Former Rebl Corp questioned business model as Integra Corpopration steps up to help small businesses

A former Rebl Corp employee who claims she was fired for asking questions about the business practice said the company was unsustainable.

A FORMER Rebl Corp employee who claims she was fired for asking questions about the business practice says she believed the company had been unsustainable.

Georgia O’Bree says her concerns were “just batted away’’ when she questioned the viability of the business model during a staff meeting.

The Bulletin this week revealed Gold Coast businesses had been caught in the collapse of Sunshine Coast-based media company Rebl Corp.

Brian Norman from My Egypt at Mudgeeraba is one of over 200 businesses who has been ripped off by a recent alleged business scam. He is now signed up to pay $440 weekly as part of a defunct contract with ReblMedia. Picture Glenn Hampson.

The company, which promised to provide content “for free” to small businesses, put its subsidiaries Media Rebl and Digital Rebl into administration early this month, leaving clients caught in expensive ongoing contracts.

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Rebl would pay the clients a monthly lease fee for software, which was initially financed by a third party company.

Clients would sign two agreements, one for the supply of content — for example, advertising videos — and the other a rental agreement with a third-party financial provider that would fund access to the software. Rebl Corp would forward a payment for software into client accounts, which would then be retrieved by the finance company, leaving the small business in a “cost neutral position’’.

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Integra Corporation says it will now provide content for clients who are locked into expensive lease agreements with third party finance companies by Rebl Corp.

It is understood the third-party financier would then pay Rebl Corp a lump sum for the agreement.

But Georgia O’Bree, who worked for the Rebl Gold Coast branch until December, said she began to grow suspicious of the company’s viability when executives were unable to explain the cashflow.

“I always had inklings about the company and it was always met with deflections,” said Ms O’Bree, who says her background is 40 years in business.

“The penny dropped during a staff meeting in Southport when I asked how covering clients’ expenses was a sustainable business model. They just batted it away.”

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Brian Norman from My Egypt at Mudgeeraba. Picture Glenn Hampson.

Ms O’Bree said six salespeople had been working on the Gold Coast to recruit businesses.

“We really believed in helping small businesses but I just wasn’t getting answers and I hadn’t been paid for months,” she said.

She was dismissed in December last year.

Those on the hook for fees of $1800 a month are now likely to be provided the 24 videos annually they were promised, according to a spokesman from Integra Corporation, which supplied the software to Rebl Corp clients.

As of this week, Integra Corporation had taken control of Rebl Corp’s phone lines and had started its own media division.

Ms O’Bree said she was suspicious how the business model was viable and hadn’t been paid for months.

A spokesman for the company said Integra had been unable to contact Rebl’s director, Michael Maunder. Bulletin attempts to contact him have also been unsuccessful.

“What we are trying to do now is provide content for them,” the Integra Media spokesman said.

“We provided the software which clients still have access to but understand they were expecting media so we are here trying to help.

“The main players have all vanished. The little people are all getting crushed out of profit.

“Integra Corporation had stepped in, in order to supply a product.”

Liquidator Worrells Forensic Accountants issued reports to all known creditors on Tuesday.

“All payments that the Rebl companies had undertaken to provide to offset the customers’ monthly finance repayments have ceased as a consequence of the liquidations,” the spokesman said.

“At the present time there is in excess of 200 unsecured creditors of the company that have been identified. The majority of these would appear to be customers who likely have ongoing commitments with the financiers.”