I’ve seen the infomercials on Sunday morning television for Direct Buy. People claim to save thousands, or tens of thousands of dollars of home furnishings and building supplies. I smelt a scam so I decided to give them a call and check it out.
The lady on the phone really could answer none of my questions. In fact all she could do is get all my personal information and arrange for a special appointment to check it out. I gave her false information and cut the phone call a bit short. I could just imagine getting there and having a group of high pressure salesmen trying to strongarm me into buying an expensive membership.
Update 11/27/05
This seems to be a pretty hot topic, so I’ve decided to revisit Directbuy.
After I recieved several emails inquiring whether or not I found anything else out, I decided to do a little research. I found a site called www.ratethatcompany.com and found that many other people out there realized this was a scam. Unfortunately for some, it was too late.
One concerned woman wrote to me:
DirectBuy, Just don’t do it! My husband and I went to the presentation, and it seems like a good idea. Yes, you will save money, it seems, but the hassle, the hidden fees, the lack of customer service and lies make it not worth it. And don’t call corporate- seems there is no franchise standard. The owners of each club are the final say. We need to find out how to now get our money back.
If you have been burned by them, or know of any other resources that may help those who have been caught up in this outfit, please post comments here.
Update 1/4/07
Thank everyone who has left a testimonial in the comments. Please keep posting comments here!
This article posted 11 27 05
November 2nd, 2006 at 10:14 am
My Wife and I attended a presentation yesterday night and bought in. DirectBuy is for people building, renovationg or flipping houses…which is what we are doing. The biggest savings are on high ticket items. What you are buying is the right to buy directly from the manufacturer…Something you can’t do easily by yourself and get the same diwcount. We are in the market for a Hottub and was pricing them out localy at around $11,000 dollars for the model we want. Last night at Direct Buy I found the same model with their discount for $5000 That right there paid for the membership. Also the new leather living room set we have been looking for at a local “big box” store was $5500 and the exact same model at DirectBuy is $2200.
This is not for everyone but do not call it a scam. When you get an invite…go online and do your homework, deciude if you are going to be doing any of the above items, then after the presentation decide for yourself. The reason they can’t let you look through all the catalogs etc is that it is information others have paid for and they don’t want people going out and saying hey I can get this for 50% less a here….
Just my 2cents worth
November 2nd, 2006 at 6:37 pm
Former Francisse,
Actually if you knew what you were talking about you would know that at directbuy you get all of the warranties that manufacuters offer and if you want to get extended warranties you can purchase them directly from all of the manufatures that DB has. And no my previous comment is not a ploy to get members, I am a member myself who is very happy with the investment that I have made and want to spread the good word.
Roberts
November 4th, 2006 at 12:40 am
Yes, it is true that there are additional costs when orderiing through Directbuy, which I was told about, and sometimes I really have to consider that before purchasing. But overall I have been satisfied with DirectBuy. I have saved so far $3000.plus on my kitchen cabinets, $900. on an exquisite hanging pot rack, $200. on hanging penants for my island, $1500. on leather livingroom set, and will save additional $2000. on various home furnishings, these savings are within 2 yrs. I like DirectBuy because I use the site as a resource for pricing products when I see something I like and to date the prices have always been significantly lower. The hard thing about it is, I just got back from wondering around town looking for a great deal on night tables because like most, I wanted to buy NOW, and all I could think about was the variety of furniture styles I can view on my computer ( quite often I see the peices in local stores), the quality of garbage that is in the stores, for the same price I could buy better longer lasting products. I am now back at my computer because I like looking instead of driving around. I have an ongoing list of favorites and I like the choices I have. I believe buying furniture or home improvements is an investment and one that you shouldn’t have to buy again.
November 4th, 2006 at 10:07 am
20.
You are absoulutly right about everything. The DirectBuy is a scam. When we went to the open house I did not even have to sit through the whole thing to see what a scam it is. And who even says that the prices they are selling these items for is the actual suggested retail price? Until I see some of those prices on a site that DirectBuy has not ever seen before then I won’t be able to believe what they say. And those people that they have on the videos to say that they saved lots of money using DirectBuy guess what they are just paid actors. The first time that they said you had to pay right now and could not have time to think about it was your first clue of a scam. But hey there are always those people who believe everything they are told. In fact the day we went to the open house three other couples were signed on. Along with us but we had enough sense to read the part that says you have one day to cancle your membership as long as you hand deliver the messege. Which is exactly what we did. And of course once we did that their whole attidude chaged tward us. Imange that huh? First they say if its not for you then its not for you but if you question them at all then guess what they shove you out the door and never give you a second look. If your looking at joining DirectBuy then make sure you do your homework and dont get sucked into this major scam.
November 5th, 2006 at 12:27 pm
I have spoken to DirectBuy members that joined prior to, which was in 2004, and they indicated that yearly fees were expensive, and thus prohibitive unless you are planning on buying fairly big item(s) each year. However, my initial membership cost was a little less that $4,000. I expected that and high pressure sales tactics when I visited the open house. In other words, you either become a member right then, or forget it. I don’t like those tactics but was prepared for them, so they didn’t bother me too much. My yearly fee is $99, which is pennies compared to what I can save. My first year I saved around $10,000. Yes that’s correct. I know this because I did my research and found the retail prices of all the items I purchased then compared with what I could buy them at from DirectBuy. The next year, last year, I began a major remodel project on one of my houses. I saved around $25,000 alone in bath and kitchen cabinetry, not to mention the bath fixtures, wood flooring, and much more. So DirectBuy being a scam is a bunch of BS! You don’t know what you’re talking about. Maybe a few years ago and prior to that it was less cost savings. Now though, it is a great deal, at least for myself. The only major complaint I have is the long lead time for delivery. My Italian leather couches took 4 months to arrive from Italy. That kind of time just sucks, but I save about $5,000 just on those two couches as opposed to buying them in a furniture store that sells that brand. So all in all I’m very pleased with DirectBuy. For those of you who haven’t gone any further than the open house, I can see why you think “it is too good to be true” but make no mistake, there is large markup in many retail items, even when the retailers put them on sale.
November 5th, 2006 at 4:35 pm
Everyone wants to be like Mike.
Here’s One Man’s Story that wasn’t like Mike’s:
http://vancouver.ctv.ca/printarticle.jsp?id=/olsen/stories/2005/11/olsen-20051122.htm
Direct Buy: One Man’s Story
Tuesday, November 22, 2005
DirectBuy is not cheap to join, but for those planning some big expenditure like major renovations or building a home, it could save you money. But as one man found out, in his case, the promises just didn’t match the reality.
“We were going to save somewhere in the neighbourhood of $12,000 we thought. So $12,000 dollars for a $4300 investment seemed reasonable,” says Paul Lepage.
He was remodeling his home and building a new kitchen. He had his eye on new kitchen cabinets that cost $20,000.
“It was supposed to be 37% of retail that is what their catalogue says, so in our case it would have been $7400 instead of $20,000.
Like a lot of people Paul was skeptical about the promised savings
He recalls, “They are telling me, ‘you are going to save $12,000 on the cabinets’ and I say to them ‘that’s just too good to be true, that’s just not possible’ and they said ‘that’s why people join DirectBuy - it’s too good to be true.”
So Paul joined DirectBuy. The supplier did give him a discount but the quote was $17,000, not $7000, and his expected $12,000 in savings had shrunk considerably.
“If you are only building kitchen cabinets and you expected $12,000 and you are only going to get back $2000 or $3000 then you can’t substantiate the $4000 membership anymore,” says Paul.
He went back to DirectBuy for answers, recording the conversation they told him he did it wrong he was not supposed to approach the cabinet company directly even though he’d been given a contact name by DirectBuy.
