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7/13/2008 - Bob writes:
We purchased a Direct Buy membership in April 2005. We had already renovated our basement, replaced windows, upgraded the wiring and plumbing in the house and were now planning to re-do our kitchen. We still had some other renovations to do and once all were done, expected to update most if not all the furniture in the house. The DB sales session seemed OK, however like others have indicated, there was tremendous pressure as well as the exclusion of not being able to be a member unless signed for and paid that night. We finally decided to join. The kitchen cabinets we ordered were only marginally cheaper than our local home store (same make and model), our first disappointment, however they were damaged in transit. We ordered these in May expecting to have our kitchen completed by Christmas and were advised that they would take 6 weeks. Finally around the middle of September (about 10 weeks late), we were advised that the cabinets had shipped and would be here in a few days. Based on this, we started demolishing our kitchen so that it would be ready for teh cabinets when they arrived. They arrived damaged (both shipping damage where cabinets were broken and twisted as well as poor manufacturing quality where finished were not applied properly and nails were sticking out). After calling DB, and waiting a long time for any answer with respect to the damaged cabinets, I decided to call the manufacturer nyself. The manufacturer seemed fine with the call, however I guess I was not supposed to do that as DB called right back and blasted me for calling the manufacturer over the warranty claim. It then took several weeks for the manufacturer rep to come in to DB to look at the cabinets and decide what to do. It is now the middle of October, and I am getting concerned. We have no kitchen and in about 8 weeks will have 14 family members come to stay for Christmas. The decision was to reorder some of the cabinets so that they will be correct. Middle of December rolls around - still no cabinets. Week before Christmas, still no cabinets. I am really starting to panick now. Finally, December 23, I get the call that the cabinets have arrived. I drive the 30 miles to Direct Buy and pick up the cabinets. They still are not correct, however I am now out of time. I take them anyway and get the installed on the 24th just before our company arrives. The cabinets are not wonderful - the doors do not fit right, the sides are not finished properly and the finish is poor. This was the last thing we ever ordered from DB and will not go back. After all this was done, DB called to advise that there was an outstanding invoice for freight and handling, however I refused to pay it given the hassles and the 6+months waiting time for a 6 week order. DB threatened collection agencies and garnisheeing wages, however they have no ability to do it as they were in the wrong. Please do not deal with Direct Buy. If there had been a web site like this when we first became members, we would have stayed away. We have since found most everything around the same cost as DB and would never really make any savings by using their services.

7/12/2008 - Sue writes:
I can assure [] we're not on Direct Buy's payroll. We're just 2 highly educated and 6 figure paid engineers who hate to part with our money! We built a house and were able to use super high quality products and stay under our builders meagher allowances. Anyone who's built a house knows you can't buy cheap products and stay under the builder's allowances. [] - we almost bought the LG steam washer & dryer, but opted for a different steam washer - there was no shipping or handling charge on the LG nor the brand we bought, so you were misled by this website. [] - we bought a few items locally, and paid a 15%-20% restocking fee when we returned the excess. Paid restocking fees on wood for closets, doors we didn't order or need but the local folks shipped, bricks far in excess of what was needed, and other stuff. Had argued with a local tile company they were sending way too much tile for the kitchen backsplash - had figured out what we needed exactly - they assured us it was returnable, then charged us the 15% restocking fee for the excess we didn't want in the first place. It's a standard practice in the industry, send more then needed then charge to retrieve what shouldn't have been sent in the first place. Could’ve bought the backsplash tile for less at Direct Buy, but wanted a pro to help with the design and colors to best blend with tile floor and granite (both bought thru Direct Buy) and cabinets, so opted to use local supplier (not right to get her wonderful help and then not buy from her), and all looks fantastic together! Had issues with our cabinet design so used our builders guy so could get real time fixes – could’ve got much better cabinets for less at Direct Buy, and in hindsight the real time fixes didn’t occur as we’d hoped and could’ve done a better job ourselves of resizing. Live and learn. [] - not sure how you figured out shipping costs, but we bought 2 loveseats and a sofa at 666 pounds and paid $228 shipping and a 1350 pound dining room suite for $300 shipping and over 2000 pounds of office furniture for about $350 in shipping. So your estimate of $600 to ship 150 pounds is beyond us. Have only paid a shipping fee on a few items, most stuff aside from furniture was free shipping. We bought most furniture from a company who have a local showroom, mostly sell through their own showrooms, and don't find much on internet supersites - pretty much buy at their showrooms or not at all - and with shipping saved nearly 50% off the absolute best price we could get local folks to come down to. All the stuff we've bought through Direct Buy comes with the normal suppliers warrantees, only difference is we will have to request warrantee service rather then have a local supplier ask for it. We've had windows and specialty doors repaired at no cost under warranty that were in reality screwed up by the installers and shouldn't have been covered by warranty. Haven’t had a problem with anything else, other then a few items broken by installers and no one replaces those free of charge. Our local Direct Buy warehouse has refused shipment on several items, and we've refused to accept a couple other items, but we've gotten replacements in no time. Someone mentioned that Direct Buy gets volume discounts they don’t pass on, but we’ve bought from a couple companies and got a volume discount – don’t know if this is unique to our local showroom

