “made to order products”. Further,
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HIRZEL DREYFUSS & DEMPSEY, PLLC, 1200 ANASTASIA AVE., SUITE 240, CORAL GABLES, FL 33134
financial performance representations in Item 19 of the FDD, which reflected an
average profit margin in excess of 60% for the past four years.
33) This material change in its business model, which enabled Franchisor to
34) Franchisor has been enriched at Claimant’s expense, and such actions
constitute a breach of contract, breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair
outlined in Section 12 of the Franchise Agreement, and despite the fact that Clean
Fund from 2017 through 2022, Franchisor’s administration of the Brand Fund
36) In short, there is a complete lack of direction and transparency with respect
37) Clean Juice Franchisor claims that the Brand Fund will be used for “local,
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HIRZEL DREYFUSS & DEMPSEY, PLLC, 1200 ANASTASIA AVE., SUITE 240, CORAL GABLES, FL 33134
materials”; however, the reality is far from this stated objective. Moreover, Clean
Juice Franchisor has been wholly negligent in providing the requisite financial
Franchisor regarding how Franchisor utilizes Brand Fund contributions for the
39) In this regard, Clean Juice Franchisor has failed to comply with the Federal
franchisors disclose in the FDD how funds from the Brand Fund are utilized each
40) For example, the 2017 FDD issued by Clean Juice Franchisor explicitly
stated that “no advertising funds were collected or spent by Franchisor”. In contrast,
the Franchisor’s 2018 FDD noted that “the majority of the funds were collected or
spent by the Franchisor for the benefit of the system-wide brand”; hence failing to
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HIRZEL DREYFUSS & DEMPSEY, PLLC, 1200 ANASTASIA AVE., SUITE 240, CORAL GABLES, FL 33134
42) For example, the category, “Administrative Expenses,” surged from a non-
existent category in 2019 to accounting for 29% of the Brand Fund in 2020, only to
plummet to 5.2% in 2021. Moreover, Clean Juice Franchisor’s 2021 FDD disclosed
that 29% of the Brand Fund in 2020, or $122,423.18, was spent on “Administrative
Expenses” in 2020.
representation that all sums paid to Fund will not be used to defray its expenses,
outspent the contributions made to the Brand Fund. For example, in 2021, Brand
leaving a deficit of $27,577.76. In 2022, the Brand Fund collected $1,305,393, and
provide meaningful advertising support, and the absence of actual media placements
4Notably, Section 12.2.2 of the Franchise Agreement provides that “All sums paid to the Fund will be
maintained in an account separate from the other monies of ours and will not be used to defray our
expenses, except for such reasonable costs and overhead, if any, as may be incurred in activities
reasonably related to the administration or direction of the advertising programs and Fund, including,
among other things, costs of personnel for planning and managing Fund activities, creating and
implementing local, regional and national advertising, promotional, and marketing programs”.
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HIRZEL DREYFUSS & DEMPSEY, PLLC, 1200 ANASTASIA AVE., SUITE 240, CORAL GABLES, FL 33134
Brand Fund in July 2023. Clean Juice Franchisor has refused to comply with
delivery fees, such as those from Uber Eats, and Clean Juice Franchisor has
acknowledged the impropriety of doing so. During a Town Hall webinar held on June
15, 2023, Collin Eckles conceded that “Clean Juice should not be making a royalty on
the third-party delivery platform fee.” However, Franchisor has refrained from
rectifying this issue or providing any form of accounting to Clean Juice franchisees,
including Claimant. Contrary to its own core value (#7) of “transparency,” Clean Juice
Franchisor has refused to provide an accounting and has directed the franchisees to
undertake this complex accounting task themselves, thereby shifting the burden and
expense unfairly onto them, as Clean Juice Franchisor claims that it would be
staff members.
47) Claimant has been damaged by Clean Juice Franchisor’s mandated use of
Clean Juice Accounting Services LLC for bookkeeping and accounting services.
Franchisor provides that this requirement allows the System to “maintain uniformity
Juice Accounting Services LLC poses a threat to the financial stability and credibility
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HIRZEL DREYFUSS & DEMPSEY, PLLC, 1200 ANASTASIA AVE., SUITE 240, CORAL GABLES, FL 33134
transactions by intentionally misclassifying operating expenses as balance sheet
items.
inflated financial performance representations in Item 19 of the FDD. This not only
FDD reports an average profit margin in excess of 60% for the past four years, without
any form of disclaimer or indication that these figures would materially differ for new
outlets. In reality, Clean Juice locations that are in the top 5% in sales nationwide
50) Clean Juice franchisees, such as Claimant, have been shackled to the
System due to deterrents like the threat of liquidated damages, considerable lease
obligations, and SBA loans that come with personal guarantees. Many franchisees
find themselves in a position where they cannot even transfer ownership for zero
dollars, leaving them stuck in a cycle of financial drain. When a franchisee can no
longer bear the financial losses imposed by Clean Juice Franchisor’s manipulation,
lawsuit to enforce franchise agreement provisions that seek liquidated damages with
personal guarantees. In order to stop the recurring losses and shut down the
business, Clean Juice Franchisor demands an unconditional waiver of all legal rights
from the beleaguered franchisee, precluding them from any form of redress, together
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HIRZEL DREYFUSS & DEMPSEY, PLLC, 1200 ANASTASIA AVE., SUITE 240, CORAL GABLES, FL 33134
with non-disclosure and non-disparagement clauses designed to gag franchisees from
enough to find a buyer for their failing businesses. It places these owners between a
rock and a hard place: either keep their failing stores open and retain their legal
rights or sell and sign a “Termination Agreement” that eliminates any rights to sue
Clean Juice Franchisor for such misconduct. Further, Clean Juice Franchisor exploits
closed locations to churn unwitting franchisees into these failed spots. These new
by Clean Juice Franchisor, ensuring the company itself suffers no losses while
keeping up a flow of royalties and other fees. Once established, Clean Juice
Franchisor then subjects these franchisees to the same ruinous financial scheme,
thereby perpetuating the cycle of exploitation. Clean Juice Franchisor classifies these
businesses as “transfer” locations that are excluded from its ITEM 19 financial
52) Based upon Franchisor’s non-compliance with the terms of the Franchise
c) Promissory Fraud
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HIRZEL DREYFUSS & DEMPSEY, PLLC, 1200 ANASTASIA AVE., SUITE 240, CORAL GABLES, FL 33134
d) Conspiracy to Commit Fraud;
f) Breach of Contract and the Implied Covenant of Good Faith and Fair
Dealing;
i) Accounting
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HIRZEL DREYFUSS & DEMPSEY, PLLC, 1200 ANASTASIA AVE., SUITE 240, CORAL GABLES, FL 33134