Ann Dalton, founder of the beauty company Perfectly Posh, is suing LaCore Enterprises owner Terry LaCore and a group of executives. Dalton alleges these individuals deliberately sabotaged the company after taking control, leading to its collapse. The lawsuit was filed in March.
Dalton started Perfectly Posh in 2011. The company reached its peak in 2016, with revenues hitting $135 million. The situation changed when Mike Lohner began advising the company’s management in spring 2016. By that fall, Lohner was part of Momentum Advisors Perfectly Posh, LLC, an investor group that injected capital and began restructuring the company’s leadership. Lohner secured a position on the board of directors.
Momentum subsequently installed a new management team composed largely of Lohner’s associates. Dalton’s complaint describes these hires as detrimental. She claims they misspent company funds, failed to deliver results, and some departed for rival firms after their noncompete agreements expired.
The impact of these hires proved disastrous. Chief Marketing Officer Randy Baker relocated to Utah but produced no tangible outcomes. He was eventually dismissed after making racist remarks to a creative director. Pat Sheehan, another executive, was found to be unproductive and terminated, only to be rehired shortly after LaCore gained financial control of Perfectly Posh.
Chief Financial Officer David Van Oostendorp is identified as a particularly problematic figure. Dalton’s lawsuit states Van Oostendorp stole over $100,000 worth of product. He allegedly conspired with another employee in the theft and then misled management when confronted. Despite this knowledge, Lohner and LaCore reportedly promoted him.
Dalton also accuses Lohner of steering the company away from a modernized omnichannel business strategy. She claims he favored software and services that offered him personal financial advantages. Gaya Amarasingha, a Field Development Executive brought in by Lohner and Jonee Woddard, oversaw poorly executed programs and software launches that further harmed the company.
This pattern of incompetence and alleged misconduct led to Perfectly Posh’s rapid decline. Dalton asserts that the defendants’ actions also hindered her ability to move forward after her resignation. Her lawsuit names LaCore, Lohner, Grace, Brooks, and the corporate entities PP Holdings CO. INC. and Innov8tive Nutrition as defendants.