I am a tax preparer and I do someone’s taxes who has an MLM business and files a Schedule C for self employed individuals. Every year she says “oh I’m worried I’m going to owe a lot of tax because I really sold a lot this year” and every year I say before I have even seen her documents “trust me. You did not make a lot. You don’t have to worry. Unless you think ‘a lot’ is like $400”. She usually has a slight loss or comes close to breaking even. She has never made more than $400 in a year.
I got invited to a Pure Romance party by someone I'd never met. (I have hated all MLM's my whole life, since I became disillusioned in childhood. Different story.) I didn't want to go, but I did wonder what it was for, since they didn't explain. I googled, found out it was sex toys, actually looked at a catalogue, and discovered what it was all about. Sex toys aren't my thing, but even if they were, I wouldn't want to go discuss it AT A PARTY! Plus, I hate MLM on principle.
You know, I've thought a lot about the gendered aspects of MLMs that target women (i.e. most MLMs), but you know what I never realized before? MLMs' recruitment model takes advantage of women's socially-learned aversion to telling people "no."
i thought of the same thing when it comes to the MLM Party- when it comes to how social protocol makes women more vulnerable to MLM baloney. It takes advantage of the fact that women aren't as likely to be assertive and might be more inclined to buy something just to look good and not stingy in front of their pals- but then again, if your friend is trying to scam you into buying something, is she really your pal.
My dad is the anti-MLM king of Sydney (no one has come for his crown yet) but my mum is quite naive about MLMs. She has helped sell for two (one, Avon, while still a teen) and didn’t think they were so bad but I have taken to playing these videos around her. The noise she made when the woman licked the essential oil off her hand made me pause the video before she said ‘you know, I think you and your dad might be right about MLMs’. HANNAH I THINK YOU GOT HER! 62 years of thinking they weren’t so bad and now she thinks huns need some help not encouragement! Success!
The kidnapping story: Search for Slave Circle and you'll come up with lots of stories about this one. It should be better known than it is...It slides under the radar because it's like a hydra with many heads that all go under different names (Smart Circle, Cydcor, etc etc), but underneath it all, seems to be a single MLMy org that's gone to some lengths to hide that. It's hard for even people who got sucked into it to identify it by name because it's so (deliberately) shadowy and amorphous. And people who only went to an interview, or only worked for it for a short time, just remember it as this weird sketchy business and don't realize it's part of a bigger thing.
Omg that story of the group of teenagers being kidnapped😳 that’s how people get human trafficked!!! I am in no way blaming those poor kids, but we need to empower young people to speak up when they are uncomfortable in social situations, decorum be damned!! Your life is ALWAYS worth more than trying to be nice and courteous. If people make you feel uncomfortable, TELL THEM.
Yes. That's what I thought. In other countries they will get a bunch of girls on a van take your documents and drive you out the country. The girls thought that they were scouted by a company usually for modeling. Please be carefull. You don't know what people surround you.
It's funny you say that because back then, around the 90s especially, this wasn't uncommon. Not necessarily the just jumping into a vehicle with no questions asked thing- do you know any whole group of late teens/early 20s that wouldn't have at least one person saying "yo, where the f are we going"- but that entire setup otherwise. And no, no whole groups of folks ever just suddenly went miss5at the same time from responding to a job interview. People didn't hear about it because it never happened so they didn't think about it. What's funny is that is people's almost immediate thought today (despite the fact that it has never happened) AND y'all are about 100 times safer than we were then. There's cameras just about everywhere public and every one of you is glued to a personal tracking device at all times. If anyone today actually felt in danger, they'd either call 911 (the smart move) or start posting in social media about the weird job interview. Within seconds. Trust me, young people today speak up and out a lot more than they did 30 or even 20 years ago.
The essential oils story is a living nightmare to me. I am very allergic to various mints, and if someone constantly had a diffuser of mint running, I can only imagine what something like that would do to me. The essential oil people really should consider people could have serious allergies to stuff like that and shouldn't assume everything is perfectly fine.
Whats crazy is that they will tell you you CANT be allergic to the oils! It boggled my brain, like....if you are allergic to mint, obviously DO NOT use mint oil!
Warning to people with pets and diffuser’s, as the person said in the one story, ingesting essential oils is very dangerous. I love wax burners and wanted to try a diffuser (totally cheap Amazon oils). While researching what oils are supposed to be good for stress or whatever, I read how dangerous they can be to pets as they can get the oil on their fur and the ingest it. Wax warmers only for me! Thanks to everyone that shares their stories and thank you Hannah for all you do!
Omg the "practice" thing 😳 My SIL has been in Mary Kay like 30 years, probably. Once, when my kids were young, she asked me to meet her at the mall so she could "practice" recruiting. We sat down on the benches & she told me how much she liked my purse. I was surprised because it was just an average cheap purse. She went through her recruitment thing & asked me if I'd join her team. I said no, I'm terrified of talking to people I don't know to which she replied, oh it's easy, I'll teach you. You can walk up to any woman & compliment her purse. 😒 I was genuinely hurt. She was my age & we were never friends. She hounded me for quite a while as I had told her I felt like I needed a purpose in my life. She told me MK would give me that plus confidence etc. That began my hate for mlms. I was lonely, moved away from my family, didn't have many friends. She knew that & tried to take advantage! She lies & deceives people. Would not take no for answer & then tried the guilt trip. The rest of the family were supportive, I was buying skin care anyway so why not buy from her, just maintain an active status, it's only $250 quarterly etc. I had no idea the practice thing was an actual thing until you said that. It's so sneaky & deceptive!! Edited to add, she could be the woman in story #4
oh wow thats HORRIBLE. what the hell was she thinking? I can’t believe she didn’t remember complimenting your purse minutes before. Did she thing you’d laugh at her “wit” and go “wow you got me there, it did work!” or smth? I mean. how did she not see that you’d have an adverse reaction to that behavior!? that’s just gross.
OMG that first one was definitely Pure Romance. I went to one of those parties about 3 yrs ago and when it was over, the girl pulled each of us aside into a private room. It was creepyyyyy 😳 I'm so glad her friend took her home!
It happened to me as well! Same exact thing! The company I "interviewed" with was called OC Sports Marketing I still remember because when I finally made it home at like 6pm I broke down and balled my eyes out to my parents( and I'm not someone who cries easily). I worked retail at the time and I missed my shift because I was in an "interview" that lasted all day! A year later a girl at the same retail job said she was really excited for an interview with OC Sports Marketing and I told her not to go.
My sister once signed me up for time share. The kidnapping story reminds me of the time share experience, except I couldn’t leave the room. It took up my day. I had no idea it was time share going in. I was so mad at her, I didn’t talk to her for weeks. At some point I called my parents crying that wanted to leave.
The first one HOLY SHIT. It's SO wrong to assume that anyone would want to even disclose personal sexual details about themselves like that. With strangers, worse yet. I don't have trauma like that but that still goes way too far. Was the "boss babe" really expecting everyone to voluntarily describe their fantasies?! I'm angry :D
I am so glad I never purchased from paparazzi I am allergic to Nickle and cheap metals, those false statements can be very dangerous. It's like saying to someone who has a peanut allergy it's peanut-free.
Exactly! I had a coworker that tried to sell me Paparazzi even after being told I had a nickel allergy and as a rule don’t buy cheap costume jewelry. There’s no way a necklace and earrings costing $5 can be nickel free. Nope; don’t buy it.
I'm asexual and have trauma and I'm already socially anxious if a friend pulled me into a pure romance or whatever party like that I wouldn't just be mortified, I'd have one less friend for sure. That's HORRIFYING. Discussing raunchy sexual fantasies with strangers? Male anatomical straws? I literally have goosebumps from discomfort.
I just came across your channel and already hooked! My experience with how horrible MLM’s is extensive. My mom did it all. Avon, Mary Kay (my abuela had a pink Cadillac). Princess House. Longaberger baskets. You name it she “sold” it, more like hoarded it.
Yesterday was my mom's birthday and she had an acquaintance call her *twice* to join her MLM. She said she had a birthday "gift" for my mom (she got the date off of Facebook, mind you) and I was like oh hell no, over my dead body (I am NOT letting you get to my precious ma!) I quickly explained how MLMs work to my mom and she was horrified, thankfully.
The kidnapping story from the second set of stories sounds so much like my experience with Kirby vacuums. Unexpected door-to-door sales, in cold weather with no coat, far away enough away from home that it's impossible to walk out, obligatory fast food dinner... Wow.
