Do You Mind If I Rip You Off?

At a cocktail party many years ago, someone asked me what I did. When I answered "consultant," they then asked, half-seriously, "oh, does that mean you're out-of-work?"

In the current economy, a lot of people have been let go. Some of them are hanging out a shingle claiming to be "consultants." I appreciate the need to appear busy while you're looking for that next position, but it's breeding an ugly form of dishonesty. Take the call I got last week.

The gentleman claimed to be a former exec at a major food company who had licensed a famous restaurant brand for retail products in the supermarket. He claimed he wanted to know what my company does because he had been retained by a restaurant brand that was exploring licensing. But in the course of the conversation, it was clear he was trying to pump me for proprietary information about how we do business. He wanted to know:

What is a licensing feasibility study?
Can you send me one?
How much does one cost?
What is included?
What's your share of the royalties from a licensing deal?

While perhaps the one with the biggest brass balls, he's not alone. At least once per week I get calls from companies and consultants claiming they want to know this or that about the food licensing business. It only takes a few minutes before it's clear they're trying to get something for nothing. If it's the consultants, they want to know our business model. If it's a company, they're trying to find out:

Can we do this ourselves?
What is THE royalty rate for food deals?
How do you reach out to licensees?
Can you send me a sample contract?

It's not even enough to expect fair treatment from every company we deal with as a client. When we brought a very promising, innovative and potentially enriching deal to one firm last year, they immediately tried to limit our compensation to a very narrow interpretation of our representation agreement. This after telling us when we signed on with them "we're a very ethical company."

While it's always nice to get something for nothing, the sheer unethical gall that has surfaced from all this frankly takes my breath away. While I sympathize with those who are out-of-work and their often desperate attempts to reinvent themselves, please don't sink to the level of the common thief. By asking me for proprietary information, you're stealing. By asking me to help you launch your new career, you're taking money out of my pocket. Don't lie and say "if this works out, perhaps we can do business later on." That's a lie and we both know it.

I hope the gentleman who called isn't a common thief, and will phone me any day with an offer to work together on a topic he really doesn't know very much about. Yes, he handled the licensing-in of that restaurant brand. But licensing isn't about a one-shot deal. It has a variety of components that rely on skill, vision and expertise. There is NO ONE ROYALTY RATE, so stop asking, folks.

And if you want my help, then do the right thing. Maybe you can sleep at night stealing from others, but don't think we don't notice.

Excerpted from BSLG's weekly subscription news reader service Food Business News. To subscribe or for information about licensing, contact Broad Street Licensing Group (tel. 973-655-0598)