Big Baller Brand sued by apparel company over payments for hats, T-shirts
The Big Baller Brand website is jammed with $50 T-shirts and $60 hats, the cornerstone of a business that outspoken founder LaVar Ball says is competing with big-name athletic apparel brands.
But the Chino company responsible for screen-printing and embroidering the hats, T-shirts and other high-priced apparel sold by Big Baller Brand claims it hasn’t been paid.
In a breach of contract lawsuit filed in San Bernardino County Superior Court, attorneys for Closet Collection allege that Big Baller Brand owes the company almost $25,000.
“When it came time to make payments, they kind of bailed,” a Closet Collection representative told The Times on Monday on the condition his name not be used because of the ongoing legal proceedings. “We tried for about three months. They said they would make payment about seven times. They just kept pushing it back and kept pushing it back.”
The lawsuit, filed in November, had not previously been reported. Big Baller Brand representatives didn’t respond to a request for comment.
The Closet Collection representative estimated the company provided about 2,500 pieces of merchandise to Big Baller Brand last May. “Basically their entire website was produced by us,” the representative said.
The civil complaint noted that Closet Collection also provided storage and brand management for Big Baller Brand.
This isn’t the only bad news for Big Baller Brand, worn by Lakers rookie Lonzo Ball and his brothers, LiAngelo and LaMelo, both playing professionally in Lithuania.
On Monday, the Better Business Bureau warned consumers about patronizing Big Baller Brand, giving it an “F” rating and saying it received numerous complaints about problems with orders. The Better Business Bureau has received 33 complaints about Big Baller Brand since last April and the company didn’t respond to requests to address the issues. The problems included orders not being received, shipments not being made in a timely manner and an inability to get refunds.
“This kind of unresponsive customer service is not acceptable for any business, let alone one that trades on the celebrity status of its owners to publicize its products,” the Better Business Bureau said in a statement.
Follow Nathan Fenno on Twitter @nathanfenno
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