7/12/2008 - Mae writes:
My sister and I (both single)attended the open house in Pensacola, FL on June 21. We along with most of the people posting on this site were taken in by these sleazy folks. We are preparing to sell two houses and purchasing another so we can share care giving for our elderly mother. It sounded great, saving 50% on most items. No mention of handling charges. I requested a catalog after we signed and they said we couldn't get one until we attended an orientation, also requested a username and password so we could go online. That would come with our membership cards. Also, there was no reference to the 3 day cancellation period or the handling/shipping charges. A gentleman in our group had asked if shipping was free to showroom and our sales associate said yes. We received our cards on July 7. Can't get access, e-mailed tech support for user name . Most of the items I was looking at had visit showroom for custom pricing. We live 60 miles from the showroom. That evening we made copies of our contract (they had failed to sign in their authorized representative space!) and included our cards and a letter requesting a full refund. Fortunately, we had put it on a credit card in three payments. The 2nd one is due the 21st. We have disputed the original $2490.00 with the credit card company and they will not allow any further charges. We sent it certified and received a call today from the nice young lady that signed us up which is the manager of this location. We had requested notification by certified mail within 10 days, so we do not plan on talking to them. There will be a paper trail. We are forwarding our complaint (as we told them) to the BBB and Attorney General. We also have a local newspaper that would love to get the scoop on these folks. I wish I had seen this site before hand. I'm sorry for all of us! Wish us all luck! Will post again with results.

7/11/2008 - tom and michele writes:
I found this site after attending a DB Open House in Myrtle Beach. WE did like our sales person very much. We spent 4 hours there start to finish. We also met one of the owners, she was in charge of local sellers and installers and she seemed very nice. We thought very seriously of joining but stated that we just needed a day to think about it. We never felt pressure till then. We were told if we left we only had till the end of business that day or we would be band from joining for five years. I asked if I show up tomorrow with 5k in cash and want to join you won't let. My sales person stated he would love to take my money but the owners wouldn't let me. That pretty much soured me. Prior to that we had 4 products that we were going to be buying in the next 1 to 2 years and a LCD HD TV that we wanted to purchase now. I had spent 2 weeks researching the tv purchase and found that everyone that DB had I could get for less thru either online sales or [] for equal or less money. Then we looked into a couple of things that we had already purchase in the past year. We did as well or better on the cost. Long story short. I can't say anything bad other than the pressure of making a $6309 ten year decision with out time to think about. After reading the complaints on this site I am glad I didn't join. But if you don't like doing your homework and want to find some brand name deals on some products maybe it is for you.

7/10/2008 - Lisa writes:
My fiance` and I went to an Open House last Saturday, after we heard about Direct Buy from a radio station. The presentation was really convincing, and since we needed to remodel an entire house, we thought we could save a lot of money. I personally didn't like at all the fact that they made us decide right then. You can't make a decision to spend $6000 without taking your time to think about it. But they told us it's our only chance, if we walk away, we wouldn't be allowed to come back. So we did sign the contract, and became members. Yesterday, my fiance` found this website, and showed it to me. We couldn't believe what we were reading, how many things were wrong with this company. We realized it was the 3rd business day after signing the papers, so we went straight there and canceled our contract. We were so lucky to be able to get out of this. And all thanks to every person who posted on this website. Thank you so much, you just saved us from throwing our money away.

