To be pissed off a "friend" tried to persuade me to take a job by outright LYING about the hours involved?

[throwingpebbles]

So someone I thought was a friend has spent ages trying to persuade me to work for her; selling products as part of her team. She really pushed me to see how I could get a better work/life balance by working for her and made out I could make good money working part time hours around my family

Now I have learnt that in fact to earn any kind of money working in this business you have to essentially "get rid of your kids"!!

Feel really really misled

[darceybussell]

Oh I seem to recall my father in law going to a presentation a few years ago by a car chip repair franchise company where they rold him if he joined he was going to be rich. He decided it was too good to be true in the end but now I'm wondering whether it was really an MLM!

[throwingpebbles]

It's in Money Matters and the start of the thread name is MLM BOT WATCH....

[RainOhJoyus]

Can someone link to the thread where FL are threatening police action? That's hilarious.

[ABetaDad1]

bumble - no I didn't look at any that had anything to do with property.

[bumbleymummy]

Beta, was one of them a real estate company by any chance?

[Kanga59]

yanbu. your "friend' doesn't sound like much of a friend to me.

why can't she just sell more shit without you on board. surely that will make her richer, keep the spoils for herself

[ABetaDad1]

throwing - I don't want to name names but I investigated some well known national franchises and in each case there was a very strong sense of coercion and not being allowed to ask questions and a lot of emphasis on going on group training courses.

One I did speak to at some length the senior national manager told me that the franchise wasn't interested in my investment money - they only wanted people who were enthusiastic. In other words, people who they can manipulate and not ask questions about what I was going to earn and what my investment capital was going to yield.

Another one I discovered almost none of the franchisees were earning above minimum wage for the hours they were working. I saw the accounts of several of the operations. Most just wanted to sell out their franchise and get their money back ASAP. The owner of the national franchise had a series of regional franchisees under him and the regional ones recruited local franchise operators. The fees flowed upwards and all the work and the investment was done by the local franchise operators. My local one went bankrupt last year. I spoke to the national franchise owner and he found out I was well informed and he refused to discuss the operation any further.

[Bogeyface]

I think I found it, thanks

I really really want them to go to the police, how funny!!

[throwingpebbles]

That's interesting beta have you got any examples? I feel v naive!

Yes they are eerily cult-like from what I have witnessed and read about now

[throwingpebbles]

bogey the one In money matters

[ABetaDad1]

A lot of so called 'franchises' are also MLM schemes. They are marketed as franchise businesses but in reality when you strip away the veneer you are a the bottom of a pyramid with each layer having one and only objective and that is to 'sell' as may franchises as possible to the people below who then pay them a franchise fee.

They are very pushy indeed and their 'training courses' are really just cult indoctrination sessions where anyone who asks questions is made into a pariah that the other members mock and isolate.

Not all franchises I should add are like this but some are very clearly just MLM schemes.

[Bogeyface]

Which thread is the one MN are commenting on?

[Bogeyface]

Go to the police and say what?

"Waaah!!! Those howwible ladies on the internet are telling the truth about us and we dont like it, make the nasty ladies stop WAAHHH!!"

I really fucking hope they do!

[Siwi]

On the thread in money matters, MNHQ have posted to say that they have had multiple complaints from Forever Living and FL might go to the police.

Down with this sort of thing!

[cozietoesie]

The Revenue would certainly be hard to keep under control at the thought of all that possible disclosure.

[throwingpebbles]

So do I. I am fairly sure what's been discovered and put on that thread is just the tip of the iceberg.
I suspect any legal action would generate unwelcome scrutiny from the press and the currently rather sleepy regulators!

[cozietoesie]

I think they would be very ill advised to do that.

[throwingpebbles]

Just had a look, can't believe Forever are threatening legal action

[cozietoesie]

I should imagine that people are heading over to the Money Matters board and reading the latest thread there on MLMs. Lots of interesting stats/ links on that.

[throwingpebbles]

Wow at the stats on that blog bogey

[cozietoesie]

That's a sobering read, Bogey. I feel so desperately sorry for some of the very good people who become embroiled in MLMs for whatever reason.

[foreverton]

Think I may need to change my user name ha I support Everton football club and have just realised that it looks like Forever -ton oops

[cozietoesie]

Search on 'arix mlm' forever. You might find that to be more profitable.

[foreverton]

Anyone heard of ariix? Quite possibly another MLM company.
Apparantely new to the UK and an old friend who has recently survived cancer has asked me to a "meeting"
She attributes her now good health to these products and is constantly posting on FB about the benefits/money/family flexibility etc.
A quick google search plus the word "scam" has unearthed nothing. Maybe they're too new

[Bogeyface]

k0lee.com/2008/02/the-mathematics-of-mlms/