The Week of April 1st in Review

Posted on April 6, 2013 Written by Leave a Comment

 

By Paul Pannone

Wedding industry crooks took cover this week, put on notice as the battle for the Gold heated up. Onlookers watched as Samantha Goldberg pummeled Marni Gold, assuring her it’s nothing personal and that other Wedding Scam Artists can expect more of the same. Since announcing her new show Samantha Goldberg told eWedNewz of plans to expose the antics and false claims made by wedding industry professionals who have allegedly taken money and not given the expected results and value to victims.

Another meeting in New York to discuss the  progress of fighting online pirates raised concerns among media members who felt the war is far from won.

New data release by IBISWorld says wedding spending will increase in the next five years in selected categories; all except the men’s formal wear rental business. As the business shrinks a greater percentage of rental units are taken by the Men’s Wearhouse tuxedo division– while the rest of the tuxedo business wastes time and resources fighting one another.

 

 

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Filed Under: Anti Fairy Dust, Data, eWedNewz Exclusive, General News, Hall of Shame, Men's formal wear, Ongoing Story Coverage, Ongoing Story Investigation, Paul Pannone, Press Release, The Groom, The Internet, The Week in Review, tuxedos, Uncategorized, Wedding planners Tagged: , , , , , ,

New Head of IBMA Accepts ABPIA Offer to Work Together

Posted on April 4, 2013 Written by Leave a Comment

By Paul Pannone

eWedNewz has learned that Hedy Lapkin, the new head of IBMA, has reached out to Steve Lang to work together on the issue of Chinese counterfeiting. In less than 48 hours the wedding industry, specifically gown makers and retailers, were updated with some disturbing newZ about the difficult road that lies ahead to fight off the piracy plaguing the business.

 

Slowly but surely,  Steve Lang continues to rally support in the wedding industry.

 

Lang broke away from the IBMA to start the ABPIA last year and has now pulled a power-play by paying his membership dues to the abandoned organization. In a written e-mail Lang gave his personal invitation to Lapkin and told eWedNewz;

“I was contacted by Hedy Lapkin today. She wants to work with us on counterfeiting effort. She will group with me after I return from Asia. She apologized that I did not receive original email from IBMA. [She] said it was oversight, but no matter, we are now  members of IBMA. I take this as a positive sign and I will help them in any way possible to fight pirates,” according to Lang.

Wedding dress retailers picked up on frustration and personal opinions given on my Facebook wall shared after reporting China efforts to disrupt and destroy American business.  Stunned retailers say they look forward to greater unity and coöperation among wedding industry professionals to set aside personal differences and work together against the common enemy.

 

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Chinese Get more Aggressive while American Gown Makers Look on

Posted on April 4, 2013 Written by Leave a Comment

By Paul Pannone

On the first anniversary of an unprecedented meeting in New York the American Bridal and Prom Industry Association convened members of the wedding media to update them on the progress of efforts to slow down the rampant piracy of American goods and conceptual property. Members of the ABPIA board gave the gathering a realistic assessment of the current status saying the campaign enters another phase of an expected long, arduous process.

Bob Cahoon of Maggie Sottero gave the media gathering in New York his honest assessment of a very difficult situation. Steve Lang looks on.

Steve Lang took his usual place at the start of the meeting but yielded midway to Bob Cahoon, president of Maggie Sottero and board member. Cahoon reiterated what Lang has been telling eWedNewz and the wedding industry for over a year staying consistent with the message. Both Cahoon and Lang went beyond the usual rundown of what’s been done so far and stressed how the battle becomes more difficult with each win.

“They’re not going to just sit still and allow us to gain any ground; to the contrary they’re becoming more aggressive and tenacious in their efforts, ” Lang told eWedNewz.

According to Lang the battles won so-far were only preliminaries of what is to come. The illegal use of imaging and explaining how it hurts manufacturers is a difficult legal battle. Now the greater use of technology changing the face of models, creating an entirely different image, makes convincing a judge of a crime more difficult.