Story 1 sounds like Pure Romance. My aunt used to be a "rep" for them and she would love to unbox new products in the living room, and it made me uncomfortable (my dad and I lived with her and my uncle temporarily while she was doing this MLM). I was 18, but it was still uncomfortable af. Paparazzi having nickel in it and claiming to be nickel free is a nightmare for someone like me, who is allergic to it. The lead is also super concerning wtf
I just had a mini mlm story myself! My bf ordered uber eats and he brings in the food, and he's like 'the driver gave me a business card, that's kinda weird' and I was like ooo lemme see, and it was a card for Forever Living and it was like "contact me to learn more about this business opportunity" and literally had instructions on the back on how to sign up!! I was like.... this totally seems like an MLM and it totally was. so that's suuuper sketchy. we reported it, but they will use any opportunity to try and recruit!! now even uber.
“Yes, I absolutely want to hear about the business opportunity in which you are so successful that you’re driving for Uber Eats!” (Not saying people who drive for Uber/Eats are losers or anything!! Just that if the “business opportunity” was really so great, they wouldn’t be needing to hand out cards at their Uber driver job…because they wouldn’t need the Uber job, or any other job.)
The kidnapping one happened to me in Liverpool, U.K.! I was desperate for a job in my early 20's and was invited to an interview (they didn't even specify the job in the email, just said I had to wear comfortable shoes). The first "interview" was at 10am, then suddenly we were all ferried onto a train (which we had to pay for) and went over an hour away to North Wales! We then had to sell energy and other crap for 8 HOURS! At lunch time, we sat in a pub - again we had to pay for our own - while the "reps" explained how the company wasn't a pyramid scheme, it was a rectangle, and EVERYONE WINS! They showed off their watches, and said how when McDonalds wouldn't give them work they were saved by this company. Finally, in the evening we went back to Liverpool for more "training" and did the "final interview" at 10PM!! I was so physically & mentally exhausted at this point I gratefully accepted the job at the end of the day - having been brainwashed for the last 12 hours. I went home and cried. Next morning I was due to start work and I was terrified! I lived away from home and had no support so I called my dad, who was horrified and said to avoid them at all costs!! I found out a year later that another guy in the random house of people I lived with got sucked in and he worked for them for months!
I now substitute teach- retired special Ed. teacher of 30 years. We never used all if the diffusers and oils in the classroom due to safety. I walk into some rooms now and OMG- that diffuser is constantly going and kids can go and roll on oils if the choose. First off, no frickin way- just let kids roll on oils. No, the student would need to bring their own. Kind of scary now.
My daighters 4th grade teacher was a YL "oily hun." It was a small, private (aka pricey) religious school, so ALL the moms fell for her schtick, including me! I wasted SO much money on oils I don't like, and never used, like 95% of them - just to "fit in." I didn't/don't have many friends - I was never part of the "in" crowd, but wanted desperately to be friends with SOMEONE. She used this knowledge to guilt me into buying from her, like as if I didn't order, somehow all the moms (via gossip mill) would know I didn't "help her out." It still stings to this day, 8 years later! 😢
The FB dog toy scheme - and the word "chain" - reminded me of "chain mail" back in the day. As a kid in the 70s, I participated in a postcard chain mail scheme with the promise of getting postcards from all over the world. I got maybe one. My mom was not a fan! She was very negative about chain mail. Sometimes we'd get random letters that said people who failed to forward the message to ten friends had bad luck, a curse. Creepy! My postcard did not contain a threat but a promise. An empty promise because it's a pyramid scheme, my mom explained. She wisely advised, "don't impose that on your friends." These things can seem innocent enough but they're not OK. Thank you, Hannah!
I got a letter like that in the 90’s from a cousin I never saw telling me about the bad luck I’d get if I didn’t send it on. Even at ten I knew it was bs and tossed it. He on the other hand grew up to marry a crazy anti-vax, oil shilling mlm hun so I guess that might explain something.
Thought it was ironic that while watching this video I got an add to “grow my marketing without creepy Facebook posts” 😂 keep doing what your doing! Clearly the world needs to know the truth about these “businesses”
This video really highlighted how down to earth you are Hannah! I love how you make sure to point out how no one should feel embarrassed about their past with MLM's (especially since they're usually preyed upon in their most vulnerable state) and also that you want to mention the one viewer's new jewelry business. Great video!
Hello! I was an assistant owner in one of those companies that go door to door. I have so so so much tea about these companies. The structure is slightly different to a normal MLM but very similar. There were weeks I worked over 100 hours in the office and on the field and made zero dollars.
Back in the 1980’s, Tupperware were everywhere and the products are good. Nowadays, there’s so many alternatives that you don’t need to buy any MLM products.
Thanks for having the courage to include Mary Kay stories. They’re so intimidating and even threatening that few people will take them on. I stayed with them just long enough to break even (4 years of hard work). I wish I’d just sent my inventory back, but I was naive enough to believe I just wasn’t working hard enough.
I want one of those “I lost weight ask me how” buttons so I can tell them I used no special supplements at all and I just focused on CICO and eating healthier overall. That’s it. No special shakes, no pills, no “fat burners”, wraps or challenges - just being more conscious of the amount and quality of my food. Anyone who tells you you need to trade an actual meal for a shake is full of it, and the only thing you might want to buy is a ~$10 food scale. This also applies to fad diets - you don’t have to excommunicate whole food groups or your favorite junk foods to lose weight, and I volunteer to fight any huns or fad diet peddlers on anyone’s behalf.
If I saw someone with a button that said that on it I would stay as far away from them as possible. No offense, but anyone who assumes that their method of losing weight will be universally effective without knowing anything about the masses of people you’re offering it up to, unsolicited, is both presumptuous and arrogant.
I really like Pampered Chef and 20 years ago, I went to several parties and even hosted a few. No one in our group of friends ever became consultants, and the consultant we worked with was never pushy about it. Of course, she'd ask, but she was fine with no for an answer. Almost all of those things I bought then I still use regularly today, and like you, I cook every day and love to bake. The products are great quality, but I hate the sales models for these MLMs.
The third one was really eye opening to me. I hadn't considered that the new recruits would be so out of their league "owning their own business" that they wouldn't track revenue, expenses, and profits. It's so predatory. The Dunning-Kruger effect at work I guess.
I've been down a Sims playing rabbit hole lately and have been popping these horror stories on while I build things (yes I'm a 32 year old mum who plays Sims 😅). These poor people involved! The kidnapping thing would have seriously freaked me out, I have been in positions of low self confidence and such severe anxiety where I've just gone along with uncomfy things and eeeeek that sounded scary. I'm an ex army wife and let me tell you, mlms run rampant amidst that community! I went to a PartyLite candle party once and all the women were to stay indoors and all the men sat outside drinking, and booed any woman who went outside. Not a fun time 😅
Got roped into a Pure Romance party once with my husband's aunt (which isn't the weird thing, we are actually best friends and she's only a few years older than me) but I had no idea what these entailed and I was only 21 or 22 at the time. They had a game that was basically sexual charades and I had to act out a BJ and I grew up very sheltered and in a religious home and I was SO uncomfortable... I could not imagine having to go to one of these having past traumas, that is terrible and I'm so sorry for anyone that has a story like this :(
OMG something like this happened to me and I kept hearing pure romance and thinking why is that so familiar. BRUH they had a party at someone's house and asked me (the wild one who was 20) to put on a strap on. Next thing you know, the lady presses a button and clitoral stimulation begins. I'm in front of a whole group of mostly strangers and then I realize that I'm getting so stimulated that I was going to have an orgasm. Mind you, I had a really sexually abusive childhood. There's more, and maybe I should send mine in. Anyways, I am laughing because I was so uncomfortable and I said"you do realize it's on) she played stupid and said "oh I had no idea" WTF. Oh Ok. It was mortifying
I’m a stripper and I wouldn’t mess with something like that. It’s not appropriate to rope someone into anything sexual without full consent and knowledge. This is still a forced sexual experience and I’m sure it has had lasting effects on many women. I’d have so many things to say if I showed up to anything like this. Thankfully, because of my job, I’m very bold when it comes to these things.
I got a paparazzi necklace with matching earrings from a coworker. She had it wrapped up with that coal candy and put it in a cute bag but never gave me any pitches so maybe she's just trying to get rid of that stuff.
I had a coworker try to sell me some when I explicitly said that I’m allergic to most cheap jewelry. She just wouldn’t accept my answer; I ended up fast tracking a promotion to another department and blocking her on social media to get rid of her.
12:21 explanation: rich parents and/or rich spouse. I feel like there are a lot of brick-and-mortar shops (even non-MLM ones), that are just money pits for privileged huns’ vanity projects…
My trauma made me the exact opposite with different things.... some of my fantasies and actual real life 'situations' probably would have traumatized everyone else in the room! So imagine both types of people just accidentally coincidentally wound up in that group! I'd feel awful and guilty and ashamed for making someone else that processes differently so upset! I mean that is exactly a cycle of trauma for both people that handle their original traumas differently! Absolutely not ok to just spring on someone at all!!
