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4/3/2008 - Glorya writes:
One observation both my husband & I made during the Direct Buy "open house" we attended was that the people the sales person referred to as "current members" who were in the showroom "shopping" actually appeared to be people hired to pose as member shoppers. One man was sitting in the same spot gazing at the same page in a catalog of wall mirrors with a blank stare when I walked past him about 45 minutes later. OTher supposed "member shoppers" seemed to move as robots. Eery! When my husband & I attempted to look at a appliance catalog to see what manufacturers & models they offer, the saleman snapped out of our hands & helled at us. We quickly walked out & are not sad that we will not be invited back for ten years.

4/3/2008 - gretchen writes:
on November 11th i visited a direct buy show room that is located in Davie Florida .WE WANTED TO WHAT WAS DIRECT BUY AND EXACTLY WHAT THEY DID WE WERE SHOWN AROUND THEN WE WERE TAKEN IN THE BACK TO ANOTHER ROOM WHERE WE WERE TOLD OF THE TREMENDOUS SAVINGS WE WOULD BE ENTITLED TO .WE WERE TOLD THAT WE WILL BE ABLE TO GET MERCHANDISE FOR EXACTLY WHAT THEY WERE PURCHASED FROM THE MANUFACTURER FOR.WE THEN ASKED IF WE COULD SHOP AROUND AND THEN COM BACK WE WERE TOLD THAT WE WOULD NOT EVER BE ABLE TO RETURN AND THAT WE HAD TO PURCHASE MEMBERSHIP RIGHT AWAY I HAD ONE THOUSAND DOLLARS ON ME AND I GAVE IT TO THEM .2 WEEKS AFTER THIS I CONTACT THEM AND THEY TELL ME I AM NOT ABLE TO GET MY MONEY BACK I HAD 2 DAYS IN WHICH TO TRY AND GET MY MONEY BACK.I KEEP CALLING THEY TRANSFER ME FROM DEPARTMENT TO DEPARTMENT .THEY HAVE NOW GIVEN MY PHONE NUMBER TO A BILL COLLECTOR WHO KEEPS CALLING ME TELLING ME THAT I NOW OWE THEM 4 THOUSAND DOLLARS .AND WHAT MAKES IT EVEN WORSE THE PRICES ARE EXACTLY THE SAME AS THE OTHER STORES OR EVEN MORE EXPENSIVE I WOULD LIKE TO HAVE MY MONEY BACK AND SOMETHING NEEDS TO BE DONE ABOUT THEIR LIES AND STEALING HABITS

4/3/2008 - Karly writes:
I got a call from Direct Buy saying that my husband I have had our name drawn and had the chance to win $50,000 in cash or a $50,000 home make over. All we had to do was go to the showroom and listen to the 90 minute presentation. For showing we would also get 2 prizes. We thought about it and decided to go. WHAT A WASTE OF TIME! We knew going into the thing that we wouldn't sign any contract. For 1 because we are renting an apartment and don't plan on building a house anytime soon if EVER. And 2 because we knew we wouldn't be able to afford the sign up fee. But.... we still went just to try and win the "grand prize". After sitting through the mind numbing presentation where people talked at us like we were in 3rd grade... We were finally herded out to talk to a sales person. The sales person was VERY pushy. She was friendly enough, but still very pushy and insistant that DB was the best thing for us. Even if we don't use it for 3 years... we'll have it in the future after we move out of our apartment, and it will be all paid for and waiting for us to make our first big purchase weather it be electronics, appliances, furniture, gym equipment, ect ect. We tried explaining to her that we could not do it right now and might be interested in a few years. But the fact that we had to sign up today or lose it forever was very disheartening. But that it just "wasn't the right time for us". She wouldn't stop insisting we NEEDED it. We asked for some time alone to discuss it (mainly to try and figure out a way to GET OUT OF THERE!)... When she left us alone, we noticed a small microphone looking object taped to the window seal right next to the table they told us to sit at. At that moment we felt violated and repulsed. We weren't sure why the microphone was taped there, but we had had enough. When the sales rep returned we told her we weren't interested. She again insisted we re think it, and proceeded to offer to get her General Manager over to see if he could help us out. He came over, telling us stories about his wife and family and how wonderful DB is and how much money we'll save. After seeing the numbers AGAIN, and how much it was goin to cost us... I finally shook his hand, said no thank you, and got up to leave. At that point the sales rep became rude, and practially rushed us out the door. She didn't even wait for us to get up from the table. She just said "I'll meet you over there" and got on her cell phone. After we made our way to the front, she tossed some papers and what not n our hands and took off in the blink of an eye. I don't blame her. We obviously weren't going to sign. But GEEEEEZ!!! All I can say is I am so so so glad we didn't try and kill ourselves to be able to afford DB. I'll never go back there (Not like I could apparently)