Exuberance of a year ago turned serious this time around, as Lang and the ABPIA fight an uphill battle for support from an industry whose nation is under siege. Lang cited a  New York Times story of how the middlemen and layers of overhead are being stripped away from the chain supply of manufactured goods. Lang and Cahoon admitted retailers are part of the traditional structure and conduit between their products and consumers. But rising cost of operation inflates prices  and is forcing some stores, including Vera Wang, to figure out how to stay competitive while boosting revenue.

“We know all the challenges that exist; they’re not going to go away. All we can do is adjust our businesses to the realities that are out there. The best we can hope for is to slow down the deterioration that is taking place,” Lang told the gathering.

An ongoing poll shows 71% of combined replies so-far think the chances of beating online piracy are fair-to-excellent. 26% of combined replies say chances are poor-to-impossible.

 

Only 5% of current replies say they would not join an industry organization. An overwhelming majority say they would support an organization that was well-run, offered good benefits and was not too expensive to join.

 

An appeal to the gathered media to spread the word about the organization was reinforced by board members. Cahoon told the members of the media he keeps track of the perception of the organization’s effort by having Maggie Sottero sales people ask accounts what they think. The results of the surveys were not clear or available for review, but Cahoon mentioned the $100 dollar membership fee was sometimes an issue.

On his own, Lang brought up plans to provide affordable healthcare to the broader  wedding industry beyond dresses. But while poll results so-far show a strong sign of support, actual membership does not show the results.

 

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Vera Wang Scraps $500 dollar Try-on Charge

Posted on March 27, 2013 Written by 1 Comment

By Paul Pannone

Because of a global outcry, Vera Wang has scrapped plans to charge Chinese shoppers a $500 fee. A Day after eWedNewz covered the story about Vera Wang charging the fee and negative global media coverage about their Shanghai store, a Vera Wang spokeswoman announced the charge was being scrapped as of today.

Fitting rooms are still free at Vera Wang and most bridal boutiques for now; but for how long?

 

“Please kindly be informed that Vera Wang has abolished appointment fees at her bridal salons worldwide starting from March 27, 2013,” the spokeswoman said in an email to the Reuters news agency, without elaborating.

The Wang organization claimed the fee was imposed to curtail some of the copying taking place. Their PR department also reported limited knowledge of the fee but quickly shuttered the plan as criticism grew along with media coverage.

Whatever the true reason, the prospect of Vera Wang’s policy sticking was music to the ears of retailers and some manufacturers we spoke with. Most say the Internet has disrupted their business, increasing meaningless store traffic, creating overhead and more cost to accommodate shoppers who want to physically see the merchandise, obtain SKU numbers and style information and then make their buy online for less money. But the rise of knock-off merchandise continues to plague the wedding dress business.

In 2012, China was the top source country for counterfeit goods entering the United States and the European Union (EU) with more than 70 percent originating from China, according to the latest customs seizure reports from the U.S. and the EU. According to the Counterfeiting Intelligence Bureau (CIB) of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), counterfeit goods make up 5 to 7% of world trade.

Currently, Steve Lang, owner on Mon Cheri, is embroiled in a battle to offset knock-off and online piracy. Lang’s effort includes forming an organization called the ABPIA that is gathering support in and out of the wedding dress business.

 

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Apathy and Indifference Grips the Country; Sounds Like The Wedding Business

Posted on March 4, 2013 Written by Leave a Comment

By Paul Pannone

Over the weekend news reports  that proclaim America is yawning at the possible collapse of the nation comes as no surprise to most.  According to ongoing discussions apathy and indifference to the troubles facing the nation is a natural progression to how Americans view the problems after continuous coverage and nothing really extraordinary ever happening.

(yawn) An asteroid falling from the sky; another bomb explosion in the Middle east…. Zzzzzzzzzz. When’s the new I-phone coming out?

 

Members of the Wedding Water Cooler say the view of the world has distorted claiming half the people in America have less in savings in the bank than they spend on the newest I-phone. To prove our point we tweeted the statement while writing this story and got relatively little response back, other than the usual voices who are passionate about how they feel.