I recently came across the Anti-MLM community when your videos were suggested on my TH-cam feed. I am HOOKED! I never realized how prevalent MLM’s have been throughout my entire life! I started a list today of all the MLM’s I’ve been introduced to, or someway involved with, or an immediate family member has been involved with. I’m up to 26. Insane!! Thank you for all you do, in warning others of the hidden (and sometimes not so hidden) dangers about being involved in these “organizations”!!
Maybe the person from the last story could ask her friend to make something custom for her? It sounds like she has a really valuable skill in graphic design. That way you could still buy something from her, not support the mlm, and show her how her work should be valued.
I have had kids who were dropped off in my neighborhood knocking on my door trying to sell super random stuff that honestly looks like it came from the dollar store, so scammy and sad.
A few years ago a friend of mine was selling Mary Kay and doing very well at it. I was not even slightly interested in the product or being a rep but she tried her best to convince me that if I did not start wearing her makeup that I would lose my husband. He was a Native American and she tried her best to get me to come into the native community and get friends and relatives to sell Mary Kay. When I told my husband what she said about my lack of makeup he just laughed and said not a chance . God bless him he was wonderful but has now passed away and I miss him every day. Did he leave me because I didn't wear much makeup? Not a chance .
I was in Tupperware for 3 years. They are not "true" storefronts. Usually, they are a space/building rented by one of the top directors within the division group. This is a tax write off for them..anyway, basically what they do is they use that space for team trainings, recruiting by inviting a friends to come see the new product line and try new recipes. The people that attend have the opportunity to order from the person that Tup Lady that brought them or the Director. It is one way to keep the teams numbers in sales up etc.
Just got home from walking my four legged boof head shadows, glass of wine, salt n vinegar chips, and in to some MLM horror stories , Friday night chill out 2022 style😍
These reminds me of when I was searching for a job when I was younger. Went to a Kerby group interview because they said it was a carpet cleaning job. After they explained that there was no hourly wage I was furious.
I also struggle with Interstitial cystitis which is also known as Painful Bladder Syndrome. It feels like you have a uti all the time and currently there is no cure. I would describe the pain as if my bladder were a cave and a caveman was in there holding a match to my bladder wall.....They do suggest a change in diet... and pain levels vary from person to person and I've also found [diagnosed in 2010] that stress makes my pain levels WAY WORSE. IT is a struggle 😪
Omg i am glad you mentioned the book-sending thing, because I saw that on IG on someone's story and I was debating whether or not I wanted to do it! Now I know I wont do it😅
Something no one's pointed out with that kidnapping story, is that on top of all that mess they had them working for free! They were NOT part of the company yet, but they were out there making sales for the reps trying to recruit them. AND had to pay for their own lunch.
I was invited to what I thought was just a spa day party by some acquaintances once. I was excited, thinking that these girls were interested in becoming friends. I went, thinking I’d make some great friends. It was just a Mary Kay Party where I felt pressured into buying a skin care routine. I guess I thought that I’d be ruining a chance of making good friends if I didn’t buy. Years later and I don’t even talk to these ladies.
I worked a holiday house once where the vender ally was just like 10 different MLM huns all lined up with tables. I didnt know what an MLM was at the time but I wish I had so I could have fully appreciated how bizarre that was. They all looked so mad the whole time.
I love the undercurrent of empowering woman to be true to themselves, their value and values in your commentary. I don't know if it is my social circle (mostly well educated old people!) but I don't know anyone who is involved in an MLM. They did seem to be popular when I was younger - the traditional ones.
I did the same college program at Disney! So many people I met there got involved with MLMs. Not just the college age interns, a handful of my managers got involved with Colorstreet. We worked in food service and could not have our nails done at work. They would still push it all over Facebook and mention it during work as the perfect solution for having fun nails on you day off… No thanks!! There were some really nice friends I met that eventually got involved in Arnbonne after leaving the internship. Very sad that MLMs target Disney World cast members because service industry jobs don’t pay the best. Disney pays a lot better than other places and has a great working environment but I’ve met plenty of people from Disney who got involved in MLMs.
Fascinating stories! I was intrigued about Cutco. Over 25 years ago I was desperate for income and signed up with them. I didn’t have to pay to join or recruit others-I think, memory is a bit vague-I just had to demo the knives and sell a goal amount within a timeframe to get paid anything. Demoing wasn’t hard but I had no sales experience and had to ask if they wanted to buy AND if they had friends they’d refer me to. I made a few sales but not the goal, so never got paid anything and had to turn the demo set back in. My heart sinks even now remembering the humiliation and sadness. Though I will say those knives were sweet. I just wish I could’ve afforded even the paring knife for myself.
@26:00 thank you so much for making the point that these MLMs call it a small business, but they aren’t taught to keep basic books or calculating their P&L. If it’s such a great opportunity, it wouldn’t be impossible to get a small business loan for these ventures. That’s why they push people to take out credit cards or unsecured loans.
CHAIN LETTERS!!! Oh my gosh, I had forgotten about those! I used to get those all the time in the early 2000s and it was snail mail. I think I actually did one, it was a kitchen towel exchange.... I got one towel from a stranger, lol
I have to tell you I'm on video 148 out of 210 in your big anti-MLM list and it's doing me a world of good to deprogram me from decades in an MLM. Thanks so much for all you do🫶
From everything I've heard about Pampered Chef, they might be one of the only MLMs that I actually don't mind. You still probably can't make real money, but it seems like one of the least culty and manipulative ones.
tbh i'd be really curious to hear about what the mlm side of that company is like rn but i feel like most people just buy the products fron stores and don't think twice about it haha (my parents have a ton of their products i never knew it was an mlm until recently lolll)
I'm not sure, but I think those Herbalife shops are "nutrition clubs" where customers are signed up the way gyms sign members up--betting on some members not showing up on a regular basis, but still taking in the member fees; and I'm sure the club fees are a bit inflated to help with the overhead. I've seen one or two when I lived in NYC and they seemed to be geared to the Hispanic community they were located in. Also--saw a documentary on Herbalife and how they were taking advantage of Hispanics.
There was an Avon lady who rented a stall at one of my flea market style locations in my hometown. I always wondered how she was able to keep that up and running.
In high school a boy I liked posted one of those send a book scams and I signed up but never sent or received a book. He was a solid dude and I don't think he was trying to do something malicious but it never occurred to me that that might have been a scam
omfg ... thats the ONE i fell for a while back ... it came from an instagram user i had been following for a long time, so even tho i didn't Know them i felt like i trusted them. they convinced me to buy a book. i did... im pretty confused bc i legit did just buy a book idk if it was just purely for sending real books or somehow they got money idk but either way im pretty annoyed lmaoo 😭😭 luckily it wasn't a huge sum...
Someone tried to trick/ recruit me into an MLM right as everything was shutting down in 2020. I was skeptical from the beginning and kept asking if it was a sales thing, but it was always, "no, it's just mentorship". Several Zoom meetings in, there's the Amway presentation. I still don't get what the heck they thought was going to happen. Lying to me repeatedly and knowingly wasting my time isn't exactly going to convince me to join your MLM. 🙄
It’s probably been over 10 years since I had my group interview with vector knifes and I’m still angry about it. First daughters when I was called I was told that I was going to be doing a receptionist job and being paid $16 an hour which sounded like a dream being that I was a recent high school graduate with no experience. I even double checked with the lady because I thought that something sounded too good to be true about this opportunity and confirmed that this job was not commission based and was not sales bc it was I was not interested in the position. So you can imagine first my shock to see like 50 other people in this huge room. I’m not a fan of group interviews but I at least think that a person should be aware and be able to prepare for a group interview versus an individual interview. And typically even in group interviews there might be five or 10 people but not 50! Talk about intimidating for someone who was on maybe their third or fourth interview ever. And then of course I was super heated when I found out that this was a sales position commission based door-to-door when I didn’t even have a vehicle or license and had planned on busing it until I had made enough money to get a cheap car. The person that called me to get me to come in and had completely lied right to my face. And then they wasted three hours of my life with the most boring presentation about knives ever. That company should be forced to compensate everyone they lie and manipulate to get them to show up for interviews it’s not really an interview it’s more like job training that they are getting for free
Pampered chef, cutco, Kirby all seem to have a better appeal than the vast majority of others because they’re useful products; but yeah, you can find a lot of the same items at a more affordable price from retailers.