7/10/2008 - Beth writes:
My husband made us an appointment at DB for later this week (we are building a new home). I really didn't know anything about them and after looking at the "rules" on the visitor pass and looking at their website, some red flags went up, but I didn't do anything. We got our first pushy call to speak w/ my husband as we were walking out to go to church last night and there went another red flag. So thankfully I looked this place up this morning. I am horrified at what I have read on many sites. I would have NEVER bought into this regardless of what they said, BUT potentially could've PAID a babysitter for my 3 kids, had my husband lose MONEY leaving work early, spent $4 a gallon in gas to drive the 30 minutes and then spend 3+ hours in a very pressured uncomfortable situation, that I promise wouldn't have ended nicely for anyone involved. I can't thank all of you enough for posting your experiences to help those like me make better choices for our time and money....thank you, thank you, thank you. If your goals were to help at least one other couple, DONE =)

7/9/2008 - Lee writes:
My story is much like the others here. Bought into the Direct Buy scam program because we were told they had just added the LG line of products to their catalogue and we were looking to buy several LG appliances for a new house. Needless to say, when we went to actually order the items we were first told that they never actually got the LG line, and during a second phone call were told that they only got LG washers & dryers to sell--no other LG appliances or products. When we met with the salesperson initially we repeatedly verified with her that shipping and handling were included in the price quoted by Direct Buy. She assured us that that is correct. I now see that too was a another lie according to others experiences. Finally, again when queried repeatedly, our salesperson assured us that items are shipped and received in 3-4 weeks. Having put the LG issue aside, we next attempted to order a leather sofa and were informed that shipping would take 16-17 weeks! How do these people sleep at night? I CANNOT believe that some attorney general's office of SOME state has not investigated this scam company and shut them down. Are there no consumer protection laws on the books? There are for everything else it seems these days. STAY AWAY from this company!

7/9/2008 - Jose writes:
All those in the defese area must be getting paid by DB in order to post that kind of stuff. ANYONE saying you can save money with DB has not done their research correctly. Ive found items on the net way cheaper that DB, and with warranties at that. IF you dont have a DB membership, consider yourself blessed. DO NOT even go to the presentation. They will HARD SELL you like there's no tomorrow. Dont make the mistake some of us have. Ive boght several items in other places other than DB for several reasons... better service, warranties, great customer service, effectiveness in ordering, expedited service, better prices, things DB doesnt have. WHAT A SCAM!!! Do not fall prey. The only mistake my wife and I have done since we got married. We regret it EVERY DAY!!

7/9/2008 - Robert writes:
Beware - I purchased a small item from Direct Buy (coffee / espresso machine) but did not like the product. I am now required to pay shipping to return the item and a 15% restocking fee! I have been happy with all other transactions with Direct Buy, but if you join, don't make the costly mistake of ordering something in error, or that you don't like, as it will cost you a lot more than the potential savings!

7/9/2008 - Nadia writes:
I am looking for persons that live near the Hamilton, Ontario area that would be willing to start a picket against Direct Buy. I have been scammed out $4000 for a membership and only have 1 thing to show for it. It cost me $4000 to put in a cheaply made kitchen. Since then everytime I try to purchase something, they either can't get it because it is not available or it takes 6 months to get it which is not what they said in their seminar. The longest they said we could wait for a product is 2 months. I tried ordering a bedroom suite and they told me that I wouldn't get it for 6 months. I tried ordering wooden blinds and once they took my money, they told me that the product was not available. I am still waiting for my refund. I want to shout it out don't buy into this company. It's the ultimate scam and they should be ashamed of themselves. I am sick to my stomach to think that I got myself taken this way. I am in negitations at this time to see if I can get some of my membership money back but in the meantime I am looking for people who would like to take the time to picket in front of their [] store to let others know what we know. Email me at [] if you are interested. I can keep going on about how disappointed I am but there isin't enough room. Thank you for ready this

7/8/2008 - Ann writes:
I was issued a Free Visitors Pass from Direct Buy and was invited to their consultation. The sales rep called asking for my husband (twice) When I told him it would just be me attending, he said both partners are required or I would be uninvited. I said So if it's just me, I don't rate? He said CORRECT. I was not allowed to attend their free seminar about their membership opportunities without my spouse. I am preparing my house for sale and buying a fixer so it is their loss.

