Taking legal action against Amway or IBS

djbd1973

Hi Chippie. Thanks for your input.

I was an adult when I signed up to be an IBO of Amway, and I understand what you are saying about choices but as a direct you would have been aware of the importance of making sure that everyone in your group attending ALL the functions and plugged into the system. This cost the money. In the group I was in, this was enforced as it was the utmost priority. Remember the saying - 'miss one function and you have a cold, miss two and you have the flu or pneumonia, miss a third and you're dead'? If you wanted help to build the business you wouldn't get any unless you plugged into the system. If you didn't want to plug in then you were deemed 'not serious - next!' and remember you were expected to follow - you couldn't do your own thing. Why reinvent the wheel was often spoken at Open meetings.

I kept accounts and I know that from 1993 to 2000 I averaged 2k losses per year. I used to submit my tax return every year and I remember talking with the taxman on the phone because he couldn't believe the losses I was making and to check if I was up to something illegial he went through my records.

I was prepared to show the plan to anyone and I understood that you had to put in to get something out. To do what it takes. EVERYONE YOU MEET IS A PROSPECT. Remember that? I drove all around the country to show the plan. Got through 2 cars in the process. I just dug out a daily activity plan sheet that my upline direct gave me. He used to counsel with J Scriven as we were all downline.

The sheet begins 'I will do today what others will not, so I may live tomorrow as others cannot'.

And then there is a table for all the days of a month and the daily activity was to read 30 mins, review my goals, listen to 2 tapes. The other entries are add names, contact, show plan width/depth, follow up, start up, call upline, retail customer.

To do all this I was heavily into the system - the books, the tapes and we were told to have a good stock of tools for the group. I had the tools - the board and easel, the several copies of Magic of Thinking Big, the startup packs, the adpacks, the membership box in stock so I could sign someone up there and then, the retail support kits such as the aftershave/perfume sample case and catalogues. I went to every function - special training events, one to one with the uplines, upline group meetings, opens, Wembleys and NEC. There was always parking to pay. The NEC were overnight jobbies so a B&B was needed there. I used to keep records of my mileage which was often over 20k a year on the business and I was proud of this because I was doing what 95% of people weren't. My day job was 12 minutes walk from my house so I didn't use the car to save on petrol (yes I was a proper MSEr even then).

When I quit, I wish I had done it several years sooner but I wouldn't listen to family and friends because if they had a bad word or some good advice in those days it was deemed to be negative, and remember we were told to avoid negative people or dream stealers as the tapes said.

I did gain from the system, however without trying to sound big headed, I was always ambitious and I had goals before I joined the Amway business and I was going places before 1993. Since leaving I too run my own successful business. The Amway business simply didn't work for me. I gave it everything I had including money. I didn't fail but I certainly did not make any money and the loss I made was not pretty.

Cheers

SpongeBobSP

I read Merchants of Deception, over the weekend...just out of interest.

I have also been reading other information online about scamway, and this is my conslusion:

SCAM SCAM SCAM SCAM SCAM SCAM!!!!!!!!!

I can't believe how this scale of fraud is legal in the US and other countries. Good to see the UK has clamped down on it.

Then you have some nut-cases who have been recruited by scamway to come on this board and defend the company...pathetic...liar liar pants of fire!!!

These leeches feed on people's greed and dreams of wealth, a bit like the lottery. Personally, I don't even play the lottery, never have done, as I don't need any money to make me happy. I am very content with what I have.

From what I have read so far, all you good people, just steer clear of Scamway and others of their ilk. Instead go out and do a real J.O.B., like the rest of us.

inmypocketnottheirs

SpongeBobSP wrote: »

Instead go out and do a real J.O.B., like the rest of us.

Does that mean Just Over Broke?

I am not defending Amway by the way, did it 25 years ago. What a waste of time, effort and money. But the thinking works. But it has to be applied correctly.

kenhamilton

Hip hip hooray! well done, its about time someone stood up and said it how it really is, I too was involved in network marketing with a company called Herbalife and I can totally relate to what you have said, I done exactly the same and it was my fault too... although I have teamed up with another company and getting excellent results.
Regards
Ken

Chippie

SpongeBobSP wrote: »

I read Merchants of Deception, over the weekend...just out of interest.

I have also been reading other information online about scamway, and this is my conslusion:

SCAM SCAM SCAM SCAM SCAM SCAM!!!!!!!!!

I can't believe how this scale of fraud is legal in the US and other countries. Good to see the UK has clamped down on it.

Then you have some nut-cases who have been recruited by scamway to come on this board and defend the company...pathetic...liar liar pants of fire!!!

These leeches feed on people's greed and dreams of wealth, a bit like the lottery. Personally, I don't even play the lottery, never have done, as I don't need any money to make me happy. I am very content with what I have.

From what I have read so far, all you good people, just steer clear of Scamway and others of their ilk. Instead go out and do a real J.O.B., like the rest of us.

Plonker! Plonker!

SpongeBobSP

Chippie wrote: »

Plonker! Plonker!

idiot! idiot!

Burnt-Fingers

The next Team Seminar is on Sunday 2nd March 2.00 – 6.30pm. It will feature presentations on uVme, e-lottery and Success University as well as testimonials, recognitions, and videos. The location is:-

The Centennial Centre
100 Icknield Port Road,
Edgbaston
Birmingham B16 0AA

Price £10.00 including VAT payable on the door.

Same old Same old....H E L L O!!!
No prizes for guessing who's pocketing the door money!

gilligansyle

The OP was talking about suing IBS for the money spent on books and tapes, but as IBS as such no longer exists this is not likely to succeed.

Interesting though about the tapes etc. I was an Amway (IBS) distributor for years and bought them for a while. My favourites were generally guest speakers, have one of Sir Ranulph Fiennes talking about the first Antarctic Expedition which is absolutely brilliant. Heard Will Carling speak at the NEC and watch Kris Akabusi running to and fro on a stage. Memories that will stay with me for years, and I think I learned something from them. I never really liked listening to the American Diamonds, they were too zealous.

When I decided to stop getting the tapes, there was no problem, my upline lent them to me instead. There was pressure from further up to go to all the seminars and if you said you couldn't go, attempts to help you to go. This was sometimes helping you to retail enough to pay for the ticket. In my case as a single parent, the problem was usually babysitters. My upline would go to one weekend seminar with some of the group and arrange babysitting for me for the following weekend.

As for the books, some of them were really good, as with all self help books, it depends what you wanted. Those I liked I have kept, as for the rest, there is a market for self help books on Amazon, so have sold most of them.

As for the Scrivens and the Gregory's, I don't like to think that they callously set out to rob IBO's of money as they seemed genuine people, but people closer to them would know.

This has prompted me to contact some of my old friends and see what is happening, it's just interesting to see and so will be watching with interest.

Burnt-Fingers

What do you think of this?

http://www.s221336902.websitehome.co.uk/jerrydaveconference

ecomatters

'Then you have some nut-cases who have been recruited by scamway to come on this board and defend the company...pathetic...liar liar pants of fire!!!'

Actually, not everyone who has something positive to say about either IBS or Amway is necessarily a nutcase or a stooge.
I was an IBO within IBS for many years and, although I didn't make as much money as I'd hoped, the training systems gave me the tools to run my own successful business later on, the same as others who have posted here. And I still buy many of the household products and cosmeticsas I haven't found anything to better them yet (and I've tried!).
It seems to me that there are many people who still need their mums and dads as they can't cope with the reality of the harsh world of business - ANY business, not just direct selling. Which is why they scream like children when 'life's not fair'!