S02.E11: Swanson's Fish Market

[Lola16]

Thank you to everyone who has rebutted Larissa's post with the Swanson's own Facebook entries over the last four years.  What I really want to see is the house they were (are) living in.

 

Sue making the boat Gary's avatar is pure joy.

 

Poor, poor Swanson's  -  I think not.

The house isn't on the market and hasn't been so someone is fibbing about that.  I won't post photos but it's easily googled. 

 

One thing Larissa posted on the business FB page bothers me.  She stated that they now have all new staff and a new chef.  So all the people who supported them, paid cash for their inventory and went without paychecks --- they've been replaced.  Nice loyalty.

[Lola16]

Maybe Marcus should have checked out Gary's whip:
 

Larissa Swanson
December 28, 2009 ·

Just messed up the $2000 rim on my dad's mercedes...how much worse can things get?????

 

Larissa complains that her family has bad luck as witnessed by a failed restaurant business 2 years ago where she claims her father lost 200K$.  OK so, # 1 it appears that the family has run at least 1 restaurant before and badly so Marcus shouldn't be suggesting another one.  And # 2, that business MacDaddy's is embroiled in a lawsuit where the partners accuse each other of slander and dipping into the till to pay personal expenses.  Sound familiar?  The jilted partner has his 24 yr old daughter (same age as Larissa) open up a competing restaurant Mac-N-Out under her name.  Did she win a lottery?

 

http://mac-n-out.com/media/

https://www.facebook.com/macdaddyrestaurants

 

Court transcript - start at p 12

http://mac-n-out.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Voll_-_Dunn_Tial_Transcript_2013-1.pdf

[Jellyphish]

I love the show and love Marcus, but I would echo what more than one person has said already, how is it that he took them at their word prior to writing the check? Doesn't he have people that just automatically do that for him? I would think that wouldn't be something beyond shaking hands, but just preperation prior to entanglement. In other words, had he had someone just run through everything prior, would he have even started the process? Probably not, and perhaps the drama of the show caused that progression? We don't know, but seems likely.

An interesting secondary aspect is that if you go to their Facebook page the comments shift dramatically from the time the show aired, not a good way to run a business, especially one where reputation is important (e.g. food and sundries).

Still curious where the hell all that money went, seems like that should have been made known as well...

Anyhow, love the show (interesting at the least), and will always love Marcus, if I could ever find a mentor, he would be it for certain.

[TrixieBelden]

Larissa did her stream-of-consciousness thing on their website too, with some documents:  http://www.swansonsfishmarket.com/#!the-profit--please-read/c24el

[Puddy]

I just re-watched this episode.  They brought the daughter in to run interference, nothing more.  She was part of the entire scam - no matter if she knew all of the gory details or not.  When she said, "I don't have anything more to discuss" and faked crying and left, the acting was cringe-worthy.  No wonder mom was "busy" and "late".  She did not want to be there to be questioned any more than she already was.  The daughter was a convenient replacement for mom.  She knew just enough to get by but could not be accused of flat out lying like dad.

 

Am I the only one that noticed dad's profuse sweating?  He is one jittery mo-fo.

 

I love it when Marcus gets mad in his special Marcus way and cusses.  I see he ditched the Jag for a Chrysler since they are a sponsor. 

 

I know people ask why he did not do more checking before even contacting these people.  He is an honest person and just expects the same in return.  When he finds out that you lied, you are done.  I am like that and I always say, 'Don't mistake my kindness for blindness'.  When he walks out, his checkbook goes with him.

 

By the way, why doesn't he have those checks in a checkbook?  Hermès doesn't make one?  He whips them out of his pants pocket like a rube.

[clod]

I don't think he needs to be spoon-fed.

 

I would guess that since he is not an actor, his team leaves some surprising things for him to find out for himself.   so he will go with the flow, and they can film his honest reactions.    

 

like last season:   the animosity at the trailer-making company in Florida,    or the resentment and frustration at the candy company (sweet petes).  

his team could have told him what to expect, but it made better tv to see him surprised by it.

[Lola16]

Larissa did her stream-of-consciousness thing on their website too, with some documents:  http://www.swansonsfishmarket.com/#!the-profit--please-read/c24el

She needs to stop.  And the business partners that she claims robbed her father of 200K -- both her and her father are friends with the adult daughter of one (voll) on FB and Gary is friends with the other partner (dunn) on FB as well.  Larissa's own FB page contradicts many of her claims.  And shows that she takes at least 3 trips a year, one or two abroad. It also shows that she has been working at the fish market for many years except the summer that she moved away to live with her older sister at a beach house.  Guess that's the 1 hour commute she refers to? 

 

Sue Swanson shared Rachel Turzer's photo.

August 21, 2013 ·

Missing my larissa,

who helps me out around the house

& the office, " When I don't feel good."..

If it's true that the parents signed a confidentiality agreement, wouldn't she have had to as well? 

Edited November 1, 2014 by Lola16

[rehoboth]

In my mind there were two saving graces for the family:

 

1) the employees who thought enough of the business to chip in their own money to buy product.  I read Marcus' twitter feed from the show and he says that those employees are no longer at Swanson's.

 

2) the mother needing to be away from the business to care more for her son who was recently diagnosed with schizophrenia.  (Why Larissa felt the need to out this medical information on her FB page, I don't know.)  When asked if she could commit to running the business, I thought a reasonable answer would have been "I can commit to teaching Larissa all that I know but my son has a medical condition and I do need to spend time caring for him at home."  As it stands, the mother is lying about committing totally to the business and it looks like she says what Marcus wants to hear in order to get a check from him and make him go away.

 

The FB pictures of the jet skis, snowmobiles, fancy vacations, the reference to dad's Mercedes, and I just saw the $550,000, nearly 3000 sq ft house (that is not up for sale) just add up to robbing the business to finance a lavish lifestyle.