A year after eWedNewz reported Dessy selling products online, direct to consumers, the outrage quelled into an apathetic stance– along with many other issues that plague the wedding business.

 

More of the discussions in the cooler point to the people who just muddle through life instead of picking and choosing what really matters. The usual laments revisited several topics including the online sale of products by Dessy to consumers. The original story and follow-up showed overwhelming opposition to the practice.

An update still shows 76% of replies say manufacturers should not sell goods direct to consumers.

Similarly, opposition to manufacturers opening stores to compete with accounts was also struck down in a poll:

An update shows 78% oppose this action.

Over time similar polls that asked if it matters where products are made favored buying American if prices were about the same as products made in China or elsewhere. One poll in particular  overwhelmingly favors support to a wedding industry organization if it offered good benefits, was properly run and didn’t break the bank to join. Yet the show of support falls short of financial commitment when it comes time to make good on promises or to reach into the pocket and pull out the money.

The story was picked up by The New York Times. Reporter, Stacey Solie, asked us why more people aren’t talking about this. Stacey’s story gives one account of hundreds-of-thousands of online transactions happening every year affecting the wedding dress business.

“What’s frustrating about that is it’s just another news story that people breeze over. But to our business  it’s the difference between keeping the lights on in lean months,” according to Steve Lang, President and Founder of ABPIA.

Lang and other WWC members say they’re interested in the principle behind why these issues exist. As the CEO of his own company Lang has more latitude to express his feelings freely when compared to other members who work and must rely on their means of support above giving their opinion.

“Thank God I am not interested in winning a popularity contest; I’ll just continue to do what I’m doing and hope that sooner or later people realize this is for the good of their business and in their best interest to support the efforts in whatever way they can,” says Lang.

 

How apathetic are you?

 eWedNewz

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The Week of January 21st in Review

Posted on January 27, 2013 Written by 3 Comments

By Paul Pannone

The wedding business continues to reel from allegations claiming the business is laden with unscrupulous practices by vendors who up-sell clients and qualify their pockets by the very car they pull up with. An ongoing poll shows 2/3 of replies says there is good and bad in the wedding industry, just like any other business. 22% feel strong enough to say the wedding business is not crooked, while 12% say it is crooked.

eWedNewz digs deeper in the weeks and months ahead to expose possible causes for the allegations including wedding marketers who teach the art of deception to vendors entering the business. Members of the Wedding Water Cooler continue to give their insight to the story.

The American Bridal and Prom Industry Association, ABPIA, announced a new creative campaign to help retailers fend off the growing problem of online piracy and sale of inferior wedding dresses to American consumers. Steve Lang, president of the group, outlined the campaign and how his fight using all available legal means is starting to have an impact.

 

 

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ABPIA Launches New Ad Campaign | Invites The Wedding Industry to Unite

Posted on January 24, 2013 Written by 2 Comments

By Paul Pannone

After a week of divisive controversy that besmirched the reputation of the wedding business, President of the ABPIA, American Bridal and Prom Industry Association, Steve Lang, decided it’s time to start uniting instead of dividing. Lang watched the controversy from the sidelines while quietly implementing necessary checkpoints and roadblocks to help his part of the business; gowns.

A new Creative Ad by the ABPIA unveiled this week will help rally wedding boutiques and bridal stores to help the fight against internet piracy.

The path to the current information is well-documented thanks to Lang’s outstanding job of keeping this newZ source informed with updates for the public but equally as important, behind-the-scene background so we could fully understand the story.

Here is the latest update from Lang and the ABPIA:

It is with great pleasure to report to you today as President of the American Bridal and Prom Industry Association (ABPIA) our progress fighting counterfeiters from China. At the end of 2012, the ABPIA filed a lawsuit against 45 of the most egregious websites shipping counterfeit merchandise to North America and the rest of the world. The court granted us a temporary restraining order, also referred to as TRO. We returned to court in New Jersey on January 7, 2013 and appeared before the Honorable Judge Wolfson, Chief Magistrate of the Federal Court.

