Aero Leather Clothing trial update

[wanz]

Thank you Superfluous. That was eloquent, pertinent and insightful.

+1

I was about to reply to thread but your comments summarized my thoughts much better than I could have ever hoped.

 

[Otter]

:eusa_doh: Unrepentant.

 

[breezer]

Well, he has 21 months to sit in a cell and think about that,

He will eligible for parole at the half way point.

 

[tropicalbob]

Maybe, but every day in jail's an eternity, and when he gets out he'll find the real truth of the lines "Nobody loves you when you're down and out." I'll bet no one wants to know him, especially those who profited from his actions, as they'll feel "it's time to move on," and he'll remind them of something they'd rather not think about.

 

[Monitor]

The punishment should fit the crime.

 

[urbanwoodsman]

Very well said, Superfluous.

 

[Danielson]

Agreed, very well put Superfluous.

I am slightly disappointed that he only got 21 months. Regardless of how his family may be put out during his incarceration it, to me, pales into insignifiance when you consider the potential damage that ultimately may have been seen had his actions not been discovered when they were.

Fortunately KC was on the ball and stopped the rot and saved the day.

WL will not enjoy one minute of his time at HMP Bummedalot, however, i would hope he will have sufficient time to consider his actions and maybe, just maybe show some regret and humility upon release. I for one very much doubt this.

He certainly won't be sewing mailbags whilst serving his time. KC confirmed this during the trial.

 

[Sloan1874]

Prior to today, while the case was still active, it was not appropriate to include this, but according to people in the building at the time, it appears that in planning his departure to AL, Will intended taking all the machinists with him en masse without the Calders knowing it had happened - the petition got up against them was apparently part of this scheme. The aim, it seems, was to leave Aero literally without a single machinist but with a pile of orders that it couldn't complete, and that Will anticipated the company would be forced to turn to AL to make the jackets for it.

 

[Superfluous]

Prior to today, while the case was still active, it was not appropriate to include this, but according to people in the building at the time, it appears that in planning his departure to AL, Will intended taking all the machinists with him en masse without the Calders knowing it had happened - the petition got up against them was apparently part of this scheme. The aim, it seems, was to leave Aero literally without a single machinist but with a pile of orders that it couldn't complete, and that Will anticipated the company would be forced to turn to AL to make the jackets for it.

Craig, please clarify something for me. It sounds like Lauder was planning his departure to AL before KC discovered Lauder's theft and, had Lauder's theft not been discovered, he would have left anyway after completing his plan to destroy Aero from within. By sheer coincidence, KC discovered Lauder's theft as Lauder was preparing to disembowel Aero. Had the theft gone unnoticed for a little while longer, Lauder may have been able to destroy Aero from within. However, the discovery of his theft and subsequent ouster disrupted and impaired his plan to eviscerate Aero; and, from the outside, Lauder was not able to complete his entire plan as intended. Is that accurate?

Separately, if the foregoing was in fact AL's business plan, it is hard to imagine that Sandy Alexander was not aware and/or complicit (again, this is merely my supposition, and I have no evidence one way or another). Moreover, if this is all true, AL's business model speaks volumes about the company.

 

[Monitor]

Ugh, well, that was a pretty rotten move to do... Let me see if I understand this correctly; so the machinists working at AL, are they indeed ex-Aero staff? I remember reading this on the AL (WL) eBay listings of their jackets, 'made by ex-Aero staff' is what the listings said - so that's all the people that for whatever unknown reason left Aero?

EDIT: Why would WL want to destroy his own company? At the time, Calders were retired, and Aero belonged to Will? What good would that do him? I can't imagine he believed that by destroying Aero, his own company would've made him more business and money than what he would've earned by managing Aero? I mean, the entire Storse business makes me think he actually had some stupid ideas to make even more money through Aero - either that, or the Storse was just a part of his master plan to destroy the company from within, which I somehow doubt.

 

[tropicalbob]

Was this at the same time as the low-ball offer from SA?

 

[Superfluous]

Was this at the same time as the low-ball offer from SA?

I think SA made his low-ball offer earlier in 2012.

