Thursday, March 24, 2016

The Value Of An Amway Business?

Many many people see the Amway plan, sign up in the hopes that Amway income will help them fulfill their dreams and that they will walk away from their jobs and collect lifelong residual income while walking the beaches of the world while living in the lap of luxury. Sadly, most IBOs will never make a profit or even sponsor a single downline. These IBOs may continue in the business for a while but will eventually quit when they see the writing on the wall. Unfortunately, many IBOs suffer a financial loss before they realize what's happening and walk away.

But wait, you're an "independent business owner". So instead of quitting, why not sell your Amway business? I wonder if any IBOs actually think about what their business is worth. I mean a diamond could either walk away and collect income, or sell their business and live happily ever after right? Here's some food for thought. Why are there any instances of diamonds quitting or resigning from Amway? Why would they just quit when they could either walk away and collect an income "forever" or sell the business? Maybe there is no residual income. Afterall, when approximately 50% of IBOs never even last a year, it's hard to keep that volume moving month after month.

I believe diamonds quit and resign because their business is worth very little or nothing. And most Amway businesses do not even generate a net profit. For IBOs who are seriously pondering on this very important message, try looking up this topic in Amway's rules. There are very complicated steps to be taken when selling your Amway business as each person upline must be offered ownership (To the best of my understanding). This process can go on for a long time and the attrition of your business could render it worthless before you can find a buyer, if you have a buyer at all. Also, if you quit, the downline in your group would be surrendered to the immediate upline anyway. So why would your upline want to buy your business?

Also, as an Amway business owner, what do you own? You don't own your downline, although their volume runs through your business. You don't have staffing and you probably don't have equipment or a rental property or any bonafide assets. You may or may not have some inventory but you are not required to hold any. Selling your Amway business is simply selling your spot on the Amway hierarchy with perhaps some downline already in place.

So IBOs, I ask you. What is your business worth? What is the value of your business? More than likely the equity of your Amway business is zero.

31 comments:

Jerry D. said...

Great post, Joecool. When they pitch the'opportunity' they ridicule owning a small business (being a Small Business Owner) saying it becomes your life and robs you of true freedom, but they don't mention that while a small business owner can one day sell, freely to anybody, the business he invested all his money and time in, Amway IBO's can't do that. You just walk away and your upline takes ownership of your downline, and you get nothing. What's to protect an IBO from abuse from his upline after years of being in Amway, pressuring the IBO to spend thousands/month on Amway, possibly by missing mortgage payments or selling his car, and making him feel bad for not doing so until he just can't take the abuse and leaves, so his upline can take ownership of his business for free. The longer you stay in, the more you will lose if you walk away, and your upline knows that, so the more likely they will abuse you.

Anonymous said...

You seem like a cranky person who has it out on Amway. What has Amway done to you to deserve this negativity? Amway isn't for everyone. The little exposure I've had with the business made me realize there is more to life. Any good income takes hard work and determination. Made me learn how to fight back and not be content with life.

Joecool said...

Why am I cranky? I just share my experiences and opinions about Amway because the Amway leaders often lie and mislead prospects. I started this blog to provide real information to prospects and IBO.

I'll bet you're operating at a net loss right now. But your upline has taught you to feel positive about losing money right?

Anonymous said...

To Anonymous of 12:30 PM:

Joe Cool's blog and Anna Banana's (and quite a few more) have been up on the Internet for several years now. Those blogs are packed with evidence, testimony, and anecdotes about what a goddamned rip-off Amway is.

You say you've only had "a little exposure". Well, that shows that you are inexperienced and unaware of the crap and deceit and abuse that go on normally in an Amway business. The people who post here have had A LOT MORE experience than you.

And yeah -- let's have a truthful answer. Are you operating at a loss in Amway right now? And if so, is your up-line telling you that it's OK, since you're "building your business"? And do you believe him because it makes you feel better?

You are showing all the sign of becoming a hopeless Ambot.

Jerry D. said...

I wish just one of these 'IBO's who comment here would say how long they've been at it and how much NET profit they are currently making. Let's start there.

Joecool said...

Jerry, I've been asking that question for many years now. I don't get answers because the IBOs come and go and presumably quit and don't return here.

Joecool said...

I would add that I was an IBO and I was at 4000 PV with eagle parameters. Even at that level I made no net profit because there was an expectation from upline that you re-invest all profit into more tools and functions.