“When you go you are not going to get that discount that’s in the book. When you go there directly you get less of a discount on the cabinets,” states the recording of a DirectBuy employee.
But moments later the instructions changed again and he was told he was supposed to go directly to the cabinetmaker.
“If you know what you want to order, order directly from that corporate vendor,” the employee says.
The DirectBuy rep admits something had gone wrong.
“It’s supposed to work out to .37 after installation and it clearly isn’t,” the tape goes on to say.
We checked the Better Business Bureau complaint record of the four BC Direct Buy outlets for the past thirty-six months.
· Vancouver has eight complaints, four of them were resolved
· Coquiltam has no complaints and it’s the only member of the Better Business Bureau
· Victoria has two complaints both were resolved
· Kelowna has no complaints with the BBB
But the BBB statistics do not include complaints made by consumers that were not pursued.
The Provincial Government has also received complaints.
“There is a constant flow of those kinds of complaints and that in itself is a reason why we should be looking at this to see if there is more legislative remedies that need to be put in place,” says John Les, BC’s Solicitor General.
Paul put his $4300 membership on his Visa so he’s asked Visa to refund his money after DirectBuy in Vancouver refused.
“Visa has returned our money to us but only on a temporary basis until they find out if DirectBuy is going to contest the reversal of the charge,” says Paul.
In the end Paul is shopping for his renovated kitchen the old fashioned way by shopping around.
“Taking our time shopping around we’ve been able to save a lot of money and it won’t be 67% but it’ll probably be in the neighbourhood of 40%,” he says.
DirectBuy would not speak to us on camera. We were told it’s against corporate policy. It also did not respond to specific emailed questions. Each outlet is an individual franchise that sets it’s own membership fees. DirectBuy only makes money off selling those memberships.
Read the sales contract, check out many complaints, lawsuits and media investigative reports at:
http://edumacation.com/DirectBuy
November 7th, 2006 at 6:15 pm
I knew something was up when they wouldn’t allow me to come in WITHOUT my wife. We have 2 small kids and dragging them to this event would have been a nightmare. The salesperson on the phone was insistant that my wife attend. I finally got pissed off and told her that either I could come by myself, or no one at all! They choose the later! Ha!
The second time I phoned, the salesperson hung up on me when I said that my wife was not going to attend the presentation with me.
Nice company - I thought all the deadbeats like this were gone with the 80’s.
November 7th, 2006 at 6:15 pm
I knew something was up when they wouldn’t allow me to come in WITHOUT my wife. We have 2 small kids and dragging them to this event would have been a nightmare. The salesperson on the phone was insistant that my wife attend. I finally got pissed off and told her that either I could come by myself, or no one at all! They choose the later! Ha!
The second time I phoned, the salesperson hung up on me when I said that my wife was not going to attend the presentation with me.
Nice company - I thought all the deadbeats like this were gone with the 80’s.
November 10th, 2006 at 4:23 pm
Ha Ha Ha
November 15th, 2006 at 3:40 pm
This has all the earmarks of a legal SCAM like the vacation condos, camping companies and such!
Warning—- Privacy Issues
When you call an 800# , THEY are paying for the call, and that gives them some special ‘rights’, such as the ablility to get even your UNLISTED or blocked number, via ANI. (Automatic Number Identification.) The only ones that they can’t see are ones that are specifically blocked like law-enforcement hidden numbers and such.
Watch out from where you call them from as they can get your number.
We called them from my wifes’ cell phone, and when they wanted a phone number, we gave them a land line number for returning the call. The next day, my wifes’ cell phone got called FOUR times from the south Seattle store! I asked them how they got our cell number and they wouldn’t say! I’ve since told them that if they call again, it would be treated as phone harrassment, and that the cell phone security department would be notified.
November 17th, 2006 at 2:08 am
November 17th, 2006 at 2:20 am
I would have loved to place a complaint directly with Direct Buy. But thier web site is set up to sell only. what kind of a company does not want feed back on thier locations? ” A company who really does not care about it’s custpomers.”
I also understand that they do not help you with any problems with your order. All they care about is your membership fees. If you have a problem with an order you have to deal directly with a manufacure who may or may not handle your claim.
Also they say they do not take a precentage of the sale. Well thats a lie they take an 8% handleing fee to cover thier over head.
All I can really say is buyer beware!!!!!! No body’s going to Give you anything you’ll end up paying for it in the end.
November 22nd, 2006 at 1:44 am
well its hard to predict ..like trying to predict what a car will cost, but the current members pay 198 per year…not to bad if you consider the alternative huh? I think its worth it…just dont go in thinking it fixes all your problems…it isn’t utopia!!!
November 23rd, 2006 at 12:50 am
Why don’t you tell us about your real experience now that you are a member? Have you been pleased with the delivery and the quality and the pricing you are now experiencing being a member? Thanks. ~M
October 12th, 2007 at 6:06 am
Affiliate Directory and Affiliate Marketing…
Sorry, it just sounds like a crazy idea for me :)…
November 14th, 2007 at 4:24 pm
Well we were “invited” to go check them out and thought it would be a good deal but asked if we could think about it and would get back to them and was told NO if you leave here today without buying you can NEVER come back to the place. Very hard selling almost like a gun to your head and you have to make a life or death choice. We signed the papers and put about 400.00 or 500.00 down and could make small monthly payments, after going over everything thought that we should not do this so we called to cancel and was told basiclly to bad you have signed all the papers and you now owe us the money. They are now sending me to a collection company and reporting to my credit report they say.
November 25th, 2007 at 5:01 pm
You can do the same thing by hiring a decorator (their fee is the membership fee), who then buys at wholesale, but you get great design, QA oversight, and no worries at the same time.
I got their call, but smelled a rat, checked the Internet, and said, “no.” Every now and then, I get Fear and Greed Syndrome from watching their slick ads. Then I have to get a dose of antidote from a forum like this.
Thanks.
November 30th, 2007 at 3:24 pm
I had one colleague at work that fell for the scam. What may people don’t understand is that price comparisons with retail furniture stores. kitchen and bath remodeling stores, and even with places like Home Depot and Lowe’s, are completely bogus because you don’t have to pay anywhere near those prices for carpet, flooring, furniture, appliances, cabinets, counters, etc. In the San Francisco Bay Area, there are scores of businesses selling these types of products for less than DirectBuy, with no membership fee.
I just remodeled a rental unit with solid wood kitchen cabinets, all new floors, three solid wood vanities, new floors, new granite countertops, etc., for much less than what DirectBuy would have cost.
I saw one of their infomercials where the alleged customer goes on and on about granite counters, when in fact granite is now the cheapest material for countertops due to the enormous quantities being brought in from China. It’s less labor to install than most other counters as well. There are probably 100 places in the Bay Area selling granite for less than 1/2 of what Home Depot charges, which is also less than DirectBuy.
I hope no one falls for the DirectBuy scam, but apparently some have.
DirectBuy operates on the premise of “It’s morally wrong to allow a sucker to keep his money.”
December 8th, 2007 at 11:36 pm
Today, my wife and I went to the Rocklin, CA, DirectBuy presentation. I do not need to repeat all the comments given above because they are all true. The presentation gave bogus prices that the retailers were charging and claimed DB would save significantly. They used the percent of annual income technique to get people to think in terms of the amount they would save per year. When the TV presentation they showed mentioned the need to decide today whether or not to become a member, I knew this was a scam. At the final interview with the salesman, he said we would have to pay the membership price of $5900 today or else we would not ever have a chance again. I told him I did not believe this because such a way of doing business was not logical. I said any business that was legimate would be happy to accept a $5900 membership payment anytime I wanted to make it, so something was clearly fishy. I told him the requirement of paying today or never was a con game to get people to pay now. It is a standard sales technique used to get peoples money. Furthermore, I told him, I am not willing to pay now for some envisioned future benefit that may never occur, especially that I now did not trust DB. He told me they will keep my name in their database and if I tried to sign up again anywhere in the USA, they would find me. Or, if they did not catch me in the signup and they found out later, they would cancel my memebership and not return my money. I told the salesman the he was not making any points with me with his answers and that I refused to do business with any company that used such tactics. I and my wife walked out the their store instantly. Once home, I found this site on the internet and decided to add my two cents to the other comments. In my opinion, DirectBuy is a big scam. Tell all your friends.