This playlist is getting me through the flu. Ive been sick as a dog unable to leave my bed all weekend but i can listen to these videos as i roll in and out of my feverish stupor. Love your content Hannah
Not gonna lie, when I was in middle-high school, before I knew what an mlm party was, or what it meant, I loved going to those parties. It meant I could hang out with people and none of the people who did it were ever all that serious about it and never did it for very long. And while I remember the products that were being sold, I don't remember what was said or talked about at any of those parties (at least nothing mlm-y). I just remember having a good time with my friends. Now I know that I and my friends were exceedingly lucky.
i remember loving the Pampered Chef and Scentsy parties that my mom and my mom’s friends hosted as a kid (tho i don’t think my mom ever sold? maybe she just hosted for a friend cuz she loves to host events). i still have three Scentsy stuffed animals that i love dearly lmao. but i definitely won’t be supporting going forward lol and Tupperware too!
Yes ! They never talk about safety precautions concerning oils. We really should not be ingesting oils. I remember thinking clove diluted was okay. That was what I was told. It literally thins your blood. It actually showed up on my blood work. So yeah oils work, but they can cause harm when used wrong.
My mom was an MLM mom LOL she never sold any of it herself, she just loved having get togethers and of course BUYING all of it. after she passed we also had so much princess house, pampered chef, scensty, left bc she also had an issue with hoarding (which i don’t mind PC or scensty but the blantant lying??) it just seems like people like my mom get sucked in so easily bc you have someone in your face telling you you need to buy it. we also had a 15 year old kirby that was just miserable to used and my mom wondered why we never wanted to vacuum.. once my dad bought a shark my life was changed HAHA
as far as the Pampered Chef products. The Bed Bath and Beyond stores have a huge amount of copy cat products, and if you utilize the store coupons (that never expire, btw, even if it has a date on the coupon- you can use it regardless of its status) the cost can be sooo much better. It's crazy just how many things you can find in store, and the return policy is great at BBB.
Wow! You just blew my mind about Origami Owl! I had no clue it was an MLM. It was a huge craze across the Bible Belt about ten years ago, and I probably have thirty of those charm necklaces that were given to me by my evangelical family. 😂
Something like Paparazzi really hurts people like me who can make jewelry out of silver and copper and stainless steel only and never use any toxic substances whatsoever. My native husband taught me how to do it and I have been designing and fabricating jewelry for more than 30 years but sales are hurt drastically because of places like paparazzi
I've seen the Pure Romance one at a sci-fi/anime convention. I was talking with a 16 year old about her costume (I didn't recognize the character we also spoke at my vending table). We walked past the table of Pure Romance. I was trying to steer us away from the table. The woman stopped us and attempted to talk to us. She had us a free bag. It has condoms and lube in. I realized what it was as soon as she pushed it in my hand. The girl I was with seemed really innocent. When we walked away, I told her what was in the bag. She became so embarrassed and stated that she was sixteen.
I actually had a teacher that tried to sell Avon to students!! She was absolute garbage to me (as a teacher and as a human in general) but she was also a coach so I can't even imagine how many small town girls she got in her pocket! I've know quiet a few people that have gotten involved in MLMs but its usually been siblings of a partner of mine to my husband's friends' wives, etc. When someone that hasn't been doing so well is suddenly doing 🌟Amazing🌟 and wants to "invite you along for the journey"....don't do it lol
31:50 Hope’s Diamonds sounds like a girl band some middle schoolers would start after watching Jem and the Holograms…Which in that case would be adorable if I’m honest
yay i was watching some of your older videos today (cuz i just subscribed yesterday lol) and i was so excited to see you posted another video! thank you so much for your content
Lol, I have Stress Away on my table next to me. It was a gift a couple years back, from when I was really busy and stressed in high school, along with a diffuser bracelet. I'm pretty sure the bracelet broke pretty quickly. I don't have a strong sense of smell, so I mostly open Stress Away when I feel insecure that my apartment may smell off or stale. It does not work the magic intended, but it does relieve that one specific stress. (I also use mint oil, bought for like $4 online, for the same purpose)
Hi Hannah, I just discovered your channel the other day and I have been binge watching your content. I just wanted to compliment you on your demeanor and commentary. You are so well spoken and for lack of a better word, professional. I love how you are so kind and calm about explaining things when talking about the MLM experience emails you receive. You are clearly a very classy woman and I am glad to find your content. You do your job very well, especially in your responses to people who write you the emails. Many of the people writing these stories have very difficult things to share, and your respect for them and for your viewers is refreshing. Thank you for your hard work. 🙏
I'm an illustrator and sell prints of my artwork and other accessories I've designed at comic cons and anime cons - it's always SO AWFUL when some events don't vet their vendors and let in MLM reps .... Those Herbalife pins "Lose Weight Now - Ask Me How!" have been around FOREVER and they're so awful
Once, a friend invited me to a party. It turned out to be some lawyer MLM. I left as soon as I could do so politely. After that she offered to sell me something on every other occasion that we hung out. We stopped hanging out. She would text me. Sometimes years would go by, and she'd be back trying to sign me up for dishrags, essential oils, all sorts of stuff. I finally told her that I didn't trust her friendship and she should delete my number. She wouldn't quit, so I finally told her that since she was always trying to sell me, I wouldn't work with her, even if I wanted to. She said thanks, and quit texting. A week later, she texted to apologize for not being a good friend, and wanted to reconcile. I said no. She said i should forgive and she felt sorry for me for being such a mean person. I told her I wasn't mad, but that we weren't friends. Finally blocked her.
I had no idea Kirby vacuums were an mlm. My dad got talked into buying one from a door to door salesman only a few years ago! It’s the worst. You have to take it apart to use the hose attachment. Extremely bulky and inconvenient.
my sister in law is a pampered chef consultant and has given us some things over the years and they've been great quality and to her credit she's never tried to recruit me
LOL I've encountered one of those parties before and it was definitely an MLM. The 'host' was my then partners friend which is how we ended up there. The catch? EVERYONE who went to the party /had/ to host a party for everyone + other friends after the party. The lady that was there selling things and running the part was super serious about hounding everyone after the fact (and insisted we sign up despite the fact that we were moving across the country two weeks later and TOLD her this) LOL that first story just brought that memory up.
I am a tax preparer and I do someone’s taxes who has an MLM business and files a Schedule C for self employed individuals. Every year she says “oh I’m worried I’m going to owe a lot of tax because I really sold a lot this year” and every year I say before I have even seen her documents “trust me. You did not make a lot. You don’t have to worry. Unless you think ‘a lot’ is like $400”. She usually has a slight loss or comes close to breaking even. She has never made more than $400 in a year.
That kind of information is GOLD
How do you maintain composure? Lol
Ugh how depressing 😮
Okay
Wow thank you for sharing that.
“her sex toy MLM party is not more important than your health and wellbeing” is such a surreal sentence and i love it here
I got invited to a Pure Romance party by someone I'd never met. (I have hated all MLM's my whole life, since I became disillusioned in childhood. Different story.) I didn't want to go, but I did wonder what it was for, since they didn't explain. I googled, found out it was sex toys, actually looked at a catalogue, and discovered what it was all about. Sex toys aren't my thing, but even if they were, I wouldn't want to go discuss it AT A PARTY! Plus, I hate MLM on principle.
You know, I've thought a lot about the gendered aspects of MLMs that target women (i.e. most MLMs), but you know what I never realized before? MLMs' recruitment model takes advantage of women's socially-learned aversion to telling people "no."
You are on the galaxy-brain stuff today and I am here for it.
Absolutely. MLMs are largely based in mysogyny. That's why they're sometime referred to as "Moms Losing Money"
Crypto is the male equivalent, I say, in terms of scamming.
@@BewareTheLilyOfTheValley I was thinking the same thing.
i thought of the same thing when it comes to the MLM Party- when it comes to how social protocol makes women more vulnerable to MLM baloney.
It takes advantage of the fact that women aren't as likely to be assertive and might be more inclined to buy something just to look good and not stingy in front of their pals- but then again, if your friend is trying to scam you into buying something, is she really your pal.
My dad is the anti-MLM king of Sydney (no one has come for his crown yet) but my mum is quite naive about MLMs. She has helped sell for two (one, Avon, while still a teen) and didn’t think they were so bad but I have taken to playing these videos around her. The noise she made when the woman licked the essential oil off her hand made me pause the video before she said ‘you know, I think you and your dad might be right about MLMs’. HANNAH I THINK YOU GOT HER! 62 years of thinking they weren’t so bad and now she thinks huns need some help not encouragement! Success!
This is awesome! Thanks for sharing :)
Never go to a second location!
Yeah definitely sketchy!
