Fellow Store Owners,
I regret to inform you that Larry Bowdoin has resigned his
position as President of the BBOA His decision was based on
the realization that the Board of Directors of the BBOA has
adopted a plan of action and a direction for our
organization that differs substantially from that which he
wished to pursue.
Our Board, and the majority of our membership, desire a plan
of action that attempts to open a dialog with MBE and UPS in
order to modify a business plan (The Gold Shield) that we
perceive to be seriously flawed and to re-assess those
business practices which have resulted in so much financial
distress to our network. Our plan, for the time being,
excludes any type of legal action, but will involve any and
all means of achieving our goals without resorting to the
courts.
Several other major decisions were made during our planning
session in Atlanta this week.
The Board has voted unanimously that the undersigned will
continue as Chairman of the Board but will also assume the
responsibilities of CEO of our organization. NAMG will
continue to provide advice, resources and the advertised
services to the membership.
Another decision of the Board is to eliminate the public
Forum effective immediately. Too many non-member owners and
non-owners as well as employees of MBE and UPS have posted
comments detrimental to the image of our organization. As a
result of these negative postings, it has become quite
obvious to us that a large number of store owners have
hesitated to join our organization for fear that said
postings are representative of the opinions and goals of our
Board. The forum will continue to be available to our
membership for the exchange of ideas as well as a source of
information.
During our planning session, much was discussed and many
ideas considered. The experience and guidance of Frank
Capaldo and his staff were invaluable in formulating our
plan of action. Extensive notes were made and are now being
edited in order to prepare a written plan that we can share
with the membership. Of course, security will be an issue,
since we will not want to disclose our strategies,
prematurely to outsiders.
We appreciate your past as well as your continued support
and loyalty. We hope that you can help us convince the
entire network that our organization is and will continue to
represent the interests of the store owners and equally
important that we are not merely “a bunch of disgruntled
store owners”. We firmly believe that the interests of the
Network and those of our parent company should be one and
the same. Motivated by this belief, our ultimate goal is to
develop a business model that is profitable for all.
On behalf of myself and the Board of Directors I wish you
all (dare I say it?) a profitable New Year.
Yours Truly,
Mike Rodriguez
Chairman & CEO
The Brown Board Owner’s Association
