I’m just gonna say this once. 👏 NO 👏 LEGITIMATE 👏 BUSINESS 👏 ASKS 👏 IT’S 👏 EMPLOYEES 👏 TO 👏 PAY 👏 FOR 👏 THE 👏 PRODUCT 👏 THEY 👏 WILL 👏 BE 👏 SELLING 👏 ON 👏 BEHALF 👏 OF 👏 THE 👏 BUSINESS 👏
Well thank you Katherine Patrick for showing me this genius new way to text loudly! I seriously am loving the clap between the caps! I can't wait to use it on the husband! Yessss...!😁😜😂🤩🙏🏽
I can tell you put a lot of time and effort into this video! Thank you for sharing so many important details. MLMs are frustrating on so many levels. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve started to form a new friendship with someone just to realize they wanted me to join their MLM. 🤦🏻♀️
@Naomi Lasby: That cracks me up. People who send me “Friend Requests”, who only want to sell me something or have treated me badly in the past. I even got a friend request from one of my sister’s exes! Facebook needs a “HELL, NO!” button! 🤣
So excited to see a beauty TH-camr talking about MLMs! I watch a lot of anti-MLM content, but rarely see people who are actually a part of the beauty community discussing them. I grew up in a small town, and every time I go on social media, a handful of people I went to school with are in a new MLM. They just hop from one to another… I can’t imagine how much money, time, and energy they’re losing while being told the whole time from various uplines that they’re just not working hard enough 😔
Dont worry, in case anyone is here to attack you (bc they're hurt that they fell for a pyramid scheme, but still call it "owning their own business"), we gotchu! 💚💪
I think I've heard that they also target tight knit religious communities like LDS/mormons and such. Maybe an unpopular opinion, but I think there is something to be said for a "9 to 5" job you clock in out of. You may be working for someone else and on their schedule, but the rest of the time is yours physically and mentally, and your income is stable.
This! I don’t want to own my own business. I really enjoy my job but I like being able to leave at the end of the day and enjoy my own time. With a regular salary and paid vacation and sick leave. We need to normalise working to live and not living to work.
I’m mortified that I joined an MLM 3 years ago.. had no idea what they were at the time. So thankful I got out (and got my deposit back). They are so predatory 😞
It's ok, a lot of us have been tricked by them ❤ Doesn't matter how smart you are, either, I went to a top ten university and lots of college friends are in MLMs 😓
I fell for it too. I'm still so embarrassed and mad at myself. I wasn't in the best head space then.. a really good documentary is betting on zero which was about Herbalife.
I was part of 3 different ones (not at the same time) when I was younger. Lived in a small town and was a SAHM. I only sold stuff I liked but pretty much sold nothing because I'm a terrible salesperson. My sales tactic was, "Hey, I sell X. Let me know if you want to buy some." My mom was my #1 customer. 😂 They definitely prey on people who don't have any money to begin with. I think people are generally more aware of how destructive they are now. I grew up in the age of Tupperware parties (before Rubbermaid!) and my grandmother was a successful "Avon lady". I still remember her little Avon suitcase and all of those whimsical perfume decanters. I wonder if they even had downlines back then? I wish they would outlaw all MLMs. They target women and are so deceptive.
It's called the sunken cost fallacy. it can be summed up as "I have put a lot of money into this thing, but it's still not ready! If I quit now, I will have nothing to show for it but a waste of time and money. If I keep with it, it will materialize and my efforts will be for something! I can't quit now!" It's a fallacy because they're is no amount of time or money that "guarantees" more money.
What sucks about MLM’s is that people blame their friends and family for their lack of success with the business. Causes pressure, tension and resentment all around.
I appreciate this being brought into the beauty community. A lot of people don’t support the brands because they’re MLMs but talking about it openly is needed more.
@@KellyGooch I also really appreciate your branching out into this type of content. I’ve really been trying to avoid purchasing beauty items as most of my makeup has sat barely used since the beginning of the pandemic and it’s hard to watch people raving about all of the new products all the time without wanting them. There’s so much to the beauty industry and it’s nice to not have to go to commentary channels outside of the community to have good content.
Anytime I hear someone talk about a MLM, I think of The Office, where Jim walks up to Michael's diagram and outlines the shape of the pyramid. 😭 love this content!
Thank you so much for addressing this issue. Over the years I’ve had quite a few sales people approach me and attempt to recruit me. As open minded as I tried to be, my risk vs reward calculations always indicated that joining would likely be a bad idea. I’ve been called ‘unsupportive’ and told that I have ‘bad self esteem’ because I didn’t think that I could be successful in mlm. I feel vindicated by the current anti mlm movement, these companies use very predatory strategies to take money from their own sales people then tell them that they’re not working hard enough to be successful.
As a military spouse I found this topic to be true especially with younique and scentsy and a few other MLM’s. I tired to sell scentsy while living on a military base, but pretty much everyone and their grandma is selling the same thing as you which makes it harder. I didn’t even make it to the 1 week mark when I found out I had to make 500$ in sales. Also a lot of people would buy product at their consultant price just make actual money, because they weren’t making it with just parties and recruiting. This was 9years ago and they’re pricing has gone up a lot since then. So I tell all my friends and family it’s not worth it because they’re average consumer is not making a lot of money. I really appreciated you touching on this subject.
MLMs are all over the place at the base we’re currently at 😩 it seems like every other wife I run into is trying to sell products on the side to make an extra buck, it the vast majority lose money over time. And they sometimes get really offended if you don’t want to buy from them, which sucks. I’m trying to make friends, not buy stuff. I know money can be tight and it can be really stressful doing a side hustle (I’m self employed) but oof…. I feel like it’s running rampant here!
Ask them if they would like to be a waiter who only makes tips and has to buy the food customers eat first. It's the same thing! Nobody's going to say yes to that bullshit.
Yeeeeeesssssssss Kelly! My "favorite" was the beauty counter hun who tried to get my grandma to join her team while she was literally hooked up getting chemo. Hospital group CEO and I had a nice little chat after that.
BeautyCounter's CEO is an evil genius and backs things like "clean beauty" disinformation so it is not surprising at all that the people who do work for this company are also just as scummy
Amazing use of your voice Kelly!! MLM’s are so predatory. There’s a street fair in my home town every summer. It was last weekend and most of the vendors were MLM’s. Made me so sad.
It's horrible, they take over a lot of craft and hand-made fairs too, there's been thankfully more pressure on the organizers to not allow mlm companies there.
@@Ichmochtekunst that’s exactly how it was! There was a handful of legit artisans and crafters and probably 10-15 MLM’s. The perils of living in a small town. Everyone is in an MLM.
I just stood and applauded you before I started my comment!! If an influencer starts talking about "their business" (always an MLM) I cannot click out fast enough. Blessings..MaryEllen
These deep dive videos are amazing, Kelly! I’m embarrassed to say that I joined an MLM in my 20s (I’m 41 now.) I didn’t even know what an MLM or pyramid scheme was. All I do know is that I spent way too much $ on my own product to make my “quota” and ended up leaving with nothing. It’s amazing the predatory nature that these “businesses” have. They sell sunshine, rainbows, luxury cars, and all expenses paid tropical vacations. But the little guys at the bottom aren’t seeing those returns..just debt and embarrassment for trusting people they truly thought they could!!