7/8/2008 - Marcel Potvin writes:
My wife and I joined the Victoria, BC, store on April 24/08. We recieved our membership card in the mail,but have been unable to log on to the site. I have e-mailed the company and spoken to the store about this on numerous times. It is now July 8th/08 and I still have not been able to log on even with the so called new passwords I have been given. Running down to the store is not an option for me and Now knowing that I can not even get on their site makes me regret ever spending the small fortune that we had to just to become members with no access.

7/8/2008 - NORM writes:
Today, July 8, 2008, I visited Direct Buy for the first and only time. Their presentation was done very carefully and in a certain order. It is done for a reason. First, they try to show you what a few, select products are really worth and what they "usually" sell for in a retail envrionment. These are selected items that are "blind" items used to fool you into false savings. When I asked very pointed questions during the presentation, the salesperson carefully ignored them and talked about something else on HIS agenda. Then, they showed us one of their invoices that included EST. freight, not the real freight cost. That is a profit maker for them. Then, we discusses the 8% handling charges. And, after three TV infomertials they show you from time to time they begin their close. they attempt to show you that normal people usually spend about $50,000.00 on purchases on their products in just a few years. that is used to attempt to justify their $5,000.00 PLUS "membership" fees. They ignored my questions on how rebates and volume discounts to them are reflected in OUR final costs. I asked for the franchise owner and directly asked him that question. His reply was honest and he told me that the corporate office keeps that money. Reputable retailers normally reflect those rebates back to the purchaser to keep their selling prices in line with competition. In short, this is a big rip-off and their money is made by the membersihip fees chared up front. If you never come back to buy anything, they have made a great profit. They also tell you that retailers have a big overhead....Rent, employees, commissions, etc. and yet, when I looked around the building, I also saw rent being spent for a very nice showroom. I saw at least 15 employees, all paid and I am certain, smoe on commission. I didn'tliketheir ESTIMATED freight charges as I know they overcharge the consumer and keep the difference. So, add up the $5,000.00 PLUS up front, the 8% service charges, the volume rebates and advertising monies providedto them from the suppliers and you tell me where the savings are. BE CAREFUL HERE!

7/7/2008 - AI writes:
We purchased a refrigerator from Direct Buy. It was delivered covered in packaging, and the delivery people drove off before we could fully inspect it. It was damaged. Direct Buy refused to replace it, and said that we signed a contract that says if you sign for delivery, too bad if you find damage 10 minutes after the delivery truck drives away. We've filed a complaint with the state Atty. General since it turns out that this contract is not completely legal. Now we're well educated people, so we feel even more remarkably and fantastically stupid to have fallen for the Direct Buy scam.

7/7/2008 - Sabba writes:
My husband and I just returned from a DB presentation. The salesperson, Janie, was rude, braggadocious, and combative. We left before the one on one presentation because my husband told her that we would not be making a decision today. She told us that we would not be allowed to ever come back to DB if we did not sign up today. After reading the complaints on ths site, I am happy we cut our loses and left. We'll do just well bargaining with cash. By the way, we own two timeshares which we love and were never accosted by their sales reps like this.

