Bernard Callebaut in receivership

[Locke]

Originally Posted by JBR

Sorry to have confused you.

Apparently, your concern for your inability to untangle the mysteries of a chocolate map is greater than your empathy for the dozens of employees that are out on the street, looking for work... many of whom have been with Bernard for 20+ years.

Not to mention, employees whose transferable skills in a non-chocolate related market are probably pretty minimal.

[Rerun]

Originally Posted by Bertuzzied

Also puzzling too is how a $3million dollar loss on a property can send the whole company into receivership. Isnt' $3million nothing nowadays? Sarich makes that in one year.

my thoughts too... seems a little unusual.

[Tron_fdc]

Originally Posted by OldDutch

Well if he is willing to trade the total embarrassment and humiliation of losing control of his 27 year old empire to a bunch of vultures for free ad space, then yes.

I worked on his website in the early 2000's and met the man, he is one of the nicest people you will ever meet. He made a business bet and lost, it happens. However, I will never question his character, ever.

Hey, I'm not questioning his character or saying he did it on purpose. Just made an observation. One thing my grandpa taught me when it comes to business was there's no such thing as bad publicity, and this is case and point.

[4X4]

Originally Posted by Tron_fdc

Hey, I'm not questioning his character or saying he did it on purpose. Just made an observation. One thing my grandpa taught me when it comes to business was there's no such thing as bad publicity, and this is case and point.

I wonder if Maple Leaf agrees with grandpa tron.

[Ducay]

Originally Posted by Bertuzzied

Also puzzling too is how a $3million dollar loss on a property can send the whole company into receivership. Isnt' $3million nothing nowadays? Sarich makes that in one year.

Ya, well when the bank calls in a ~$5M loan and you don't just happen to have the cash kicking around.......you get to declare the banka-ruptus

[Ducay]

Originally Posted by 4X4

I wonder if Maple Leaf agrees with grandpa tron.

I never did get why everyone was so angry with them putting mouthwash in meat....can't be that harmful can it?

no Im not that dumb

[Biff]

Originally Posted by Ducay

I never did get why everyone was so angry with them putting mouthwash in meat....can't be that harmful can it?

no Im not that dumb

I see what you did there.

[fredr123]

Related court documents are available on Deloitte's website here: http://www.deloitte.com/view/en_CA/c...ship/index.htm

Most of the good stuff is probably buried in ATB's affidavit in support of the receivership order but it's 216 pages long. Not all that interested in reading the whole thing right now...

EDIT: The body of the affidavit is only 9 pages long. The rest is all exhibits. They got a consent receivership order (meaning BC didn't dispute it) so there's nothing in there that's all that interesting. I didn't see anything in the affidavit having to do with the dairy farm lands or a loss of value either. Bummer.

[chemgear]

http://www.calgaryherald.com/busines...933/story.html

Bernard Callebaut and his wife Francesca will have to pay nearly $150,000 after a judge found they removed assets — including chocolate — from their former company after it was placed in receivership.

[Sr. Mints]

He's made his own bed and has to sleep in it, but I can't help but feel sorry for the guy.

[JiriHrdina]

Originally Posted by Sr. Mints

He's made his own bed and has to sleep in it, but I can't help but feel sorry for the guy.

Not me - I tend to feel sorry for the people he screwed.

[Hack&Lube]

Originally Posted by Sr. Mints

He's made his own bed and has to sleep in it, but I can't help but feel sorry for the guy.

Is it made of chocolate?

[JustAnotherGuy]

Originally Posted by JiriHrdina

Not me - I tend to feel sorry for the people he screwed.

No kidding. It seems a lot of people forget that when a bankruptcy happens that some people and businesses do not get paid.

[puckluck]

Bankruptcy is the biggest scam. I know some people actually have to go bankrupt but there are way too many people taking advantage of the system.

I know tons of people with cash businesses who go bankrupt every 7-10 years just to screw the government while they owe million dollar homes over sea.

[REDVAN]

My cousin told me a story about him (too personal and circumstantial to post online), but let's just say I think he deserves any punishment he gets.

[fredr123]

From the article:

Court of Queen’s Bench Justice Barbara Romaine found the couple in contempt of the receivership order and ordered them to pay $99,150 in restitution for the goods taken — most of which have since been returned — as well as legal costs for the receiver and Chocolaterie Bernard Callebaut.


She also levied a $50,000 penalty, calling the Callebauts’ actions “wrongful and a serious breach of the receivership order.”


Romaine, issuing her decision Thursday morning, said while the Callebauts’ expressed “a number of rationalizations” for their behaviour, “it comes down to a sense of entitlement.”

You have to do something pretty blatantly in contravention of a court order to be found in contempt.

[Ducay]

Doesn't this basically amount to theft? (but then they gave it back once caught).

[puckluck]

Originally Posted by Ducay

Doesn't this basically amount to theft? (but then they gave it back once caught).

Yes, and I'd bet he had this planned for years and was storing cash away in that time. $150,000 will probably mean nothing to him in terms of how much he actually stole when it was clear he was going to go bankrupt or into receivership.

[Ashartus]

Originally Posted by Sr. Mints

He's made his own bed and has to sleep in it, but I can't help but feel sorry for the guy.

At first I felt sorry for him - figured he'd made a couple of poor business decisions and got blindsided by the recession. However, the bit about stealing from the company made me lose any sympathy I had.

[troutman]

It probably burns his butt that others are running his company, that he built, that carries his name.

This does not excuse his contempt of a court order.

I visited a "fresh" chocolate shop in Inglewood. They explained that chocolate should be eaten right after it is prepared - that the chocolates at most other shops are well past their due dates. I did not know this.

http://www.sochoklat.com/

Every chocolatier in Western Canada, including Chocolaterie Bernard Callebaut, Roger's, Purdy's, and Ganong all buy bulk chocolate and use it as an ingredient in their confections but do not actually "make" the chocolate itself.

Unlike chocolate itself (which has a very long shelf life), the delicate and smooth buttercream centers of high quality chocolates, have a shelf life at room temperature of approximately 7-10 days before beginning to go rancid or mouldy. If refrigerated, they can last up to 14 days before becoming inedible.