It also should be said that when an area becomes saturated with “sales executives” for a particular mlm brand, it’s extremely difficult to get people to buy from you instead of the 10 other ladies in town who are selling the same thing. In other words, they’re crippling themselves the more they grow their ranks (except for the people at the top.) I despise how they prey on women.
this reminds me of that episode of schitts creek when they talked about an mlm and how everyone in the town had already bought it and nobody make any money
I lost money and hair buying Monat based on some of the “older” influencers here on TH-cam, this happened 2 years ago and I’m still mad at myself, I thought why would they be lying, I was so wrong. Never trust a random person on the internet is the suggestion from my husband that’s the best thing I have learnt out of this whole thing and I’m skeptical of everything now.
Appreciate this. My mother sold Avon back in the 90s when Avon and MK were actually fun and social for SAHMs. I still don’t mind buying (granted, subpar products) from the older ladies who have been selling staple products to the same community for decades. But these days??? They bring out the worst in new joiners and get them so desperate to make minimum sales that they wear out their relationships and any social aspect that the old school MLMs provided. For what it’s worth, my mother quit Avon when they starting increasing the quota and the requisite paperwork - too much stress for the money. And that was 1998!!!
It has changed a ton, it used to be okay that's fine if you don't like the product . Now people get super defensive if you don't like it,don't want to sign up to sell, or if you have a reaction it wasn't the product it was something else that you personally did wrong.
I really appreciate this video as someone with two family members in MLMs (Monat and Amway). I did want to add that if someone tries to sell you beauty products by a brand called “Artistry” it’s just an Amway sub brand and you should steer clear. Also, it’s important to note that they like to target religious communities as well (I think I saw someone mention LDS in the comments but also some non-denominational friends of mine have gotten sucked in).
OMG Artistry was the best skin care brand that I bought. This was over 25 years ago, I wasn’t in artistry but my friend was doing amway and she sold artistry and it was worth the money. I didn’t care for their make up very much but their skin care was phenomenal. I haven’t bought in awhile so I do not know how good the skin care products are now.
Just remember that MLMs operate similarly to cults. The people who may attack you are victims and perpetrators in MLMs and one day they’ll probably see that you were right, don’t take it personally. I wrote my masters thesis on MLMs, I’m so glad you’re speaking out about them! And anyone in an MLM reading this, your MLM isn’t better than any others, it doesn’t matter if the products work or not, they’re all the same because the business structure is the issue.
@@ScottTexJohnson the problem with MLMs doesn’t lie in whether the products work or not, that’s irrelevant. The problem is that a system dependent on building a down line via recruitment is fundamentally flawed. It leads to oversaturation (too many distributors in an area) plus you simply run out of people after a while. The system also puts a pressure on distributors to reach targets, leading to inventory loading and internal consumption. I see you’ve made a few comments here supporting MLMs or denying what Kelly said in the video. Every income disclosure statement available for MLMs shows that the people inside them just aren’t making money, and that’s undeniable. MLMs are predatory and don’t work out for 99% of distributors. If you’ve had a different experience then you’re lucky but you’ve also built that success on the back of all those who were recruited and failed. Supporting MLMs is either wilful ignorance or a blatant disregard for other people at this point.
I sold Avon when my children were young. I just barely made even. Having to buy the brochures is what killed me. And then you're giving brochures out to people who sometimes buy not always. That's a waste of a dollar, and then it just doesn't work out. And you're spending money on gas going from house to house to deliver the brochures and then to deliver their orders. It just was a lot. I ended up quitting in about a year-and-a-half.
Honestly I feel like you are the most informed interesting beauty content creator I’ve ever seen. You are evenhanded and fair and yet ruthlessly in search of the truth. It’s fascinating seeing these very mature opinions coming out of your young persons body. I think there’s a very old soul in there. Thank you for the amount of research information and education that you disseminate.
I fell into this trap in my late 20’s. I was deceptively told I was invited to have a “facial and pampering session.“ But in reality, I ended up being manipulated into starting my own Mary Kay “business.” I’m embarrassed to say that I did go into quite a bit of debt with nothing to show for my “investment.” “Predatory“ accurately sums up these schemes. Thank you for exposing MLM’s.
Wow those numbers actually made me feel a bit sick. I know loads of women (including myself) who have become part of these over the years and left. These companies are seriously pushing the boundaries of what is ethical
Thank you for another video in this very informative series! Ethical beauty is so much more than just buying cruelty-free, it's also important to consider issues like racism, accessibility and predatory marketing just to get started. I really appreciate how much you do to help people make as informed decisions as possible about who they support with their money.
Love that you made this video! I’ve been having the anti-MLM conversation with my aunt for years and she still just doesn’t get it. She’s not deterred by the 99% that make next to nothing; she sees the 1% that do and thinks “so there’s a chance!” Ugh. You can’t help everybody, I guess.
There is money to be made in an MLM, but only if you're lucky and/or willing to exploit other people. Thank you for making this video and for doing it in a way that doesn't come off as aggressive or condescending.
So glad you made this video. All MLMs should be considered illegal, most people are ticked into getting into this market without being fully disclosed of how things are gonna happen and what their expectations should be!! It’s disgusting really.
Really interesting video Kelly! I listened to a podcast called "The Dream" and it went indepth into the history of MLMs and their practices and its so shocking and sad. I'd highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in learning more. I've seen a few friends join MLMs but it doesnt seem to be as widely known in the UK that they are scam.
Thank you for using your platform to spread awareness regarding predatory MLMs. The Anti-MLM community is amazing and more people need to know it exists!!!
It’s so important that you’ve made this video and I’m grateful you did. Truly so many women fall into these horrible financial situations from selling these things
A 🚩 to me is the fact that the MLM ladies are always posting about how they make so much money, when they get bonuses, etc. I’ve never seen anyone who works a regular job go around sharing when they get paid, how much their bonus was or anything. That always struck as something “off” about these companies.
Agree completely! I have fallen for two. I’m still a distributor for a company because I love the product as a classical flutist but it’s not a business for me. I’m just thankful I never went into debt and I never bought a huge stock. I have a few “customers” that love the same product and I order for them when they ask. I would discourage anyone from joining one.
This is amazing... I am a retired classical violinist and was approached to sell a MLM. Several friends in my orchestra were selling it. I didn't get into it, but I wonder if our work ethic and competitive spirit made us a target?
@@Patti-1962 quite possible! Especially if you’re a struggling musician with large student loans. I fell for it for those reasons. I’m not interested in MLM products mulch anymore. Except for Lipsense because it actually works as a flutist. I can’t afford their other products even with a distributor discount.