7/7/2008 - Jay writes:
I am pending a visit to the open house, but was put off by the attitude of the salesperson who called to set up my appointment. The approach did not feel right, so decided to check it out before going. Glad I did, because there is no way I would pay a 5-6K membership fee, so I am going to save several hours. Given the number of complaints on this site, I decided to check the Better Business Bureau. DB is a BBB affiliate and there are only 4 complaints for my local store and 17 for the HQ. They both carry a satisfactory rating - presumably because there are so few complaints. BBB indicates that DB has made a good faith effort to resolve all of the complaints; however, I would note that only in a few cases has the complainant acknowledged the resolution. I take this to mean that, while DB has responded to the complaint, it was not necessarily to the satisfaction of the consumer. I would recommend that every one on this site who has actually signed up and found misrepresentation or unfair practice to submit a complaint to the BBB. It does not mean that you will absolutely get resolution of your problem, but it may keep others from experiencing the same issue. After reading the postings here, I will forego the open house, simply because when someone tells me that I have to commit now or forever lose the opportunity, that is my number one pressure pitch red flag. That tells me that they don't want me to check it out. When a sales-person says that to me, I ALWAYS, ALWAYS, without hesitation, walk away. In all reality - apples to apples comparisons with most products is very difficult these days, because there is such a plethora of different makes and models - many of which are the exact same product placed in different markets. There are advantages to buying retail - sales persons who can explain features/benefits of diffeent options, free or low cost delivery and set-up, the ability to return products at no cost if they are damaged or not as expected (even if you make a mistake in the selection). The number one reason to buy retail is immediate or near-term availability. Part of the retail mark up covers the cost of keeping a stock of items, displaying the items, so you can compare products, and for large items, having someone help you load it up, etc. Your friendly retailer also does act as a middleman between you and the manufactureres, distributors, shippers, vendors, etc. They take the brunt of the risk of dealing with defective merchandise, incorrect or delayed shipments, etc. Yes, you pay a little extra for all of the things that your retailer does for you, but in my opinion the retail markup in most cases is very reasonable for the services you get. In most cases, when you get a deal on a purchase, whether from DB or elsewhere, you have to spend a lot of your own time and effort to secure the deal. Often you also accept all of the risk - no warrantly or hard to resolve waranty, etc. For those people that have the time and patience to deal with the direct buy model and who are planning major purchases near term, DB may be ok, but as for me, I am going to continue supporting my local-freindly retailer. Keeps more of my money in my local community, provides local jobs and tax base, and if I have a problem with a product I have purchased, my retailer will usually take care of it without a shred of hassle. My time is valuable, so what little extra I may pay (if any) is well worth it.

7/6/2008 - Mike writes:
Yesterday evening, June 5, 2008, my wife and I attended the Direct Buy presentation in Thousand Oaks, California. I have to concur with most referrals regarding Direct Buy; it's simply not worth it. They charge you $6,000 up front for two years of membership and another $400 per year for the next 8 years. In order to recoup any benefit you then have to spend at least $12,000 in products to get your original investment of $6,000 back because they tell you that you will on average only be paying 50% of the cost of any product because you are buying directly from the manufacturer. The other people giving feedback are right on the mark, you have to decide right then and there and pay them right then and there. The salespeople act as if they are part of a secret illicit society and that only a select few will ever know about this. It feels more like a huge ripoff to make the owner wealthy----just seems like a very bad idea all the way around.

7/6/2008 - Steve writes:
This site has proved to be very entertaining. I also watched the Infomercial and became curious, so I did a Google search and found this site listed just below the DB site link. What I find is 37 pages of complaints vs a handfull pages of praise. I'm sure that depicts a level of accuracy. Bottom line is if it seems too good to be true it probably is! Personally I never buy from anyone I haven't searched out myself (ie) phone, E mail, door to door, or Infomercial sales. I alos don't buy items with coupons that I don't normally use. Remeber the buy now or you'll never ever be invited back for this grandious opportunity, is no different then the iconic used car salesman dressed in palid high waters, suggesting that you don't make enough $$$ for the car you're looking at. Seems this 5k venture has opened up your eyes, keep spreading the word and never ever make the same mistake!

