Complaint Review: Ryan O'keefe Vending Accelarator

Complaint against Mr. Ryan O’Keefe and Vending Accelerator.

It’s true so “you can never change the stripes on a zebra”. As they say “once a fraud always is a fraud.

Please note, below I have included the contract agreement executed submitted and presented to me and executed by the parties Mr. Ryan  O’Keefe, on behalf of Vending Accelerator and myself on June 24, 2023, yes more than 15 months ago. In the contractual agreement I will speak to the factual highlights rather than all the non-sense, hype and fraudulent tactics.

Please never ever send any money up front now or in the future.

There have been numerous people like myself looking for a small business to operate. However what is sincerely alarming is this is NOT the first, second or even third time Mr. O’Keefe operates in a destructive and fraudulent manner misrepresenting his contracts. Do not let the hype of his slick marketing and YouTube videos persuade you to engage with such hype only to fall victim to his scam, his lies or his inability to honor contractual agreements.

In the Contractual Agreement you will note that there were to be a 10 placements/machines or 10 machines in Denver Colorado for my son and 10 placements/machines for myself here in Queen Creek Arizona. Meaning we gave Mr. O’Keefe $10,000.00 for Denver and $10,000.00 for Queen Creek Arizona for a total of $20,000.00. However after sending the money and reading what we uncovered about Mr. O’Keefe it was too late, so we were forced to hold to the contract. However we were able to have Mr. O’Keefe’s attorney clearly script and insert a “refund guarantee”. Which was very clear and scripted by Mr. O’Keefe’s attorney which stated ,  should Mr. O’Keefe not be able to place the 20 machines he was given another grace period of 90 days if he showed he was working on the placements in a diligent manner. So just to keep the timeline of clear view, we would be at 7 months from the date of execution of the contractual agreement and we still had NO placements. So we again had to demanded our money be returned. Below is the contract I have copied pages 6 and 7;

Vending Accelerator Location Placement Packages

$10,000 (paid in full) - 8 Location Placements

$7,500 (paid in full) - 5 Location Placements

$5,000 (paid in full) - 3 Location Placements

Additional Locations - $1,250 per Machine Placement

VENDING ACCELERATOR DUTIES, if purchased by you (‘Buyer’ or 'Buyers') Vending Accelerator agrees that it shall: Secure

approved locations for initial placement of the 'Buyers' Equipment within the Marketplace(as mutually defined by 'Buyer' and

Vending Accelerator). Vending Accelerator will have taken substantial steps within one hundred twenty (120) days after the

date of the 'Buyer' completing the Vending Accelerator Course and completion of one (1) coaching call with Vending

Accelerator (the “Course Completion Date”) or at an earlier date mutually agreed to by the Parties.

In the event that Vending Accelerator is unable to place the Equipment on or before the Placement Date, the placement Date

shall be extended an additional ninety (90) days (the“Extended Placement Date”) and be continually extended so long as the

Company has taken steps substantially toward that goal (e.g., be currently engaged in active negotiations) with any location

that meets the requirements in as provided in these Terms and Conditions. However, at the conclusion of 6 months from the

'Course Complettion Date' if all 'Location Placments' are not 100% completed via contract, or unless written, or emailed,

approval is received from the ‘Buyer’, the 'Buyer' may choose to the right to receive a refund depending on the number of

'Location Placements' still needed to fulfill. Equipment installation is not a factor with any refunds as all Equipment is

purchased through a 3rd party and is out of the control of Vending Accelerator.

Vending Accelerator shall obtain locations for the Equipment on behalf of the 'Buyer', or Vending Accelerator may approve

locations suggested by the'Buyer', in the Marketplace, which will satisfy the site criteria established by Vending Accelerator as

set forth in these Terms and Conditions. The 'Buyer'acknowledges and agrees that Vending Accelerator may periodically

change the site criteria at its discretion based on changes in demographics, zoning requirements, traffic patterns, and visibility

of, and access to the Equipment. Vending Accelerator will notify the 'Buyer' by phone and email when the Company has

identified a location that meets Vending Accelerator's site criteria and the'Buyer'shall use its best efforts to visit the location

within two (2) business days of such notice. The

Well, let’s just say he failed miserably within the first 120 days now placing us at September 2023. We engaged on conversation and in text because Mr. O’Keefe is unbearable to speak with via telephone. All he wants to do is be right and continually speak loudly over you, it is very daunting and challenging to say the least. He would continually talk over me and tell us he was securing locations and that they take time and he is a busy guy and has 100’s of clients across the country. He always made mention to tell me how many employees he has and that other people are killing it and doing great and that he has all these new systems that are the best. But never once did he give us solid evidence that he had locations for us to meet the contractual agreement.