@@SEbeauty26 Hang in there... it's not an easy career. but rewarding. I had a private studio as well, are you doing any teaching? I wish you all the best! The classical music community can be quite difficult to deal with. At least where I live it is. I retired early because the stress was really affecting my health.
"This isn't a pyramid scheme. Pyramid schemes are illegal." Umm...I hate to break it to you, but your company is breaking the law. XD XD I have a friend who was always trying a side-hustle to get out of debt, and LuLaRoe made things a LOT worse. (Plus she was stuck with a bunch of ugly knit tops and leggings where the print didn't match up...) MLMs are so awful, and social media has made them more visible - and a lot more annoying!
There was a TH-cam documentary about Lulu. The product was left outside, rain soaked, mold, material was tearing bc of the elements but the sellers were still expected to unload it. So immoral.
I know someone that used to sell Monat and was told that exact line trying to make me look like the dumbass. Unfortunately, my mother bought some of the products since it was a family member so she felt obligated to purchase and her bank card was charged every couple of months for it without her knowledge and it ended up being ridiculously difficult to cancel. My SIL sold Lularoe for quite some time and lost out on so much money and now several years later she is longer selling, but still has a room full of inventory that she was never able to get rid of. I won't even get started on the beachbody coaches that I know, they are the absolute worst in my opinion.
I stupidly joined Mary Kay because I liked their acne treatment. Bought the starter kit ($150ish at the time) and then was told that I should get a credit card and max it out on product to keep on hand. I told them that was insane and manipulative and demanded a refund the next day. The woman who recruited me tried to get me to stay by showing me a scrapbook of her PAYCHECKS. So gross and weird.
Thank you for speaking out about this! So many people don’t know, and income disclosures don’t lie. For anyone interested, there are many videos on TH-cam about people’s personal experiences in each company.
Awesome video! The predatory nature of MLMs boils my blood ang breaks my heart. It is especially galling that these companies use the self help gurus to try and make people believe if they just try hard enough and believe they'll be at the top too.
I HATE MLMs and agree with everything you’re saying. I have a friend who sells a fitness three step supplement from a MLM. She makes 6 figures a year from it and got two lexus’s from the brand. It’s interesting to hear your deep dive into these MLMS
Wow this was an eye opener Kelly. I have 2 family members that needs to watch this(I wonder if they’ll be mad or glad) Despise MLM companies with a passion!! I really wish they would make them illegal!!!
Thank you for the way you made this. I love anti-MLM content because it’s so important but a lot of it just mocks the people or is made in a way that is off putting if you’re considering it or in the company and this was very fact-driven
Just wanted to tell you how much I appreciate this series. They are all incredibly informative, even on subjects I felt I knew quite a bit about. Thanks so much & I continue to look forward to each & every upload 💙💚
i’m so glad that you made this video!!! these mlm’s need to be exposed. i got caught up in an mlm a few years ago. it wasn’t a makeup mlm, but i didn’t know that it was one, and i was in a reallllly terrible financial situation... and i still am. i was trying to make money to be able to afford the prosthetic for my leg. i had to pay $300 for a starter kit and HAD to purchase a certain amount of products a month and i couldn’t make more than $75 a month. i took out a credit card, like my sponsor told me to do, and now i’m over $10k in debt. i could’ve put that towards my prosthetic and possibly have it by now. i’m saving every penny (after paying allll of my bills) to put towards what i need to be able to walk. my bestie started a gofundme campaign for me while i was having my leg amputated and i’m nowhere near the goal amount. joining the company i did was the absolute biggest mistake i’ve ever made.
@@nattyb9489 yea, unfortunately life has been kicking my butt since i was 12. i actually just had surgery on my other leg almost 2 weeks ago and i’m still in the hospital because they have to go back in to fix it for good. it honestly feels like it’s never going to end.
Great video! I currently work at a small indie makeup company which is NOT an MLM and I am consistantly paranoid that people think I'm in an MLM... I've had to be very clear with people that I'm a regular employee and get an actual normal paycheck. It's a struggle to get some people to realize I'm not in an MLM...
This is such an important topic that I'm so happy you talked about because MLM are very much predatory towards women. Knowledge is power!! I have never used Monet but I did have a client referred to me who had experience the hairloss and scalp irritation. So sad!
Back in my twenties, I had the oddest experience with Mary Kay. A friend from work hosted a party where I bought a few skin care items. A few days later, the consultant called me and asked if I would help them model some new makeup. I said yes. I showed up at the consultant's home where several other consultants were assembled. They applied the makeup and complimented me on how I looked. Then came the real reason why they wanted to meet me: they wanted to recruit me to sell Mary Kay! I declined saying that I was lousy at sales (which was true, but I hated the selling process itself even more). To this day, I wonder why they chose me. The process was a kind of "love bombing" which was supposed to soften me up to be recruited. They were acting almost like a cult! ~ Anastacia in Cleveland
Thank you for this video! I love that your shared real numbers and talked about the community aspect of MLMs. I had a “friend” tell me a group of career driven people she had found after we graduated only to find out she was trying to recruit me.
Love this video!!! I got scammed by Monat - before I knew about MLMs I bought some products but was convinced to be a VIP customer to get a better price... well I didn’t like the products but they kept charging me a VIP fee, and then when I wanted to cancel I ended up having to pay a fee to cancel my status as a VIP customer!!! Wth!!!
Yes Kelly!!! Thank you for bringing this kind of information to the beauty community. I am active duty military and you are so right about military spouses getting sucked into MLMs. I can’t even tell you how many times someone’s husband would bring their wives MLM brochures into work to try and get sales for her. It’s sad the way these businesses pray on people offering false promises of making lots of money. And the number of MLMs that exist are crazy.
I'm glad you did this video. MLMs are terrible. It is so annoying to receive recruitment messages from people you either barely know or don't know at all. All of the distributers call themselves a business over but if the MLM goes out of business or pulls out of your country, then you are left with nothing. Mary Kay did that around a year ago when they pulled out of Australia and New Zealand.
Thank you for creating this video! We need more people talking about businesses that choose this exploitative business model so they can be shut down! No business should be able to trick people into becoming long term customers by convincing them they will make money selling and promoting their products!
I’m watching this years later but I have a soft spot for my Mary Kay and Avon stay at home moms from the 90s. I was in dance, skating and theatre as a kit and so much of my performance makeup was bags of samples given to me by someone’s mum to get my through the final performances and 100% were some of the most exciting things I was given as a kid. Like 6 blister packs of bright lipstick and I was so happy
I fell into the Mary Kay trap trying to support a family member years ago and definitely went into debt over it . Thanks for bringing attention to this huge problem. I’ve always wondered why if the products sold are decent why not sell them openly ?
I watch a lot of anti-MLM content and a lot of people mention how these companies aren’t really interested in selling the product as much as they’re interested in selling to distributors and making money off of their distributors. The distributor ends up being the biggest customer, which is why the majority lose money. 😔 it’s also why they push distributors to sign up people to become new distributors too. The companies make more money off of people signing up and buying product to sell than the companies make selling product to regular individuals. It’s an easy way for the companies to fluff their numbers by saying they sell so much product. They sell so much because the distributors are often pressured to buy stock to always have on hand to make sales.
