A dog eats dog world: Petsmart sues over noncompete.
Petsmart recently sued a St. Louis petshop over a former employee's alleged violation of a noncompete. The agreement prevents Chris Lee, a co-owner of A Walk in the Park, from working at a petshop within a five-mile radius of any Petsmart location in St. Louis. There are 12 Petsmart locations in St. Louis. Lee, a dog groomer, claims the noncompete prevents him from working.
A Walk in the Park has tried to foster some grassroots opposition to the lawsuit. The following briefly appeared on the company's website:
WE NEED YOUR HELP!
A Walk in the Park is currently under attack. We hosted our Grand Opening Party on Sunday, November 8th from 2-6pm and posted that information on our website (awalkintheparkgrooming.com). At 2pm on that Sunday, in front of our guests, we were served by Petsmart’s attorneys. Petsmart, Inc. is suing us under a “non-compete” clause and threatens to shut our doors.
The entire posting goes into much greater detail. We'll continue to monitor the suit.
Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family.
