Melvin Royster Bodystyles By Mel, Takes Money, Does not Render Services Harford County, Maryland

In response to the following statement made by Melvin Royster in the New York Times article "7 Businesses That Failed in 2009"...

I didnt have the right business people in place to generate the revenue I wanted, said Mr. Royster, who believes his employees werent selling aggressively enough. I tried to run it like a family, and I think I got a little too relaxed.

This statement is a clear demonstration of Mr. Royster's ignorance, dishonesty, and lack of couth. To make a statement like this is a pathetic attempt by a desperate man to salvage a name that means very little in this town anymore. It's a real shame when a grown man refuses to take responsibility for his own actions and instead chooses to blame others for his failures. How ironic that Mr. Royster is attributing the demise of his business to the very same employees that he, on several occasions, took personal thoughts and ideas from to pass them off as his own? The truth here is simply this - Mr. Royster had not only some of the best employees but some of the greatest, most intelligent people working for him and it is now abundantly clear that he didn't deserve ANY of them. BSBM failed for one reason and one reason only; MELVIN ROYSTER.

The real reasons his business failed:

- He favored clients who were female or wealthy.

- He asked wealthy clients to invest, and in some cases hired them even if it meant eliminating loyal employees.

- He went on vacations often with no plans for operations while he and his wife were away.

- Planned lavish events which cost BSBM more money than they made.

- Recieved money from clients for services and never refunded when appropriate, even when service was not rendered or special medical circumstances advised the client to end training.

- Passed off others ideas as his own.

- Relied on a paper/folder system that was unreliable and mismanaged for tracking client sessions and employee payrolls.

- Exhibited poor or sometimes awkward customer service towards both current and potential new clients.

-Owners trained clients with their baby stroller on the training floor, highly unprofessional.

- Mr. Royster lied to clients about how many sessions they had left to have them resign, to recieve money from them sooner.

- Had no inventory tracking system or regular equipment maintenance.

- Portrayed absolutely NO recognition for the hard work, dedication, and great ideas of the amazingly giving staff who dealt with his messes on a daily basis.

The intention of this review is not to bash an already failed business person, it's to help the truth surface and show that it was not the staff of BSBM that was the real problem. They were kept in the dark about the business finances/troubles, and sometimes had to find out from their clients what was really going on. The trainers were often asked to render their services for free and in turn volunteered their time to help with both company and marketing events. How can you say someone is not aggressive enough when they are constantly being asked to work for free...and do so out of the kindness of their hearts. Ultimately, the former employees do not deserve a bad reputation as a result of the ignorant comments made by Mr. Royster, or the aftermath of his failed business endeavors.