My one encounter with Multi Level Marketing / AmWay

[WillyBrandt]

I was in a Barnes and Noble one weeknight. I just came home from work, so I was there in suit and tie, looking through the titles.

I notice standing next to me is a good looking girl, about my age, dressed like she's a fellow ambitious yuppie. She starts talking to me, saying "Hi, my name is XXX. Do you hang out here often?"

I'm thinking--my lucky day! It's never this easy--it usually takes at least a little initiative--and this pretty young thing is talking to a besuited me, who came just to browse through the American History section after work.

We start talking. I tell her, yeah, I'm a consultant (my previous job), she says, oh I'm a teacher. I ask her what grade, and she says, "I teach seventh grade... but I also run my own Internet business."

Now, I work in IT and was a CompSci major--so I'm like, hmm?

"Yeah, I'm backed by some people in North Carolina. Here, take my business card." (It has her name, with the ridiculous title "Independent Business Owner.") "I'm wondering if you too would like to open an Internet business" I say "No thanks," and she says to pass on her card should I find someone who'd be interested.

Of course it was immediately a bit embarassing, since what I had hoped might be a paramour sought to be a parasite. I e-mailed her anonymously sometime later, after looking into the issue. She was part of some weird mix of AmWay and VERY fundamentalist Christianity. I politely sent her a few links encouraging her to GET OUT, then an e-mail or two later called her a total nut who is ruining her youth.

Ugh. Cults are creepy.

[Lithos]

1. Many MLM's are very close to cult's

They utilize many of the same techniques to keep you motivated to sell.

Even the best and more honest MLM's (Mary Kay, etc.) can still only boast of 1 in 10 people actually breaking even, even lower if you count those who can make a living at it. The worst MLM's are no better than Ponzi schemes where failure rates border on 100%.

[rooboy]

2. Betsy De Vos (daughter of the Amway founder)... is MI. GOP chairperson...

check this site out...

http://www.migop.org/leadership/chair.asp

And if you want to hear what their no. 1 distributor in the world (Dexter Yager) has to say about homosexuals, listen to this:

http://www.amquix.info/sounds/dy_guys_and_gays.mp3

[LDS Jock]

10. That link is hysterical and disturbing at the same time

The second link with the man talking. WOW.. Its hard to believe someone like that is serious.

[Kali]

3. Amway

back in my stoner days, I got involved with Amway, the only good thing I can say about it was their laundry detergent was an EXcellent bong cleaner. Really ate the resins clean. Strong stuff - really concentrated.

Very cult like - but then any religion feels like that to me. Expect a lot of corporations/chains act the same. shivers

[MichaelHarris]

8. hahahahahhaa

its always important to find a good bong cleaner.

[TheDebbieDee]

4. I suspect that Amway is the organization........

that starts the rumor every 5 or 10 years that Procter & Gamble is run or managed by a group of satanic worshipers. Procter & Gamble is Amway's biggest competitor in the home cleaning products market.

[Taverner]

5. New Cult...DISCOVERY TOYS

Same deal, MLM...finding all about these guys now that I got a critter crawlin'

[Archae]

6. Good article here about MLM

http://skepdic.com/mlm.html

[HEyHEY]

7. Shoulda said "You didn't have to act like you thought I was cute"

In a whiny, broken, desparate man kinda voice.

[drumwolf]

9. I'm not at all surprised she turned out to be a fundie

Every once in two blue moons I get approached by some young clean-cut person who just goes up to me in a public place and starts up a conversation with me almost exactly like the girl who approached you. And sure enough, it turns out that person is trying to recruit me for a Christian youth group. It's happened often enough that at this point whenever it happens now I can pretty much figure it out within ten seconds of that person coming up to me.

I've never had anyone try to also get me into MLM either, though. And I might add, so far everyone who's approached me trying to recruit me for their church has been male. Which is fine by me, I guess, since I'd rather not have the same kind of letdown that you got.