VS Arizona Bankruptcy? - Big Rumors Floating Around Today

Does the rumor indicate west or east side of your fair country?

West

Well name names, saying as much as you have could scare people that may have deposits with a builder for no reason.

Geez, welcome to 9th grade.

@Troy Sloan posted:

West

In a state that starts with A?

@ALB posted:

In a state that starts with A?

Yes. I learned about it yesterday....the group near Scottsdale. Can't remember the exact name. Apparently deposits not being refunded.

Umm, why are we being so evasive? Obviously it's Vintage Speedsters of Scottsdale AZ.

Or am I wrong?

Yes.  I received more information and can confirm now that it's Vintage Speedsters of Arizona.  Sad to hear about it and I'm sure there are going to be people who will lose their 50% deposits.

This is an email reportedly sent out to a customer yesterday.

First apologize for the content of this email as it is going to be upsetting. But I want to paint you a clear picture exactly what’s going on. Over the last 12 months it has become increasingly difficult to complete vehicles due to inflation, parts, shortages, and numerous challenges with vendors.

Since February I have invested nearly $250,000 of my own money, which constitutes everything that I have. In an attempt to assist the business through this challenging period. Unfortunately, things have not gotten any better over the ensuing months and have led me to the point of now longer being able to maintain the business.

I have exhausted every option, including loans in an attempt to continue operations. At this point, I have no money or assets left and have no choice but to close the business and file bankruptcy both corporately and personally. I have taken almost no income from the business over the last 12 months and when taking into account, my personal investment has made no money from Vintage Speedsters and more than three years.

Where it stands right now the assets of the business need to be liquidated to facilitate any payback to creditors and clients were possible. This is going to be a process that takes some time I will provide you information as it becomes available.

This is not a decision taken lightly understanding the impact on everyone involved. While I understand that certain attorneys will be involved in this process for the sake of transparency, I want to be very clear that I personally have no assets left that haven’t been sold or used to facilitate the survival of the business.

I am devastated by this development, both emotionally and financially. I have been advised that Communication via email is preferred going forward to insure a record of anything communications.

Matt"

... and then there were two.

The real surprise here is that it took this long.

I wonder how many deposits they took when this was inevitable

he invested $250K of his "own" money LOL

@Stan Galat posted:

... and then there were two.

Not really. There is still Kitman, Ramon, and @PaulEnvemo

IIRC, you can also order kits from the guys that took over Chamoix after Carey moved production back to the states, through a guy it TX or FL.

But yeah, I’m catching what you’re laying down.

Mike M's question is a good one, how many deposits, indeed? Yes I can attest this is so. I put down my deposit 3 years ago, we put the project on hold at the height of covid, then I told Matt to go ahead and build 1+ year ago. All I've heard since are inventive excuses. Being here in Scottsdale I've been able to drop by...a few weeks ago they were still in operation but in the last week Sam has not been answering the phones, I dropped by today to find a ghost town, save for a couple of unfortunate customer cars now locked in the showroom. And of course Matt has gone silent. Also interesting to note that Matt moved back to Minnesota months ago, which fits with an attempt to insulate himself from liabilities and potential criminal charges. His comments in his email speak to how HE is personally ruined by this bankruptcy (I saw that email this morning)...this has been a slow-moving train wreck and Matt obviously is not surprised by the result (as evidenced by his move). This whole thing speaks to fraud ("3300 cars built to date") and possible Ponzi scheme (new customer deposits to keep the doors open). I know from Sam and Matt they were delivering 5-6 cars/month in better times but that's been squeezed to 1-2/month recently, what with parts shortages (and maybe not able to finance parts purchases). While at the abandoned shop today I ran into another aggrieved party who has filed a police report with the Goodyear Police and also filed w/ the AZ Atty General's office. I am about to do the same and I'd recommend that to all other victims. We should also share our experiences with each other, compare notes and possibly pool resources - we may or may not recover any funds but at a minimum this should be properly dealt with legally. ...and all I ever wanted was my car!

.

Another reminder of how difficult it must be to make a quality product as complex as these cars are, sell it for a marketable price, deliver it on a predictable schedule, and still make a reasonable profit at the end of the day.

Doing some of those things may be possible for mere mortals, but doing all of them at once seems like a miracle today.

.

@dlearl476 posted:

Not really. There is still Kitman, Ramon, and @PaulEnvemo

IIRC, you can also order kits from the guys that took over Chamoix after Carey moved production back to the states, through a guy it TX or FL.

But yeah, I’m catching what you’re laying down.

You missed JPS and a couple of other guys in Mexico (Silverstone, et al)

... but I'm gonna' stand by the statement.

To speak to @Sacto Mitch's point - business (especially small business) is by no means a slam-dunk. The temptation to run on borrowed money is too great for a lot of owners to resist.

Iam another victim and Iam devastated by all of this , I really believed him when I called him , Iam in England . He must of taken a lot of deposits .  

@Dave Graziano and @Andrew1111 - It doesn't help, but I'm so sorry for you.