At this hearing, we presented original and counterfeit merchandise from multiple manufacturers and highlighted the damage done to our industry from these offshore pirates. We explained to the judge that approximately 500,000 to 600,000 counterfeit units entered North America in 2012, representing approximately $300 million in lost retail sales. This translates to approximately 100 to 150 units per full-service bridal and social occasion store in the United States.

Within a half hour of testimony, the judge immediately grasped the danger to our industry and ordered the following:

• The granting of a Formal Injunction against the defendant websites to immediately cease and desist from their illegal cyber- squatting activity. Our counsel prepared the paperwork and the order was signed the next day on January 8, 2013.

• For counsel to additionally serve the injunction on all members of the supply chain that aid and abet the counterfeiters. This includes website providers and hosts such as VeriSign, Go-Daddy and other such entities, search engines such as Google, financial entities transferring funds offshore such as PayPal, American Express, MasterCard, Visa, Discover, etc., freight entities transporting goods such as FedEx, UPS, DHL, and any other entity within the supply chain that helps the counterfeiters.

• For counsel to immediately add additional websites as defendants without having to file formal motions to amend the complaint. We have a list of approximately 2,500 additional websites that will be added to the injunction as defendants this week.

• For counsel to instruct all entities conducting business with the counterfeiters to reveal the exact name of the owners of the website, their locations and any other information we feel pertinent in eradicating this threat to the industry. This will aid us in securing damages, shutting down the websites and aiding the court and government agencies to enforce rulings.

• To immediately inform United States Customs and Homeland Security of the injunction to secure maximum help from these institutions to seize illegal websites and counterfeit merchandise.

The judge was clear in her instruction that should any entity fail to comply with the order, she is fully prepared to take additional action. This could include forcing any of these organizations to appear before her in court for rulings, especially if she feels they are in contempt of court.

Judge Wolfson was also clear that the economic damage to the industry is so difficult to calculate that she would place it in the category of “irreparable harm”. The significance of this category is that we could potentially go after large damages from any of the entities should they fail to comply.

It is my great pleasure to report that PayPal has begun to seize funds originally slated to be sent offshore and that we already received notifications of websites that are being shut down by web hosts following instructions of the court order. We expect many more websites to be shuttered over the coming weeks and will remain vigilant in this effort as we add an additional 2,500 counterfeiters to the injunction.

Attached to this email is the ad creative our marketing team recently developed to communicate the ABPIA’s message to the masses. Keep an eye out for this impactful new ad campaign to appear in major publications, websites and social media platforms next season.

Thus far, the ABPIA is comprised of approximately 400 members including manufacturers, retailers, sales representatives, apparel marts, media resources and other interested constituents of our industry. If you have not yet joined the ABPIA, we respectfully feel it is your responsibility to stand up and be counted. Join us in the fight to save our industry from this horrible scourge. We created ABPIA as a nonprofit 501(c) 6 organization, which allows us to lobby in Washington, D.C. and with other government entities. We plan to visit senators and congressmen to secure federal legislation that would give us even greater leverage against these counterfeiters.

It goes without saying that this grand endeavor takes time and money. I have personally dedicated the last year and a half of my life to working on this project, basically turning my company over to be run by my wonderful employees. However, I cannot do this alone and need your help. Attached is an application to join the organization. As you can see, it is only $100 annually for retailers. If we save you just one lost sale, your investment is more than secure. We also have other plans for the ABPIA including securing affordable health care coverage and already have a consultant working on this project.

Please stand up and be counted. Join the ABPIA today.

Respectfully,

Stephen Lang, President of ABPIA and CEO of Mon Cheri, LLC

Currently only 5% of respondents so-far say they would not support a wedding industry organization. 95% said they would support a well-run organization that would give benefits to its members, wasn’t too expensive and/or all of the stated reasons. What do you say?

Click to join the ABPIA

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Federal Judge Backs ABPIA Efforts

Posted on January 7, 2013 Written by 2 Comments

 

By Paul Pannone

eWedNewz has learned the ABPIA won the support of  Hon. Freda L. Wolfson, a Federal judge in New Jersey. Wolfson upheld a ruling and temporary restraining order granted back in November, 2012, that will help to stop more internet thievery against American wedding occasion dress makers.