 

I do think that due diligence was performed by the producers at the outset.  How much Marcus is informed is debatable.  I think that is why the structure of the money on this show did not follow the usual formula and the money was put in escrow which we were informed of in a post-production voice over.   I found the scene paying the vendors to be problematic.  I wonder if Marcus gave them the check to cash and the next day they all began working on real payouts (in Marcus and the Swanson's minds - I can still see Marcus mouthing the word "today" to Larissa) to vendors but the producers pulled back the money (maybe after reading FB) and put it in escrow and the cash was never there to pay those vendors.  Curious.

 

They can't all have happy endings; that's what keeps us watching.

[DanA]

I would never go to this place again. He goes out of his way to help their business, and they lie, show up late, treat him like dirt ... I cant believe he didn't bail out of that deal earlier. Let that business fail. Good riddance.

[Lola16]

In my mind there were two saving graces for the family:

 

1) the employees who thought enough of the business to chip in their own money to buy product.  I read Marcus' twitter feed from the show and he says that those employees are no longer at Swanson's.

 

2) the mother needing to be away from the business to care more for her son who was recently diagnosed with schizophrenia.  (Why Larissa felt the need to out this medical information on her FB page, I don't know.)  When asked if she could commit to running the business, I thought a reasonable answer would have been "I can commit to teaching Larissa all that I know but my son has a medical condition and I do need to spend time caring for him at home."  As it stands, the mother is lying about committing totally to the business and it looks like she says what Marcus wants to hear in order to get a check from him and make him go away.

The replacing of the staff grates.  If they thought that would be a good way to buy their silence, they're probably wrong about that.

One thing Larissa posted on the business FB page bothers me.  She stated that they now have all new staff and a new chef.  So all the people who supported them, paid cash for their inventory and went without paychecks --- they've been replaced.  Nice loyalty.

 

The son is most likely a minor, as he is still in high school.  I think it was wise of production to blur him out considering his diagnosis.  Too bad Larissa doesn't have the same sensitivity.

[pvd3819]

Reading Larissa's letter on the website you can understand her anger about how the program was edited. It's only 42 minutes of air time. But it would be interesting to have Lemonis' perspective on the text Larissa says she sent him about the proceedings on the property.

[profitfan]

I know people ask why he did not do more checking before even contacting these people.  He is an honest person and just expects the same in return.  When he finds out that you lied, you are done.  I am like that and I always say, 'Don't mistake my kindness for blindness'.  When he walks out, his checkbook goes with him.

 

An honest man doesn't tell some one else to lie.  I wish they would have edited that out!  Actually I wish he hadn't said it in the first place.

[dialyn]

An honest man doesn't tell some one else to lie.  I wish they would have edited that out!  Actually I wish he hadn't said it in the first place.

 

If they had edited it out, he still would have told her to lie.  Not knowing doesn't make it right.  This episode, and the subsequent postings, make me feel less good about watching this series.  Oh, yes, I know these things are heavily edited and that people act to the camera.  I just don't know what the point of it all was.  Surely it must have dawned on someone in that family that going in front of a camera was not a good idea...was the money, the dubious fame, the publicity worth it to them?  Marcus doesn't come off looking very good either...he doesn't care because he'll keep making money but, still.  In the old days, before we showed everyone our dirty laundry, a person's good reputation meant something.  No more.

Edited November 5, 2014 by wrestlesflamingos

[rehoboth]

Marcus doesn't come off looking very good either...he doesn't care because he'll keep making money but, still.  In the old days, before we showed everyone our dirty laundry, a person's good reputation meant something.  No more.

I agree that Marcus doesn't look good here but I still think that a person's word and reputation mean something. This episode struck a nerve with a lot of people judging by the number of comments here and on other sites.

In fact Larissa complained of obscene comments and death threats but that is to be expected of anyone who comes on these shows. ( - Godwin's Law and all)

(Please excuse the above if this doesn't turn out - I'm trying to quote for the first time!)

[Shibori]

The son is most likely a minor, as he is still in high school. I think it was wise of production to blur him out considering his diagnosis. Too bad Larissa doesn't have the same sensitivity.

The Gary Swanson that comes up on facebook when you search for Swanson's Fish Market appears to be the brother (or a brother?) if so, he graduated this year, is in some kind of college, spends most of his time playing Grand Theft Auto, and was turned down when he tried to join the Marines. All info from his own public posts.

[Lola16]

That's Larissa's younger brother.  He could be a minor.  Still think it's wise for production to have blurred him out.

 

Gary (sr) gave an interview to the local Cable news:

 

http://connecticut.news12.com/news/swanson-s-fish-market-of-fairfield-featured-on-reality-show-the-profit-on-cnbc-1.9556594

 

Swanson's Fish Market hit some rough seas after a fire destroyed its building five years ago. (10/28/14)

FAIRFIELD - A decades-old family fish market in Fairfield was featured in prime time on CNBC Tuesday as part of a new reality show.

Swanson's Fish Market hit some rough seas after a fire destroyed its building five years ago.

In an effort to get back on its feet, Swanson's agreed to be part of the reality show "The Profit."

 

Marcus Lemonis, the star and investor of the show, spent a lot of time at the fish market this summer taping the episode.

Store owner Gary Swanson says Lemonis is as blunt and shrewd as he appears on the show. He says things got contentious and heated at times, but some things were exaggerated for dramatic purposes.

Swanson says the TV production and cameras were overwhelming, but says he would do it over again if he had to.

The show aired Tuesday night at 10 p.m.

[acmilankat]

I definitely think the family is shady but the 'Louis Vuitton' bag is an obvious fake because the logo is upside down.

[Lola16]

I definitely think the family is shady but the 'Louis Vuitton' bag is an obvious fake because the logo is upside down.

Larissa's best friend is claiming that L's boyfriend bought her that bag.  According to Sue, L's bf is in the luxury car business.

