Jim Noble’s Restaurant Group sued by longtime marketing partner over $176,000
The Noble’s Restaurant Group founded by well-known restaurateur Jim Noble – the powerhouse behind North Carolina staples like Bossy Belulah’s Chicken Shack, Copain and Rooster’s Wood Fired Chicken – is being sued by its longtime marketing partner over an alleged breach of contract.
The Plaid Penguin, a hospitality marketing agency, alleges that Noble’s Restaurants, LLC owes it more than $176,000 after the Noble group terminated a contract prematurely and left Plaid Penguin unpaid for services. The lawsuit was filed in the Mecklenburg County Superior Court.
The marketing group alleges it is owed:
- An early termination fee of $153,120
- $5,000 for pre-opening design work for a Copain restaurant
- $15,000 for design and communications work for two Bossy Beaut’s Chicken Shack locations
- $3,527 for June Facebook charges
- $3,063 in late fees.
- Attorney’s fees
The lawsuit signals a crack in the relationship between the two companies, which have been close partners for over a decade.
Over the course of their relationship, The Plaid Penguin claims that Noble’s restaurants’ annual revenue increased from $15 million to $50 million “in no small part to (The Plaid Penguin’s) expansive strategy, branding, marketing, design…” and other services. The companies even shared office spaces, the lawsuit stated.
“We’re sorry to see that it’s come to this,” Trey Lindley, lawyer for the marketing agency, told The Charlotte Observer. He hopes the suit can be settled by a third party privately rather than by a trial.
In a statement to The Charlotte Observer, Noble Food & Pursuits – also operating as Noble’s Restaurants, LLC – said it had a “mutually beneficial” relationship with The Plaid Penguin.
“While that relationship has ceased, our team appreciates the efforts of The Plaid Penguin over those many years,” the statement read. “We disagree with their interpretation of events related to the end of that relationship.”
New leadership leads to contract changes
Joseph Haubenhofer – the owner of Plaid Penguin – and Jim Noble would meet annually in January to discuss their contract, among other things, looking ahead at the year, the lawsuit states. But problems arose this year with a shift in leadership.
In January, Noble informed Haubenhofer that he’d be taking a step back and handing his responsibilities to Berry Epley – Noble’s Restaurants, LLC’s acting president. To accommodate the change, Haubenhofer met with both Noble and Epley to discuss the contract to which Epley agreed, the lawsuit alleges.
According to the contract signed by Noble, the restaurant group was to pay The Plaid Penguin $46,290 per month for six months for their marketing and public relations services, the lawsuit states.
But shortly after the agreement, the marketing agency alleges that Epley attempted to undermine the deal by asking them to reduce their monthly fee by 30%. Epley then began demanding an hourly usage report from the agency to justify his request for a fee reduction, the lawsuit claims.
After his requests were denied, the lawsuit alleges that Epley demanded that The Plaid Penguin transfer over management of all social media accounts for the Noble’s restaurants. On June 10, Epley directed the marketing agency to discontinue all public relations work and notified them of the intention of Noble’s to hire a different firm, the lawsuit alleges.
On June 11, a creative director for the Plaid Penguin informed Epley and Noble’s chief marketing officer Joshua Simms that June’s payment was past due.
At some point, Nobles attempted to resolve the issue by delivering a check for $18,714 – a prorated payment for June. The marketing agency denied the payment, the lawsuit states.
In addition to payment for breach of contract, The Plaid Penguin is seeking at least $25,000 in damages for “unjust enrichment” The lawsuit alleges that the marketing agency declined work from other customers to provide services to Noble’s Resturants, LLC, but refused to provide payment.