Well done! I got sucked into Mary Kay years ago, my mom tried to warn me, but I thought she just wasn’t being supportive. Lost my shirt. It’s too bad..because I do like some MLM products. But I just won’t support in any way.
YESSS these companies are so predatory, especially toward military spouses! I didn't realize how popular they were until becoming a mil spouse and getting invited to "parties" on base for a different MLM every week. Between these companies and degree mill schools, lots of young milsos get screwed over when they could be building legitimate careers :/
Some of my friends got into MLMs during the pandemic. I can't talk them out of it. When they give me freebies, I don't trust the products. Like I got some skincare but I'm scared to put it on my face so I use it on my feet and hands. Ah such a waste.
I almost lost one of my best friends because of Mary Kay! We were both 18 and had no idea what an MLM was. She got roped into it and she tried selling me products. I was SOOOO uncomfortable because I didn’t want that many products, maybe just 1 or 2, and her upline was pressuring me to join. My mom had advised me to cut ties with her if she goes down further into the Mary Kay path because Mary Kay will become her life and our relationship will get toxic. Thankfully she quit Mary Kay few months after. She tells me now she hated doing Mary Kay work SOOOO much because she hated pressuring her friends, but is very glad I trusted her and we’re closer now because of that whole ordeal. Moral of the story, MLMs can ruin relationships.
So glad you made this video. I did Avon about 8 years ago. It was only $10 to join and you have to buy your own brochures. The way they get you is that your commission amount is based on how much you sell. To get the 40% commission you had to sell (I think it was $400) on a brochure. So if you were close, I found myself buying more product to boost the commission amount. Because then you needed to buy more brochures for the next catalog. The brochures aren’t expensive, but they don’t pay if you are only making 15-20% commission. Put in your time of dropping off brochures, entering orders, and dropping off orders to customers. I did Avon for about 2 years. Any money I made, I spent the next month trying to hit my 40% commission rate. Basically for the 2 years, I worked around 20 hours a week just for some makeup and skincare for my personal use. Also, my friends and family bought from me and I found out after the fact that they rarely used the product, they purchased just to support me. So not worth it. Avon I think is one of least destructive MLMs but still not a good way to make $$.
I'll never forget the time in college (like 10 years ago) when I went to hang out with a coworker and his girlfriend one weekend. We were gonna cook out and play video games and out of NOWHERE in the middle of hanging out they sprang this elaborate vitamin and supplement MLM on me and tried to get me to buy stuff it was SO WEIRD. I politely declined, exited and never spent time with them outside of work again. So strange. It was like they were robots who flipped a switch and went into an MLM pitch mode in a split-second.
Thanks, Kelly! I love home fragrance and listen to many channels that feature wax melts. One company that sells wax melts is Scentsy and they're an MLM. I always feel so uncomfortable when one of these channels mentions this company. SMH
What a great topic. Reading the comments, seeing how many women have been sucked in at some point in our lives (me included) and knowing so many woman still selling, it’s disheartening. Great great video.
Avon actually started with men going door to door but quickly the company soon realized it was easier to get people to open the door to women. The story of Avon was interesting to me in a historical sense. These were housewives who ended up making the company profits. Great video.
Thank you for doing this! I have had many friends try these scams. Several if not all have figured it out and are no longer associated with several of the companies you mentioned. This info needs to be more widely known so folks do not get sucked into something that could cause financial issues plus maybe they would stop bothering me to buy these overpriced items 😁 Thanks again for the info. Totally off topic but I still have nightmares from smelling AVON perfumes from my childhood. Every Aunt of mine plus most every little old lady at my church growing up wore AVON loud, cheap perfume 🤢🤢🤢🤢
One of the things I find most disturbing about MLMs is the pseudo-feminism they use to attract women, the "girl boss" narrative and all that🤮
YES!
Absolutely! 💯👏
I’m just gonna say this once. 👏 NO 👏 LEGITIMATE 👏 BUSINESS 👏 ASKS 👏 IT’S 👏 EMPLOYEES 👏 TO 👏 PAY 👏 FOR 👏 THE 👏 PRODUCT 👏 THEY 👏 WILL 👏 BE 👏 SELLING 👏 ON 👏 BEHALF 👏 OF 👏 THE 👏 BUSINESS 👏
Amen to that! You'd think it would be the biggest, brightest red flag there is, but....
WELL SAID!!!!
Well thank you Katherine Patrick for showing me this genius new way to text loudly! I seriously am loving the clap between the caps! I can't wait to use it on the husband! Yessss...!😁😜😂🤩🙏🏽
@@marisafaith Hhaha I’m glad you liked it! Hopefully your husband knows you mean business when you use it! 💁🏼♀️
@@katherinepatrick1582 That's right!! 😉
I can tell you put a lot of time and effort into this video! Thank you for sharing so many important details. MLMs are frustrating on so many levels. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve started to form a new friendship with someone just to realize they wanted me to join their MLM. 🤦🏻♀️
Same!!! Or a friend I haven't seen since high school wants to "reconnect" and they actually...want me to buy their diet shakes or whatever.
Yes, it really hurt my feelings when somebody from high-school sent me a Christmas card for being a customer. It rubbed me so wrong!
One of the main reasons I got off of facebook a few years ago
@Naomi Lasby: That cracks me up. People who send me “Friend Requests”, who only want to sell me something or have treated me badly in the past. I even got a friend request from one of my sister’s exes! Facebook needs a “HELL, NO!” button! 🤣
So excited to see a beauty TH-camr talking about MLMs! I watch a lot of anti-MLM content, but rarely see people who are actually a part of the beauty community discussing them. I grew up in a small town, and every time I go on social media, a handful of people I went to school with are in a new MLM. They just hop from one to another… I can’t imagine how much money, time, and energy they’re losing while being told the whole time from various uplines that they’re just not working hard enough 😔
Me too
Agreed! It's defo not talked about enough within the beauty community ❤
Yes thank god this is why Kelly is my fave!
Dont worry, in case anyone is here to attack you (bc they're hurt that they fell for a pyramid scheme, but still call it "owning their own business"), we gotchu! 💚💪
I think I've heard that they also target tight knit religious communities like LDS/mormons and such.
Maybe an unpopular opinion, but I think there is something to be said for a "9 to 5" job you clock in out of. You may be working for someone else and on their schedule, but the rest of the time is yours physically and mentally, and your income is stable.
I live in utah and they are everywhere sooooo yeah
They also rip on the 9-5 and then post working poolside while on vacation. They work 24/7 for little return.
I live in Utah too, and yes, they abound out here.
They prey on vulnerable people most of the time but they ALWAYS use God as their reason why anything happens.
This! I don’t want to own my own business. I really enjoy my job but I like being able to leave at the end of the day and enjoy my own time. With a regular salary and paid vacation and sick leave. We need to normalise working to live and not living to work.