 

CNBC has a deleted scene of Marcus and a now fired employee checking out a freezer

 

http://www.cnbcprime.com/the-profit/video/scraping-the-bottom-of-the-freezer/

[Lola16]

The lawyer representing one of the business partners in MacDaddy's (the now closed restaurant in the Swanson Fairfield building), contradicts what Larissa is claiming on FB and on the Swanson website.

 

 

Bruce Matzkin Larissa's claim in her now widely-disseminated story (see her FB page, Swansons' Fish Market's site, TVRuckus.com) about her father losing $200,000 and being robbed blind by the two other partners in the Macdaddy's restaurant venture is completely false. Her father and mother teamed up with one of the other partners, Joe Voll, to freeze out the other guy, Robert Dunn, who started the company and created the market, so Voll could steal the concept and market, and two location opportunities, for a competing venture he started in secret to take over the market that was created by Dunn before Voll and the Swansons were ever involved. The Swansons had the chance to get their investment back, but Voll would not let them settle with Dunn and thereby enable Dunn to run a restaurant location with his company's name which would compete with the new Voll family venture. How cold Voll prevent them from settling with Dunn? Well it begins with Voll paying his own lawyers to also represent the Swansons... a conflict of interest that prevented the lawyers from advising the Swansons to take a good deal since it would impede the scheme of their paying client, Voll. I represented Dunn in this litigation. Swanson never took Voll to court as Larissa claims. And Swanson has not won in court either, as the case with Dunn has yet to be decided.
I can't speak to the debacle with The Profit where her parents were made fools of on national television, but as far as the Macdaddy's case goes, she knows not of what she speaks. If she didn't mention Macdaddy's in her response to The Profit, then this post would not have been made.

[Lola16]

While the show makes it seem the daughter is caught in the middle here, I can't also believe that.  Others have noted her bag and I would also note her manicured fingernails.  (I know not such a big deal, but hey...)  For her to be commuting 2 hours everyday and give up a job in retail - she has to be making money at this job.  She's been working there for quite a long time to be making the same commute daily.  So I am sure she either does quite well or she has a vested interest in the business.  (Given that on the Yelp page for the business it is her photos and comments which accompany the reviews.)

 

I also find the requisite "crying" per episode now way too much to watch! 

 

Marcus tweeted that he doesn't like all the crying either.  As for Larissa's commute... I have an hour and a half commute to Fairfield 2x a week and it's only 25 miles.  Traffic up the Merritt and I95 sucks.

 

Sue parked her BMW in the handicapped space. It's clearly visible in the one scene as she rolls in over the wheelchair symbols. Classy.

 

I am sure the family will claim that production 'made' her park there.  BTW, Larissa claims on her rant/post that her mom agreed to sell the bmw and they even made 'cute' for sale signs but it wasn't shown.  Well, contradicting that as always is her mother who posted a review on the BMW dealer site:

 

 

Sue Swanson 10/20/2014

The Staff & The Service is the Absolute Best!!!

This is my 3rd car with

BMW & All I can say ;

It's the Ultimate Driving machine..

[Lola16]

Sue and/or Gary posted under Sue's name on The Profit FB page. 

 

 

Sue Swanson Its Time to explain some truths to all you people who seem to blindly follow " the profit "as if the truth and facts are only spoken by the reality show GOD ,I am Larissas Father and I love her and apreciate her efforts to call for help from "Marcus", but contrary to the savior image Marcus has received from the network ,he just recently stepped into my business and was given all the true and complete financials to help us My Wife could no longer cope with the stress of running a business after 30 years of doing a great job and the recent death of 2 very close people in our family. also a very serious and devastating heath issue with our teenage son, Shame on all of you people who quickly judge and criticize , If all the facts about our situation were included in this show it would change everyones opinion of us ,but in the networks opinion would'nt be interesting enough for the show,( Btw~) This is my huband writting this on MY
Fb page came home once again from work he has not stopped working
endless hr since the rebuild of the fire you would think we just opened up a new Business when in fact he has been working for my father /inlaw since he was 14
& full time since he Graduated from H.s , is where we met & we have been together ever since if it wern't for my huisbands work ethics & determination my father/inlaw would of not been able to open up 4 other locations due to the first one being the Most Successful of them All being the First store located
in FFLD, that has Been run by my Husband.. I just finished tthese last few sentence on my behalf starting from( Btw )how come I was not aired saying Thank You giving hugs too the camera crew for all they did & how I enjoyed
getting to know them & I appologized & I wished everyone the Best ???
October 30 at 10:11am · Like · 3
Sue Swanson We had the Business up for sale before the Show aired & we pulled out
Our 2nd acct left for not being able to pay him he took over because the first acct didn't finish up our Taxes & we're fighting with him to get a loan & everything was in place for us to get a loan but due to his late work on getting it done by then it was too late .. I was working on selling my home before all of this took place
October 30 at 10:23am · Like · 1
Sue Swanson it has been one hell of a Ride mentally draining we have been in more lawyers office courtrooms & hospital in the last 5yr !! The worst was my sons Illness
Your health is your Greatest wealth!!! I lost my father in May & we started airing
june /Sept during those monthe I lost 2 aunts that were sick & passed during filming ..

Sue neglects to point out that all the Swanson's Fish Markets have closed except for the Fairfield location.  And that Gary posted on his page that they wanted to sell their Trumbull house for a beach house in Florida near Sue's mother.

