GREENSBORO, NC – We all know what it means when we hear the chime of an ice cream truck rolling through the neighborhood. You can get ice cold treats on the cheap! But, other kinds of trucks and vans make their way into your neighborhood as well.
People go door to door claiming they can pave your driveway, fix your roof or sell you something for a special price. It happens all the time. They come to you unexpectedly, so, we decided to go to them.
Back in March of 2018, Chris Jacobs contacted our station. He said his 76-year-old mother purchased a box of meat from a company going door to door. Chris and his mother tell 2 Wants to Know, the two salespeople arrived in a white van, claiming to be with Steaks Express. The salespeople sold the elderly woman a box of meat, charged her $211 and allegedly told her not to make the check out to anyone.
When Chris’s mother told him what happened, he said he got suspicious and called the number listed on a flyer that was left. No one answered. So, Chris put a stop payment on the check and called 2 Wants to Know.
We checked out the company online and found three different numbers for Steaks Express and the company’s owner, Thomas Cassano. We called all three. Two were out of service and the third didn’t give us the option to leave a voicemail.
Next, we looked up the address. Even though the meat was sold to Chris’s mom, who lives in Salisbury, the company’s office address is listed in Greensboro, 7209 Cessna Dr. We drove by close to 5pm on a Tuesday and at first, the company was hard to find. There were no business signs with the company’s name anywhere on or around the building that were clearly visible.
An employee answered the door for us when we approached. He said he was simply a warehouse employee and it would be better to talk to the owner if we returned earlier the next morning. We returned the following Wednesday at 10AM. This time, the receptionist told us the owner just left and we could leave a message. We did and then asked why none of the numbers listed online worked. The receptionist told us there were having issues and gave us a different (fourth if you’re keeping count) number.
We went to the Better Business Bureau Serving Central NC and told the President/CEO, Kevin Hinterberger, the story.
“Just about everything you said brings up a red flag,” Hinterberger plainly stated.
According to the BBB profile, Steaks Express also goes by the name American Gold Label I, INC and Omega Meats. The company has existed for 26 years and has a ‘C’ rating on the BBB website because of customer complaints.
Hinterberger said, “Folks reported they weren’t happy with the quality of the purchase they made. Some folks were trying to get refunds at different times and couldn’t get in contact with the company.”
We want to make a quick note here; selling meat out of the back of a van is NOT illegal. These companies are inspected by the North Carolina Meat and Poultry Division and obtain permits through their respective city. We checked and American Gold Label/Steaks Express was inspected in January of 2018 and passed.
But, we did want to ask either the company owner or the individual salespeople about their selling practices, permits and why they would ask a customer to leave a portion of a check blank.
About a week after placing a stop payment on the check, Chris received a call from the sellers, wanting their money. Chris said they wouldn’t get any money and would be glad to return the meat.
The two arranged a meeting time and Chris agreed to let 2WTK tag along. The two salespeople arrived at the location in a white van, marked American Gold Label Foods. Once they exited their van, we immediately identified ourselves and tried to ask a few questions.
One male seller told his female coworker, “These people with the news channel are trying to talk to me. I’m not talking to no (sic) news people.”
The male seller immediately returned to the van and got in, refusing to speak to us. We tried to ask the female seller questions, but she simply continued to talk to Chris and his wife. After exchanging the meat, she also got into the van and drove off, without answering any of our questions.
So far, the company has also not returned our calls.
Meanwhile, here’s a few things you should think about when approached by any door to door salesman. One, do your homework.
“When someone comes to your home, you’re kind of caught off guard and you need to check them out before you do any business with them,” said Hinterberger. “Whether it’s meat sales or a roofer or someone coming to trim shrubs and clear trees.”
Check the BBB website for companies, ratings and complaints. If a company is selling meat, check with your city or the NC Meat and Poultry Division to see if they’re properly licensed and inspected. And never leave a portion of a check blank.
Hinterberger added, “Even though they may claim to be an independent contractor, in those transactions, you would still make the check out to the company.”