Times are hard in the apparel industry these days—but this is ridiculous.
A lawsuit over a commission on the sale of some merchandise for singer Janet Jackson paints a picture of a rough-and-tumble affair at the upscale Theodore apparel boutique at the Grove, a mall in the Fairfax district west of Downtown.
Yulia Arinzon filed the lawsuit against Theodore and senior manager Laurie Mattix in Los Angeles Superior Court, alleging assault, battery, false imprisonment, intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress, negligent supervision, and defamation.
Yulia contends that she made a sale to a representative of Jackson’s who visited the store to purchase some items for the singer.
Mattix is a longtime employee of the store who had regularly helped representatives of Jackson in the past.
The lawsuit states that Mattix did not show up on time for work on April 3, leaving Arinzon as the only one employee in the store when Jackson’s representative arrived.
Arinzon claims that she received permission from Theodore founder Herbert Fink—who happened to call from the corporate offices during the visit by Jackson’s representative—to make the sale and take the commission.
Mattix arrived at the store later and found out that Arinzon had completed the transaction. She screamed at Arinzon in front of customers, according to the lawsuit, and demanded that Arinzon relinquish credit for the sale, including the commission. The lawsuit also accuses Mattix of slapping Arinzon, and pulling a phone out of the wall to prevent any calls for help.
The confrontation ended when a security guard arrived on the scene, according to the lawsuit, which also contends that Mattix later told various persons that Arinzon suffered from mental disorders and anorexia.
The lawsuit contends that Mattix has a history of cursing and physically abusing employees at Theodore, and that management allowed her to continue working despite what she allegedly did to Arinzon.
It remains unknown what the representative of Jackson purchased, or the total amount of the sale and commission.
A representative for Theodore was not immediately available for comment, as of presstime.