That's because the reality is that upline cares about making a profit off you, but they don't actually care about your business, despite what they say on stage.

Anonymous said...

It is like telling your hopeful downlines that losing money is "investment" because those downlines are taught that if I keep working on this business, someday, I will get a huge return of investment.

Anonymous Guy said...

I think in the 2 to 3 years I was in, I topped off at about 300pv, and might have collectively made $500. The expenses though. Mother of God. I had a Ditto Nutrilite order of about $400 that got me over 100pv. That's money I should not have been spending. That's money not stacking in savings.

Joecool said...

Yes, Amway uplines will say your expenses are a business investment but that ot total BS because normal business investments pay a return. For example, if I own a construction company and I buy a D10 Dozer to demolition old houses, it helps me get my work done and I get more customers as a result.

Buying Amway products and other tools and functions to not result in more customers or more sales. It omly makes your upline wealthy.

Jerry D. said...

A: I have a great business opportunity for you, my friend. If you sign up for this credit card, you get 2% cash back on all your purchases! There's no limit on that cash back, so you can make millions!
B: But doesn't that mean I have to spend hundreds of millions to make those millions?
A: You're investing in your business! If you do that, spread over 5 years, you'll be a multimillionaire! Plus, you're already buying what you would normally buy!
B: But I wouldn't normally spend all that money on monthly purchases.
A: Well, maybe you should, to build your business and make millions from that cash back! Plus, if you refer new people for the credit card, you get an additional bonus! You can simultaneously pay another company hundreds of dollars a month and they'll teach you how to make millions from this amazing cash back and referral system!
B: What the FUCK???!!!!

Joecool said...

Jerry, that's a funny but realistic way to look at the Amway business. LOL

Anonymous said...

Yes, it's truly absurd. You can get rich by spending tons of money and then getting back a 2% refund. What kind of schmuck would fall for such a proposition?

Anonymous said...

Real small business owners can one day reap revenues enough to recover the cost of capital needed to start the business.

Joecool said...

It's funny. The upline will feed you all kinds of BS like Amway is no or low risk, little overhead and you can profit quickly. Then later they turn around and tell you to invest everything you have into the tool and functions and other BS like businesses don't profit for 5 years. It's a game of heads they win and tails you lose.

Lots of contradictory stuff that many people don't see. I began to recognize the BS after a short while and it led to to quit even with a 4000 PV business. Because it wasn't going to get better.

Joecool said...

It's funny but sort of what really happens in Amway.

Dan said...

Joe, I really appreciate your blog and how you're saving people. But I have to ask you, all those years you were in Amway, trying to sponsor people, you didn't once feel bad that you were deceiving potential prospects and manipulating them, or at the very least not being fully upfront with them and not giving them the full solid facts? You only ultimately left Amway because you were losing money? The unethical aspects of what you were doing all those years never bothered you? I apologize for being so direct and asking you about this, but I wish you would post about whether it's possible for IBOs to be truly and fully naive and good people as they mislead, manipulate, and deceive new prospects??

Anonymous said...

Hello Joecool, I have just prepared article covering what is just happening on english Wikipedia with Amway article: http://amwey-business.cz/amway-propaganda-task-force-attacking-wikipedia/

Joecool said...

Thanks, I'll go check out the article.

Joecool said...

I only "built the business" for 7-8 months. Once I realized it was a scam, I met with all my downline and explained what happened. I told them the truth and I apologized. Basically we all quit together except 2 people who stayed on for a while more.

Dan said...

Thank you for your response, and I applaud what you did after discovering it was a scam. But during those 7-8 months, as you were prospecting, how did you feel about keeping certain information hidden until the 2nd or 3rd encounter (e.g. the Amway name, etc.), or passing on claims and information to these prospects that you hadn't verified yourself beforehand? Generally, can someone be recruiting for Amway and WWDB for months and be truly good and naive all those months? Thank you, Joe.

Joecool said...

I didn't really have to withhold informatio from the people I prospected. I just explained that the business may have had some misconceptions which I was hoping I could have a chance to explain. That worked pretty well for me.

But yeah, I don't see how anyone can go on for years and not see through the scam. I suspected pretty quickly but it was hard to fathom that my sponsor (a close friend) and the rest were lying through their teeth but I did figure it out and after a while, I just couldn't accept their half truth answers anymore.