The kidnapping story: Search for Slave Circle and you'll come up with lots of stories about this one. It should be better known than it is...It slides under the radar because it's like a hydra with many heads that all go under different names (Smart Circle, Cydcor, etc etc), but underneath it all, seems to be a single MLMy org that's gone to some lengths to hide that. It's hard for even people who got sucked into it to identify it by name because it's so (deliberately) shadowy and amorphous. And people who only went to an interview, or only worked for it for a short time, just remember it as this weird sketchy business and don't realize it's part of a bigger thing.
Omg that story of the group of teenagers being kidnapped😳 that’s how people get human trafficked!!! I am in no way blaming those poor kids, but we need to empower young people to speak up when they are uncomfortable in social situations, decorum be damned!! Your life is ALWAYS worth more than trying to be nice and courteous. If people make you feel uncomfortable, TELL THEM.
Yes. That's what I thought. In other countries they will get a bunch of girls on a van take your documents and drive you out the country. The girls thought that they were scouted by a company usually for modeling. Please be carefull. You don't know what people surround you.
It's funny you say that because back then, around the 90s especially, this wasn't uncommon. Not necessarily the just jumping into a vehicle with no questions asked thing- do you know any whole group of late teens/early 20s that wouldn't have at least one person saying "yo, where the f are we going"- but that entire setup otherwise. And no, no whole groups of folks ever just suddenly went miss5at the same time from responding to a job interview. People didn't hear about it because it never happened so they didn't think about it. What's funny is that is people's almost immediate thought today (despite the fact that it has never happened) AND y'all are about 100 times safer than we were then. There's cameras just about everywhere public and every one of you is glued to a personal tracking device at all times. If anyone today actually felt in danger, they'd either call 911 (the smart move) or start posting in social media about the weird job interview. Within seconds. Trust me, young people today speak up and out a lot more than they did 30 or even 20 years ago.
Story 3 was me!! I’m so glad you read my stories!!
Thanks for sending it in!! ❤️
@@HannahAlonzo it is pronounced uzz-born
The essential oils story is a living nightmare to me. I am very allergic to various mints, and if someone constantly had a diffuser of mint running, I can only imagine what something like that would do to me. The essential oil people really should consider people could have serious allergies to stuff like that and shouldn't assume everything is perfectly fine.
Right I'm allergic to chamomile
Whats crazy is that they will tell you you CANT be allergic to the oils! It boggled my brain, like....if you are allergic to mint, obviously DO NOT use mint oil!
Also, some oils are toxic to pets
I love oils, but I am so so cautious about using them around others. I think it is wholly inappropriate to use oils in the classroom
Also asthma!!!!
Warning to people with pets and diffuser’s, as the person said in the one story, ingesting essential oils is very dangerous. I love wax burners and wanted to try a diffuser (totally cheap Amazon oils). While researching what oils are supposed to be good for stress or whatever, I read how dangerous they can be to pets as they can get the oil on their fur and the ingest it. Wax warmers only for me! Thanks to everyone that shares their stories and thank you Hannah for all you do!
Omg the "practice" thing 😳 My SIL has been in Mary Kay like 30 years, probably. Once, when my kids were young, she asked me to meet her at the mall so she could "practice" recruiting. We sat down on the benches & she told me how much she liked my purse. I was surprised because it was just an average cheap purse. She went through her recruitment thing & asked me if I'd join her team. I said no, I'm terrified of talking to people I don't know to which she replied, oh it's easy, I'll teach you. You can walk up to any woman & compliment her purse. 😒 I was genuinely hurt. She was my age & we were never friends. She hounded me for quite a while as I had told her I felt like I needed a purpose in my life. She told me MK would give me that plus confidence etc. That began my hate for mlms. I was lonely, moved away from my family, didn't have many friends. She knew that & tried to take advantage! She lies & deceives people. Would not take no for answer & then tried the guilt trip. The rest of the family were supportive, I was buying skin care anyway so why not buy from her, just maintain an active status, it's only $250 quarterly etc. I had no idea the practice thing was an actual thing until you said that. It's so sneaky & deceptive!!
Edited to add, she could be the woman in story #4
can’t believe she was so dense as to think it would be okay to compliment your purse and then tell you it is a direct tactic. like huh lol
oh wow thats HORRIBLE. what the hell was she thinking? I can’t believe she didn’t remember complimenting your purse minutes before. Did she thing you’d laugh at her “wit” and go “wow you got me there, it did work!” or smth? I mean. how did she not see that you’d have an adverse reaction to that behavior!? that’s just gross.
OMG that first one was definitely Pure Romance. I went to one of those parties about 3 yrs ago and when it was over, the girl pulled each of us aside into a private room. It was creepyyyyy 😳 I'm so glad her friend took her home!
Legit monetizing sexual harassment.
Holy cow that kidnapping story was NEXT LEVEL horror
It happened to me as well! Same exact thing! The company I "interviewed" with was called OC Sports Marketing I still remember because when I finally made it home at like 6pm I broke down and balled my eyes out to my parents( and I'm not someone who cries easily). I worked retail at the time and I missed my shift because I was in an "interview" that lasted all day! A year later a girl at the same retail job said she was really excited for an interview with OC Sports Marketing and I told her not to go.
My sister once signed me up for time share. The kidnapping story reminds me of the time share experience, except I couldn’t leave the room. It took up my day. I had no idea it was time share going in. I was so mad at her, I didn’t talk to her for weeks. At some point I called my parents crying that wanted to leave.
The first one HOLY SHIT. It's SO wrong to assume that anyone would want to even disclose personal sexual details about themselves like that. With strangers, worse yet. I don't have trauma like that but that still goes way too far. Was the "boss babe" really expecting everyone to voluntarily describe their fantasies?! I'm angry :D
I am so glad I never purchased from paparazzi I am allergic to Nickle and cheap metals, those false statements can be very dangerous. It's like saying to someone who has a peanut allergy it's peanut-free.
Exactly! I had a coworker that tried to sell me Paparazzi even after being told I had a nickel allergy and as a rule don’t buy cheap costume jewelry. There’s no way a necklace and earrings costing $5 can be nickel free. Nope; don’t buy it.
Yep I’m allergic to some cheap metals and bought a few pieces from a friend. Couldn’t wear any
Of it!!
I love that you are so empathic and comment on everyone's story kindly. I really appreciated the way you handled my story when I sent it in.
I'm asexual and have trauma and I'm already socially anxious if a friend pulled me into a pure romance or whatever party like that I wouldn't just be mortified, I'd have one less friend for sure. That's HORRIFYING. Discussing raunchy sexual fantasies with strangers? Male anatomical straws? I literally have goosebumps from discomfort.
sameee 😨🤢
I am married and not asexual but have trauma and I’d be highly upset!
The fucking straws...
I just came across your channel and already hooked! My experience with how horrible MLM’s is extensive. My mom did it all. Avon, Mary Kay (my abuela had a pink Cadillac). Princess House. Longaberger baskets. You name it she “sold” it, more like hoarded it.
Please send the stories! I am really curious about the pink car.
Yesterday was my mom's birthday and she had an acquaintance call her *twice* to join her MLM. She said she had a birthday "gift" for my mom (she got the date off of Facebook, mind you) and I was like oh hell no, over my dead body (I am NOT letting you get to my precious ma!) I quickly explained how MLMs work to my mom and she was horrified, thankfully.
The kidnapping story from the second set of stories sounds so much like my experience with Kirby vacuums. Unexpected door-to-door sales, in cold weather with no coat, far away enough away from home that it's impossible to walk out, obligatory fast food dinner... Wow.
Story 1 sounds like Pure Romance. My aunt used to be a "rep" for them and she would love to unbox new products in the living room, and it made me uncomfortable (my dad and I lived with her and my uncle temporarily while she was doing this MLM). I was 18, but it was still uncomfortable af.
Paparazzi having nickel in it and claiming to be nickel free is a nightmare for someone like me, who is allergic to it. The lead is also super concerning wtf
And Cadmium and Arsenic. It's sooo problematic for those reps that have thousands of pieces in their homes 😱
I just had a mini mlm story myself! My bf ordered uber eats and he brings in the food, and he's like 'the driver gave me a business card, that's kinda weird' and I was like ooo lemme see, and it was a card for Forever Living and it was like "contact me to learn more about this business opportunity" and literally had instructions on the back on how to sign up!! I was like.... this totally seems like an MLM and it totally was. so that's suuuper sketchy. we reported it, but they will use any opportunity to try and recruit!! now even uber.
“Yes, I absolutely want to hear about the business opportunity in which you are so successful that you’re driving for Uber Eats!”
(Not saying people who drive for Uber/Eats are losers or anything!! Just that if the “business opportunity” was really so great, they wouldn’t be needing to hand out cards at their Uber driver job…because they wouldn’t need the Uber job, or any other job.)
