Affordable Eyewear and BellSouth

...a David and Goliath saga

You may want to print this page so you can sit and read it and pass on to another business person

This web page is dedicated to all the small business owners in Alabama who have been driven out of business by the BellSouth System. What you are about to read is an account of what happened to my company over a 6 1/2 year span.

All of my problems could have been solved if I had retained a lawyer and filed a lawsuit, but I personally feel that the State of Alabama and a good part of the United States have a serious problem with lawsuits. They have become the biggest problem facing all of America.

Litigation can destroy a small business, and small businesses are the economic engines that drive this country. That slogan is on a poster in the front window of my business and the American Telephone and Telegraph Company produced the poster. What I plan to do with this site is to show all interested parties what can happen to you because of the legal trade.

In 1991, my phone number was left out of my main display ad in the Yellow Pages. This happened after I gave the L.M. Berry Sales Representative, Bernard Montgomery, a camera ready ad produced by Holland Design. I was also charged an artwork fee of $35 dollars, although I had already produced the ad.

At the time, my company was in a positive growth mode and we had three stores. We were relocating our Lomac Street location and L.M. Berry was to publish its phone number as the East location as stated in the ad copy I gave them. There was no reason to take the number out of the book for that location.

Bernard called me on the day the books hit the streets to tell me that the number was left out of the new book. Since I had three locations, I was offered 1/3 off the advertising portion of the phone bill.

You may ask yourself, "how did they arrive at a figure to compensate me for this omission?" This was my first location with probably the most loyal customers of all three stores. Consider a few factors that will bring this a little closer to home. We were located in an eye clinic. The patient base was older, average age around 55, the best customer base you can have in the optical business. The majority of these customers had been doing business with me for 5 years. Some had originally bought glasses from me at an optical franchise I had at Eastdale Mall, and followed me when I opened my own business in 1987, in Dr Marian Allan's eye clinic.

When Dr. Allan retired, she turned her patient files over to ITEC, a large eye clinic across the street from her clinic. We relocated to the Eastdale Circle Shopping Center. We had to send direct mail to all of our customers to let them know we were not out of business. Later, we had to relocate the store to another shopping center, costing more to lease, plus I had to pay the renovation cost this time. We spent thousands on advertising using billboards, T. V., and radio. It finally paid off the next year when the new phone book came out.

I didn't pay Bellsouth until the day before the close of the next year's phonebook. I was led to believe that BellSouth was going to settle with me. Another year passed and nothing happened, little did I know about the 2 year limitation on fraud here in Alabama. That's right, after two years all fraud charges expire.

I found out from the Public Service Commission that BellSouth can't cut off your phone service for non payment of advertising. I decided not to pay for the following year - 1993. This went unanswered.

The next year - 1994 - Tommy Johnson, Senior Sales Rep., gave me all kinds of deals and nothing was said about the 1993 charges. I never agreed to, nor was offered, a settlement for the damage done in 1991, to my life and business. It was like they - BellSouth - didn't want me to be successful.

Well, I still operate 3 locations and the community has been very supportive through the whole matter. I was not allowed to advertise in the 1994 book, I guess that was their way of punishing me. This makes two times in my short career that I was not allowed to use the (monopoly) yellow pages to compete in a fair and honest way because of a few individuals that get paid every week and never have to worry about payroll, or 941 taxes, and all the other things that a small business has to deal with everyday.

I gave BellSouth a way to settle this, all they had to do was reimburse me my expenses to overcome their mistake. As a member of the Better Business Bureau, The Montgomery Chamber of Commerce, Alabama Voters Against Lawsuit Abuse, and one of the biggest supporters of business and ethical business practices in Alabama, it's hard to believe what has happen to my business and personal life.

In 1995, I was allowed to advertise again, I paid without fail. I was duped into thinking BellSouth was going to settle. Remember the fraud? I probably owe BellSouth $30,000 and yet have I've never been turned over for collection.