 

 

 

Sue Swanson By all means I appreciate all the time & Effort that we spent
Marcus, Amber & Machette production we def learned alot & where we're bring the Business to the level !! I had the pleasure of working & getting to know Marcus he does have a Heart of Gold like myself which is Good & along with the bad Business Is Business !! I'm lol !! remebering this
My heart which I blame my self @ time is what I always say to Gary,
please let's give them a chance .. one of my life lesson that I keep seeing
repeating over & over for me Us to learn !! With all this being said
i have to now sit Back & leave it in hands of" God the almight" !!
God bless I'm praying for All that are hurting right now may God give you Guidance & Strength during your Journey !!
God Bless Peace & Blessings to All !!
Sue Swanson
October 30 at 11:54am · Like · 2
 

Liliana Fernandez Beautifully said, the truth does not make a good reality program; but God does not like ugly and His blessings come in ways that sometimes we do not recognize.had work pays up at the end. Faith, Hope and continue your journey
October 30 at 12:57pm · Like · 3

Edited November 2, 2014 by Lola16

[Amarsir]

An honest man doesn't tell some one else to lie.  I wish they would have edited that out!  Actually I wish he hadn't said it in the first place.

We're referring to the "$35k is all we have" negotiation, right?

 

Since Marcus' money is in escrow, is it possible this actually wasn't a lie?  Maybe they scraped up $35,000 out of profits and used it to pay off debts, but it really was all they could afford.

[rehoboth]

The Swansons are the gift that keeps on giving. I would have expected their comments since the show aired to be uniformly negative about Marcus and the production team but I am wrong since Sue is blowing them kisses in some of her comments. Maybe she is seeing the world through rose-colored glasses or maybe through her anxiety medication (see all typos, grammar and spelling errors).

I agree with Gary's point that the producers are only looking to air what brings the most DRAMA but this good point is negated by his own FB post that they are looking to sell their home in order to buy a beach house in FL. Year round jet-skiing, I guess.

On these reality shows, I have to go with my gut feeling. When Sue was asked if she could commit to the being at work, she didn't hesitate and said yes. Even with the stress related to the death's of family members and her son's medical condition (which the daughter outed on FB in a crude bid for sympathy), she didn't bat an eye and said yes. To me, this shows that her first impulse is to lie.

I also get a bad feeling with all the little, under-the-breath comments that Gary and Sue make about each other. "I'm always here" /"No, she isn't." "She hasn't gotten rid of her car."/"He has a boat." "I use the car for work."/"No she has never." They strike me as a couple who have agreed to stay together to get certain things out of the marriage/business for their own personal pleasure like jet-skis and driving a BMW. I think the BMW is part of Sue's deal and losing it is a deal-breaker. (The boat must be Gary's deal-breaker which is why she brought it up.)

Edited November 3, 2014 by rehoboth

[Lola16]

We're referring to the "$35k is all we have" negotiation, right?

 

Since Marcus' money is in escrow, is it possible this actually wasn't a lie?  Maybe they scraped up $35,000 out of profits and used it to pay off debts, but it really was all they could afford.

According to Larissa's posts, she thought Marcus would be paying the bills out of the 1M$ held in escrow.  The Swansons still owed the money as of August and were still waiting for Marcus to give them money. 

 

My opinion is that even though Larissa is the one that applied to the show, both parents knew and supported that decision and saw it as another financial lifeline (like the previous insurance payouts).  While the audience can sit back and wonder how the Swansons thought they could get away with all the fibs and fabrications of truth and books etc, the Swansons have had many failed businesses and seem to be able to convince new partners to invest so they figured they could pull one over on Marcus until the money was gone.  Just like Artistic Stitch whose books were a disaster and obviously used to fund the owners lifestyle and hobbies; yet there Marcus saw something worth saving and it's now the ill named Queens Vibe.

 

Even Larissa couldn't keep up the charade long enough in this deleted clip to engage with Marcus.  yea, uh uh...

 

http://www.cnbcprime.com/the-profit/video/a-lakeside-management-seminar/

 

The Swansons are the gift that keeps on giving. I would have expected their comments since the show aired to be uniformly negative about Marcus and the production team but I am be wrong since Sue is blowing them kisses in some of her comments. Maybe she is seeing the world through rose-colored glasses or maybe through her anxiety medication (see all typos, grammar and spelling errors).

Like this comment?

 

Sue Swanson

October 28 at 12:15pm

Today I would like to Thank Amber & Machete Production for bringing in Positve Vibes before, during & after Filming our Business !! All my best to All Sue & Gary Swanson P.s. ) I woke up smiling after seeing the Commercial on how Excited I was meeting Marcus... :)

https://www.facebook.com/MacheteProds

[dialyn]

I wouldn't be surprised if the Swansons manage to get their own reality show out of this mess.  Certainly there is enough material though I, for one, would find them hard to stomach from week to week.

[Lola16]

I'm curious as to how the show managed to get Sue and Gary to have their argument about the boat while mic'd up. They're totally shady enough to know how to avoid incriminating conversations, right?

You would think so.  Larissa claims that production 'forced' them to fight on camera and it was all staged.  No one could make me do that.  And in this day of reality TV, they should be fully aware of what consequences are for staging scenes.  What shows me that the Swansons aren't that savvy is videos like this one below.  Gary takes his shiny expensive pick-up truck (probably paid by the business) and yanks off his own sign off his own store and drives around the park lot with it.  All while knowing a 'friend' is capturing cell phone video of it.  Another insurance claim perhaps?  Or a false report of someone else vandalizing property?

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_2L55Ryz6kA

 

The daughter was not driving a BMW.  I'd be willing to bet none of the employees drove a BMW.  To many people, BMWs are indulgent wants, not absolute needs. What Marcus was trying to get at with the boat and the BMW and the house redecorating is that the parents were apparently willing to give up nothing for their business (in fact they were sucking it dry) and it looked terrible that they continued to be self-indulgent when others were making sacrifices (and you can argue about why the employees were doing that and if they were part of the scam, but that's not what I'm referencing here). 

I agree that the employees aren't driving BMWs but you can bet the daughter and father are driving luxury cars. Gary has a Mercedes and a nice pick-up truck. Sue has posted that Larissa's boyfriend is in the luxury car business.  Larissa claims that the reason her mother drives a BMW is that that dealer is the only one that would lease a car due to her parents poor credit.  Why do her parents have such poor credit if they took over a thriving business with 4 retail shops and a warehouse?  Yup, till dipping!  No, just kidding, Larissa blames bad luck and her dad 'blowing' money on bad business deals.