December 10th, 2007 at 9:16 pm
Got the call. Did some googling. Found this site
http://edumacation.com/DirectBuy
Decided not to join. Just too much to risk for no guarantees.
December 11th, 2007 at 11:00 pm
Ask yourself this,
If you buy something from a store and ( god forbid ) the item wasnt up to par..what is it worth to be able to take it back to where you purchased it, or better still get it serviced from the store?…does direct buy do this?…so you say it is covered under the manufactures warranty…great…what it worth to you the customer to have the additional service of the store you purchased it at take care of the warranty on their end?..to go through all the BS that the manufacturer requires in order to get the product repaired, or replaced?…isn’t service worth something?
sure, that dishwasher is costing you more…but your not just buying the dishwasher..your buying service, an actual sales person to help you, and you also have a point of sale…some place to help you with problems you may have with it
December 13th, 2007 at 5:21 am
So I’m in the middle of remodeling the Richmond house.
The preliminary drawings are done, the bathrooms are ripped out.
Ideally, I will purchase wheatgrass based cabinets in the Shaker style. Wheatgrass are a most excellent green, tough woodlike fiber, low toxic glue vapor emmissons ( if you are careful with who you makes them).
Wheatgrass generally are lighter colors and since it’s a small kitchen, light tones are a good call to make the space seem larger.
The current step in this process is to check out all the places to pick up the bathroom and kitchen flooring, cabinets, counter tops, and fixtures ( faucets). You know the expensive stuff.
So all the places include: Direct Buy, This and That ( San Pablo), Home Despot, Sears, Lowe’s, Building Re/Sources, The Import Tile place in Berkeley, CostCo, IKEA, and too many damn others.
Tight budget you know.
Even my pal Max of Western Dovetail http://www.dovetaildrawers.com/ says I should go big box for the cabinets. As does two custom cabinet makers I know.
The cabinets are the most expensive purchase and kind of the most intimidating.
Short end of it: Direct Buy is a scam and does not have wheatgrass cabinets.
Nor do they have the advertised 40 percent savings.
Read this for the facts:
http://www.infomercialscams.com/scams/direct_buy_scams
The best savings I’ve read of at DB is about $200 on a purchase, after popping out $6500 for the 2 year membership fee.
Of course, I looked Direct Buy up after ( and while) going to the “free ” high pressure, one time only, presentation.
Actually I was pretty sure it was fishy beforehand.
From the lack of specific answers in the phone calls I made and received before attending.
But I had to check it out in person.
The promises were so large, the TV Ads so good ( not really), and I felt the entertainment value would make it worthwhile.
I think going as a group as cacophony event could be most excellent.
So heres the deal, a long tale to save you the trouble.
You go in, you get offered coffee or water. Soda’s are .35 cents. Thats like 1/10th of a euro for my Berliner fans.
You are not allowed to look at the manufacturer catalogs.
They are secret and priceless, and special for only the most holy of holies ” the Members”.
Looking at the catalogs is what I had planned on doing in order to comparison shop and to evaluate the value of the membership.
I had zip idea in advance that membership was so insanely expensive.
This is a twisted scam merchants version of COSTCO.
Instead you get hooked up with a sales agent, who will drill you for personal information and demurly put any questions off until you have a chance to see the presentation.
I think this is the “getting to know and trust the sales person time”. Their plan is afterwards you will hand over serious dough post presentation cause you know them and they know you.
My minimal answers to the sales agent such as:
“So what did you have for dinner” me: “Rice”.
“Did you drive far? me:” No”
This might have blown the get to know plan by the agent, or at least tip her off I would be a hard sell.
Sadly her husband had left her after 17 years and she had two kids ages 13 and 18. She was raising them solo and had never traveled farther then Reno. Poverty sucks. As does being a solo mom. As does deciding one is way too young to have kids. I’m pretty sure she was in her mid 30’s.
She mentioned the kids she was raising 4 times. But I was not to be swayed by emotion or thoughts of charity. Or calculations of sales commissions.
My questions were muy practical such as:
” Can we look at some catalogs?” agent: “No, wait til after the presentation” or ” The presentation will answer all your questions”.
Just like the Wizard of OZ, I thought.
Am I Dorothy or the Tin Man? Where is that damn little dog?
Finally, 10 wasted minutes later, we move to the two-tone Panasonic TV room, and the presentation starts.
I’m put into the back of the room. Maybe I’m a suspect. I can barely avoid cracking comments during the video, but they have planted a mole agent with the group ( in front) so I don’t want to get kicked out.
Kind of like watching a movie in middle school with the teacher in the front of the class watching the kids.
Instead, I send snarky text messages to an outside pal.
such as
“This seems to be a scam of sorts but with over a 100 locations how could it be wrong?”
“After the 45 minute presentation do I get a free week in Hawaaii?”
” but wait a former CNN Anchor endorses direct buy”
Priceless quotes in the video include:
“Finally we can be high end purchasers!”
“Not an open opportunity”
“Prospective members can not be invited back”
“How much you spend is directly up to you”
After hearing the last quote I barely, barely restrained a “No shit?”
Forty minutes later ( its 45 minutes long or so) after a former CNN anchor ( the male authority figure of trust); a friendly and wanting to be funny white male “so membership is $40,000, just kidding”; a non threatening blond slim woman ( your girl pal not too hot to threaten the wifes in the audience) , and a few current suckers ( uh members) all extoll the value of Direct Buy and how much they saved, it is revealed how much the membership fee is.
In Palo Alto, it is $6500.
Um. No.
Others are shaking their heads.
I should walk out now. Make a show of it.
But I really want to see the rest of the demo so I can learn.
The pitch is “In just one remodel job with the kitchen cabinets you will save 40 percent so you can make that back right away, everyone is redoing their kitchens like your neighbor down the street”.
Can you say peer pressure to be like the Johnsons?
See the savings already? So the joke about 40 K makes $6500 reasonable , right?
Elsewhere it could be as low as $4000 for two years ( this is not revealed, but that darn internet on their computer told me afterwards).
Then just $198 a year for the next 8.
I think big remodel purchases happen in 10 year cycles. Thats a guess BTW.
Next we are moved on to a personal demo of a catalog of LazyBoy furniture ( or something similar) and carpets.
That did not thrill me either.
I wanted the goods, the real sheets, the catalog in front of my face, the hard numbers.
Once again I am denied. No books or catalogs for me.
I love dealer parts books and catalogs. They are not complicated or difficult for me.
Only the holy Members get to see them.
The personal demo done, once again we are partnered again with our early entry sales agent buddy.
I’m sorry for the single mom, but I just can’t help her. It was her bad luck to get me this eve. And I think bad luck for all the other agents that night. Maybe one couple bought in. Still that is $6500.
At at 200,00 claimed members, that is $1,500,000,000 or 1.5 billion dollars they have racked in.
So she asks me what else I need to know before deciding tonight.
I’m reminded tonight is the only night I can decide.
I mention Panasonic indoor fans, the whisper quiet model for the bathroom. Something that I know from my research from the night before.
But, I came in without specific items to compare. All the info I need is on my laptop at home.