I’m mortified that I joined an MLM 3 years ago.. had no idea what they were at the time. So thankful I got out (and got my deposit back). They are so predatory 😞
It's ok, a lot of us have been tricked by them ❤ Doesn't matter how smart you are, either, I went to a top ten university and lots of college friends are in MLMs 😓
@@NickaLah It’s so sad how many people get sucked into them!
I fell for it too. I'm still so embarrassed and mad at myself. I wasn't in the best head space then.. a really good documentary is betting on zero which was about Herbalife.
I was part of 3 different ones (not at the same time) when I was younger. Lived in a small town and was a SAHM. I only sold stuff I liked but pretty much sold nothing because I'm a terrible salesperson. My sales tactic was, "Hey, I sell X. Let me know if you want to buy some." My mom was my #1 customer. 😂 They definitely prey on people who don't have any money to begin with. I think people are generally more aware of how destructive they are now. I grew up in the age of Tupperware parties (before Rubbermaid!) and my grandmother was a successful "Avon lady". I still remember her little Avon suitcase and all of those whimsical perfume decanters. I wonder if they even had downlines back then? I wish they would outlaw all MLMs. They target women and are so deceptive.
The amount of smart women I know that support MLM’s because they haven’t spent time looking into it blows my mind 🙈
Same :(
I agree
I agree. Also, women really need to listen to their gut...if it sounds too easy or too good to be true, run like hell!
It's called the sunken cost fallacy. it can be summed up as "I have put a lot of money into this thing, but it's still not ready! If I quit now, I will have nothing to show for it but a waste of time and money. If I keep with it, it will materialize and my efforts will be for something! I can't quit now!"
It's a fallacy because they're is no amount of time or money that "guarantees" more money.
THANK YOU! everyone needs to expose these scams, I am obsessed with the anti mlm community - thanks thanks thanks!!!
Yes!
Wait there's an anti mlm community??
What sucks about MLM’s is that people blame their friends and family for their lack of success with the business. Causes pressure, tension and resentment all around.
I appreciate this being brought into the beauty community. A lot of people don’t support the brands because they’re MLMs but talking about it openly is needed more.
I agree :)
@@KellyGooch I also really appreciate your branching out into this type of content. I’ve really been trying to avoid purchasing beauty items as most of my makeup has sat barely used since the beginning of the pandemic and it’s hard to watch people raving about all of the new products all the time without wanting them. There’s so much to the beauty industry and it’s nice to not have to go to commentary channels outside of the community to have good content.
Anytime I hear someone talk about a MLM, I think of The Office, where Jim walks up to Michael's diagram and outlines the shape of the pyramid. 😭 love this content!
🤣🤣
My favourite anti MLM gif!! 😂
Thank you so much for addressing this issue. Over the years I’ve had quite a few sales people approach me and attempt to recruit me. As open minded as I tried to be, my risk vs reward calculations always indicated that joining would likely be a bad idea. I’ve been called ‘unsupportive’ and told that I have ‘bad self esteem’ because I didn’t think that I could be successful in mlm. I feel vindicated by the current anti mlm movement, these companies use very predatory strategies to take money from their own sales people then tell them that they’re not working hard enough to be successful.
Yes, they can be so predatory!
0e
As a military spouse I found this topic to be true especially with younique and scentsy and a few other MLM’s. I tired to sell scentsy while living on a military base, but pretty much everyone and their grandma is selling the same thing as you which makes it harder. I didn’t even make it to the 1 week mark when I found out I had to make 500$ in sales. Also a lot of people would buy product at their consultant price just make actual money, because they weren’t making it with just parties and recruiting. This was 9years ago and they’re pricing has gone up a lot since then. So I tell all my friends and family it’s not worth it because they’re average consumer is not making a lot of money.
I really appreciated you touching on this subject.
MLMs are all over the place at the base we’re currently at 😩 it seems like every other wife I run into is trying to sell products on the side to make an extra buck, it the vast majority lose money over time. And they sometimes get really offended if you don’t want to buy from them, which sucks. I’m trying to make friends, not buy stuff. I know money can be tight and it can be really stressful doing a side hustle (I’m self employed) but oof…. I feel like it’s running rampant here!
Ask them if they would like to be a waiter who only makes tips and has to buy the food customers eat first.
It's the same thing! Nobody's going to say yes to that bullshit.
Yeeeeeesssssssss Kelly! My "favorite" was the beauty counter hun who tried to get my grandma to join her team while she was literally hooked up getting chemo. Hospital group CEO and I had a nice little chat after that.
BeautyCounter's CEO is an evil genius and backs things like "clean beauty" disinformation so it is not surprising at all that the people who do work for this company are also just as scummy
Wow, no morals and no respect. Sorry that happened to you!
That's so messed up I'm so sorry that happened to your grandma.
The 17 dislikes are ✨Boss Babes✨ who are CEOs of their own businesses.
I feel this way about scentsy too ... 👀
They’re an Mlm too :/
Yes!!
Scentsy is found all over military bases.
Amazing use of your voice Kelly!! MLM’s are so predatory. There’s a street fair in my home town every summer. It was last weekend and most of the vendors were MLM’s. Made me so sad.
It's horrible, they take over a lot of craft and hand-made fairs too, there's been thankfully more pressure on the organizers to not allow mlm companies there.
@@Ichmochtekunst that’s exactly how it was! There was a handful of legit artisans and crafters and probably 10-15 MLM’s. The perils of living in a small town. Everyone is in an MLM.
I just stood and applauded you before I started my comment!! If an influencer starts talking about "their business" (always an MLM) I cannot click out fast enough. Blessings..MaryEllen
These deep dive videos are amazing, Kelly! I’m embarrassed to say that I joined an MLM in my 20s (I’m 41 now.) I didn’t even know what an MLM or pyramid scheme was. All I do know is that I spent way too much $ on my own product to make my “quota” and ended up leaving with nothing. It’s amazing the predatory nature that these “businesses” have. They sell sunshine, rainbows, luxury cars, and all expenses paid tropical vacations. But the little guys at the bottom aren’t seeing those returns..just debt and embarrassment for trusting people they truly thought they could!!
Thank you so much for sharing that!
It also should be said that when an area becomes saturated with “sales executives” for a particular mlm brand, it’s extremely difficult to get people to buy from you instead of the 10 other ladies in town who are selling the same thing. In other words, they’re crippling themselves the more they grow their ranks (except for the people at the top.) I despise how they prey on women.
this reminds me of that episode of schitts creek when they talked about an mlm and how everyone in the town had already bought it and nobody make any money
I lost money and hair buying Monat based on some of the “older” influencers here on TH-cam, this happened 2 years ago and I’m still mad at myself, I thought why would they be lying, I was so wrong. Never trust a random person on the internet is the suggestion from my husband that’s the best thing I have learnt out of this whole thing and I’m skeptical of everything now.
