All the lies DBS told the dealers

[heatherdelacruz]

As I am reading the message boards I am starting to feel so scammed by DBS. As I think back to all the things I have been told over the last 3 years I can now recognize so many lies. I was told that my Bill Levkoff dresses were being held in customs a few months ago. This was most likely not the case and rather that the designer hadn't been paid. I was told Dessy and Bonny were running late on deliveries. Again probably the same thing that the designers hadn't been paid. I too agree that there were certain people in the service center that were difficult to work with and I am glad it wasn't just me that felt that way. My question is were they in on it too? Or were they just as blindsighted as we were. If they were in on it then they too have been lying to us all along. How can a group of people lie to so many people and not at least drop us a hint that things were in trouble. Were they under a gag order or something? This is all very spooky and I don't see how we could be kept in the dark so much by this. It is nuts. I am still in the process of getting things worked out for my brides. After all the years of being proud to work for DBS and so proud of our reputation and ability to go the extra mile I can't believe this is how the owners went out. Still in shock.
Heather

[JoAnne Schnepp]

Heather,

I tried to write to you at your yahoo address, but the message got returned to me. I wanted to share my story and an idea for how we dealers might be able to get together and keep our businesses going.

Also am willing to take part in a class action suit, or whatever any attorneys recommend.


My email is [email protected] if you wish to get in touch...and that goes for any other dealers out there.

I am in Tucson, Arizona and the only dealer in my town, so I don't have anyone locally to talk to about all this. Lucky me, I only have on bride affected, but Demetrios is telling us she has to pay for her gown all over again to get it for her September 9th wedding. The issues makes me VERY angry because this is an order from the middle of April....and DBS never paid Demetrios for that gown!! It should have been covered long ago in my opinion...like by the end of May at the latest!

JOAnne Schnepp

[caligirl]

Hi Joanne:

I am in the same position with Demetrios Style #3005...brides wedding is 10/8, she already paid in full as of 6/8....luckily by credit card!

The credit card company is holding off on this chargeback until DBS files Ch7 and it's in writing.

Is this what most credit card companies are doing??

I would love to stay in this biz too -- but we are not very marketable at this point are we? LOL

[Erika Martinez]

I am shocked, disqusted, and exptremely angry. I am getting married in 5 weeks and with no dress! I want to know if anyone knowns what the"brides" who were scammed can do. There is no way I am letting get away this easy. There has to be some kind of law that protects consumers.

[Audley]

JoAnne,

I feel the very same way. I'm the only dealer in my town and also have no one to talk to about this. I contacted the woman who trained me and haven't heard anything from her so I feel very alone in this mess. (I'm sure she's overwhelmed with her own DBS problems, but it sure would have been nice to hear from her.

My husband, who is an attorney, went with me to the training when I first became a dealer. At first, he was very impressed with the whole company, the concept especially. I truly wanted to become a part of this business because I wanted to help brides have the wedding of their dreams for less money. Our daughter was married in May of 2004 (a month before I became a dealer) and I was shocked to learn that I could have saved around $400.00 on her Maggie Sottero gown. That's really what prompted me to become a dealer, so I could save other brides from having to shell out their hard-earned money for their weddings. After I placed my first order with DBS, I remember wondering when that commission check would be in. My husband was appalled at the lack of business-savvy and all the "red tape" involved in ordering, etc. He was always trying to get me to contact DBS and tell them how to do things (what can I say, he's a Lawyer, LOL) but I never mentioned anything because I felt like I'd be black-balled and earn the scorn of all the reps at the Service Center and then they'd make it difficult for me to get what I needed.

Like you, I only have one bride affected. I dreaded making that call to her but she was wonderful. Today, I guess after the initial terror has hit, she's now FURIOUS! And I understand why. I've been "talking" through e-mail to Ginger at Dessy to find a way for my bride to receive her dresses. My bride contacted her credit card company and they agreed to credit her account, pending an investigation. But in the meantime, she wants her dresses. (They are due by the end of this month and her wedding is in November). I've been working on this since the announcement of bankruptcy and I'll just hope that the credit card company does the right thing and doesn't reverse their decision. If they do, however, I have decided to just use my own money to get her 7 dresses for her. Friends tell me not to do this and that I'm not at fault, and I know that, but I feel like it's the right thing to do.

I would also like to have another dealer to talk to (and commiserate with) but I feel very isolated in this matter. That's another thing I thought was very poor business. From the first day, I was told DBS was one big family. I tried to get other dealer's names and websites but to no avail. I used the Internet to find some but was only able to find around 30.

If any of you other dealers would like to talk about ideas for finding ways to start a company and be able to order dresses again, I am VERY interested. I just want to move forward and not be made cynical toward people. PLEASE contact me at [email protected]

Good luck to all of you dealers and to your brides.