I had asked about or tried to on the phone pre-arrival on how to prep. But was denies and told all questiosn will be answered at the demo.
When I asked about comparing attic fans from Panasonic ( the best known brand offered) they asked for the part numbers. I said, uhh, OK I could find it in the manufacturing catalog in 2 minutes.
They would not allow me to look it up myself. It was all proprietary and limited to members.
Hmm, they didn’t trust me yet. I was very bummed.
I had told my sales agent that I ate rice tonight and she told me she had two kids.
I sadly felt the ties of trust unwinding.
I gave them a rough number and excellent detailed description. I said the model ends in 20 and there is 30, and 40 model and quite a bit more. It should be easy to look up. So I was wrong about the 30 model.
http://www2.panasonic.com/consumer-electronics/shop/Building-Products/Ventilation-Systems/Inline-Fans/model.FV-20NLF1_11002_7000000000000005702
or
http://www2.panasonic.com/consumer-electronics/shop/Building-Products/Ventilation-Systems/Ceiling-Insert-Fans.list.75112_11002_7000000000000005702
Ok, the Direct Buy Agent ( boss of my sales partner) asked me to go look it up on the net on this computer in the lobby.
Wow, the service is underwhelming me, and the moist happy connection with my agent is rapidly fading away.
I did the Panasonic look up solo ( I can type google), got the numbers ( with prices), passed the slip to agent ( she did not have paper or pen) then googled Direct Buy for the first time.
She took off to get me the numbers from the Members only book.
I was really looking forward to her numbers.
Ooopsie, google lists the answer to my query: “Reviews Direct Buy”
http://www.google.com/search?q=reviews+direct+buy&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a
Right there on their computer, my worries are confirmed.
The Big G is never wrong. Well that isn’t true either.
Ok, I was certain at that point getting with the program at Direct Buy was a bad idea.
Besides I did not have $6500 to blow on saving more money.
Yet, I just loved using their computer and leaving the info up on screen in the lobby for others to read.
Many a listing on the web and description of how people got suckered into the “one time only” chance to sign up. Then get late deliveries, wrong deliveries, pay a 8 percent handling charge ( never mentioned in the video), hassles on deliveries, huge hassles on returns, and more.
The big catch is that post presentation they tell you many times ( as well during the video) that this is the only chance to sign up.
A once in a lifetime ( or 7 years ).
Which is a really bad sign. If you can’t sleep on a decision of this much money, you should not be doing it in my book.
Unless you have all of the research done up front. And are really really certain with comparisons etc. But then you have already slept on the decision cause you spent so much time doing research.
Right?
Its a scam.
Anyways, no one seem to notice what I’ve left on screen.
And the Google campus is literally less then a freeway exit away. Google will kill these guys. I hope.
So I am steered over to another area to chat with my special sales agent and her boss agent for more info.
On the way I am offered water. I say “thank you that would be nice”.
The funniest thing is in the just watched video, Direct Buy representatives slammed a big name warehouse place without naming it ( can you say Costco?) with a direct price comparison on some big flat screen by some no name manufacturer.
Direct Buy was of course much cheaper.
What water did they offer me? Kirkland bottled water.
Kirkland is Costco’s inhouse brand. I loved that touch.
I say drink the Kirkland water, it is much better for you.
There was more with me seeing brochures for cabinets (without prices), a chat with the franchisee owner.
Plus me asking several times for the Panasonic prices. Not getting the prices. Just claims they will get them in just a minute.
The franchisee sales lead guy (i’ve been with the company 11 years) kept asking me if I believed in the “Savings” ( much like do I believe in the “Word” just like some church I was brought up in and since left).
I was getting kinda scientific and saying but I need the “numbers” and the “facts”.
I kept replying I needed the facts to make a decision. And I simply did not have them. It was amicable and he was really smooth.
So even after looking up the prices and manufacturer part # and giving it to them, they never gave me their price on the Panasonic fan.
And I know I asked for their prices at least 5 times.
And I left.
And left the kirkland water bottle (half drank) on the receptionist table.
Maybe others will see my subliminal warning and not confuse a good, positive brand of membership store with a bad one.
A couple final thoughts.
Where is Reverend Billy and the Church of Stop Shopping when the people need him?
Maybe we could go down and have a session out front.
I think there should be a consumer protection law ( I know Texas has one but likely not spelled out as well) , that the buyer is told on signing the contract by the sales person that they have three days to cancel the contract. The buyer has to verbally repeat that fact to the sales person. As well as sign a well marked separate area and line in the contract that they know they have three days to break the contract.
But a sucker is born every minute.
But I can dream.
January 7th, 2008 at 7:45 pm
The membership has now gone from over 5k to well over 6 thousand dollars….plus 200 a year renewal after 3yrs. 7800 total for ten years. Pretty damn high cost to save money.
January 9th, 2008 at 6:08 am
I visited their website after seeing an ad in Martha Stewart Living, and their ads on tv. But I am way more savvy than an average consumer, and I did my homework. This site really gave me insite to a company with very similar tactics as Trendwest timeshare. We were wrangled in on that one, and I still regret it. Never again will I join a “‘private club” that requires on the spot decision making and a high dollar membership from a too-good-looking slick salesman. Sleeping on it has it’s merits over regrets any day. But damn! I submitted my contact info on the DB website, and now they are gonna be hounding me like telemarketers.
January 20th, 2008 at 3:14 pm
I just left the presentation. BORING, basic, and a total waste of time. Actually, I was “sold” before I walked in the door and came ready to PAY IN FULL. (Doing a remodel and need the savings). But their constant “used-car-salesmen” technique unsold me by the first 5 mins. I experienced my “future customer service experience” from the minute I walked in the door. It started when they had me write my name on a cheap little label so they can “tell the guests from the members”. For $6000, at least have our labels pre-printed and waiting for us. Just inside the door, my “guide” said it’s a requirement that he ask if I’m married or single. He said it was so they could verify if I qualified…HELLO??? I’d already answered that on the survey and before my appt. He then led me to a little patio and told me the refreshments had been all eaten up by the previous group, but we could have water or coffee “for free”. Honey, if I’m going to shell out $6000, go buy me a box of cookies and any drink I want! It was like attending a Mormon or Scientology cult mtg. You’re immediately assigned a guide who sits with you and doesn’t allow you to walk around, browse or talk to anyone unless he’s present. He even waited OUTSIDE the bathroom door for me when I took a break!!!
He didn’t have any answers to my questions b/c “he’s only worked there for 1 month”, but his name badge said “Director”! My questions weren’t hard. I’m sure I wasn’t the first one to ask how to return something if the item isn’t like the VERY samll picture in their catalogs…They add 8% chg to every product BEFORE taxes and delivery! You can’t return anything w/o 25% fee (and only IF that company will “accept” your return), the catalogs are ANCIENT and the pictures small, colors washed out, etc, their online shopping isn’t “ready yet”, but 25% of the products WILL have their prices online someday!…you have to pay for delivery and hire someone to set-up your items which I was assured can by done “relatively cheaply”. So: add 40% to every “savings” just to get your items home and assembled. And he kept saying that since “you’re single, I’m sure you have friends that help you out alot”…over and over I was referred to as “single” or “alone”, even in the mtg in front of he other 2 couples…really rude! Not a way to win a customer. Items take 4-12 wks to order. When I asked for specific catalogs and items to compare, the savings weren’t as good as Costco, Lowe’s, etc. The guide had someone else’s survey and kept calling me their name, even tho I was wearing my hand-written badge so he could use my name every other word…SO tacky. When I said I would be back tomorrow since the mtg had gone one for over 3 hrs and I had to be somewhere else, he got ugly, said this is the ONLY time you can become a member or for the next SEVEN yrs you can’t be “invited” back…I told him my money is as green today as tomorrow and any company that’s legit would want my dues no matter when. I also said any reasonable company would WANT their members to make an informed decision so they could bring in their family and friends as members. Alas, he said we were done and he escorted me TO MY CAR DOOR. SCARY and SLEAZY! Glad I didn’t do business with them…
Constructive thought: Lose the “guides”, re-stock your refreshments, pre-print our labels AND our contracts, send us a DVD to view BEFORE our appt: I still would have bought the membership!, lose the white-board, stop having the presenter make the whole group nod yes/no to obvious questions so he “can continue”, shorten the presentation to 15 mins and stop repeating the same points over and over: WE GET IT! We’re intelligent consumers. Treat us with respect. Send us the contracts and pricing BEFORE the presentation: I was ready to buy and that wouldn’t have changed anything but would have saved time. When you say the mtg will be 90 mins, keep it to 90 mins! I had to leave after 3 hrs for a prior commitment, and my guide was JUST getting out the pricing options! I wanted your product. Sadly, your own company TALKED ME OUT OF IT every step of the way!