It sucks when an influencer you trust leads you in the wrong direction. 😞
Appreciate this. My mother sold Avon back in the 90s when Avon and MK were actually fun and social for SAHMs. I still don’t mind buying (granted, subpar products) from the older ladies who have been selling staple products to the same community for decades. But these days??? They bring out the worst in new joiners and get them so desperate to make minimum sales that they wear out their relationships and any social aspect that the old school MLMs provided. For what it’s worth, my mother quit Avon when they starting increasing the quota and the requisite paperwork - too much stress for the money. And that was 1998!!!
It has changed a ton, it used to be okay that's fine if you don't like the product . Now people get super defensive if you don't like it,don't want to sign up to sell, or if you have a reaction it wasn't the product it was something else that you personally did wrong.
I really appreciate this video as someone with two family members in MLMs (Monat and Amway). I did want to add that if someone tries to sell you beauty products by a brand called “Artistry” it’s just an Amway sub brand and you should steer clear. Also, it’s important to note that they like to target religious communities as well (I think I saw someone mention LDS in the comments but also some non-denominational friends of mine have gotten sucked in).
OMG Artistry was the best skin care brand that I bought. This was over 25 years ago, I wasn’t in artistry but my friend was doing amway and she sold artistry and it was worth the money. I didn’t care for their make up very much but their skin care was phenomenal. I haven’t bought in awhile so I do not know how good the skin care products are now.
Just remember that MLMs operate similarly to cults. The people who may attack you are victims and perpetrators in MLMs and one day they’ll probably see that you were right, don’t take it personally. I wrote my masters thesis on MLMs, I’m so glad you’re speaking out about them!
And anyone in an MLM reading this, your MLM isn’t better than any others, it doesn’t matter if the products work or not, they’re all the same because the business structure is the issue.
What do you mean by the business structure is the issue?
@@ScottTexJohnson the problem with MLMs doesn’t lie in whether the products work or not, that’s irrelevant. The problem is that a system dependent on building a down line via recruitment is fundamentally flawed. It leads to oversaturation (too many distributors in an area) plus you simply run out of people after a while. The system also puts a pressure on distributors to reach targets, leading to inventory loading and internal consumption.
I see you’ve made a few comments here supporting MLMs or denying what Kelly said in the video. Every income disclosure statement available for MLMs shows that the people inside them just aren’t making money, and that’s undeniable. MLMs are predatory and don’t work out for 99% of distributors. If you’ve had a different experience then you’re lucky but you’ve also built that success on the back of all those who were recruited and failed. Supporting MLMs is either wilful ignorance or a blatant disregard for other people at this point.
I sold Avon when my children were young. I just barely made even. Having to buy the brochures is what killed me. And then you're giving brochures out to people who sometimes buy not always. That's a waste of a dollar, and then it just doesn't work out. And you're spending money on gas going from house to house to deliver the brochures and then to deliver their orders. It just was a lot. I ended up quitting in about a year-and-a-half.
Not to mention if someone wanted to return something you had to ship it back on your dime. Been there, done that.
MLMs are so predatory. :/ Beachbody is one of the worst.
Yes! :(
A college friend is deep into it, I keep wondering how she's done it awhile now since she got in late.
YES!!!
Danielle D. I’m just curious what makes you say that?
Honestly I feel like you are the most informed interesting beauty content creator I’ve ever seen. You are evenhanded and fair and yet ruthlessly in search of the truth. It’s fascinating seeing these very mature opinions coming out of your young persons body. I think there’s a very old soul in there. Thank you for the amount of research information and education that you disseminate.
I fell into this trap in my late 20’s. I was deceptively told I was invited to have a “facial and pampering session.“ But in reality, I ended up being manipulated into starting my own Mary Kay “business.” I’m embarrassed to say that I did go into quite a bit of debt with nothing to show for my “investment.” “Predatory“ accurately sums up these schemes. Thank you for exposing MLM’s.
Wow those numbers actually made me feel a bit sick. I know loads of women (including myself) who have become part of these over the years and left. These companies are seriously pushing the boundaries of what is ethical
Thank you for another video in this very informative series! Ethical beauty is so much more than just buying cruelty-free, it's also important to consider issues like racism, accessibility and predatory marketing just to get started. I really appreciate how much you do to help people make as informed decisions as possible about who they support with their money.
Love that you made this video! I’ve been having the anti-MLM conversation with my aunt for years and she still just doesn’t get it. She’s not deterred by the 99% that make next to nothing; she sees the 1% that do and thinks “so there’s a chance!” Ugh. You can’t help everybody, I guess.
This should really be talked about more. People sadly buy into these way too often.
Good morning Kelly!! Your deep dive videos are amazing - I have learned sooo much from you with these! Thank you for your hard work❤️
Thank you, Christy!
There is money to be made in an MLM, but only if you're lucky and/or willing to exploit other people. Thank you for making this video and for doing it in a way that doesn't come off as aggressive or condescending.
So glad you made this video. All MLMs should be considered illegal, most people are ticked into getting into this market without being fully disclosed of how things are gonna happen and what their expectations should be!! It’s disgusting really.
Really interesting video Kelly! I listened to a podcast called "The Dream" and it went indepth into the history of MLMs and their practices and its so shocking and sad. I'd highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in learning more. I've seen a few friends join MLMs but it doesnt seem to be as widely known in the UK that they are scam.
I recently found out the body shop is also an MLM🤯
What?! How?
@@corik1065 they have the normal stores and then they also have an mlm business side!
Yep thats why I dont buy from them anymore
Yeah - the body shop at home. I think that's possibly one of the worst because it used to have such a strong ethical brand / stand point.😔
@@misstricksandtipps I had no idea. Wow. Definitely changes my perception of them
Thank you for using your platform to spread awareness regarding predatory MLMs. The Anti-MLM community is amazing and more people need to know it exists!!!
It’s so important that you’ve made this video and I’m grateful you did. Truly so many women fall into these horrible financial situations from selling these things
A 🚩 to me is the fact that the MLM ladies are always posting about how they make so much money, when they get bonuses, etc. I’ve never seen anyone who works a regular job go around sharing when they get paid, how much their bonus was or anything. That always struck as something “off” about these companies.
This!
There are a ton of them on instagram...😱
If they share that information about their job, would they be in a position to hire you and help you do the same? The answer is, “NO.”
I joined monat and I hated how they were saying I could have freedom but than telling me to basically forfeit any family time 😒 to work my business
I’m glad you said this. I have several friends who sell it now and it seems like their entire life, friends, social media, etc revolves around it.
@@LinzSee they push it to act like your life is perfect and tons of free time
For a company that encourages to to be your own boss, you act like a slave to keep up.🙁
Agree completely! I have fallen for two. I’m still a distributor for a company because I love the product as a classical flutist but it’s not a business for me. I’m just thankful I never went into debt and I never bought a huge stock. I have a few “customers” that love the same product and I order for them when they ask.
I would discourage anyone from joining one.