The kidnapping one happened to me in Liverpool, U.K.! I was desperate for a job in my early 20's and was invited to an interview (they didn't even specify the job in the email, just said I had to wear comfortable shoes). The first "interview" was at 10am, then suddenly we were all ferried onto a train (which we had to pay for) and went over an hour away to North Wales! We then had to sell energy and other crap for 8 HOURS! At lunch time, we sat in a pub - again we had to pay for our own - while the "reps" explained how the company wasn't a pyramid scheme, it was a rectangle, and EVERYONE WINS! They showed off their watches, and said how when McDonalds wouldn't give them work they were saved by this company. Finally, in the evening we went back to Liverpool for more "training" and did the "final interview" at 10PM!! I was so physically & mentally exhausted at this point I gratefully accepted the job at the end of the day - having been brainwashed for the last 12 hours. I went home and cried. Next morning I was due to start work and I was terrified! I lived away from home and had no support so I called my dad, who was horrified and said to avoid them at all costs!!
I found out a year later that another guy in the random house of people I lived with got sucked in and he worked for them for months!
As a mama it’s a little upsetting to hear that teachers were diffusing all these essential oils in the class alllll day long.
Yeah, I’d have a serious problem with that (as I do with teachers pushing MLMs already).
@@dqverify6797 The US really needs to start paying teachers better. This is shocking on so many levels.
I now substitute teach- retired special Ed. teacher of 30 years. We never used all if the diffusers and oils in the classroom due to safety. I walk into some rooms now and OMG- that diffuser is constantly going and kids can go and roll on oils if the choose. First off, no frickin way- just let kids roll on oils. No, the student would need to bring their own. Kind of scary now.
My daighters 4th grade teacher was a YL "oily hun." It was a small, private (aka pricey) religious school, so ALL the moms fell for her schtick, including me! I wasted SO much money on oils I don't like, and never used, like 95% of them - just to "fit in." I didn't/don't have many friends - I was never part of the "in" crowd, but wanted desperately to be friends with SOMEONE. She used this knowledge to guilt me into buying from her, like as if I didn't order, somehow all the moms (via gossip mill) would know I didn't "help her out." It still stings to this day, 8 years later! 😢
The FB dog toy scheme - and the word "chain" - reminded me of "chain mail" back in the day. As a kid in the 70s, I participated in a postcard chain mail scheme with the promise of getting postcards from all over the world. I got maybe one. My mom was not a fan! She was very negative about chain mail. Sometimes we'd get random letters that said people who failed to forward the message to ten friends had bad luck, a curse. Creepy! My postcard did not contain a threat but a promise. An empty promise because it's a pyramid scheme, my mom explained. She wisely advised, "don't impose that on your friends." These things can seem innocent enough but they're not OK. Thank you, Hannah!
I got a letter like that in the 90’s from a cousin I never saw telling me about the bad luck I’d get if I didn’t send it on. Even at ten I knew it was bs and tossed it. He on the other hand grew up to marry a crazy anti-vax, oil shilling mlm hun so I guess that might explain something.
"If you don't forward this email to 10 of your friends LITTLE PUPPIES WILL DIE AND IT WILL BE YOUR FAULT" ugh thanks for reminding me of that era
Thought it was ironic that while watching this video I got an add to “grow my marketing without creepy Facebook posts” 😂 keep doing what your doing! Clearly the world needs to know the truth about these “businesses”
This video really highlighted how down to earth you are Hannah! I love how you make sure to point out how no one should feel embarrassed about their past with MLM's (especially since they're usually preyed upon in their most vulnerable state) and also that you want to mention the one viewer's new jewelry business. Great video!
Thanks for watching Sarah! I definitely don’t think anyone should be embarrassed about it!
Omg. Remember those oysters that used to flood Facebook? They’d crack them open and you won pearls and cheap jewelry? I called them Scam Clams 🤣
Hello! I was an assistant owner in one of those companies that go door to door. I have so so so much tea about these companies. The structure is slightly different to a normal MLM but very similar. There were weeks I worked over 100 hours in the office and on the field and made zero dollars.
*assistant owner is a rank, the next rank you open your own office*
Back in the 1980’s, Tupperware were everywhere and the products are good. Nowadays, there’s so many alternatives that you don’t need to buy any MLM products.
Man when I was in church as a child in the mid 90s they sent us home woth Tupperware order forms to sell to our family
Thanks for having the courage to include Mary Kay stories. They’re so intimidating and even threatening that few people will take them on. I stayed with them just long enough to break even (4 years of hard work). I wish I’d just sent my inventory back, but I was naive enough to believe I just wasn’t working hard enough.
I want one of those “I lost weight ask me how” buttons so I can tell them I used no special supplements at all and I just focused on CICO and eating healthier overall. That’s it. No special shakes, no pills, no “fat burners”, wraps or challenges - just being more conscious of the amount and quality of my food. Anyone who tells you you need to trade an actual meal for a shake is full of it, and the only thing you might want to buy is a ~$10 food scale.
This also applies to fad diets - you don’t have to excommunicate whole food groups or your favorite junk foods to lose weight, and I volunteer to fight any huns or fad diet peddlers on anyone’s behalf.
If I saw someone with a button that said that on it I would stay as far away from them as possible. No offense, but anyone who assumes that their method of losing weight will be universally effective without knowing anything about the masses of people you’re offering it up to, unsolicited, is both presumptuous and arrogant.
I really like Pampered Chef and 20 years ago, I went to several parties and even hosted a few. No one in our group of friends ever became consultants, and the consultant we worked with was never pushy about it. Of course, she'd ask, but she was fine with no for an answer. Almost all of those things I bought then I still use regularly today, and like you, I cook every day and love to bake. The products are great quality, but I hate the sales models for these MLMs.
I got an ad for tax services for 1099’contractors 😂 I wonder if the Huns fill that out and think twice to themselves about being their own “business”
Lmao
The third one was really eye opening to me. I hadn't considered that the new recruits would be so out of their league "owning their own business" that they wouldn't track revenue, expenses, and profits. It's so predatory. The Dunning-Kruger effect at work I guess.
Yep! They're told that they're "owning their own business" without really knowing any of the basic fundamental skills needed to be a business owner...
I've been down a Sims playing rabbit hole lately and have been popping these horror stories on while I build things (yes I'm a 32 year old mum who plays Sims 😅). These poor people involved! The kidnapping thing would have seriously freaked me out, I have been in positions of low self confidence and such severe anxiety where I've just gone along with uncomfy things and eeeeek that sounded scary.
I'm an ex army wife and let me tell you, mlms run rampant amidst that community! I went to a PartyLite candle party once and all the women were to stay indoors and all the men sat outside drinking, and booed any woman who went outside. Not a fun time 😅
i watch these videos while playing The Sims at the same time too. There's no shame in it.
Don't feel bad! I'm a 27 year old that plays sims while watching anti mlm videos 😆 My mom used to buy from party lite lol
As busy mom’s we all need our ways to relax! No judgement here😃
Got roped into a Pure Romance party once with my husband's aunt (which isn't the weird thing, we are actually best friends and she's only a few years older than me) but I had no idea what these entailed and I was only 21 or 22 at the time. They had a game that was basically sexual charades and I had to act out a BJ and I grew up very sheltered and in a religious home and I was SO uncomfortable... I could not imagine having to go to one of these having past traumas, that is terrible and I'm so sorry for anyone that has a story like this :(
OMG something like this happened to me and I kept hearing pure romance and thinking why is that so familiar. BRUH they had a party at someone's house and asked me (the wild one who was 20) to put on a strap on. Next thing you know, the lady presses a button and clitoral stimulation begins. I'm in front of a whole group of mostly strangers and then I realize that I'm getting so stimulated that I was going to have an orgasm. Mind you, I had a really sexually abusive childhood. There's more, and maybe I should send mine in. Anyways, I am laughing because I was so uncomfortable and I said"you do realize it's on) she played stupid and said "oh I had no idea" WTF. Oh Ok. It was mortifying
What a vulgar company!
i was raised very un-sheltered and that would horrify me lol. even with friends it would unless we were being stupid and joking lol
I’m a stripper and I wouldn’t mess with something like that. It’s not appropriate to rope someone into anything sexual without full consent and knowledge. This is still a forced sexual experience and I’m sure it has had lasting effects on many women. I’d have so many things to say if I showed up to anything like this. Thankfully, because of my job, I’m very bold when it comes to these things.
I got a paparazzi necklace with matching earrings from a coworker. She had it wrapped up with that coal candy and put it in a cute bag but never gave me any pitches so maybe she's just trying to get rid of that stuff.