 

the BMW she had was only bc their credit was so shot that the only people who would lease her a car at the time was them due to her being an old customer.. but the nice thing is she said to Marcus at the beginning "ok i will sell it!" we shot a really cute scene where we took flyers of for sale signs and taped them to the window to show we wanted to do this and make sacrifices.

 

If this is true, then why are we shown Sue repeatedly refusing?  Have to admit, my favorite scene is Sue hiding behind a potted plant.  Hysterical.

Edited November 2, 2014 by Lola16

[Lola16]

Unfortunately, most of the more interesting posts on The Profit's Facebook page have been deleted.  Larissa though is now claiming her father has heart disease.  Sad but she shouldn't be using this as a sympathy ploy. 

 

 

Larissa Swanson: I am not trying to cause trouble in any way! I just cannot watch my parents deal with the threats, calls and emails and people driving by our HOUSE! it is scary and its awful with what they are already going through, i feel responsible and like this is all my fault because i wrote into this show! They are not allowed to defend themselves so i feel a responsibility to...it was a long and mentally draining process of 12 hour film days. They played games with us for 4 months and my whole summer was wrapped around them. I didnt sleep for a good two weeks after what they did to us and have lost almost 7 pounds. We found out my father was diagnosed with heart disease with a 53% enlarged heart halfway through filming and they could careless! they also had no sympathy for my brother's condition. What is ridicuous is our employee (who was fired for showing up late every morning or not showing up at all) said they have had to put their money together to buy product, that was two times! only because the vendor was outside and demanded a cashiers check but my father was not around to give the check so they chipped in (bc it was too early in the morning and there was simply not enough money in the register) and got their money RIGHT back by the end of the day out of the register hours later lol. Paul (the guy speaking wanted to look like a hero) I could go on and on, the BMW she had was only bc their credit was so shot that the only people who would lease her a car at the time was them due to her being an old customer.. but the nice thing is she said to Marcus at the beginning "ok i will sell it!" we shot a really cute scene where we took flyers of for sale signs and taped them to the window to show we wanted to do this and make sacrifices.
October 31 at 12:36pm

Of course Larissa doesn't mention her trip to Italy with a girlfriend in August.  Can't really feel sorry that her 'whole summer' was tied up with the shoot.  That's a small price to pay for a chance at 1M$. 

I don't put much stock in fancy handbags. They sell very good knockoffs on the streets in Philly and NYC all the time. If it's real, it may have been a gift, she might have bought it on sale. On the other hand, the car and the freaking boat were real and sucking out a lot more money than a handbag.

 

These folks were trying to get out of debt while keeping their toys and keeping their employees footing the bills as long as possible. What awful people. 

Larissa claims it's from her boyfriend. 

 

Larissa Swanson I worked in retail before this and the bag was a gift from my boyfriend for christmas two years ago. Dennis Nig
19 hours ago ·

https://www.facebook.com/TheProfitcnbcprime?pnref=lhc

 

I would like to know what retail job pays so well that you can afford LV bags and luxury car payments, a house on the beach etc?  Anyone I know working retail complains about the pay, even those working on Madison Ave at luxury jewelers.

[dialyn]

You would think so.  Larissa claims that production 'forced' them to fight on camera and it was all staged.  No one could make me do that.  And in this day of reality TV, they should be fully aware of what consequences are for staging scenes.  What shows me that the Swansons aren't that savvy is videos like this one below.  Gary takes his shiny expensive pick-up truck (probably paid by the business) and yanks off his own sign off his own store and drives around the park lot with it.  All while knowing a 'friend' is capturing cell phone video of it.  Another insurance claim perhaps?  Or a false report of someone else vandalizing property?

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_2L55Ryz6kA

 

I agree that the employees aren't driving BMWs but you can bet the daughter and father are driving luxury cars. Gary has a Mercedes and a nice pick-up truck. Sue has posted that Larissa's boyfriend is in the luxury car business.  Larissa claims that the reason her mother drives a BMW is that that dealer is the only one that would lease a car due to her parents poor credit.  Why do her parents have such poor credit if they took over a thriving business with 4 retail shops and a warehouse?  Yup, till dipping!  No, just kidding, Larissa blames bad luck and her dad 'blowing' money on bad business deals.

 

 

If this is true, then why are we shown Sue repeatedly refusing?  Have to admit, my favorite scene is Sue hiding behind a potted plant.  Hysterical.

My comment was made before all the postings by Larissa were revealed.  My conclusions about Larissa were wrong since they were based on partial information (I know better; I did it anyway).  I still think a BMW is not a need, and it was just one small indicator that the family's main focus was not on the business but indulging themselves.  My apologies to all BMW owners who think a BMW is a necessity of life....good for you for having the money to keep one.  I think Marcus said what kind of car Larissa was driving and it didn't sound like a luxury car to me (but I may not have heard correctly, and she may have more than one car).  It seems to me that if you have a microphone attached to you, that should be a reminder that you might want to monitor what you say since everything is being recorded.  On another reality show (so bad I won't admit which one), the people pushed the cameras out but they left the microphone in place so everything they said could clearly be heard (and it was not flattering).  It is either stupidity or hubris to think that the recordings (visual or audio) won't be used or edited.  This family is a real piece of work, though I think Marcus could have found that out earlier had any research on them had been done (or they did know and just wanted the drama of Marcus walking away).

[Lola16]

According to a now former employee (all employees were let go in July supposedly), Marcus figured it out in June.  Of course, they will keep filming -  this family and their shadiness was pure reality gold.

