More about Amway

As I have mentioned on this blog before, I don't usually read the news.  Instead, I let my husband be my news digester, and he gives me the articles he wants me to read.  Often, these are the articles that he liked, or they are about things he thinks I should know about (mostly sports), and sometimes they are about things I am genuinely interested in.  Yesterday he came across an article about the UK's threatened ban on Amway.  According to the article, Amway is in danger of being banned from doing business in the UK as a result of two questionable business practices.  First, that Amway distributors spend more time recruiting other distributors and selling them "motivational" books, cds, and seminars; and, second, that recruits are given inflated estimates of what distributors typically earn.  In other words, the products are just for show; these people are selling (the myth of) a business opportunity.  But as we read closer, it began to appear that it wasn't Amway itself that was pushing these practices.  Rather they were developed by two of the company's high level distributors (in other words, people who got in early and are now near the top of the pyramid, with many people "selling" below them), who produce and sell their own "motivational" materials.  This is exactly what TEAM is -- two of Quixtar's high-level distributors who came together to build their own "sales" force with its own brand of "motivation."  (And remember, Quixtar is a subsidiary of Alticor, which also owns Amway, though Amway is currently in the process of reabsorbing both Quixtar and Alticor).  The article concluded that Amway the company is now beginning to crack down on some of the questionable business practices of its distributors.  If the company can clean up its act, more power to it, but I think there is something about multilevel marketing that inherently leads to abuses of this kind.  Even the way people talk about Amway suggests that people who are involved in the business aren't actually selling a product, but selling the business itself.  If a person is an Amway distributor, they are said to be "selling Amway."  Not the products, but the company.

Today I came across this website, which appears to be Amway's unofficially official answer to all of the criticism.  Statistics have an amazing capacity to be used for evil!

Comments

[LeRoy Dissing]

I agree...numbers can be made to dance to whoever is playing the fiddle. I am not big on Amwway or many other home sale companies. I will, however, still buy farm fresh eggs from a real farmer :)

[ibofightback]

www.thetruthaboutamway.com - Amway's unofficial site? Since it's my website I guess I should consider that a compliment. The "evil" bit I'm not so keen on though! As a former statistican I'm more than aware of their potential for abuse. Indeed it is one reason I did the site - I was sick of seeing Amway and Quixtar critics abuse statistics to paint false pictures.

If you've got any criticism of my statistics, feel free to join in the conversation and I'll try to either explain my perspective or correct it where necessary.

Speaking of misleading, the news reports are misleading re the UK situation. Neither of the two organizations being investigated along with Amway in the UK are "distibutors" - they are companies that provide training to distributors, not really that different to what Tony Robbins and others do. Indeed, Jim Dornan, who was named as one of them, has next to no Amway business in the UK.

Some Amway distributors in the UK (not part of his Amway downline) wanted to use the business system he'd setup, so he setup the company there as well and sells services to them. Just normal business practice. Unfortunately a handful of anti-amway zealots on the 'net have been campaigning against Amway with the DTI for several years and encouraging people to complain to them. Given the millions and millions of folk who have been involved over the years, nobody should be surprised some of them have complaints!

Now, none of that's to say there's not legitimate issues to address, there are, and it looks like it's going to be an interesting ride of the next few years.

[ibofightback]

oh, and just to be clear, the site has no connection at all to Amway corp, I'm just an Amway IBO (independent business owner - we're not called distributors any more) who got sick of dealing with false and misleading crap on the 'net.

[margie]

very interesting read.. my son who is allergic to every thing was recommended to use the washing powder... but no good either .. but has grown out of the allergy now.. thank goodness

[Tex]

ibofightback is a well know liar and is compensated for endorsing Amway and Quixtar so his opinion is not valid.

[Karen]

IBOfightback is a liar and Tex is a moron.