 

[Sloan1874]

I would agree that Will's departure was on the cards no matter what, precipitated by KC rejecting the offer to sell during spring of 2012. I think he thought he could do enough damage to compromise Aero to the point of near-collapse, and then simply 'move on' to pastures new and wait for his plan to reach its realisation. Along with so much else in this story, it's one of those bizarre twists that the discovery of Mark Moye's **** was the toppling of the first domino that led to Lauder's sentencing. However, it's key to remember that WL was the author of his own downfall: if he had not demanded that whoever was to receive his Aero shares should pay any capital gains tax, which prompted KC to call the police, it would have stopped at him being fired. The contents of Lauder's top floor would never have been discovered.
As far as Sandy Alexander's awareness of this goes, I can't comment. But given the requests for AL to give an interview/comment, I would be interested to ask them exactly what Lauder had said he could bring to the company - more on this tomorrow - and how he would fit into the start-up's business plan.

edit: this was the guy who was selling £25 flight patches for 99p, effectively destroying Aero's market, which suggests he had very little regard for the company really.
As far as compensation goes, that will be dealt with separately through existing legislation.

 

[Big J]

Ugh, well, that was a pretty rotten move to do... Let me see if I understand this correctly; so the machinists working at AL, are they indeed ex-Aero staff? I remember reading this on the AL (WL) eBay listings of their jackets, 'made by ex-Aero staff' is what the listings said - so that's all the people that for whatever unknown reason left Aero?

EDIT: Why would WL want to destroy his own company? At the time, Calders were retired, and Aero belonged to Will? What good would that do him? I can't imagine he believed that by destroying Aero, his own company would've made him more business and money than what he would've earned by managing Aero? I mean, the entire Storse business makes me think he actually had some stupid ideas to make even more money through Aero - either that, or the Storse was just a part of his master plan to destroy the company from within, which I somehow doubt.

I see your point but I think you're forgetting WL's attitude in court.
WL was a high level employee of Aero. It wasn't his company, so why should he work so hard for Kens kids to come in and take high level jobs and undermine his little empire?
Look at WL's court utterances; he has an irrational and delusional sense of entitlement. He seems to be a spiteful man, not a clear headed business man.

It seems to me that SA tried to buy Aero, but Ken didn't want to sell (remember, a sale would have benefitted WL as a shareholder).
So then AL set out on a plan to bankrupt Aero that would 'force' Ken to sell the brand.
Having poached a load of Aero staff, and having received copies of Aero patterns from WL(?), I get the opinion that AL saw itself as Aero in all but name.
Nasty way of doing things. Nasty people.

Steve Toohey is still listed on the AL website as 'Managing Director'. According to testimony given in court by WL, WL was letting him into the Aero factory at 4 O'clock in the morning to secretly make jackets. What patterns was he using? Did he pay Aero for the leather he used? Did he make jackets to sell for personal profit, or did he make the sample jackets for the opening of the Alexander Leathers website?

ALexander Leathers seem to me to be absolutely unscrupulous people who will employ thieves and swindlers. 'Luxury, high-end' brand? I think that Will Lauder won't find much difference between his AL colleagues, and his new inmates.

 

[Sloan1874]

Okay, a few points: 1. I can't say whether SA set out to bankrupt Aero, there wasn't any evidence to that end. WL certainly seemed to think he could damage the business himself 2. Looking at my original notes, Steven Toohey was allowed by Lauder into the Moffat factory to make jackets "to keep his hand in". As far as I'm aware they were ultimately sold under the Aero label, though not with the Calders' agreement and had nothing to do with AL at the time. He would have been paid for his time and labour by Aero. 3. There are bound to be those who were convinced by Lauder that the smart move was to leave to Aero, they had mortgages and bills to pay, it was their choice.

 

[AdeeC]

Prior to today, while the case was still active, it was not appropriate to include this, but according to people in the building at the time, it appears that in planning his departure to AL, Will intended taking all the machinists with him en masse without the Calders knowing it had happened - the petition got up against them was apparently part of this scheme. The aim, it seems, was to leave Aero literally without a single machinist but with a pile of orders that it couldn't complete, and that Will anticipated the company would be forced to turn to AL to make the jackets for it.

Reading between the lines of your trial narrative, it appeared to me this was the case. If all had gone to plan Aero would have been reduced to an empty shell come Christmas. I guess the plan was to start AL after Christmas but perhaps forced to start up earlier than planned due to WL's untimely exposure as a thief. It is clear to me he had fellow travellers within the company but that the bulk of staff were groomed and manipulated to ensure they came with him. I believe due to his calculating heartless and brazen ruthlessness WL thoroughly deserves condemnation and ridicule. I note a few apologists here have tried to paint him as some sort of victim in this saga. SA has a lot to answer for too. We have received a rare insight into the dirty laundry of how some successful ruthless business people achieve success.