 

 

Jorge Twigg Coverup their is a bigger story but marcus was hip 2 them since june
11 hours ago · Like

 

I don't have an issue that it took 4 months and not 4 weeks to film.  For production reasons, they probably shot all the East Coast shows at the same time (Queens Vibe, Courage B, Swanson's and the LI hair shop) plus Marcus was in town for reopening of Crumbs.  As far as showing things out of sequence, that's also a production thing.  When you watch home renovation shows, those are all out of sequence - they aren't really renovating one room at a time, they cut it that way because it makes for better TV.

 

I do wish there was less 'drama' and more instruction.  Here's another deleted scene about the business side:

 

http://www.cnbcprime.com/the-profit/video/slicing-up-swordfish-for-profit/

Edited November 2, 2014 by Lola16

[KHenry14]

The more I think about it, the more troubling this episode is. I'll start off with a nitpik....Larissa, you can't sell a leased car. You just turn it in. Which leads me to believe that they did actually have a loan out on it and maybe Larissa doesn't know the difference. Either way, one has to question either her brains or her veracity.

 

Secondly, Larissa's comments and evidence about the insurance payments bother me. Her evidence is interesting, and if she's telling the truth, Machete Productions fabricated a storyline and they need to have their show cancelled. But all of the Swanson's Facebook posts, and the Lawyer in their lawsuit makes it hard to believe anything the Swanson's say. BTW, I'm sure that producer was thrilled that Larissa revealed his cell number in her screed!

 

Thirdly, one thing that really bothers me is the deal Marcus cut. He's never done a deal like this before, and the reason for buying the building instead of the business just don't ring true to me. Also, you don't just buy the building and then proclaim, "I'm 100% in charge". Uh, you don't own the business, how can you now be in charge, you are just the landlord. Frankly I think the reason he didn't buy a part of the business is that their upside just isn't that big, and he can't really scale the business.

 

And finally, if all those personal issue were/are true, then Sue had no business lying to Marcus about her ability to commit to being their fulltime. She probably did it because she felt he'd leave....but that's the kind of lie that gets found out quite quickly. There's more to this part of the story

 

I am kinda wondering about how bright this whole family is.....

[Lola16]

The more I think about it, the more troubling this episode is. I'll start off with a nitpik....Larissa, you can't sell a leased car. You just turn it in. Which leads me to believe that they did actually have a loan out on it and maybe Larissa doesn't know the difference. Either way, one has to question either her brains or her veracity.

 

Secondly, Larissa's comments and evidence about the insurance payments bother me. Her evidence is interesting, and if she's telling the truth, Machete Productions fabricated a storyline and they need to have their show cancelled. But all of the Swanson's Facebook posts, and the Lawyer in their lawsuit makes it hard to believe anything the Swanson's say. BTW, I'm sure that producer was thrilled that Larissa revealed his cell number in her screed!

Sue still drives the BMW.  Gary still has his boat, his Mercedes, his pick-up truck.  So Larissa's claim that they shot a 'cute' scene where Sue agreed to give up her BMW --- meh, who cares, she didn't.  As for the lease, I've seen ads where people sell the car to other individuals for cash + take-over payments or as a trade-in to a dealer.  I don't see Sue being eligible for that as she's probably upside down on the lease.

 

Look closely at the documents Larissa provides as proof.  The 10% 'adjuster' deduction is hand written; no way to know if that's legit.  Also, there are 2 line items on there that weren't settled yet; no way to know how much that is for.

 

Larissa is constantly editing her rant.  Which is good in a way as it makes it more legible but she is also changing her facts often.

 

http://www.swansonsfishmarket.com/#!the-profit--please-read/c24el

 

After the opposing counsel from MacDaddy's rebutted her statements on Facebook, she no longer states that her father blew 200K due to 2 corrupt partners who took advantage of him.  According to the court papers, Gary and Sue paid 10K to buy into the franchise and put the restaurant in a space in their building that was already outfitted for a restaurant.

 

 

My father also lost the last of his savings; two years ago investing in a small restaurant that he thought would be our saving grace and get us out of the financial situation we were in.  One of the owners they partnered with took advantage so he went to court to break the contract and won but he was never able to get his investment back so in the end he really lost.

I read the court documents and no, that's not what it says.  The Swansons never filed suit, they aligned themselves with one of the partners and tried to wrest control over the entire business from the other partner.  They didn't get their own attorney and in the end, they wound up with nothing as the partner they aligned with, split from the other partner and there are now competing macaroni & cheese restaurants and the Swansons location was shuttered.

 

As for the lien, I don't recall Marcus saying it was a construction lien.  And when Larissa first refuted that claim, she posted a copy of a lien release only to be called out on Facebook for providing a construction lien versus a mortgage lien.  The mortgage lien still appears to exist.

http://civilinquiry.jud.ct.gov/CaseDetail/PublicCaseDetail.aspx?DocketNo=FBTCV146045705S

 

 

The filming process started at the beginning of June and ended in September. [...] During the 4-month summer process she had 3 deaths in her family that she was mourning over including her father, cousin and aunt.

Sue's father passed away the first week of May and Sue's posts say that she lost 2 aunts who were ill during the Summer.  Tragic and sad but not overly accurate.  While I can certainly see Sue still grieving over the loss of her father during the Summer, Larissa keeps stating that he passed during filming.  To me, that's intentional inaccuracy designed to get sympathy.  That doesn't sit well with me and makes me question how many other partial truths Larissa is telling.

[Blue]

Did no one else notice the cockroach running across the brass pipe when they were interviewing in the kitchen?  It was, I believe on the last clip in the kitties about 5 minutes into the show.

[glowlights]

Regarding their claim that the ep was filmed over the course of months... according to Inc Magazine, Marcus films eight full days per episode. He only films this show 4-5 months per year, total. The Swansons want us to believe that Marcus spent the bulk of his entire filming schedule for the season at their place? LOL

 

I believe what really happened is that the entire process took a few months. There would be pre-interviews with producers, filming some footage that didn't require Marcus (such as exterior shots), a discovery process (according to another interview the show doesn't film blind, although Marcus walks on set without knowing the full story). So boo hoo hoo they had to take some blocks of time out of their schedule over the course of months. Did they expect to be featured on a national t.v. show and the opportunity at receiving a huge check for nothing???