So it is now January 2024, and of course more hot wind, video hyping from his YouTube and more empty promises never fulfilled. At this time we have zero placements and zero locations so we contacted the Better Business Bureau of Tennessee. We filed our complaint and they were very helpful. We found that there was another victim like us in Arizona so we did contact and listen to her situation, not surprising it was a replica of ours. So with the complaint filed with the Better Business Bureau and  the guidance of our family attorney we drafted a Repayment Agreement of monies to be refunded to us. The agreement is copied below and is very evident. Let me make this very clear, Mr. O’Keefe has only returned a partial amount, only $10,000.00 making a payment of $2,500.00 June 18, 2024. Does this sound like an honest man? He could not even stay on point in the extension agreement exceeding the payments agreement by more than 3 months after the end date!!  And by the way he has only returned $10,000.00 of the total $20,000.00 a clear breach again.  I have cut and pasted the highlighted clear facts and copied for your viewing pleasure, facts are facts!;  

Period One End Date February 15, 2024 - 2 locations or refund $5.000.00

Period Two End Date February 29 2024 - 2 locations or refund $5,000.00

Period Three End Date March 14, 2024 - 2 locations or refund $5,000.00

Period Four End Date March 28 2024 _ 2 locations or refund $5,000.00

As you can clearly see the refund agreement was scripted with very specific performance dates to return the money. Mr. O’Keefe was so angry that I contacted them that he insisted that the BBB remove the complaint. I told him after my conversation with the BBB that they will not. So we did a three way telephone call and Mr. O’Keefe was bullying and very insisting upon the removal of this complaint stating it would harm his business. The representative refused and we ended that call. The end result, they did not remove the complaint in fact I have copied the complaint number here with the Better Business Bureau of Tennessee:

Company: Vending Accelerator
Consumer: LiCausi, Lawrence

This e-mail is to notify you that you currently have a new message with BBB in regards to complaint #21523204.

We had to stay diligent on Mr. O’Keefe nearly every other day to try and get the money or our locations. Finally after so much pressure and us going along with his story telling we were told we have a location to be placed. It was a small private academy 26 miles away from my home. The school wanted two machines which we placed. The have had between 10 and 15 sales per day on a 4 day school week, yes they are closed on Friday. Not to mention they only have 2 lunch breaks and they each last 40 minutes so to say the least we have a huge math and timing problem in trying to achieve sales during this time period. Mr. O’Keefe’s states we should have 70 to 100 sales per day.

Mr. O’Keefe continually lies and acts too busy to provide us with the location as per the contract stating he is a busy man has 30 employees and does not have the time to work for me. When Mr. O’Keefe told me he does not work for me I informed that he clearly does, just look at our contract. Not to mention the fact he has not met the terms of 8 machines/placements. Once I told him that he just became his typical egotistical self. At my last conversation on August 28 2024 with him some other person I have never heard was also present on the call. She just listened and tried to make a suggestion however she has not been truly informed of the ongoing nightmare, stress and fraud Mr. O’Keefe has put us through. In the conversation Mr. O’Keefe became belligerent and used name calling and then terminated the call.

Both my wife and I with again the guidance of our counsel have decided to reach back to the Better Business Bureau and the States Attorney General Office of Tennessee and try to end this nightmare and to make sure they can put an end to this fraudulent operator.

Please finally note that my wife and I were able to secure one high school by ourselves without the assistance of Mr. O’Keefe or Vending Accelerator because the school is literally right down the street from our home and we knew the retiring assistant who helped us with the principle and the school board. So we will be placing one machine there and removing the one machine  we have in Heritage Academy due to lack of sales.

As per our agreement Mr. O’Keefe is in legal breach of his own Contractual Agreement, violated the second Extension Agreement, breached the “Repayment Agreement” , all total three agreements on location/placement and no money returned. This is fraudulent and misrepresentation. Finally Mr. O’Keefe is also engaging in “Tortious Inference”. Meaning he is knowingly and intentionally trying to destroy our relationships, contracts and vendors by telling them false stories causing us economic harm and damages.