Re: LogoWear Direct

> I have been trying to check out LogoWear Direct, but with little success.
> Can anyone give me first hand information? The BBB report did not come
> back 'bad' except for the "average person takes in $282,000 cash per
> year" claim which I already figured was inflated. Though things do
> not seem 100% right with LogoWear, the business concept sounds workable.

Hello Todd,

I can't offer you any additional info on LD, as I have know close knowledge of the company. The 2003 opening date must be for the Ohio franchise you found listed in the BBB report.

Income claims are one of the things that the FTC is looking at cracking down on, due to all the "inflated" claims and hype used by various recruiters for MLM and other bizopps.

As for the $282K, that may be an average for individual franchises across the US, but figure that the $282K is the gross. After deducting the high overhead for retail space, payroll, cost of goods sold, as well as the large investment in multi-head embroidery machines, there could be a long time before a franchise will reach the break even point on their investment.

Personally, I prefer to run my business from home and leaving all the production and decoration to the 3800+ national factories who represent the supplier side of the industry. With no production to worry about, I have more time for seeing some clients face-to-face, while also having an online customer base.

No retail or high dollar office space to rent.

No need for employees, who have to be paid whether they generate profits or not.

No high equipment cost. A new single-head embroidery machine can cost $12,000 with many embroidery shops having multiple 2-head, 4-head, and even 6 or-head
machines. Some of our national suppliers are operating multiple machines with 12 to 18 or even 24-head machines. One computer controls the stictching on several heads to reduce the amount of time neccessary to complete orders for 144 to 1008 or more pieces down to a day or less.

Although LogoWear Direct has been around for some years now, I've never seen or heard of them around the industry forums or travelling expos I visit.

> National Headquarters

I find it odd that the Nat'l HQ was omitted from the report.

> Nature Of Business

> According to information on the firm's website, LogoWear Direct offers to
> embroider your company logo onto a garment. The company sells their
> services through a national network of local independent representatives.

Definitely a factor that will limit you to being another embroidery/monogram shop. Many of these are run from people homes, using just a one or two machines, restricting them to smaller jobs. A detailed design can require 18 to 30 minutes or more, so a dual head will only produce 2 to 4 detailed pieces per hour.

I've written embroidered cap orders 50 dozen up to 7 gross (84 dozen) on a single order with just 3 to 4 weeks to complete and deliver the order. Easy for the nat'l suppliers with their large run capacity, compared to using a 4-head machine.

> Customer Experience

> The Bureau processed a total of 0 complaints about this company in the
> last 36 months, our standard reporting period.

An indication that this one franchise knows how to handle customer complaints.

> Competency Licensing

> This company is in an industry that may require licensing, bonding or
> registration in order to lawfully do business. The Bureau encourages you
> to check with the appropriate agency to be certain any requirements are
> currently being met.

> Advertising Review

> One advertising review has been pursued with this business by the Bureau
> in the last three years. The advertising review was not resolved. The
> company failed to substantiate earnings claims made in its literature that
> "in this business the average person takes in $282,000.00 cash per
> year".

> In April of 2005, the Better Business Bureau of Central Ohio sent a letter
> to LogoWear Direct and requested the following information: the names and
> contact information for five persons who have made the money described in
> the company's brochure and the success rate for persons who have purchased
> the program. The company provided samples of their earnings disclaimers,
> but did not provide information that would allow the Better Business
> Bureau to verify that franchisees had received income as represented by
> the firm.

Not a good sign.

I prefer the Independent Agent route, not limited to the equipment I can afford to purchase and the people I couldn't hire here as there is a major labor shortage since Hurricanes Katrina and Rita swept through last year. Of 5 area WalMarts, none can hire enough to remain open past midnight - Previously all of them were 24/7 locations.

Hope this helps, Todd.