After His Business Blew Up And He Hit $1 Million In Sales, His Dad Put Money Over Their Relationship, So He Hasn’t Spoken To His Dad In Four Years And Isn’t Sure If He Deserves A Second Chance
For about 30 years, this man considered his father his best friend. They worked together, operating two businesses for seven years.
During those seven years, he invented a product they eventually began selling. The product wasn’t too pricey for them to buy, but his dad wasn’t willing to pay him for any of the product or even give him a percentage of what they earned in sales.
“In one instance, he took 3,000 units from me for free, told me he would pay for them, sold them, and I never saw a dime. He thought he was entitled to the money and treated me like his son, who owed him, versus a supplier or partner,” he said.
While he was working hard to get their company off the ground, his father only cared about making money as fast as possible.
He was tired of how his dad treated him and hoped to have a written agreement so his father would give him his fair share.
Unfortunately, his father constantly drafted disproportionate, unfair contracts, so he refused to sign them. From then on, there was tension in their relationship because they couldn’t see eye-to-eye.
“He was selling more of the product then than I was since I was trying a different approach, so he thought the business needed him more than it needed me. He sent me contracts that were based on that fact,” he explained.
Amid this drama, he and his partner had a baby boy, and months later, his dad was two and a half hours late to his son’s first birthday party.
His father was the only family member he’d invited, and he didn’t have a large family, so it was important to him for his dad to show up.
Igor Kardasov – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only, not the actual person
Plus, he and his father only lived about 30 to 45 minutes away from each other, and he wished his dad had been on time.
Over time, the situation changed. He saw a news segment highlighting the product he invented, and he earned $15,000 in a day.
Eventually, he was on a widely watched TV show and earned $1 million in sales. Once he succeeded in sales, his father found the motivation to create what he viewed as a contract from which they’d both benefit. However, he didn’t want to work with his father anymore.
“I offered him a good price on the product but would no longer be giving them to him for free. He declined and started to sell a bootleg version of my product but was telling his customers that it was authentic. When I got word of this, I was furious, and he just blamed me for not working with him,” he shared.
Since their business relationship ended, he and his father hardly kept in contact. Whenever they did speak, they bickered.
His dad often directed offensive comments toward his wife because his father resented that he was financially successful and had a happy marriage and family. Sadly, his father hasn’t yet met his youngest child, who is 8.
Four years ago, his father contacted him, requesting to get together and chat. He agreed, and his dad told him he was sorry for how he’d treated him in the past, and he thought his father’s words were genuine.
Then, his dad explained that he was financially struggling and at risk of being kicked out of his home.
He drove his father to the bank and gave him $2,500 to go toward rent. During their time together, his dad expressed interest in finally being introduced to his grandchildren.
Less than two weeks later, his father requested $10,000 and said nothing about wanting to meet his grandkids.
In response, he said he was uncomfortable giving him that much money, but his dad pleaded and guilt-tripped him.
He didn’t give in, blocked his dad, and refused to talk to him since. Not long ago, his father sent him a Facebook friend request, but he hasn’t accepted or denied it yet.
He doesn’t think he wants to have a relationship with his dad because he feels the trust is gone.
What advice would you give him?
You can read the original post on Reddit here.
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