Dan said...

Thanks, Joe, for your honest answers, and this amazing blog!

Joecool said...

I figured ut quickly that upline lied about not making profits from functions. Rock bands hold concerts to make money and functions are the same. They said on stage that nobody made money from the functions but reality is the diamond lifestyle comes from functions and cds.

They said to get out of debt, which is good advice, but then said to go in debt if it's to invest in your Amway business. That was BS. They wanted you out of debt so all disposable income could go to cds and functions.

They eve had the nerve to suggest that we should ask permission to have kids or to buy a home or a new car. They pretend to have good motives but it's because they want to control your disposable income. I elieve for that resone, they also teach that you can only buy a home in cash. That way nobody will ever do it and they can then advise you to spend all your money on functions and cds.

I wonder what a diamond would say if you asked for proof that they paid their home in cash? A lot of backpeddling and then they'll say it's none of your business. That's when you can reject their teaching. Sadly, most prospects don't know what to say or ask when they meet the "glorious" upline.

Chad said...

Thanks for this blog! Had a friend I hadn't talked to in over 7 years randomly message me on facebook asking me weird random questions, and after talking to him for a couple times, the hints came out that he was talking about Amway, really sounded like he was brainwashed into this thing. Sounded like a scam from the start to me, and you just comfirmed it, thank you!

Joecool said...

Thanks for your comment. Glad you found useful information here!

Anonymous said...

In the April 2, 2016 4:54pm post, this guy says he sold his Amway business but doesn't give details.

https://amthrax.wordpress.com/2015/05/18/did-dean-kosage-change-his-name-to-dean-grey/#comment-40696

Joecool said...

Selling an Amway business is very complicated. Basically you need to offer it to everyone upline but they have no incentive to buy it because if you leave, all your downline are forfeited upline anyway.

Wyenot said...

Thanks for your CURRENT blog... There's a lot of older stuff that may be applicable but it's always nice to have recent discourse. My girlfriend and I are about to get a partnership offer in WWDB (Alberta). I have, from the start, got a bad feeling in my gut when I'm listening to them "STP" (Showing The Plan... One of the CORE steps... Change Or Remain Employed)
I grew up in an entrepreneurial environment with a parent who bought "cheap" real estate and improved it and leased it out. I know I have a bias because every time I hear "building an asset" I think bu!!$hit! My girlfriend, an intelligent woman, has zero business background experience. I can understand that it's WAY more difficult to see through the glossy presentation when you don't have life experience/education to rely on. I'm rambling but I do have a question... My current point is that I can spend 15 years building a real estate asset with some residual income. If I then decide I don't want to spend more than 2hrs per month managing it, I can hire a property manager to do it competently for a fee. I said that we will not have this option with WWDB. I said that I can't just walk away and "retire" from WWDB, expecting to maintain that income. Her response was "Why not?" I understand about the necessity to constantly "prop up" your downline and keep them motivated. What I'm not sure about is the hard line where we wouldn't be considered active and how that would affect our Amway income. Aka. Being the level headed guy that you are, is there any possible way we could maintain a Diamondship with 2 full days of our time every month? (I'm aware that, up to that time, I could have to spend 99hrs per month and a gazillion dollars... I'm not interested in addressing those huge points right now... Only the TIME required to maintain a retirement income of $8k/month)

Joecool said...

There is no residual income in Amway. Sure, if you built a huge business I suppose you could "walk away" and still collect income for a while. But it will dry up fast. Think about this. Most people who join Amway do little or nothing to begin with. Add in the fact that about 50% of IBOs will quit in the first year and something like 95% or more, quit within 5 years. How can that provide you with income when all the downline will be gone?

You also have no equity. In real estate, you still have the land and/or buildings which is an asset you can sell. In Amway, you don't own your donwline and you likely don't own a property or equipment needed to run your business. Your only equity in Amway is your spot in the hierarchy. Selling an Amway business in next to impossible because you must offer it to all your uplines. But why would upline buy your business? If you leave, your downline are all forfeited to your upline.

Ask the person who's prospecting you to provide you with a few names (and verifiable proof) of people who retired on Amway residual income. I've never had anyone be able to name someone and prove it. For this reason, the diamonds and other Amway big shots all work forever. There is no retirement. That's a lie used to sell you on the business.

Wyenot said...

Thanks for your input