February 5th, 2008 at 8:24 pm
We bought a membership. Bought cuboards, but had to be a mathematical wizard to figure out exactly what to buy, how much molding, how many panels, how much room for fridge, freezer, stove, dishwasher. Little help from Direct buy staff. Then they said they called us to let us know our order was in. We have call display, answering machine and all. They didn’t call. Our cupboards are now still in Calgary, we live two hours away and we’ll likely get stuck with a daily storage charge. We haven’t seen the cupboards yet, but they looked good. We might have saved the membership fee, but don’t think all the work we had to do measuring and picking up, charges on weight, charges on shipping, charges on charges.
Bad service pretty much all the way. Don’t advise anyone to go there. We did much better buying sales items on the rest of the reno’s,
We bought 1400 ft of Bruce Brand Oak flooring for less than Direct Buy could supply it for, and that was before shipping, charges and more charges. Buyers of memberships, BEWARE!!!! If I could turn the clock back I sure would.
February 7th, 2008 at 7:08 pm
It should be called DIRECTBYE. Everyone needs to check out their so-called “lawyer” and his C&D letter (typed on a MS Word template - not even a company purchased letterhead. How cheap can you get.) threatening legal action.
http://www.citizen.org/documents/directbuycd.pdf
and the defendants response
http://www.citizen.org/documents/directbuyresponse.pdf
February 10th, 2008 at 2:31 am
Thank you very much for you comments.I requested a presentation through the website after seeing tv info, but we ‘ll definitely won’t be going to any presentations. It’s really scary. I am sorry for people who got in trouble with this scam.
February 15th, 2008 at 9:34 pm
DirectBuy members get option to back out
The Columbus Dispatch, Columbus, Ohio
February 14, 2008
http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/business/stories/2008/02/14/DIRECT_BUY.ART_ART_02-14-08_C8_2V9BNP0.html?sid=101
DirectBuy members get option to back out
Thursday, February 14, 2008 3:24 AM
By Tracy Turner
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
Ohio consumers have gained the right to cancel a contract with DirectBuy, a national membership club with a showroom in central Ohio, if they change their mind within three days.
The agreement was struck between the Ohio attorney general’s office and DirectBuy even though Ohio law doesn’t mandate such a provision, said Melissa Wright, an assistant attorney general.
DirectBuy is a company that sells consumers a membership that allows them to buy home products, electronics and furnishings directly from manufacturers and suppliers. Memberships range from $3,000 to $4,500 for a one- to three-year period, Wright said.
The company agreed to offer Ohio customers the right to cancel their memberships after 90 of them filed complaints with the attorney general, Wright said. Most complaints targeted sales practices that left consumers feeling misled because certain terms and conditions of membership were not disclosed, she said.
“Consumers were told they had to make a decision on the spot after a sales presentation and weren’t allowed to look over the product catalogs before joining,” she said. “They were made to believe they’d get these great discounts, but later realize the savings aren’t as great.”
Wright said consumers also weren’t told that problems with the products or the product delivery would be handled through the individual manufacturers.
She said that the club is “not a scam (because) they do offer a service; our concern was the high-pressure sales tactics” the company used to get customers.
The agreement will “allow consumers more time to make more of a wise decision, see the product catalogs ahead of time and understand that the company doesn’t handle customer service,” Wright said.
“The voluntarily agreement was a huge step that will cut down on complaints,” she said. “We worked with them instead of filing a lawsuit.”
DirectBuy, based in Merrillville, Ind., has more than 90 locations nationwide, with five franchise locations in Ohio, Wright said. That includes a showroom at 2188 Citygate Dr. that the company reopened in October.
A message left with co-owner Mark Lankford was not returned.
Consumers experience this most often with companies that have similar upfront sales practices, said Kip Morse, president of the central Ohio Better Business Bureau.
“While it’s unfortunate that the (company) needed the attorney general’s office to intercede in order to come to this agreement, we think it’s a good move that’s fair to the company and for consumers,” Morse said.
The agreement also calls for DirectBuy to pay the state $20,000 for materials to be used to educate consumers on financial literacy and protecting their rights, Wright said.
Tracy Turner
tturner@dispatch.com”>tturner@dispatch.com
Cancellation periods are measured in business days, and generally they do not begin until the consumer receives written notification of the right to cancel. Business days are Mondays through Saturdays. Sundays and legal holidays are not included.
To cancel a contract, send the seller a written notice of cancellation. You can cancel by mail or by personal delivery. If you cancel by mail, send the letter via certified mail and request a receipt as proof of cancellation. Cancellation is effective upon the date of postmarking. If you personally deliver the cancellation, take it to the appropriate address of the seller and bring a witness. It is not acceptable to send the cancellation notice by fax or by e-mail.
Source: Ohio attorney general’s office
February 16th, 2008 at 10:20 pm
Seems like Directbuy is a bunch of douchebags.
February 24th, 2008 at 11:09 pm
First off, everyone I have read here and anywhere else on the internet is absolutely ignorant. Not because you think DirectBuy is a scam, which it is to some extent, but because you do not know exactly why it is. DirectBuy can save you money, if and ONLY if you purchase a massive amounts of product. The whole concept of DirectBuy is to purchase without retail markup. That’s a great myth, but guess what — there is a 6% handling fee on anything you purchase. That’s a markup my friends, no matter what title you give it. Why would the final price be 6% of the cost of the item… to handle it? Let’s put this into perspective. It would cost $6 to handle a $100 order or flooring tile as where it would cost $60 to handle a $1000 diamond ring. Think about that for a second! $100 worth of flooring tile (very heavy) is quite a bit harder to handle than a small ring, yet it the markup of the ‘handling fee’ of the ring is quite a bit more! DirectBuy works if you know how to work it, but the idea that it has NO retail markup is absolutely a lie. Take it from me, someone who has worked at DirectBuy in the Dallas Texas market for many years. Simple math, let’s say membership costs $4,900 and the average savings is 35%. That would mean you must spend $14,000 to break even with retail to make the membership dues even worth it. Tack on the 6% handling fee’s, you must now pay $14,840 to break even. If you plan on paying anything less than that for things for in and around your home, membership costs are a waste of time and money on the customers/members behalf. So, DirectBuy works for those remodeling a home, where it would cost 30 grand, but for the average Joe it’s completely NOT worth it (regardless of what the damn salesman says). People, do your math before hand, educate your self, and stop voting for Bush-like presidents!