 

 The Honorable Freda L. Wolfson gave full backing to the efforts of the ABPIA, headed by Steve Lang. Judge Wolfson is a dedicated upholder of the law, putting the interests of her country first and foremost, before all other civil and global issues that plague businesses in America.

 

In an exclusive eWedNewz interview, Steve Lang, head of the ABPIA, said he was thrilled with the decision.

“We got more than we ever expected from Judge Wolfson. She understands the importance of what we’re trying to accomplish,” Lang told eWedNewz.

Lang has been continually lambasted by critics who feel he has ulterior motives behind the fight but have failed to produce any sort of evidence to substantiate their claims. For the most part critics have fallen silent and tell eWedNewz they’re watching the action from the sidelines. Some commended the efforts but so far have not financially supported them.

In our interview with Lang he told eWedNewz he’s not holding his breath waiting.

“I’ve spent an enormous amount of time, energy and money to get to where we are. The win this week will allow us to really move forward at an even greater speed,” he told eWedNewz.

In a prepared statement to the organization board and wedding industry sources, Lang said the following:

Dear Board of the ABPIA and Industry Friends and Associates,

There will be a board meeting of the ABPIA tomorrow at three o’clock Eastern standard time. More details will be covered at that time among board members, but I would like to share some news that has just occurred.

Our counsel, Craig Hilliard , and I just returned from a court hearing with Judge Wolfson at The Federal Court, Trenton, NJ.

 We have been given a landslide of support by the court.

Today was the return date based on a lawsuit filed against the first 40+ defendants. Of course, none of these defendants from China appeared before the judge.

The judge is extremely sympathetic to our cause and made it very clear in her decision that she will support every effort. She actually commented to Mr. Hilliard that she understands how serious this is and she feels extremely bad for every hard-working, legitimate company and person working in this industry.

She has allowed us carte blanche latitude in terms of allowing Mr. Hilliard to write the order converting the TRO into an injunction. Beyond that, we do not have to jump through hoops to add any additional websites to the ruling. We can add websites at will and avoid any lengthy motions to edit defendants.

 I heard her tell Mr. Hilliard that she is going to give him the widest berth possible in terms of those we can go after, including the websites, the operators of the sites, the service providers as well as anyone in the food chain from shippers financial institutions that supply support to aid and abet these counterfeiters. She instructed Mr. Hilliard to write the document she will sign it immediately.

I cannot begin to explain to you how powerful today’s ruling is. This judge went above and beyond to communicate sympathy to both Mr. Hilliard and myself during this interchange. We brought with us examples of counterfeit dresses as well as the originals. We had Mon Cheri and Maggie Sotterro dresses with us and she was exasperated when she saw the difference between the originals  and the counterfeits. We explained to her how the customers are being cheated, how customs is being cheated and how all of our companies and businesses are dramatically affected by this scourge to the industry.

I am sharing this e-mail with everyone on this list, including those of you that are not on the board of the ABPIA. We have worked very hard as a board to achieve the status we reached   today. The fight is not over and will continue for quite some time–many people said we would not get this far and we proved the opposite . Let’s move on to finish this fight.

I need help from everyone at this point. We need more than 350 members in ABPIA. I need the media, the marts, the manufacturers, the sales reps and the retailers that have yet to join the organization to step up to the plate and become members. The industry must be represented by the broadest number of participants possible. We will need it in terms of our lobbying power with the government in Washington as well as to continue to generate dues to allow the legal firm to continue its work. We have raised approximately $250,000 and to date have spent about 75,000 and legal work. As you know, the law firm absorbed the first $60,000 in expense by not charging us anything up until the suit was filed. The $75,000 has been incurred since the filing of the suit up until this point over the past six months. I want to be able to continue to make sure that our efforts are never hampered due to cash flow. We have made the dues very reasonable for everyone in this fight and it needs to be supported by everyone.

I will ask every entity copied on this e-mail to do their part. If you have not become a member of ABPIA please consider doing so now. If you are capable of e-mail blasting or speaking to your constituencies, I hope that you will refer them to ABPIA and ask them to join as well.

