HARLINGEN - A Harlingen business said they are getting backlash for something another company did.

Harlingen police arrested two women after a prostitution bust early January at VIP Spa.

When that business first opened, Linda and Joseph Hagins said they were concerned and considered taking legal action. The two opened VIP Full Service Salon five years ago. The business offers men’s and women’s cuts, as well as massages.

“What separates us from everyone else is VIP offers love,” the couple said. “We provide a very professional, family-oriented environment, and we are a Christian-based business.”

Joseph Hagins said the two decided not to take legal action against the similarly named VIP Spa, because "we didn't want any type of negative influence in the community."

The couple said VIP Full Service has no connection to the place where the raid took place. However, they said they’ve been dealing with backlash.

“We’ve gotten actual phone call saying profanity. We got solicitation, asking if we do certain types of massages,” Joseph said. “We’ve had wives call saying their husbands will never come here again.”

Better Business Bureau South Texas President Dolores Salinas said the Hagins’ case is no surprise.

“Immediately, I verified it was not her company, and I knew it couldn’t be,” she said.

Salinas said she’s been working with the Hagins for years. She said small business owners need to do all they can to protect their name.

“They need to research county records and the Secretary of State – which is the state records – for their name or any variation of their name that may be out there being used by another company,” she said.

Salinas said establishing legal ownership of a name is important for business owners. Linda Hagins said they thought hard about changing their name.  She said after taking with family, they decided to keep it as VIP Full Service Salon.  

 “Changing the name would not have solved the problem. It would have just covered it up under the rug, and we are not those type of business owner,” she said.

The Hagins said VIP Full Service salon will continue to operate in Harlingen with honesty and integrity.

VIP Spa, the location of the police bust, was shut down last month. Law enforcement across the country have raided prostitution rings at places with the same name for the past two years.