I was threatened once by this big law firm out of Birmingham with such notables as Oscar Adams, former Supreme Court Justice of Alabama. You can imagine how far you get with this type of law firm standing at the courthouse door designating you to what could be described as some sort of judicial caste system where money buys influence. I heard that BellSouth's attorney here in Montgomery, Alabama reads the newspaper at trials and the judges are afraid of him.

Well, BellSouth, when I have a legitimate complaint against my company I fix it! I started my business from a bedroom in my house! I didn't pay for the 1996 ad either.

I have franchised one of my stores and Vincent, the owner, was not allowed to advertise in the 1997 book. He also owns the phone number, he has a good reason to sue. His store is almost 3 years old and is growing. People are confused when they go to the 1997 phonebook and cannot find his business listed.

No, I am not in the phonebook and again it's time to sign up now for the 1998 listing. Mr. Cadenced, I've been told that if you sue me, I can counter sue BellSouth on the original fraud. Meanwhile, I hope that some of BellSouth's stockholders see this and recommend to Mr. Don Peruse and Mr. Elmer Smith Neal Travis that it's a good idea for them to replace you.

We all know that it takes two lawyers to make it happen in court. Are you and Armanian on commission from the non-corporate lawyers for creating unnecessary litigation? By the way, I am a member of the business council of Alabama, and so is bell. It's getting to the point where I won't need the yellow pages. I think that the big utility companies should not be able to support any political campaigns. This also would help get rid of this tort hell which plagues Alabama, and the rest of America from which BellSouth also stands to benefit.

You will find letters from the Attorney General of the State of Alabama suggesting to BellSouth (then called South Central Bell) and the L. M Berry Co., BellSouth advertising, that I had a valid complaint and BellSouth should try and settle this matter with me (Affordable Eyewear). BellSouth advertising did not and has not even considered repairing the damage that was done to my business. The problem is their lawyers' Joseph Armanian and Randal Cadenhead are what you call corporate lawyers, you would think they wouldn't be part of the trial lawyer problem. Here's just a little bit of the tort that's caused by these guys - deposition costs, lawyer fees, court costs, and time away from my already struggling business, what's the real motive boys?

Mr. Armanini, who at the time was in Kettering, Ohio, was the first closed door that could have made a difference in the way things have evolved to this point.

I was also what I call, "extorted" by a lady up in Huntsville, Alabama by the name, Frieda Cash. The day before the cut off-date to place an ad in the following year's yellow pages, I had to overnight her a check for $1,268.20 to avoid being left out of the phone book. Keep in mind no one has made an effort to really settle with me.

A gentleman named Lynn griffin was sent out to put me off, he did a good job, he was also there and put the phone in my hand to speak with Ms. Cash on 2/18/92. A gentleman named Danny Camp on 9/22/93 offered to give me the $2,536.42 back, from the year before, I wouldn't take it.

We talked about my cousin, Curtis Pride, who happens to be hearing impaired and made it to the major leagues, playing at Montreal. I listen to the tapes of this all the time. I also have some video. Mr. Armenian seemed to get upset the most when I told him I was taping him after he said "sue us." This was in early 1994.

At one point, I was involved with the Montgomery County Courthouse and my attorney wrote Mr. Armanini after he said I authorized Bernard and L. M Berry to omit the number what a liar! Mr. Cadenced told Assistant Attorney General, now Judge, Mary Elizabeth Culberson, the same thing and when they wouldn't produce this authorization saying I told them to take the number off the ad, I was advised this was a civil matter and the Attorney General's office threw me to the wolves.

It's funny the whole time I was talking to Mr. Griffin and Mr. Montgomery they never once even suggested that I would have told them to do this. I have a strong witness that sat in on the meetings with griffin and Montgomery. His name is Craig Wanous. At the time, he was about to go out of business as a result of a mistake Berry made with his ad. Berry settled with him. His business was PDQ Pizza, check your files and ask Lynn Griffin what happened.

Anyway, my fellow business people and citizens, look over the paper work and watch yourself when dealing with BellSouth Advertising.

ENJOY THE TOUR

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Copyright 1998, Affordable Eyewear, Inc.
Last Updated: 07 January 2004