 

[Bunyip]

Ha ha! That's funny!
Seriously, it doesn't take much to start a bar fight in the UK. Even the ladies will smash a glass in your face.
It was a real eye-opener for me.
This is one thing I love about Japan- 15 years, and I've never seen physical violence in a bar, or on the street (and I used to go to some really seedy places).

I went from running pubs in Sudney, they actually opened a controlled heroin shooting room( fresh needles etc) to scoring a job in Dubai for about 4 years. One extreme to the other...not one good knuckle up in 4 years...culture shock!

 

[Monitor]

I see your point but I think you're forgetting WL's attitude in court.
WL was a high level employee of Aero. It wasn't his company, so why should he work so hard for Kens kids to come in and take high level jobs and undermine his little empire?
Look at WL's court utterances; he has an irrational and delusional sense of entitlement. He seems to be a spiteful man, not a clear headed business man.

Aye, the company still belonged to Calders who were the majority shareholders if I understood this correctly, but the things were still looking as good as ever for Will, as he was managing a well established, super high brand company that was selling their wares for a premium, so why willingly gamble what was literally the highest point of his life? The moment Ken gave him the keys of the company, for all intents and purposes, WL made it in life, he must've been aware of that I am sure which is why I cannot simply accept this theory that it was then and there that the began plotting to ruin a company that was literally 100 per cent sure to make him a (relatively) rich man.

It seems to me that SA tried to buy Aero, but Ken didn't want to sell (remember, a sale would have benefitted WL as a shareholder).
So then AL set out on a plan to bankrupt Aero that would 'force' Ken to sell the brand.
Having poached a load of Aero staff, and having received copies of Aero patterns from WL(?), I get the opinion that AL saw itself as Aero in all but name.

Name that is all that matters, really!

Again, anyone with half a brain would've known that and realized that no matter what he did with the company, the moment it stopped being Aero Leather company, his business would've dwindled. There wasn't really anything to be done at that point, but to reap the profits. Perhaps I've missed the reasons behind mixing up steer for horse, but I'm guessing that what with steer being more readily available and cheaper to come buy and easier to produce, Will must have been doing this to improve the profits for Aero Leathers Co., even through such scummy methods - either that, or he was trying to make up a quick buck to invest it all into AL, which was yet another illogical move as AL wouldn't be bringing 5 perfect of the profits he was guaranteed with Aero at his hands for years and years to come. He must've know this!

That's what I don't get - why risk it all for, well, nothing?

Steve Toohey is still listed on the AL website as 'Managing Director'. According to testimony given in court by WL, WL was letting him into the Aero factory at 4 O'clock in the morning to secretly make jackets. What patterns was he using? Did he pay Aero for the leather he used? Did he make jackets to sell for personal profit, or did he make the sample jackets for the opening of the Alexander Leathers website?

No question about that, it's the most rotten part of the whole story and the reason why I don't think anyone should be taking their business to AL. In fact, I believe that all the profits from the jackets AL ever sold that were copies of Ken's designs should be, in full, transferred to Aero, but that's another story.

So why?

And why did all the machinists leave?

 

[Bunyip]

I'm really gobsmacked by AL involvment in this. I don't understand how thus far they have not been dragged kicking and screaming into this. They are in it up to their apricots. I hope this is just stage 1, the next stage being a fact finding mission re AL and ST. It really seems like the tip of the ice berg in what was obviously a well thought, highly planned, very systematic malicious campaign motivated by greed and jealously. You can't escape the fact that these guys genuinely set out to destroy Aero, damn the collateral damage.

 

[pawineguy]

I'm really gobsmacked by AL involvment in this. I don't understand how thus far they have not been dragged kicking and screaming into this. They are in it up to their apricots. I hope this is just stage 1, the next stage being a fact finding mission re AL and ST. It really seems like the tip of the ice berg in what was obviously a well thought, highly planned, very systematic malicious campaign motivated by greed and jealously. You can't escape the fact that these guys genuinely set out to destroy Aero, damn the collateral damage.

I can't imagine that AL can duck the civil courts unless KC is just worn out by all of this and wants to get back to making jackets. That said, I'm sure he's got great attorneys who are advising him on what he might be able to gain vs. the legal expenses he will incur / chances of a positive result. Unfortunately, many cases like this do not end up being litigated because the potential legal costs just don't justify it, and someone like KC would rather move on and spend those dollars on building his business. I'm sure we'll know before too long if there is going to be further action.