Progress has been great even before today. PayPal has frozen over $60,000 in funds that were scheduled to be sent offshore just from the original 40 defendants. Now we will add over 2000 more and you will see a great change in the ability of these websites to continue to steal from us. We will be relentless in our effort and today’s victory just reinforces to everyone that the fight is a worthy one. If I had a video of how sympathetic this judge was I think you would all be very impressed. I indicated to the judge at somewhere between 500 and 600,000 units representing as much as $300 million in sales were sucked out of the industry last year she was aghast. She realized the magnitude of the problem and so forcefully indicated that she will work with us. She even took Mr. Hilliard to a sidebar conversation indicating that she would work very hard to help him in this battle should he run up any obstacles with defendants. She indicated to Mr. Hilliard that from our testimony today she can glean that irreparable harm is being done to all companies. She asked Mr. Hilliard to work on angles for what those damages and demands for those damages could amount to. Again, a watershed of support will be coming from this federal judge.

No one likes to sit in the courtroom, but I have to tell you, today was totally enjoyable. Hearing these results and the actions the judge is willing to take is nothing short of wonderful gift to the industry.

ABPIA board members, you will receive a dial-in number for our call tomorrow at 3 PM shortly. For everyone else on this list is not a board member, I want to thank you for your support in the past and in the future.

I want to extend a special thank you to two people that have worked tirelessly to bring about the results achieved today. First, I want to thank Roanna from TJ Formal’s for her effort to identify the list of offending sites. I cannot begin to tell you the legwork in detail with which she conducted her research ferreting out those that are true counterfeiters incapable of being stopped versus fringe sites. Secondly, I want to thank Mr. Hilliard for his support and his friendship in this fight. He is a true friend to the industry.

Steve Lang

Lang would not elaborate on how he feels critics will take the newZ but did say he does not count on any of them to offer help. Instead he plans on continuing the efforts calling the win a single battle in a long and costly war.

Currently 72% of responses to an eWedNewz poll says the wedding industry has a fair-to excellent chance of winning the war against online piracy. 25% feels there is a poor to impossible chance of winning.

 

What do you say?

 

 

 

eWedNewz

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China Joins in the Battle Against Fakes; or does it?

Posted on December 3, 2012 Written by 1 Comment

 

By Paul Pannone

Interest in online pirating of wedding dresses and a rising number of eWedNewz readers supplying information to this newZ source scourer stories and pertinent information, realizing US companies lose hundreds of millions of dollars annually. The problem of widespread pirating and possible solutions of how it can be stopped opens new front for debate and difference of opinion, almost daily.

Sources outside the dress business want to know why someone wouldn’t join the ABPIA?

 

eWedNewz coverage of the story reaching outside the borders of the wedding business has attracted sympathizers that say they’re impressed with the efforts of the ABPIA and its creator, Steve Lang. The recent court battle win and seizing of funds by PayPal broke down the barrier of the microcosm world of wedding dresses, propelling the newZ into general searches resulting in a greater awareness of the problems US manufacturers face.

“This isn’t just about wedding dresses, this is of national concern,” according to Paul Eilenberg, member of the Wedding Water Cooler.

Eilenberg and other members of the WWC are drawn into the discussions. Some members of the WWC say they’re trying to set aside personal opinions of the approach and people directing the war against pirating. Personalities aside, thinkers in the Cooler admit the advances by Chinese pirates were left unattended. Quietly some told eWedNewz, if not for Steve Lang, piracy would eventually bring the industry to its knees.

“We must look at the bigger picture and understand what is going on outside our boarders to be able to come up with a solution to fix what’s inside our boarders,” according to Jim Duhe, another member of the Cooler.

Duhe and Eilenberg are respected members of their respective industries. Both give their private thoughts on many subjects. Today Eilenberg asked us on Twitter if we saw this. According to RT.com China has joined the fight against their own people. The topic and coverage of the story raises several questions of the validity and authenticity of the information. In discussions some sources we spoke to asked if we noticed the website has “Russian origins”.