I had a coworker try to sell me some when I explicitly said that I’m allergic to most cheap jewelry. She just wouldn’t accept my answer; I ended up fast tracking a promotion to another department and blocking her on social media to get rid of her.
12:21 explanation: rich parents and/or rich spouse. I feel like there are a lot of brick-and-mortar shops (even non-MLM ones), that are just money pits for privileged huns’ vanity projects…
I keep forgetting how frequently you (intend) to post...every time I see a new video pop up in my thread I'm excitedly surprised! LOL
I’m asexual. I would be super uncomfortable if I got invited to a s*x party without knowing what it was actually about.
My trauma made me the exact opposite with different things.... some of my fantasies and actual real life 'situations' probably would have traumatized everyone else in the room! So imagine both types of people just accidentally coincidentally wound up in that group! I'd feel awful and guilty and ashamed for making someone else that processes differently so upset! I mean that is exactly a cycle of trauma for both people that handle their original traumas differently! Absolutely not ok to just spring on someone at all!!
I'm literally watching this video and recieved a "hey hun" message. I cannot stop laughing at the irony!!! 🤣 😂
I recently came across the Anti-MLM community when your videos were suggested on my TH-cam feed. I am HOOKED! I never realized how prevalent MLM’s have been throughout my entire life! I started a list today of all the MLM’s I’ve been introduced to, or someway involved with, or an immediate family member has been involved with. I’m up to 26. Insane!! Thank you for all you do, in warning others of the hidden (and sometimes not so hidden) dangers about being involved in these “organizations”!!
Maybe the person from the last story could ask her friend to make something custom for her? It sounds like she has a really valuable skill in graphic design. That way you could still buy something from her, not support the mlm, and show her how her work should be valued.
I have had kids who were dropped off in my neighborhood knocking on my door trying to sell super random stuff that honestly looks like it came from the dollar store, so scammy and sad.
A few years ago a friend of mine was selling Mary Kay and doing very well at it. I was not even slightly interested in the product or being a rep but she tried her best to convince me that if I did not start wearing her makeup that I would lose my husband. He was a Native American and she tried her best to get me to come into the native community and get friends and relatives to sell Mary Kay. When I told my husband what she said about my lack of makeup he just laughed and said not a chance . God bless him he was wonderful but has now passed away and I miss him every day. Did he leave me because I didn't wear much makeup? Not a chance .
There are TONS of Tupperware storefronts where I live! I also wonder how they manage to survive. They're never very busy or full of merchandise LOL
Oooh interesting! I’ve never seen one!!
@@HannahAlonzo It may be more common where I live (maybe?). I'm in Canada
I was in Tupperware for 3 years. They are not "true" storefronts. Usually, they are a space/building rented by one of the top directors within the division group. This is a tax write off for them..anyway, basically what they do is they use that space for team trainings, recruiting by inviting a friends to come see the new product line and try new recipes. The people that attend have the opportunity to order from the person that Tup Lady that brought them or the Director. It is one way to keep the teams numbers in sales up etc.
Just got home from walking my four legged boof head shadows, glass of wine, salt n vinegar chips, and in to some MLM horror stories , Friday night chill out 2022 style😍
I really love this Friday night setup for you!
These reminds me of when I was searching for a job when I was younger. Went to a Kerby group interview because they said it was a carpet cleaning job. After they explained that there was no hourly wage I was furious.
Oh and here's my cheesy antimlm joke .what do doTERRA and datura have in common?both make people delusional af 😊
I keep telling myself I'm going to sit down and finally write out my experience for you.
Hannah...I love your videos so glad you are out there trying to prevent people from being scammed. You are great!!!
Lol I’ve never done MLMs but my crazy narcissistic mother did too while I was growing up.
I also struggle with Interstitial cystitis which is also known as Painful Bladder Syndrome. It feels like you have a uti all the time and currently there is no cure. I would describe the pain as if my bladder were a cave and a caveman was in there holding a match to my bladder wall.....They do suggest a change in diet... and pain levels vary from person to person and I've also found [diagnosed in 2010] that stress makes my pain levels WAY WORSE. IT is a struggle 😪
Omg i am glad you mentioned the book-sending thing, because I saw that on IG on someone's story and I was debating whether or not I wanted to do it! Now I know I wont do it😅
Your post reminds me: someone should do an accounting video for MLM huns.
Something no one's pointed out with that kidnapping story, is that on top of all that mess they had them working for free! They were NOT part of the company yet, but they were out there making sales for the reps trying to recruit them. AND had to pay for their own lunch.
a paparazzi store?!? I would be investigating that for money laundering.
I was invited to what I thought was just a spa day party by some acquaintances once. I was excited, thinking that these girls were interested in becoming friends. I went, thinking I’d make some great friends. It was just a Mary Kay Party where I felt pressured into buying a skin care routine. I guess I thought that I’d be ruining a chance of making good friends if I didn’t buy. Years later and I don’t even talk to these ladies.
I worked a holiday house once where the vender ally was just like 10 different MLM huns all lined up with tables. I didnt know what an MLM was at the time but I wish I had so I could have fully appreciated how bizarre that was. They all looked so mad the whole time.
I love the undercurrent of empowering woman to be true to themselves, their value and values in your commentary. I don't know if it is my social circle (mostly well educated old people!) but I don't know anyone who is involved in an MLM. They did seem to be popular when I was younger - the traditional ones.
I did the same college program at Disney! So many people I met there got involved with MLMs. Not just the college age interns, a handful of my managers got involved with Colorstreet. We worked in food service and could not have our nails done at work. They would still push it all over Facebook and mention it during work as the perfect solution for having fun nails on you day off… No thanks!! There were some really nice friends I met that eventually got involved in Arnbonne after leaving the internship. Very sad that MLMs target Disney World cast members because service industry jobs don’t pay the best. Disney pays a lot better than other places and has a great working environment but I’ve met plenty of people from Disney who got involved in MLMs.
Fascinating stories! I was intrigued about Cutco. Over 25 years ago I was desperate for income and signed up with them. I didn’t have to pay to join or recruit others-I think, memory is a bit vague-I just had to demo the knives and sell a goal amount within a timeframe to get paid anything. Demoing wasn’t hard but I had no sales experience and had to ask if they wanted to buy AND if they had friends they’d refer me to. I made a few sales but not the goal, so never got paid anything and had to turn the demo set back in. My heart sinks even now remembering the humiliation and sadness. Though I will say those knives were sweet. I just wish I could’ve afforded even the paring knife for myself.
My MIL got me into Mary Kay and thankfully I wasn't in it for a long time, it still frustrate me that she tried to scam me for her own gain
@26:00 thank you so much for making the point that these MLMs call it a small business, but they aren’t taught to keep basic books or calculating their P&L. If it’s such a great opportunity, it wouldn’t be impossible to get a small business loan for these ventures. That’s why they push people to take out credit cards or unsecured loans.
Story 2 just had me belly-laughing...I don't know why, but the phrase 'world's oldest Kirby vacuum always acting a fool' just killed me 😂😂😂
CHAIN LETTERS!!! Oh my gosh, I had forgotten about those! I used to get those all the time in the early 2000s and it was snail mail. I think I actually did one, it was a kitchen towel exchange.... I got one towel from a stranger, lol
I have to tell you I'm on video 148 out of 210 in your big anti-MLM list and it's doing me a world of good to deprogram me from decades in an MLM. Thanks so much for all you do🫶
From everything I've heard about Pampered Chef, they might be one of the only MLMs that I actually don't mind. You still probably can't make real money, but it seems like one of the least culty and manipulative ones.
tbh i'd be really curious to hear about what the mlm side of that company is like rn but i feel like most people just buy the products fron stores and don't think twice about it haha (my parents have a ton of their products i never knew it was an mlm until recently lolll)
I'm not sure, but I think those Herbalife shops are "nutrition clubs" where customers are signed up the way gyms sign members up--betting on some members not showing up on a regular basis, but still taking in the member fees; and I'm sure the club fees are a bit inflated to help with the overhead. I've seen one or two when I lived in NYC and they seemed to be geared to the Hispanic community they were located in. Also--saw a documentary on Herbalife and how they were taking advantage of Hispanics.
There was an Avon lady who rented a stall at one of my flea market style locations in my hometown. I always wondered how she was able to keep that up and running.
In high school a boy I liked posted one of those send a book scams and I signed up but never sent or received a book. He was a solid dude and I don't think he was trying to do something malicious but it never occurred to me that that might have been a scam
I see people posting about that kind of thing but they’re all people I know wouldn’t fall for it. What do you mean by “send a book scam”?
omfg ... thats the ONE i fell for a while back ... it came from an instagram user i had been following for a long time, so even tho i didn't Know them i felt like i trusted them. they convinced me to buy a book. i did... im pretty confused bc i legit did just buy a book idk if it was just purely for sending real books or somehow they got money idk but either way im pretty annoyed lmaoo 😭😭 luckily it wasn't a huge sum...