7/5/2008 - Greg writes:
TLDR: DirectBuy is not for everyone, be very aware of what you're signing up for. My wife and I recently attended the DirectBuy open house in Edmonton, Alberta. We actually had a decent initial experience. The customer service representative, [], was kind, straght forward, and professional. He pointed out the various goods and services offered by the Edmonton DB center and provided us some testimonials from local members. I was also pleased by Jerry's honesty in pointing out that not items present large savings, such as home electronics. Yes, the membership fee is significant, approximately $6000.00 for the initial ten years. We knew there would be a high membership fee even before we went to the open house, we did a little bit of web searching prior to attending, but felt the fee would be easily recoverable considering the amount of home furnishings we were looking to purchase for our new home. That evening we took home the quarterly catalogue and attempted to perform some online price comparisons, it was very difficult to find anything based on the descriptions of many of the items in the catalogue, although admitedly, all of the manufacturer names were omitted from the quarterly catalogue. On the items we were able to identify, I was unable to discover any pricing at all. This started to raise some concerns so I performed some additional online research, including this website. I immediately discounted any post that captialized the words scam and ripoff, because I didn't really feel it was. What I looked for were posts by individuals claiming to be members that described their experience as members and that they were not actually saving much money at all. Having worked in an industry that shipped large light-weight items via common carrier, I began to think about how much it would cost to ship a single seven foot long sofa. For those of you who are unfamiliar how freight works a carrier has two ways to charge for freight, actual weight and dimensional weight. Using [] online quote system, I estimated a standard sofa in a box with 6" packing material 96"X48"X40" weighing 150 lbs to be 107 cubic feet, with no special pick up or delivery options shipped from Toronto to Edmonton to be $598.94. Incidentally triangular shaped boxes are still considered cubes for the purposes of dimenstional weight. On a $1500 sofa in a box store, DB claims about 45% markup, so the DB price would be $825.00 plus $600 in freight, plus their handling fee. It's the same or more as buying the sofa from the box store. Let's assume that DirectBuy has negotiated a discount with a common carrier. Having negotiated with carriers myself in a prior occupation, let's say DB receives an discount of 50%. That's still $300 in freight. Add the handling and you're saving, but in my optinon not enough to warrant a $6000 fee for the privilege to do so. Which is why I cancelled our application the very next morning. same example on a $5000 sofa, full price on freight, works out to $3350 plus DB's handling fee. So it is possible to save significantly on some purchases. In all fairness I do not know what DirectBuy's actual freight charges would in the above example, I'm only going off my own experience from having worked extensively with a variety of common carriers. Cancelling the application was an ordeal in of itself. I'll avoid details, but in my opinion no reputable merchant would employ subversive or intimidating tactics to retain a membership of someone who for whatever reason no longer wished to do business with said merchant. Contract wording that makes it difficult or impossible to obtain a refund, full or otherwise, is in my opinion not acting with good faith in the customer-merchant relationship. Know what your rights are and how contract law works in your province or state before you sign anything. My advice would be to go into the open house with a detailed list of manufacturer model numbers and retail prices of all the items you are looking to purchase in the next 12 months and ask for a comparison using their catalogues and draw up an order which will show all of the additional charges so that you are able to do an apples to apples comparison and make an informed decision. Also, when arranging to attend the open house, do not go on a weekday evening, always book a daytime appointment to afford you as much time as possible to review the merchant catalogues before you sign anything. If they have nothing to hide, DirectBuy will not have an issue with this. If they have an issue with you reviewing the catalogues prior to joining and informing you of additional charges on would be purchases, then simply thank them for their time and leave.

7/5/2008 - Geri writes:
I have been a member since 1984 (it was called [] back then). Like anything else one purchases, this membership is obviously not for everyone, especially if you do not do your homework. First, compare apples to apples. One man spoke of cabinets that were not real wood at Direct Buy. A savvy consumer will build a knowledge of specific manufacturers- and you can do this by visiting the retailers in your area. I saved twenty thousand dollars on my [] cabinets over what I could find them for in Knoxville- but they are upper end cabinets, not the [] type. I have bought light fixtures, bedroom & dining room suites, and upholstered furniture for less than I can get them in Highpoint, NC (one of the biggest furniture discounters in the country). But you cannot compre [] with []. One is top quality, the other is little more than plastic. I say all this to say that the people who won't get value out of purchasing a membership are ones that are most likely to purchase their golf clubs at []t,ones who are not able to spend enough time researcing to product before they buy, and ones who cannot visualize the end they are trying to achieve.

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