This is amazing... I am a retired classical violinist and was approached to sell a MLM. Several friends in my orchestra were selling it. I didn't get into it, but I wonder if our work ethic and competitive spirit made us a target?
@@Patti-1962 quite possible! Especially if you’re a struggling musician with large student loans. I fell for it for those reasons. I’m not interested in MLM products mulch anymore. Except for Lipsense because it actually works as a flutist. I can’t afford their other products even with a distributor discount.
@@SEbeauty26 Hang in there... it's not an easy career. but rewarding. I had a private studio as well, are you doing any teaching? I wish you all the best! The classical music community can be quite difficult to deal with. At least where I live it is. I retired early because the stress was really affecting my health.
"This isn't a pyramid scheme. Pyramid schemes are illegal." Umm...I hate to break it to you, but your company is breaking the law. XD XD I have a friend who was always trying a side-hustle to get out of debt, and LuLaRoe made things a LOT worse. (Plus she was stuck with a bunch of ugly knit tops and leggings where the print didn't match up...) MLMs are so awful, and social media has made them more visible - and a lot more annoying!
He wasn’t murdered! Murder is illegal!!
There was a TH-cam documentary about Lulu. The product was left outside, rain soaked, mold, material was tearing bc of the elements but the sellers were still expected to unload it. So immoral.
@@conniedavis7374 I remember seeing that. I felt so bad for the people that got sucked in.
I know someone that used to sell Monat and was told that exact line trying to make me look like the dumbass. Unfortunately, my mother bought some of the products since it was a family member so she felt obligated to purchase and her bank card was charged every couple of months for it without her knowledge and it ended up being ridiculously difficult to cancel. My SIL sold Lularoe for quite some time and lost out on so much money and now several years later she is longer selling, but still has a room full of inventory that she was never able to get rid of. I won't even get started on the beachbody coaches that I know, they are the absolute worst in my opinion.
People who join don’t understand that THEY are the MLM’s customer. Then the people they recruit become the same.
Thank you so much for this video. MLMs are so disturbing in how they take advantage of women and the beautify industry should talk about them more.
I stupidly joined Mary Kay because I liked their acne treatment. Bought the starter kit ($150ish at the time) and then was told that I should get a credit card and max it out on product to keep on hand. I told them that was insane and manipulative and demanded a refund the next day. The woman who recruited me tried to get me to stay by showing me a scrapbook of her PAYCHECKS. So gross and weird.
I never normally comment on anyone’s videos, but thank you SO MUCH for making this video!
The anti-MLM message is so important! Thank you!
I love to hear more beauty you tubers talking about this! This was a great overview of MLMs!
Thank you for speaking out about this! So many people don’t know, and income disclosures don’t lie. For anyone interested, there are many videos on TH-cam about people’s personal experiences in each company.
Yes, agreed. I help so many clients repair their skin after using many wrongly prescribed MLM products.
Awesome video! The predatory nature of MLMs boils my blood ang breaks my heart. It is especially galling that these companies use the self help gurus to try and make people believe if they just try hard enough and believe they'll be at the top too.
I HATE MLMs and agree with everything you’re saying. I have a friend who sells a fitness three step supplement from a MLM. She makes 6 figures a year from it and got two lexus’s from the brand. It’s interesting to hear your deep dive into these MLMS
Wow this was an eye opener Kelly. I have 2 family members that needs to watch this(I wonder if they’ll be mad or glad) Despise MLM companies with a passion!! I really wish they would make them illegal!!!
Thank you for the way you made this. I love anti-MLM content because it’s so important but a lot of it just mocks the people or is made in a way that is off putting if you’re considering it or in the company and this was very fact-driven
So impressed with the amount of research you put into this. Thank you.
Just wanted to tell you how much I appreciate this series. They are all incredibly informative, even on subjects I felt I knew quite a bit about. Thanks so much & I continue to look forward to each & every upload 💙💚
I spent the first 3 minutes just staring at your hair. It’s gorgeous!
i’m so glad that you made this video!!! these mlm’s need to be exposed. i got caught up in an mlm a few years ago. it wasn’t a makeup mlm, but i didn’t know that it was one, and i was in a reallllly terrible financial situation... and i still am. i was trying to make money to be able to afford the prosthetic for my leg. i had to pay $300 for a starter kit and HAD to purchase a certain amount of products a month and i couldn’t make more than $75 a month. i took out a credit card, like my sponsor told me to do, and now i’m over $10k in debt. i could’ve put that towards my prosthetic and possibly have it by now. i’m saving every penny (after paying allll of my bills) to put towards what i need to be able to walk. my bestie started a gofundme campaign for me while i was having my leg amputated and i’m nowhere near the goal amount. joining the company i did was the absolute biggest mistake i’ve ever made.
This is heartbreaking to read. I'm so sorry you've been through this 😞 ❤
@@nattyb9489 yea, unfortunately life has been kicking my butt since i was 12. i actually just had surgery on my other leg almost 2 weeks ago and i’m still in the hospital because they have to go back in to fix it for good. it honestly feels like it’s never going to end.
Thanks for doing the research and discusses everything so objectively!! This was great to see on me feed 🥰
Thanks for watching!
I'm a full supporter of anti-MLM and I appreciate that you're using TH-cam as a platform to make aware of these predatory companies.
Thank you for making this video. So many people get sucked into these mlm promises
Great video! I currently work at a small indie makeup company which is NOT an MLM and I am consistantly paranoid that people think I'm in an MLM... I've had to be very clear with people that I'm a regular employee and get an actual normal paycheck. It's a struggle to get some people to realize I'm not in an MLM...
This is such an important topic that I'm so happy you talked about because MLM are very much predatory towards women. Knowledge is power!! I have never used Monet but I did have a client referred to me who had experience the hairloss and scalp irritation. So sad!
Back in my twenties, I had the oddest experience with Mary Kay. A friend from work hosted a party where I bought a few skin care items. A few days later, the consultant called me and asked if I would help them model some new makeup. I said yes. I showed up at the consultant's home where several other consultants were assembled. They applied the makeup and complimented me on how I looked. Then came the real reason why they wanted to meet me: they wanted to recruit me to sell Mary Kay! I declined saying that I was lousy at sales (which was true, but I hated the selling process itself even more). To this day, I wonder why they chose me. The process was a kind of "love bombing" which was supposed to soften me up to be recruited. They were acting almost like a cult! ~ Anastacia in Cleveland
Seriously, Kelly, you should be an investigative journalist!! These videos are great, congrats on your research!! 👏🏼😌
I watch anti-MLM vids all the time and I was so excited when I saw you posted this one 💕
Wow I knew the average MLM salesperson made very little but it's actually shocking when you lay it all out. Thank you for shedding light on this
Thank you for this video! I love that your shared real numbers and talked about the community aspect of MLMs. I had a “friend” tell me a group of career driven people she had found after we graduated only to find out she was trying to recruit me.