Someone tried to trick/ recruit me into an MLM right as everything was shutting down in 2020. I was skeptical from the beginning and kept asking if it was a sales thing, but it was always, "no, it's just mentorship". Several Zoom meetings in, there's the Amway presentation. I still don't get what the heck they thought was going to happen. Lying to me repeatedly and knowingly wasting my time isn't exactly going to convince me to join your MLM. 🙄
It’s probably been over 10 years since I had my group interview with vector knifes and I’m still angry about it. First daughters when I was called I was told that I was going to be doing a receptionist job and being paid $16 an hour which sounded like a dream being that I was a recent high school graduate with no experience. I even double checked with the lady because I thought that something sounded too good to be true about this opportunity and confirmed that this job was not commission based and was not sales bc it was I was not interested in the position. So you can imagine first my shock to see like 50 other people in this huge room. I’m not a fan of group interviews but I at least think that a person should be aware and be able to prepare for a group interview versus an individual interview. And typically even in group interviews there might be five or 10 people but not 50! Talk about intimidating for someone who was on maybe their third or fourth interview ever. And then of course I was super heated when I found out that this was a sales position commission based door-to-door when I didn’t even have a vehicle or license and had planned on busing it until I had made enough money to get a cheap car. The person that called me to get me to come in and had completely lied right to my face. And then they wasted three hours of my life with the most boring presentation about knives ever. That company should be forced to compensate everyone they lie and manipulate to get them to show up for interviews it’s not really an interview it’s more like job training that they are getting for free
Pampered chef, cutco, Kirby all seem to have a better appeal than the vast majority of others because they’re useful products; but yeah, you can find a lot of the same items at a more affordable price from retailers.
This playlist is getting me through the flu. Ive been sick as a dog unable to leave my bed all weekend but i can listen to these videos as i roll in and out of my feverish stupor. Love your content Hannah
Not gonna lie, when I was in middle-high school, before I knew what an mlm party was, or what it meant, I loved going to those parties. It meant I could hang out with people and none of the people who did it were ever all that serious about it and never did it for very long. And while I remember the products that were being sold, I don't remember what was said or talked about at any of those parties (at least nothing mlm-y). I just remember having a good time with my friends. Now I know that I and my friends were exceedingly lucky.
i remember loving the Pampered Chef and Scentsy parties that my mom and my mom’s friends hosted as a kid (tho i don’t think my mom ever sold? maybe she just hosted for a friend cuz she loves to host events). i still have three Scentsy stuffed animals that i love dearly lmao. but i definitely won’t be supporting going forward lol
and Tupperware too!
Yes ! They never talk about safety precautions concerning oils. We really should not be ingesting oils. I remember thinking clove diluted was okay. That was what I was told. It literally thins your blood. It actually showed up on my blood work. So yeah oils work, but they can cause harm when used wrong.
My mom was an MLM mom LOL she never sold any of it herself, she just loved having get togethers and of course BUYING all of it. after she passed we also had so much princess house, pampered chef, scensty, left bc she also had an issue with hoarding (which i don’t mind PC or scensty but the blantant lying??) it just seems like people like my mom get sucked in so easily bc you have someone in your face telling you you need to buy it. we also had a 15 year old kirby that was just miserable to used and my mom wondered why we never wanted to vacuum.. once my dad bought a shark my life was changed HAHA
as far as the Pampered Chef products. The Bed Bath and Beyond stores have a huge amount of copy cat products, and if you utilize the store coupons (that never expire, btw, even if it has a date on the coupon- you can use it regardless of its status) the cost can be sooo much better. It's crazy just how many things you can find in store, and the return policy is great at BBB.
The first one is super embarrassing! The conversation with strangers is just weird!!!!
Wow! You just blew my mind about Origami Owl! I had no clue it was an MLM. It was a huge craze across the Bible Belt about ten years ago, and I probably have thirty of those charm necklaces that were given to me by my evangelical family. 😂
Something like Paparazzi really hurts people like me who can make jewelry out of silver and copper and stainless steel only and never use any toxic substances whatsoever. My native husband taught me how to do it and I have been designing and fabricating jewelry for more than 30 years but sales are hurt drastically because of places like paparazzi
The kidnapping story had me wondering if they were trying to sell stolen merchandise.
I've seen the Pure Romance one at a sci-fi/anime convention. I was talking with a 16 year old about her costume (I didn't recognize the character we also spoke at my vending table). We walked past the table of Pure Romance. I was trying to steer us away from the table. The woman stopped us and attempted to talk to us. She had us a free bag. It has condoms and lube in. I realized what it was as soon as she pushed it in my hand. The girl I was with seemed really innocent. When we walked away, I told her what was in the bag. She became so embarrassed and stated that she was sixteen.
I actually had a teacher that tried to sell Avon to students!! She was absolute garbage to me (as a teacher and as a human in general) but she was also a coach so I can't even imagine how many small town girls she got in her pocket! I've know quiet a few people that have gotten involved in MLMs but its usually been siblings of a partner of mine to my husband's friends' wives, etc. When someone that hasn't been doing so well is suddenly doing 🌟Amazing🌟 and wants to "invite you along for the journey"....don't do it lol
I love watching your videos. You are so classy with your approach and commentary.
31:50 Hope’s Diamonds sounds like a girl band some middle schoolers would start after watching Jem and the Holograms…Which in that case would be adorable if I’m honest
yay i was watching some of your older videos today (cuz i just subscribed yesterday lol) and i was so excited to see you posted another video! thank you so much for your content
So happy you’re here! ❤️
Lol, I have Stress Away on my table next to me. It was a gift a couple years back, from when I was really busy and stressed in high school, along with a diffuser bracelet. I'm pretty sure the bracelet broke pretty quickly. I don't have a strong sense of smell, so I mostly open Stress Away when I feel insecure that my apartment may smell off or stale. It does not work the magic intended, but it does relieve that one specific stress. (I also use mint oil, bought for like $4 online, for the same purpose)
Hi Hannah, I just discovered your channel the other day and I have been binge watching your content. I just wanted to compliment you on your demeanor and commentary. You are so well spoken and for lack of a better word, professional. I love how you are so kind and calm about explaining things when talking about the MLM experience emails you receive. You are clearly a very classy woman and I am glad to find your content. You do your job very well, especially in your responses to people who write you the emails. Many of the people writing these stories have very difficult things to share, and your respect for them and for your viewers is refreshing. Thank you for your hard work. 🙏
That first one is horrible. The fact that they didn't even ask for an age before starting is insane.
I'm an illustrator and sell prints of my artwork and other accessories I've designed at comic cons and anime cons - it's always SO AWFUL when some events don't vet their vendors and let in MLM reps ....
Those Herbalife pins "Lose Weight Now - Ask Me How!" have been around FOREVER and they're so awful
Once, a friend invited me to a party. It turned out to be some lawyer MLM. I left as soon as I could do so politely.
After that she offered to sell me something on every other occasion that we hung out. We stopped hanging out. She would text me. Sometimes years would go by, and she'd be back trying to sign me up for dishrags, essential oils, all sorts of stuff.
I finally told her that I didn't trust her friendship and she should delete my number. She wouldn't quit, so I finally told her that since she was always trying to sell me, I wouldn't work with her, even if I wanted to. She said thanks, and quit texting.
A week later, she texted to apologize for not being a good friend, and wanted to reconcile. I said no. She said i should forgive and she felt sorry for me for being such a mean person. I told her I wasn't mad, but that we weren't friends. Finally blocked her.
I had no idea Kirby vacuums were an mlm. My dad got talked into buying one from a door to door salesman only a few years ago! It’s the worst. You have to take it apart to use the hose attachment. Extremely bulky and inconvenient.
my sister in law is a pampered chef consultant and has given us some things over the years and they've been great quality and to her credit she's never tried to recruit me
LOL I've encountered one of those parties before and it was definitely an MLM. The 'host' was my then partners friend which is how we ended up there. The catch? EVERYONE who went to the party /had/ to host a party for everyone + other friends after the party. The lady that was there selling things and running the part was super serious about hounding everyone after the fact (and insisted we sign up despite the fact that we were moving across the country two weeks later and TOLD her this)
LOL that first story just brought that memory up.
I won a "prize" at a candle party once, but could only accept it if I hosted a party. I did and it was fun, but yeah just rotten the tactics used.
can confirm that they still wear the herbalife buttons everywhere :/