 

They should go into business with Maarse Florists - money for nothing and your checks for free.

[attica]

Did they expect to be featured on a national t.v. show and the opportunity at receiving a huge check for nothing???

 

I believe this is often the case, hilariously numbnutty as it is. People who want to be on tv often do not consider details like that.

[profitfan]

“@Elizabeth519215: @marcuslemonis Swanson put all paperwork on emails and text messages on their website. Is this true?”not even close

 

@itzCLos: @marcuslemonis what happened to the $17k I think it was you paid for new equipment at Swansons?”I left it there

 

@dabearmc: @marcuslemonis How much advance due diligence is done before you go to a company?”none before

 

Three recent Tweets on Marcus' account.  (I don't tweet - I just follow the posts.  Most of the time I don't understand that stuff.)

[Lola16]

Larissa is busy updating her 'truth' diatribe.  Constantly editing it once inaccuracies are proven.  She still leaves in that her poor parents haven't been away in years.  Maybe not this year but they've been to Florida and PR the past 2 years.  First world problems indeed.

[rehoboth]

Upon a second viewing, things look no better for the parents and a little worse for the daughter as it appears that the apple hasn't fallen too far from the tree.

Worst scene: for me it is the scene with Larissa talking down the vendors. I assumed that Marcus was talking about the money he was going to give to the Swansons for the building but maybe he was not. Did the business have any money in the bank? They did have customers.

Best scene: Tie - Sue hiding behind the potted plant and Marcus raising his voice to Gary - Gary: "I explained that." Marcus: "EXPLAIN IT AGAIN!" Marcus is like the Dad who doesn't raise his voice and when he does, you know you're in trouble.

[Lola16]

Upon a second viewing, things look no better for the parents and a little worse for the daughter as it appears that the apple hasn't fallen too far from the tree.

Worst scene: for me it is the scene with Larissa talking down the vendors. I assumed that Marcus was talking about the money he was going to give to the Swansons for the building but maybe he was not. Did the business have any money in the bank? They did have customers.

 

According to Larissa's updated post yesterday, they were waiting on Marcus to give them money.  Why they didn't have money of their own, I do not know.  Maybe they did and they didn't want to spend it on vendor bills?

[glowlights]

Marcus is addressing the vendor issue on his Twitter account. Here but this is what the conversation looks like from November 9th:

 

Random Person: Tell me it's not true that Swansons didn't receive any $ from you or the show when trying to pay off vendors

Marcus: of course not. I don't hand money out without an agreement. Not a charity

Random Person:  So why have her call vendors to promise immed payment when no $ available? Don't get it.

Marcus: they were getting funds from the closing. Offered deposit to handle. They wouldn't agree. Total bs

Random Person: so then it was premature to call the vendors, and you helping her in the background?

Marcus: nope. She needed to call. They agreed to the deposit and then changed story. It's that simple

 

Not sure I understand the deposit angle, but imo Marcus still has more credibility than they do.

[Lola16]

From what Larissa claimed, Marcus offered 100K check for the building (which it looks like Marcus is saying that was his deposit) and Larissa said her parents lawyer said not to accept it as they didn't really want to sell the building.

 

Marcus also negotiated a 10K payment from the owner of Black Rock Cafe.  That money was to go to the fish market.  That should have been enough to pay a months worth of product and salaries plus a mortgage payment.  Where'd that go?

 

According to this, the cafe closed in August

http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/black-rock-caf%C3%A9-fairfield-3?select=_018eP5v3gk_qeY2lSOveQ&userid=mtiJawkWTTmZqTFYpv0b3g#_018eP5v3gk_qeY2lSOveQ

 

ETA: The location is available!  Make an offer :p

 

http://www.hkgrp.com/listings/2449-black-rock-turnpike-fairfield-ct-3/

Edited November 11, 2014 by Lola16

[Larissa]

Lola do you have a life?? Just wondering because you seem to post on here everyday and clearly spend hours on the computer researching my family and I. This is the last time I will even care to explain myself to miserable nasty people like you.. Our other locations never went out of business, my grandfather sold them ALL except for the one in Fairfield which my father bought from him. The trips I have been on in the past few years my boyfriend has paid for, he loves to travel and has a business of his own. The beach house I rented two years ago for three months and paid $750 a month for while working two jobs, nothing of what I have comes out of the fish market- I barely take a paycheck there. I never posted anything for 'sympathy' the last thing I wanted to do was air our personal business but I was stating the facts of where a portion of my parents money has gone to over the years. I could keep going and going but your just a hater and will just keep writing something back to everything I have to say. I will pray for you to get a life and find a hobby.

[Lola16]

I appreciate your prayers Larissa.  It's so nice of you to care so much about others.

 

I'm a college student and my field of study is media and public relations.  Many of our assignments are dissecting current events and how companies/famous people handle crises.

 

From a PR standpoint, you blew it.  No nice way of saying it.  These reality shows are produced to get ratings.  Sure, people had a lot of negative comments.  Your family gave a lot of ammunition.  But what really blew this into the mess it was, was all the posts after the show aired.  That's what got people interested and kept the conversation going online. 

 

There have been a few episodes of The Profit where Marcus walks away after 'discovering' financial improprieties and less than upfront owners.  What made this episode different was all accusations from you, your sister, friends, former employees, and former business partners (and lawyers) that you all lobbed at each other.  That was more interesting than what was shown on air.  I actually considered reaching out to you when I saw your initial postings but quickly realized that you were more intent on being reactionary and defensive and most likely would not take advice from a stranger.  Instead, I sat back, watched and wrote a paper about it.  Thanks for the A.

