Teh One Who Knocks
09-14-2022, 10:35 AM
Lindsay Clein - WMUR 9
https://i.imgur.com/spD5n3R.png
When this North Carolina man tells telemarketers they have the wrong number, he means it.
In fact, Omar Khouri is using settlement money he has earned from going after those callers to open up a brand new bar and restaurant in downtown Winston-Salem.
Khouri is conveniently calling the new bar "The Wrong Number."
"I get so many phone calls every day for car warranties, debt relief, student loans," Khouri said. "Whatever it is they're selling — life insurance."
Khouri has run an IT company since 2006. However, when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, he had a little more time on his hands to handle those calls none of us enjoy receiving.
"I didn't really have anything else to do because I'm stuck at home," Khouri said. "So I started answering the calls and talking to them and answering their questions enough to figure out who they are and then I was able to go after them."
In fact, Khouri estimates there have been at least 20 to 30 instances where he's gone after telemarketers and reached some kind of settlement, which adds up over time.
"When I last counted, it was just over $100,000," he said.
With that money, he has managed to buy an old tavern and name it something new and, in this case, a little more fitting.
"The whole telemarketer thing just kind of gave me the backstory I didn't have before," he said. "So that's how 'The Wrong Number' came about. It's like, 'hey, they called the wrong number and they had to deal with me,'" Khouri said. "And it led to a bar."
https://i.imgur.com/iTyo0Qw.png
It's not a strategy he'd recommend, per se.
"It's very tedious and very time-consuming," Khouri said. "It takes a lot of patience."
It has seemed to work in his favor, though.
"I never expected it would get that far," Khouri said. "I thought it would be a couple of calls and they'd stop — but they haven't."
Khouri's story is proof that anyone's next business venture could be just a phone call away.
"I will give them credit," he said. "A lot of those calls are to offer debt relief — and to that end, it was true," he said, with a laugh. "I mean, not the way they wanted it — but it's still debt relief."
Khouri plans to have a soft opening for "The Wrong Number" the first week of October, with a more official grand opening around Halloween.
Khouri says tipping will be optional at the bar.
Drinks on the menu will include names like "Car Warranty" and "Debt Relief."
There will be a custom-made sign above the door outside that, instead of saying "open" or "closed," will say "call" if the bar is open and "do not call" if it is closed.
https://i.imgur.com/spD5n3R.png
When this North Carolina man tells telemarketers they have the wrong number, he means it.
In fact, Omar Khouri is using settlement money he has earned from going after those callers to open up a brand new bar and restaurant in downtown Winston-Salem.
Khouri is conveniently calling the new bar "The Wrong Number."
"I get so many phone calls every day for car warranties, debt relief, student loans," Khouri said. "Whatever it is they're selling — life insurance."
Khouri has run an IT company since 2006. However, when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, he had a little more time on his hands to handle those calls none of us enjoy receiving.
"I didn't really have anything else to do because I'm stuck at home," Khouri said. "So I started answering the calls and talking to them and answering their questions enough to figure out who they are and then I was able to go after them."
In fact, Khouri estimates there have been at least 20 to 30 instances where he's gone after telemarketers and reached some kind of settlement, which adds up over time.
"When I last counted, it was just over $100,000," he said.
With that money, he has managed to buy an old tavern and name it something new and, in this case, a little more fitting.
"The whole telemarketer thing just kind of gave me the backstory I didn't have before," he said. "So that's how 'The Wrong Number' came about. It's like, 'hey, they called the wrong number and they had to deal with me,'" Khouri said. "And it led to a bar."
https://i.imgur.com/iTyo0Qw.png
It's not a strategy he'd recommend, per se.
"It's very tedious and very time-consuming," Khouri said. "It takes a lot of patience."
It has seemed to work in his favor, though.
"I never expected it would get that far," Khouri said. "I thought it would be a couple of calls and they'd stop — but they haven't."
Khouri's story is proof that anyone's next business venture could be just a phone call away.
"I will give them credit," he said. "A lot of those calls are to offer debt relief — and to that end, it was true," he said, with a laugh. "I mean, not the way they wanted it — but it's still debt relief."
Khouri plans to have a soft opening for "The Wrong Number" the first week of October, with a more official grand opening around Halloween.
Khouri says tipping will be optional at the bar.
Drinks on the menu will include names like "Car Warranty" and "Debt Relief."
There will be a custom-made sign above the door outside that, instead of saying "open" or "closed," will say "call" if the bar is open and "do not call" if it is closed.