February 26th, 2008 at 6:51 pm
To be perfectly honest, any place that requires a signature and financial commitment before you’ve had a chance to fairly compare prices in the market they speak with such disdain about. From their own website,
“We ask for your decision after attending an Open House. This policy is in place out of respect for our members, manufacturers and the retail industry. It prevents consumers from asking traditional retailers to match DirectBuy prices.”
There is no respect here… and God forbid there be competition from legitimate businesses who might “match” these prices.
Imagine being forced to bring your wife or husband because of some arcane “policy” … I guess the hope there is one of the two will be a weak customer and talk the other one into it.
I can’t imagine spending the next 10 years of my life trying desperately to recoup over $6000 “investment” trying to buy enough stuff at the right deal so I could feel good about myself again.
The scam artists who comment on here allegedly as “happy customers” always seem to quote their Better Business Bureau rating… by the letter of the law I guess they are obeying the rules once they get your signature onto a document, but clearly this company is anti-competitive, anti-free market, and by any definition violates the spirit of “buy direct and save” that most people expect.
February 26th, 2008 at 9:32 pm
So what guarantees of savings does Directbuy offer?
What happens when the average savings isn?t even 35% (less the 6% or 8% up-front handling fee)? It seems that there are a number of complaints documenting that a number of instances where Directbuy?s prices are not any cheaper (or just marginally cheaper) than another source?
According to Consumers Reports there seems to be a lack of transparency, among other problems.
See the article “With DirectBuy, it will cost you a lot to save:
http://blogs.consumerreports.org/home/2007/09/with-directbu-1.html
February 26th, 2008 at 9:33 pm
So what guarantees of savings does Directbuy offer?
What happens when the average savings isn?t even 35% (less the 6% or 8% up-front handling fee)? It seems that there are a number of complaints documenting that a number of instances where Directbuy?s prices are not any cheaper (or just marginally cheaper) than another source?
According to Consumers Reports there seems to be a lack of transparency, among other problems.
See the article “With DirectBuy, it will cost you a lot to save:
http://blogs.consumerreports.org/home/2007/09/with-directbu-1.html
February 26th, 2008 at 9:34 pm
So what guarantees of savings does Directbuy offer?
What happens when the average savings isn?t even 35% (less the 6% or 8% up-front handling fee)? It seems that there are a number of complaints documenting that a number of instances where Directbuy?s prices are not any cheaper (or just marginally cheaper) than another source?
According to Consumers Reports there seems to be a lack of transparency, among other problems.
See the article “With DirectBuy, it will cost you a lot to save:
http://blogs.consumerreports.org/home/2007/09/with-directbu-1.html
March 9th, 2008 at 8:19 am
I joined Direct Buy yesterday and I sure did feel like I was at a timeshare or Amway presentation.
However, the big thing that sold me was windows. Here in Central New York state, we have a local window manufacturer called Comfort Windows and in February, I purchased 6 triple pane, low-e, argon windows for roughly $780 each. The guy taking me around the showroom gave me a ballpark figure of $250 for the same specification window from Direct Buy. I looked over it carefully and it was constructed in every way like my $780 Comforts were. I have 7 more windows to buy for the house so I will save roughly $3600 when I buy them from Direct Buy which will almost pay for the 3 year membership itself! The only thing is, I have to get them installed, but I’m sure I can find someone to do it for $500 or so….. still saving plenty.
Me and my wife just bought the house and we have to gut the kitchen and a bathroom down to the rafters so I expect for the membership to pay for itself over time. Plus, we are considering flipping houses in the future so this would be perfect. We weren’t too sure if they would allow this because they don’t want you to resell items for a profit, but flipping is actually encouraged. In fact, there was a couple there filming a commercial for DB that are flippers. Things like tile, carpet, hardwoods, windows, counters, bathtubs can all be had at supposedly cheap prices compared to retail.
Before I buy anything, I will still do my homework. They say that members are seeing the manufacturers actual catalogs and price lists. Also, don’t be fooled by MSRP. No retailer sells anything for MSRP. DB gets their savings percentage from MSPR and probably not retail. They had a copy of an actual Best Buy ad with a washer and dryer that sold for $1099 each. DB had the pair for about $1300 so there is a clear savings. Also, retail stores do not have anything to do with a warranty. If you have a problem with a product after the store’s return policy, then you have to deal with the manufacturer.
In the end, I do expect to save thousands but that is because of the volume of product I will be buying. Comments #116 & #118 are right. If you are just buying some furniture or a bedroom set, than DB is probably not for you. If you are starting fresh with a new house or are flipping, it will probably be worth it in the long run.
March 9th, 2008 at 5:39 pm
I disagree with most of the complaints on here. I got a Direct Buy membership after learning about DB from a high school friend who works there. I was lucky enough to be better informed. I found out all about the one time sales pitch before hand from my friend. I strongly disagree with their sales tactics but I do see the point. My friend has related plenty of horror stories of how a visitor drives over to Future Shop and demands a new plasma at cost right after the visit. Heck, he has gotten angry calls from Future Shop about impatient members who do the same thing. The Ottawa location lost a garden supplies provider when a member took a confidential Direct Buy quote and drove over and demanded the same price so she could save delivery time. Her membership was revoked and that business dropped DB as a sales channel. She violated the rules and other members lose out (we cannot access that supplier). Yet she is probably going to be complaining on a forum like this soon.
When I joined, I had him price out different items I intended to buy which allowed me gauge my potential return. Lastly, I found out that since all DB locations are franchises, each one has a different membership fee. The newest locations tended to have the lowest fees but the highest annual renewal fees. Luckily one of these new locations was in my area. So I purchased the membership for around $3500 CAD in Aug 2006. I plan on renewing at a location with a cheaper annual rate. Find a new location, and you will definitely not have to pay $6000.
I have benefited immensely from this membership. I bought a new condo and I did purchase all my furniture and appliances from Direct Buy. By my estimation, within 2 years I have recovered my fee. They had all the brands and the models, the type of furniture (a Nicoletti couch - only sold in Montreal) and rare items I could not find (an LG combo washer/dryer that was withdrawn from retail). In fact, I am always overwhelmed by the amount of choice (for example colours and materials on furniture) that I have at DB.
The location I joined at, advised potential customers not to join unless they had major purchases and were likely to recover their investment. The reality of DB is that it takes some compromise and elbow grease on your part to enjoy those savings. This means you have to do the research before you buy. You have to pick up and install purchases yourself. And you have to have items you need to buy, (ie major appliances or home improvement items) or non-traditional items (like the aforementioned combo washer/dryer) that you would like to have. And you have to have major purchases to make. Unless, you are likely to purchase at least 15 000 dollars worth of merchandise in the next two years, you are unlikely to recover a satisfying portion of your membership.
In my experience (and having inside knowledge from an employee), those who complain have entirely unrealistic expectations and a poor understanding of how DB and retailers operate. The fact that many contractors use DB says plenty about how cost effective they are. But there are bound to be compromises. You don’t get the brand you want sometimes , they don’t sell low end merchandise, you cant return anything (they are not a store with a warehouse, they are a club), and you have to cart it away yourself or pay for delivery. If you want to join you have to weigh these issues out. If you are choosy on brands (ie Sony is not offered but Samsung is), DON’T JOIN. If you need to visit a showroom to buy an item, DON’T JOIN. If you need to talk to sales people, and you are not an independent shopper, DON’T JOIN. If you want everything to delivered the next day after you pay for it, DONT JOIN. If you don’t like to set up and install things yourself, DONT JOIN. And if you have no major purchases to make, DON’T JOIN. If you are satisfied shopping at Walmart and Ikea, DONT JOIN. Direct Buy does not carry brands that can compete on price with gypsum board furniture.