[Larissa]

Whatever makes you feel better! You say I failed miserably but I actually have gotten hundreds if not thousands of support e-mails from the town of Fairfield and all over the country. Since then our store has become very busy due to my letter, I am actually proud of the fact that I stuck up for my family and have stayed strong throughout all of this. You still take the time to check this feed everyday, I must say I am quite flattered that you have such an obsession with myself and a show that aired almost a month ago. You took the time to go through each and every one of my familes facebook's back to 2007...really?? You are so far OFF about everything you assumed about us that it was actually comical reading all of your posts, for someone who is in "college" I would expect you would be a lot smarter than that. Please move on and find someone else's life to obsess over!! I feel sorry for you, take care.

[Lola16]

I'm glad I was able to provide some amusement for you.  Laughter usually helps out in stressful times.

 

I doubt you really concern yourself with online posts of people you don't know but since you claim to, please don't.  It's not worth any of your time or of anyone else. There are more important things in life.  My advice (which I am sure you will not take) is to stop the inflammatory comments and stop engaging people you don't know.  Post a rebuttal on your company website and your company Facebook page and leave it at that.  The more you talk about it, the more traction it gets.  Let it blow over.  Or as Elsa says, Let it go.

 

Good luck!

[TheRealist]

Looks like Larissa has learned well from her mother.

When you are caught lying just get mad and sling poo at other people while

calling them haters and denying everything.

good job.

[rehoboth]

What Larissa doesn't understand is why people are upset over the Swanson's Fish Market show. We (the viewers) love it when a deserving owner gets a hand up from Marcus. We also enjoy when an owner has the potential for success but can't seem to get out of their own way and Marcus pulls out because the situation is unworkable (see Worldwide Trailers or the coffee company). Swanson's Fish Market was neither of these.

It struck a nerve with viewers because it screamed SHADY from the get go. The numbers that Gary gave (twice and were repeated each time by Marcus) did not add up. The behavior of the mother was puzzling. I think that viewers started to delve into The Profit comments and Facebook entries to help decide if the couple had been railroaded by Marcus or if we really saw possible insurance fraud and other shady dealings. When Larissa feeds the fire by throwing out explanations and numbers that are then rebuked by an attorney involved in the case, it confirms the worst about the family. And viewers tend to get worked up when undeserving people get Marcus' help.

This was a bad decision, it's time to let it go Larissa.

[RadioActiveRich]

The fact that ya'll can go around the internet tracking down the truth just cracks me up. I wish I had that kind of time, but more importantly Larissa should know that once it's on the net, it's forever. Giving her the benefit of the doubt for just a second I would offer the following advice. Your parents are screwed up. That's nothing new. A lot of us have screwed up family members. The question you have to be asking yourself right now is how much of it has seeped into your view of the World. Get away from it, make your own way in the World and drop this nonsense. "Emails of support" don't mean much. Go build something of your own. Otherwise all your left with is "Ohhhh. Mommy loves you." - Seriously one of the creepiest moments of all television history. And that's saying something.

[nobodyyoucare]

As for why Marcus doesn't perform due diligence he has two very good  reasons.

 

1. The money for him is small potatoes. A million dollars to put in a business when he has over 2 billion dollars cash on hand is a nothing burger. What matters is his time. He wants everything setup on the path of success and getting his money back then making a profit in a month.

 

2. Time to perform the background checks, accounting etc is often four to six months. When a business needs immediate cash to avoid closing the doors within a week or a month,Marcus considers there is no time to waste on due diligence because there will be no business to be done. 

 

In regards as to why Marcus brought up the BMW and not the handbag.

 

1. Handbags are a one time expensive unlike a BMW that constantly requires payments as well as other expenses. unless the daughter was using company money to buy expensive handbags then the expense is a nothing burger.

 

2. You can buy real brand new Louie Vutton handbags, Gucci stuff dirt cheap if you look around for a while. 

 

3. Knockoffs, real brands that look similar exist.

 

4. You can buy used or even fairly brand new ones dirt cheap often at thrift shops, goodwills around the country for forty bucks.

 

5. The handbag is personal property. BMW money could have been used to get a much cheaper car or van that could be used to pick up supplies to save shipping costs, or make deliveries to earn money.

 

6. Marcus didn't know about the boat but notice he asked if it was used to fish. A fishing boat if run properly could bring in quite a bit of money or save a lot of money versus getting the fish from suppliers.

[nobodyyoucare]

In regards to having the girl say they only had 35,000 to pay off a 53,000 debt. That is quite common and perfectly legal to do so.

The supplier did every what other company will do when faced with the prospect of getting payment on a debt that was never thought never going to be paid. They will take the money.

 

When a company is owed money for a debt there are four options they can take.

 

1. Is legal options but that can often cost more then the debt would be and often result in nothing close to amount of debt. So considered a lose lose.

 

2. Forget getting it or forgive the debt. This occurs by way two ways.

 

a. By law debts are erased when certain events happen such as the debt holder dying. By law the family members etc cannot be made to pay the debt of the dead person. This doesn't stop certain debt collection agencies from going after family members to get debts paid off.

b. The company decides it will never get the money owed to them and just write it completely off as a loss. 

 

3. Sell the debt to a debt collection agency for pennies on the dollar who will then try to get the full amount for the debt collection agency often restorting to harassment and other illegal things. So the fish supplier would have gotten 5300 bucks.

 

4. Take half or more then half of the debt when offered. Option 4 is considered the best option all around because depending upon margins they could still make a profit or break even on what was paid of the debt.

[an iPhone]

Based on the broadcast show and the statement posted on the net by the daughter, I'm assuming defamation of character and or attempt to defraud charges are going to be filed. From what I read on this website, hopefully not by the owners of this site, some people are going to be sued for defamation. Even kind of accusing these people of starting their fires is enough.