The website is dismissed by several sources and posts we discovered calling the source a mouthpiece for the Kremlin. If this is true, what purpose does running such a story serve?

“This is the problem we all face with information obtained on the Internet; it’s suspect because there are no standards to make certain the information is vetted, credible or true,” says Jim Duhe.

In a related story the transparent information supplied by the ABPIA is attacked by sources that say there are better solutions than the approach and path of the organization. Growing frustration at ABPIA and its founder, Steve Lang, came under scrutiny by one reply to eWedNewz coverage;

“It’s hard to believe there is any question a $100 membership to this organization would cause business owners to doubt the value, and that such an investment would truly assist them in supporting pricing that would contribute to improvements in their ability to provide benefits. What’s scary is that small business owners question a $100 investment that eliminates unfair – and direct – and illegal – competition and then actually ask “how it helps them pay for health insurance”. If any of my businesses actually HAD such an opportunity I’d be writing checks instead of this post,” according to Local Mobile/Big events.

 Tough questions being posed to Steve Lang by this newZ source was cause for further frustration. Lang’s motives are under attack by sources who say they don’t personally like him but fall silent when asked about his latest accomplishments.

“Why don’t these people contact me directly? What are they hiding? Anyone in this industry can join. We have over 300 members, more than IBMA ever had or ever will have. My goal is 1000 members. We will get there. The more people discussing what we do and seeing the results, the better.

We have been getting the PayPal cash receipts frozen and that will also fill our coffers. People are silly not to join. Try herding cats. When you ask people for money, they get alligator arms….too short to reach for the check. If we ever ran out of money, I would fund it myself.  I do not intend to run short

Oh, by the way, no legal bills have been paid yet or billed despite the antagonists that continue to project what this will cost us. The law firm I am using I used for over 20 years. They are solid friends to this firm.  They would never hurt us in any way, I can assure you. I wish the assholes throwing stones would get educated before blindly attacking us,” said Steve Lang, addressing the members of the Wedding Water Cooler.

Lang was grilled by other members of the Cooler, including Samantha Goldberg. Goldberg told eWedNewz there is a resistance to joining the ABPIA  but does not know the clear reason.

eWedNewz continues our investigation and coverage of why the wedding industry won’t embrace the organization and cough up $100 dollar membership fee.

  eWedNewz

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The Week of November 26th in Review

Posted on December 2, 2012 Written by Leave a Comment

 

By Paul Pannone

NewZ of Robert Huth, listed CEO, COO and President of David’s Bridal, departing in 2013 made top new this week as expected changes at David’s Bridal shows growing cause for concern among competing retailers. Initial comments and wishful thinking by competitors who said it will take years for David’s to straighten up their act and repair public perception is shifting, as they realize any changes will be for the better.

David’s Bridal and other big-box operator’s use of popular brand names is expected to continue, as consumers demand higher quality merchandise and service. An ongoing eWedNewz investigation shows consumers that are brand conscious don’t mind spending a little more to get the quality assurance world-class names offer.

eWedNewz continues our investigation and coverage of the war against knock-off wedding websites. This week PayPal froze accounts of off-shore  websites known to be abusive. Legal counsel for the ABPIA organization executed a temporary court order seizing monies before they transferred to the Chinese perpetrators.

The Call to action by the head of the organization, Steve Lang,rallied supporters and led to growing optimism that online piracy can somehow be stopped– or at least slowed. But new information obtained by this newZ source dismissed the efforts as costly and ineffective by Lang detractors. The information, discussed with Lang, opened the door to the new ideas. According to Lang he is willing to listen to anyone offering suggestions to help stem the bleeding of what he estimates as over $150 million dollars in wedding industry losses annually to the thieves.

 

 

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2012

Filed Under: Anti Fairy Dust, bridal, Bridal Dresses, Bridal Shops, eWedNewz, eWedNewz Exclusive, General News, Ongoing Story Coverage, Ongoing Story Investigation, Paul Pannone, Social Media, The Internet, The Week in Review, Uncategorized, Wedding Dresses, wedding industry, wedding websites Tagged: , , , ,
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