Surfboard Entrepreneurs Seek Justice after Business Shark Attack

PORTLAND, Ore. - Nov. 20, 2014 - PRLog -- Entrepreneurs Jorge Guzman and Ruben Barberan, whose dispute with Guzman’s business school professor led to high profile news coverage earlier this year, have obtained legal representation but there are still legal costs that they must pay in order to take their case to trial. To fund their legal costs, they are launching a crowd sourcing campaign on IndieGoGo. The start of the campaign will be marked with a kickoff event hosted at Dig a Pony (736 SE Grand Ave, Portland, OR 97214). The public is cordially invited. Attendees will have the opportunity to speak with Guzman and Barberan and to buy reduced-price tickets to the campaign’s surfboard raffle, the winner of which will receive a hand-carved, balsawood surfboard from Ecuador. Online contributors will pay $200 to enter the raffle, while kickoff attendees will pay $50.  The board itself is valued at $2,000. The raffle winner will be selected on the final day of the IndieGoGo Campaign.

Background

Jorge Guzman and Ruben Barberan put their hearts and souls into creating an environmentally friendly, socially conscious surfboard company. Their goal was to start a business that would allow them to pursue their passion for surfing and also uphold a set of values they say surfing taught them: respect for the environment, a sense of community and social responsibility. By selling hand-crafted, Ecuadorian balsawood boards in the United States and abroad, they hoped to provide a steady stream of income to Ecuadorian craftsmen while at the same time providing surfers with a well-priced, sustainable (and biodegradable) alternative to more common foam-core boards.

Working together over several years, Jorge, Ruben and another friend/stakeholder set up the infrastructure of their business, Yuyana LLC, investing countless hours and considerable personal collateral to build relationships with craftsmen, develop a website, and establish a brand. They were enthusiastic about their business’ future.

Then, the unthinkable happened. Jorge, who was enrolled in his last class at Portland State University’s school of business, expressed an interest in contributing Yuyana as a case study for his class. His instructor asked to see the business plan for Yuyana and expressed an interest in what Jorge and Ruben had developed so far. Jorge never imagined that his instructor would take their business working model and make off with many of Yuyana’s hard-won assets. In a state of demoralized shock, Jorge and Ruben considered legal recourse but found they couldn’t afford the high legal retainers they were told they’d need to pony up, much less the cost of a drawn-out legal battle.

In May 2014, their story was picked up by Portland’s Willamette Week newspaper, where it ran under the headline, “Wipeout!” and by KATU, the city’s local ABC affiliate. Responses from the public were varied – some welcomed the duo to “the school of hard knocks,” while others decried the instructor’s ethics, and still others offered empathy and support. One common refrain rang through: that the founders of Yuyana should crowd-source the funds needed to put their case to the test of the justice system.

On November 22^nd, Jorge’s birthday, the surf buddies will launch their IndieGoGo campaign, “Surf the Waves of Justice.” With a final goal of $65,000, the campaign will pay their legal costs and, hopefully, will cover the other costs racked up to date.

Beyond their financial goal for the IndieGoGo Campaign, Jorge and Ruben also hope to make an example of their case to other new entrepreneurs and students. As their IndieGoGo campaign page states, “This experience has been demoralizing.” Jorge and Ruben hope that, by building a following around their campaign, they can raise public awareness of student’s intellectual rights and entrepreneurial dreams.

To make a contribution to the Surf the Waves of Justice IndieGoGo campaign, visit www.indiegogo.com/campaigns/surf-the-waves-of-justice. The campaign will go live at 3pm on November 22^nd. You can also support Jorge and Ruben by liking the Surf the Waves of Justice Facebook page (www.facebook.com/wavesofjustice) and sharing it and the IndieGoGo campaign with your social networks.

Jorge and Ruben extend a warm thank you to everyone who urged them to pursue justice. “We are so lucky to have received such an uplifting response to our story,” says Jorge, “We were ready to throw in the towel, but people told us not to give up. That gave us the strength to keep fighting for what is right.”