Forever Products and Aloe Vera - MLM/Pyramid?

genny

A friend of mine has recently been sold hook line and sinker into being an agent of Forever Products and the "miracle cure" that is aloe vera, with promises of the usual garbage - untold riches, earning thousands a week etc.

I've recently read this thread: http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=85817

And just wanted to hear from others regarding this company and their selling methods. From an outsider it worries me greatly when I see people being taken for a ride, especially when they are taking on "marketing" courses by Forever and coached on how to sell to new partners. Much of the expected income comes from recruiting new partners.

They brand it "network marketing" when to the informed person it is just multi-level marketing, which is very similar to pyramid selling.

It is the claims I worry about, it can help in the cure of, followed by a list of diseases.

There is very little researched evidence of aloe vera helping in most conditions, much of it based on the placebo effect.

Has this company and it's claims/selling methods ever been researched/challenged?

PS if I should have posted on a business or similar forum, please let me know!

genny

Anyone? Or a suggestion of where to post for a discussion?

Ted_Hutchinson

genny wrote: »

Anyone? Or a suggestion of where to post for a discussion?

I still haven't changed my opinion. The way people get drawn in is via the rewards system that depends on getting more people to buy more cases of product.
Rewards section of FLP website
The scientific evidence for the health benefits of Aloe Vera are seriously overhyped. Even buying FLP from online discount suppliers leaves you paying seriously more than equivalent products from high street suppliers.

I would want to see far more good peer reviewed publish medical scientific research before I spent my money on anything with Aloe Vera in it and I would also want to see the scientific evidence that FLP products do what may be claimed for them.
Take a look at just one product
Calcium vit d magnesium £16.93 90 tablets. (Suggested use – 3 or 4 tablets daily) 75.24p/daily

Holland and Barrett one of each daily roughly 7p daily
Calcium Vitamin d 600mg./ 3µg 250 Tablets £4.99
Magnesium 200 Tablets £5.99

What ethically aware person could suggest to their friends relatives or in fact anyone that it is worth spending 10times as much for a product with no scientifically proven advantages over what is readily available from the high street.

If you want an effective D3 supplement then you can do much better online from the USA.
If you want an effective magnesium supplement then again USA provides cheaper more easily absorbed products far far cheaper.


Calcium is best absorbed and used from food sources to absorb the maximum amount of calcium from dietary sources (or indeed supplements) you need to raise your D3 status first to over 80nmol/l and that requires the average UK adult with a D3 status around 50nmo/l to raise that by at least 25nmol/l and that takes at least 1000iu/daily.

But optimal health and lowest incidence of many common chronic conditions, requires a status of around 150nmol/l and that requires at least 4000iu/daily INCREASE. but maybe more. In Wisconsin lat 42 Dr Davis explains his patient require on average 5000-6000iu/daily D3 we are further north, don't get so much sun and don't have fortified milk/cereals.

genny

I'm glad it's not just me that thinks that company is a scam, thanks Ted very much.

They are taught to explain how inferior Holland and Barrett products are too, and how their "premium" products are of much better quality. Pure hokam.

I'm surprised not to find many more discussions about the suspect sales and pyramid type tactics of companies such as these - they really do brainwash their "partners".

frivolous_fay

I went along to a meeting with some people recruiting for this, and came away feeling freaked out and praying they never rang me back.

TomsMom

OH's cousin in an agent for FLP. When she heard he had ulcerative colitis she contacted him and sent him an article as "evidence" of how FLP aloe vera juice had helped other people with UC and how it had been trialled with good results. He gave it a go but it didn't help him.

She told him that FLP aloe vera is from the first cold pressing of the leaves and H & B is inferior because after FLP have had the first pressing the leaves are then sold on to H & B

She also swore that it had helped her with whatever her ailment was. He gave it the benefit of the doubt as he trusted his cousin but I was wary from the start.

foreign_correspondent

My housemate tried selling this stuff years ago - never made any money (I think he may have lost quite a bit actually) - the stuff is very expensive and the juice that you are supposed to drink is vile - incredibly bitter, and I can eat most things!!!

Also, aloe vera stuff is so widely available now, as are the plants themselves (where you just snap a leaf off and squeeze the gel out) so I cannot see where their market is, or what their unique selling point is?

foxxymynx

I know someone who claims to make a good living from it *however* I believe it's a bit of a con, IMPO - but I suppose it's not too different to avon

hazeyjewel

I recntly went to a party for this stuff, and laughed my head off at the prices,and bought the aloe vera gel for a quarter of the price at holland and barretts

Ted_Hutchinson

TomsMom wrote: »

She also swore that it had helped her with whatever her ailment was.

But if it is the case that aloe vera has actual benefit in the form FLP supply there should be more scientific evidence to support the claims.

This is a company with a sales turnover last year around $2.8 BILLION and yet they can't provide the medical scientific evidence to support their claims?

If their product is significantly better than available from the high street or other online retailers then it should be possible to demonstrate this in scientific studies.

Ask yourself why a company of that size is unable or unwilling to sponsor such research from reputable independent scientific laboratories?

Why aren't they prepared to put online the actual contents of their Vitamins and minerals?

It isn't fair to compare FLP with AVON. The prices Avon charge are not double or treble the price you find on the high street. If fact if you take advantage of Avon special offers you may find you save money. You are never going to do that with FLP purchases. However some of the same MLM incentives to sales people do apply to Avon so do be careful you aren't sucked into buying stuff you don't want yourself and may be unable to sell to others.

genny

Really really interesting stuff, and opinions, thank you all very very much. I've yet to see any quality research that shows medical evidence for the effects of Aloe. However I have seen plenty indicated the opposite.

Oxford University have some research on the placebo effect of Aloe http://www.medicine.ox.ac.uk/bandolier/booth/alternat/AT125.html

I cannot understand why people get sucked into this appalling marketing scheme, probably the claims of making millions - the only people making millions are the ones high enough up the pyramid.

From an educated standpoint, I'd say this company is a total scam. And the people pray on the naive with claims of making a fortune, the ideas that it "may" cure serious diseases, such as cancer, should be slammed by regulatory authorities.