Lastly, your expectations have to be realistic. Electronics tend to have markups of only 15-25%. The Direct Buy price compares well on the cost price for many electronics at retailers like Best Buy (I have a cousin who works there and I have compared prices). Occasionally, however, retailers like Best Buy do sell below cost so it will be cheaper to shop there than DB. This is however, the exception, not the rule. With items like furniture, or home improvement and building materials there is no comparison. Italian made furniture sells for 30-40% of the retail price. Granite counters go for half the price of outside contractors with more choice of materials and finishes. Tires for my car are over half off. On a set of winter tires, that over $600 in savings. A single purchase like that every year, could recover your membership value over time.
In short, you have to time and effort to put in, to truly materialize savings. And you have to money to spend. DB is not meant for bargain basement shoppers. It is meant for those who are value conscious (not price conscious - there is a difference), who make informed decisions and take the long view of purchases they make (granite counters add value to your house, a new plasma tv does not). If you are not this type of person, do yourself, the staff and other members a favour, and stay out of the showroom. The rest of us have some shopping to do.
March 11th, 2008 at 9:55 am
So, what specific written guarantees of savings,if any, does Direct buy provide?
March 13th, 2008 at 10:47 pm
We have been members of Directbuy in Calgary since 1999.
I agree that customer service could improve but so could it in the regular retail market.
We joined to save money on a kitchen reno and we did. We saved enough to pay for the original Fee plus an additional $10K.
Just this year we purchased a Leather sectional that was $3800 @ the brick on sale, and got it through directbuy for $1900. Apples to Apples.
We will continue to be members.
Our 2 cents.
March 20th, 2008 at 8:16 pm
Even as you read, this scam, which is nothing more than and a variation of the “Advance Fee Fraud” scheme, is parting yet more of the “something for nothing” crowd from their money.
Here’s how it works: a telephone “tickler” call is made to a potential victim and an informative letter is sent afterwards inviting them to an open house so they can see for themselves how much others like them have saved and how much they themselves would save, along with some form of an invitation to join. The letter and subsequent follow-up telephone calls promise rich rewards of savings by buying direct from the manufacturer, at cost, with no Mark Up, No Middleman if only they were “members” of this so called highly esteemed and long time in business organisation. Typically, the pitch at the open house includes mention the so called fact that tens of thousands of other smart and savvy consumers have saved along with a slick selection of what they have saved on — and you, too, can begin saving as soon as you join this elustrous group by signing a “membership agreement” costing thousands of dollars payable in advance of receiving any benefits - you are told that amount is paltry compared to the savings you will obtain over a 10 year period - and you must sign the contract on a now or never basis. You are even made to feel stupid if you don’t sign - only a fool would not take advantage of the savings - spend a little to save a lot sort of thing.
If you’re not saying “scam” by now, you should be. Should you agree to participate in this Advance Fee savings scam, something will go wrong. Savings evaporate … or.. wrong or defective merchandise will be ordered … or … order delays … or … order mishaps and screw-ups. You will not be allowed to cancel your “membership” and get out of the deal.
If you decide to order merchandise, money from you, in advance of receiving the merchandise — an insignificant sum, really, in light of the windfall of savings about to land in your lap — will be required to order merchandise without any written guarantees of actually saving money.. You pay, you wait for the merchandise . . . and all you’ll get in return are more excuses about why the order is held up and assurances that everything can be straightened out if you’ll just be patient and wait a little while longer or send a bit more to pay for this or that price increase. Once you start making threats, these scammers will threaten to sue you if you don’t make good on your end of paying for the membership contract in full.
Beware that the Membership Agreement is in reality nothing more than a legally binding sales contract that may have been glossed over in light of all the savings you are excited about expecting. Carefully look at it - it contains NO GUARANTEES OF SAVINGS - instead there is a “NO ORAL PROMISES” clause: “No oral promises or statements not contained in this Membership Agreement shall bind or obligate the club.” It’s like a get out of jail free card - they can tell you anything pie in the sky in the open house tour or over the phone to get you to join, but once you sign the sales or Membership Agreement, you agree to the NO ORAL PROMISES clause! So what happens if it turns out not to be what you expected? Ouch. Too late. You’re stuck. That NO ORAL PROMISES clause comes back and bites you. Want a refund? Beware that the Membership Agreement states: “Members understand this program is not sold on a trial basis and that no refund of membership fees will be made.” So you only partially paid on your contract and think that you’re just not going to pay the rest of the contracted amount? — beware that the Membership Agreement states further: “Members do not have the right to terminate the Membership Agreement without paying the amount remaining for this Membership.” And if you think you’re going to get a refund because you never found anything cheaper and therefore didn’t use the club, think again. There’s a clause in the Membership Agreement about this too: “The Membership Agreement is not conditioned on the use of this Membership.”
In a nutshell, the con works by blinding the victim with promises of an unimaginable fortune of what others like them have saved, what they could have saved if only they joined earlier, and what they can expect to save by joining now. Once the sucker is excited and sufficiently glittery-eyed over the prospect of what he or she would do with all the money he will save, he is then squeezed for however much membership fee in full at the time of “joining” or have the sales contract balance immediately financed by a separate finance company, actually a subsidiary of the parent scam company. The money the victim parts with willingly, thinking “What’s $5,000 here when I’m going to end up saving over $50,000 when this is all done?” He fails to realize during the sting that he’s never going to actually get the promised savings because all of savings are expressly disclaimed in the fine print of the contracts and merchandise ordering materials. The very sales contract, which the victim was at first eager to sign, now comes back to bite him with all those adverse terms and conditions. All of this messing around is designed to part him/her from their money.
Once the scam is explained, it seems so obvious a con that you’d wonder who would fall for it. Yet fall for it people do because they’re mesmerized by the wealth that will soon be theirs in the form of all the savings by not paying any markup or middleman costs - and how smart they are by taking advantage of the join now or never opportunity. They also fail to realize there’s a hook hanging just out of sight; at first all they see is that others are getting savings and they want to join this cadre, thus they’re ill-prepared to mentally shift gears when the con artists turns the tables. Because the premise of “saving tons of money” is wholeheartedly swallowed early on, it’s not at a later point questioned when things begin to go wrong with the transaction and the dupes who have been targeted find out the hard way that there is a no refund policy on all the money they have paid in advance of receiving these now questionable “savings.”
Beware paying in advance for something for nothing - no written guarantees of promises made should send you running - especially in light of the tactics of “Be like me, I’m a member and I’ve saved money.”
http://edumacation.com/DirectBuy
March 27th, 2008 at 2:09 am
I know a lot about Direct Buy(D.B.). I worked there. I was fired. I will state the truth as I know it. If you are going to build a house you would be foolish not to use D.B. If you are going to buy T.V., regular stove, or refer, everyone has a sale on those items. If you are well off and need to spend some of that money D.B. will allow you buy for what the stores pay for it plus an 8% handling charge and shipping. Help with the 800 companies many, many catalogs and the one millions items there in is not great. One person at each center is employed to simply make the changes and price list updates in them. The savings are real because D.B. has no profit. The profit is in the up front fee. If you have 26 employees and no profit how are they going to be paid? The up front fee. Why do you have to join the day your there? Several. With some of the companies at D.B. its a way of satisfying their need to allow D.B. to compete with their dealer down the street or around the corner who must have a markup, profit. Also so many leads are generated by the TV ads that the sales staff does not have the time to call people back about joining.
You cannot invest two hours without both people. You offer to set a new time. Its the business model. Sorry. Its done in many sales business. Both really need the same info to make an informed decision. Thats what we all really want to happen anyway, isn’t it?
Can it be a bad decision for you? Yes. If you don’t have money to spend how are you going to save?
Can it be a good decision for you? Yes. Either you are building a house or have money to spend to make use of the saving potental. If your remodeling and going to spend $25,000 you save the up front fee on the order. It only costs about a $1.70 a day over ten years to be a member. Its that simple.