Love this video!!! I got scammed by Monat - before I knew about MLMs I bought some products but was convinced to be a VIP customer to get a better price... well I didn’t like the products but they kept charging me a VIP fee, and then when I wanted to cancel I ended up having to pay a fee to cancel my status as a VIP customer!!! Wth!!!
Off topic but I’m loving your side part! You look beautiful 💖
This kind of information needs to be spread everywhere! MLM’s are so bad in every way and need to be shut down!
I feel so bad for people who are sucked into MLMs!! How they are still able to run I have no idea!!
Yes Kelly!!! Thank you for bringing this kind of information to the beauty community. I am active duty military and you are so right about military spouses getting sucked into MLMs. I can’t even tell you how many times someone’s husband would bring their wives MLM brochures into work to try and get sales for her. It’s sad the way these businesses pray on people offering false promises of making lots of money. And the number of MLMs that exist are crazy.
One of my supervisors is in an MLM and it makes me so uncomfortable to see items from the MLM in the office and ~obliquely~ in her social media.
I'm glad you did this video. MLMs are terrible. It is so annoying to receive recruitment messages from people you either barely know or don't know at all. All of the distributers call themselves a business over but if the MLM goes out of business or pulls out of your country, then you are left with nothing. Mary Kay did that around a year ago when they pulled out of Australia and New Zealand.
I have been in a few. No more!!!! You hit the nail on the head!!!
Please keep dragging these MLMs❤️
Thank you for creating this video! We need more people talking about businesses that choose this exploitative business model so they can be shut down! No business should be able to trick people into becoming long term customers by convincing them they will make money selling and promoting their products!
I’m watching this years later but I have a soft spot for my Mary Kay and Avon stay at home moms from the 90s. I was in dance, skating and theatre as a kit and so much of my performance makeup was bags of samples given to me by someone’s mum to get my through the final performances and 100% were some of the most exciting things I was given as a kid. Like 6 blister packs of bright lipstick and I was so happy
Im so early for once! I really appreciate your honesty and transparency Kelly. Also enjoying this series! Keep them coming.
Thank you, Audrey!
Yesssss thank you for sharing this info!!! The more people learn the less likely they will fall for these scams!
Have been a fan of yours for months now, and now I’m an even bigger fan!! THANK YOU for making this video! ❤️
Thanks for watching, Emily!
I fell into the Mary Kay trap trying to support a family member years ago and definitely went into debt over it . Thanks for bringing attention to this huge problem. I’ve always wondered why if the products sold are decent why not sell them openly ?
I watch a lot of anti-MLM content and a lot of people mention how these companies aren’t really interested in selling the product as much as they’re interested in selling to distributors and making money off of their distributors. The distributor ends up being the biggest customer, which is why the majority lose money. 😔 it’s also why they push distributors to sign up people to become new distributors too. The companies make more money off of people signing up and buying product to sell than the companies make selling product to regular individuals. It’s an easy way for the companies to fluff their numbers by saying they sell so much product. They sell so much because the distributors are often pressured to buy stock to always have on hand to make sales.
Well done! I got sucked into Mary Kay years ago, my mom tried to warn me, but I thought she just wasn’t being supportive. Lost my shirt. It’s too bad..because I do like some MLM products. But I just won’t support in any way.
Thank you!!!
YESSS these companies are so predatory, especially toward military spouses! I didn't realize how popular they were until becoming a mil spouse and getting invited to "parties" on base for a different MLM every week. Between these companies and degree mill schools, lots of young milsos get screwed over when they could be building legitimate careers :/
Some of my friends got into MLMs during the pandemic. I can't talk them out of it. When they give me freebies, I don't trust the products. Like I got some skincare but I'm scared to put it on my face so I use it on my feet and hands. Ah such a waste.
I think it's so great that you made this video to raise awareness, this is a really important problem.
I almost lost one of my best friends because of Mary Kay! We were both 18 and had no idea what an MLM was. She got roped into it and she tried selling me products. I was SOOOO uncomfortable because I didn’t want that many products, maybe just 1 or 2, and her upline was pressuring me to join. My mom had advised me to cut ties with her if she goes down further into the Mary Kay path because Mary Kay will become her life and our relationship will get toxic. Thankfully she quit Mary Kay few months after. She tells me now she hated doing Mary Kay work SOOOO much because she hated pressuring her friends, but is very glad I trusted her and we’re closer now because of that whole ordeal.
Moral of the story, MLMs can ruin relationships.
So glad you made this video. I did Avon about 8 years ago. It was only $10 to join and you have to buy your own brochures. The way they get you is that your commission amount is based on how much you sell. To get the 40% commission you had to sell (I think it was $400) on a brochure. So if you were close, I found myself buying more product to boost the commission amount. Because then you needed to buy more brochures for the next catalog. The brochures aren’t expensive, but they don’t pay if you are only making 15-20% commission. Put in your time of dropping off brochures, entering orders, and dropping off orders to customers. I did Avon for about 2 years. Any money I made, I spent the next month trying to hit my 40% commission rate. Basically for the 2 years, I worked around 20 hours a week just for some makeup and skincare for my personal use. Also, my friends and family bought from me and I found out after the fact that they rarely used the product, they purchased just to support me. So not worth it. Avon I think is one of least destructive MLMs but still not a good way to make $$.
I'll never forget the time in college (like 10 years ago) when I went to hang out with a coworker and his girlfriend one weekend. We were gonna cook out and play video games and out of NOWHERE in the middle of hanging out they sprang this elaborate vitamin and supplement MLM on me and tried to get me to buy stuff it was SO WEIRD. I politely declined, exited and never spent time with them outside of work again. So strange. It was like they were robots who flipped a switch and went into an MLM pitch mode in a split-second.
OMG i love videos exposing these mlms!!! every one needs to know about their predatory practices & how they recruit ppl because it’s so awful ugh!
Thanks, Kelly!
I love home fragrance and listen to many channels that feature wax melts. One company that sells wax melts is Scentsy and they're an MLM. I always feel so uncomfortable when one of these channels mentions this company. SMH
What a great topic. Reading the comments, seeing how many women have been sucked in at some point in our lives (me included) and knowing so many woman still selling, it’s disheartening. Great great video.
I'm so so glad you made this video. So many of my friends have been captured by these scams!
Avon actually started with men going door to door but quickly the company soon realized it was easier to get people to open the door to women. The story of Avon was interesting to me in a historical sense. These were housewives who ended up making the company profits. Great video.
Plus, the dudes with makeup on their faces didn't go over so well.
@@ScottTexJohnson they actually didn’t sell make up they sold household items
@@lucyk6396 It was a joke....
Thank you for doing this! I have had many friends try these scams. Several if not all have figured it out and are no longer associated with several of the companies you mentioned. This info needs to be more widely known so folks do not get sucked into something that could cause financial issues plus maybe they would stop bothering me to buy these overpriced items 😁 Thanks again for the info.
Totally off topic but I still have nightmares from smelling AVON perfumes from my childhood. Every Aunt of mine plus most every little old lady at my church growing up wore AVON loud, cheap perfume 🤢🤢🤢🤢