How is it hard. Its not. It$ real. Really it i$.
April 2nd, 2008 at 12:16 am
I went to the so-called presentation and had this sweaty, fast talking hick in my face goin on and on about how much money I could save. He only mentioned one brand name: Ashley Furniture. Forgive me, but I thought we would be saving money on MAJOR name brands. If wanted to buy the same Ashley Furniture that other people rent by the week for furnishing their double-wide mobile homes, then I’d get it elsewhere. The people in their infomercials and video presentations are just plain SKANKY AND SMARMY! There’s Mr. and Mrs. Gulotta, who say that their home was on tour. I NEVER saw so much tacky crap in my life! Then there’s Mrs. Gape, the wretched little mouth breather who looks like Jabba the Hut. She goes on & on about how much money she saved on her mirror and her piano. Anyway, they made me sit and watch these tragic, tacky people on their video. All in all, they wore me down for about an hour and a half, then the punch line: $4000 membership cost! I told the guy point-blank that there was nothing shown in the videos that the other people had that would appeal to me. I told him I needed proof that they had something available in their books that I would Actually want to buy. He said that they normally don’t allow people to look in the books until they commit, but he made an exception for me. I went straight for the Kitchen-Aid catalog to look for the dishwasher I had priced 2 weeks ago. Their price on a mid-range model was the same as Kitchen-Aid’s top of the line that I price at a local store. On top of that, there would have been delivery, installation, etc. I told him I wasn’t interested. A month later, he called me and acted like he dialed a wrong number. He played dumbed about dialing me and started talking about how I made a big mistake. I guess he thought I was going to beg to be allowed to join. Hell, you look at the some of the people who are on the infomercial and you should ask: is this my peer group? They’re certainly not mine. Oh, the Direct Buy employee’s name was Patrick Gilger
April 10th, 2008 at 10:29 pm
This company is nation wide. As far as I can tell you do not sign up in a van , in some dark alley. IT HAS TO BE LEGIT!
But the people who hate it- must not UNDERSTAND how it works. Maybe DirectBuy should start a idiot program. You know, have a contract with pop-ups, and have the potential members sign with crayons.
Because you would have to be an idiot- to not WANT to save money! You would have to be an idiot to NOT GET what DirectBuy is about, and how it works.
So Sorry-I hope the money you save by not joining, can buy you some brains.
April 12th, 2008 at 10:27 am
So, what guarantees,if any, does this so-called reputable company offer or is it true that in DirectBuy’s sales contract they try to dupe you into signing something that contains:
QUOTE:
IMPORTANT MERCHANDISE TERMS:
- The Club disclaims all warranties regarding the merchandise
- Any need for subsequent repairs or service, after receipt of merchandise, is members? own responsibility.
- MERCHANDISE MAY NOT BE RETURNED.
- The entire merchandise price plus handling fee, estimated freight and sales tax is required as a down payment at the time of placing an order with the Club.
- Suppliers reserve the right to change their prices without notice.
- From time to time some suppliers and services are dropped and others are added
- Only the supplier has the right to cancel an order.
http://edumacation.com/DirectBuyMembershipAgreement
No Warranties, No Price Guarantees, No Returns, No Guarantee of any savings, 100% purchase price due upon ordering, “Suppliers” can change prices or cancel at any time, and no guarantee of “Supplier” availability; this just to name a few of the “benefits” agreed to in their sales contract costing what? $5000.00 or more depending upon the franchisee.
Not a scam?
You decide.
April 16th, 2008 at 4:41 pm
No, not a scam. DirectBuy isn’t a store, so they don’t have a store warranty. The warranty is from the manufacturer. Just like if you bought a new car, the warranty on the car comes from the manufacturer and not the dealer.
The no return policy is tough, but they are up front about this. You have the opportunity to inspect the product when you receive it and reject it at pickup. If you take it home, you can’t send it back unless you are making a warranty claim to the manufacturer. Again, this is because DirectBuy is not a store and doesn’t manage inventory and returns.
As for suppliers changing their prices, this is a fact of reality. If GE raises or lowers their price on a dishwasher, DirectBuy may not get notified until you place the order and GE reports back that their price sheets have changed. This is pretty rare, but again because DirectBuy isn’t a store and stocks no inventory, they have no way to honor a manufacturers old prices if they change suddenly.
These are not things DirectBuy hides, they are clear that you are dealing directly with the manufacturer and there is no store inbetween you to provide services such as managing inventory or processing your warranty claims on your behalf. If you can accept this higher level of uncertainty and overhead on your part, then your reward is significantly lower prices. It’s a tradeoff some will make and others will not.
April 17th, 2008 at 9:57 am
Direct buy wants $4000 up-front fee not to process any warranty claims?
April 17th, 2008 at 1:48 pm
Sounds like you really don’t get the concept.
The idea is that manufacturers like Whirlpool or Lexington Furniture don’t normally sell direct to consumer, they sell to wholesalers or retailers that buy in bulk or guarantee volume. Manufacturers sell to wholesalers and retailers at lower margins than they would if selling direct-to-consumer because the high volume more than offsets the lower margin.
So how can a consumer buy something at that low margin wholesale price? DirectBuy aggregates individual consumers and negotiates a deal with manufacturers to represent a bunch of individuals as if those individuals were one retail store. The manufacturer won’t agree to sell to one person at a low price, because the volume isn’t there. But if enough people band together, then the volume makes sense.
So DirectBuy offers this service and in exchange wants an up-front fee. If they dindn’t charge it up-front, you could joing the club for one week and order everything you ever wanted and then quit the club. They would never be able to stay in business with no one actually paying their membership dues and quitting after one week.
Since the fee is up-front and is high, joining only makes sense for folks that have a lot of major purchases to make which will more than offset the cost of the membership. Typically this is folks furnishing or remodeling a large home. Those with smaller homes or who do not need to buy a lot of new high-margin goods won’t benefit.
Does that make sense now or are you still confused? I’m not a DirectBuy fanboy and not an employee, just trying to explain that there is a rationale for the DirectBuy business model and it does make sense for them and most of their customers if you actually take the time to think about it.
April 24th, 2008 at 11:01 am
Hi ,
Me and my husband recentky purchased a home. We had some furniture from the apartment we lived. but we still needed more as we were moving into a house. I saw the direct buy advertisment and thought of checking it out with my husband. As everyone said we too got the shock of the membership fee and were forced to take a decision right then. Since they gave us a 3 day period after taking an amount from our hands, we were rushing to take the decion. We are an average family and the membership fee is a lot to us.We went to other furniture stores around us and took a look at the ones we wanted. we got a whole dining set, leather living room set and a bedroom set for just 5000. Of course we went back to Direct Buy and cancelled our membership. We are happy with the decision we made.
April 24th, 2008 at 6:41 pm
Boy am I glad I found this website/blog tonight. I/we were considering requesting a free visitors pass to see what Direct Buy could offer. After reading a couple dozen posts we have abandoned any idea of pursuing any Direct Buy considerations. Thanks to all of you for your valuable information.
May 6th, 2008 at 2:43 pm
At the time I tried them I was younger and didn’t know that buying directly from the company is more expensive than buying through a retailer. Since they buy in bulk.
They are taking advantage of people that doesn’t know that. And the way they go about it is harsh to. They sat me in a room after the main presentation and kept pressuring me that this was the greatest thing and that I would miss out. Little did I know that all I was buying was time in a room full of out dated catalogs.I thought I would get at least personal attention to help me find the best deals. They had absolutely no time for me. Then I saw the prices!!!!! I could go to home depot and walmart and get things for 1/3 the price. BIG RIP OFF.