4/3/2008 - Mary writes:
I have been a member of Direct Buy for almost a year. It was the worst mistake of my life. Let's rewind and go back to the begining. After watching an informercial on TV I called the number and then the harassing began. First I was harrassed, receiving 9 phone calls in 2 days. Finally after a pushy sales person forced us to go in that week my husband and I went into the showroom for a tour. Mind you we had to get a babysitter. The pushy salesperson told us it would be a 90 minute presentation. We were there for more than 3 hours. First we were greeted by acocky girl who was very rude. She said we must fill out this survey before continuing. They asked our income and what we were looking to do to our home. After 3 other couples showed up we were all herded into a tiny room like cattle. We watched 3 videos, and the girl told us how much money we could save. After this little seranade we were given the price of the membership and told we had to make our decision that night. My husband and I were building a home and thought this could really save us a lot of money. We did not like the fact that we HAD to make our decision that night. But we did. Once again, the biggest mistake of our lifetime. We completely wasted over $5,000. We tried to order cabinets, and there was a 3 week wait just to set up an appointment with a cabinet designer. Then it took 8 weeks to get our cabinets in, which were the WRONG SIZE. Took another 8 weeks to get back the right cabinets. OH and lets not forget the 8% handling fee that is charged on every order!!! This is where they make their money. I have tried to cancel my membership but there is a 3 day period where you can. DIRECT BUY IS A SCAM. Take it from someone who is a member. Do yourself a favor and DONT EVER TOUCH FOOT IN A DIRECT BUY SHOWROOM!

4/3/2008 - Christine writes:
I got a call yesterday to set up an appointment for an open house at the new Direct Buy showroom in Cleveland. I asked the very friendly salesperson what products or manufacturers did Direct Buy represent. He told me he couldn't tell me that. I know this is a high pressure sales effort - but that's ridiculous. Why would you give anyone the time of day when they won't even tell you what products they are selling. "Duh" is right - I don't think DB is on the up and up.

4/2/2008 - eddie writes:
Just for the record, when I did compare real prices for goods I had already researched, the prices were EXACTLY the same as regular retail. And that was BEFORE all the crazy shipping. What a shame. . . .the idea of a actual direct buy club is so possible, but unfortuneately that's NOT what's going on here. . .VERY upsetting to say the least!

4/1/2008 - Charlie writes:
My friend & I 'wandered' in to DB and after seeing the infomercials we though that we could just look around a bit to decide if this were for each of us (our husband's weren't with us). We walked right in & were practically tackled by sales people that wouldn't let us look. They made an appointment for us instead. My appointment time is in 1 hour from now.... can I say THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU to all who have made postings with your stories. When I left the facility I wondered why it was so empty inside, LOTS of catelogues, but now I understand thanks to all of the posts. No, I am most definitely NOT DB material! I hope that for your sake you run, not walk away when they call on you!

4/1/2008 - Marilyn writes:
Last evening my husband and I attended a DirectBuy "Open House." As other testimonials, we were initially separated from the larger group and assigned a sales rep. Then the larger group was assembled to view the sales pitch with testimonials. Somewhat impressive, lots of general information, but little true cost vs. membership fee information. Following the presentation, my husband and I were taken away by the same sales rep and asked to answer some questions. One of the questions was "how do you think you would use this service and what would be the benefits for you?" At this time I began wondering how anyone could assess the "actual benefits to you" having never used the service or done basic price comparisons. Following the question and answer dialog, we were asked if we were interested in becoming members and, if so, how would we pay the $6490 three-year membership! (Remember this is California now and even with the higher cost-of-living here, the $6490 fee seemed ridiculous.) Upon replying that we could write a check, the sales rep calmly informed us that our decision to join or not join had to be made on the spot. Duh, run don't walk to the nearest exit! I tried to explain to the sales rep how unfair I felt their demand to "pay now" was and truly believe that this hard sell technique is very unattractive. At this point, the integrity of DirectBuy plummeted in my estimation. No one should be told that unless you commit "now" you will not be allowed to become a member later - or ever. Fortunately we left without hesitation or a doubt in our mind. During our ride home, we discussed the reality of recouping the initial $6500 fee, and what, if any, recourse you would have if DirectBuy were to close the local showroom. Yes, we were told you could shop online, but sometimes you actually want to touch the item you are purchasing. Do your own research prior to attending the hard sales pitch. Additional fees (handling and freight costs) most certainly will dramatically increase your true cost factor. Unless you plan to purchase substantial items, your initial membership fee is your hard-earned money down the drain. When you hear the little bells going off in your head that say this is a hard-sell, run and don't look back!

3/31/2008 - Matt writes:
My 70+ year old Mother fell into their trap. As we're going to renovate our new home, I thought I'd ask her about it. I was shocked to learn how much she paid up front just to be allowed to shop there. She's never been able to buy what she wants as she's on a limited income. I'm not happy with any company that takes my Mom for a ride. I am a sales person who has sold almost every product you can name. So I'm entitled to say "Shame on you DB. And shame on the sales people for their strong arm selling tactics."

3/29/2008 - Camille writes:
All I can say is WOW! I went for the "presentation" pitch two days ago. First, I did not go with my husband who happens to travel and lives in another State. They allowed me to attend without him after I convenienced them I make the decisions in my house -- about our purchases. Like all the other postings I've read, the people were extremely friendly when I arrived. The person who was my pitch person for the day was chatty and used the personal "me too" approach. After our getting acquanted session, I was ushered into a room with several couples who were just as anxious as I was to hear about all the money we would be saving. The presentation was good and I could tell we were all excited about our saving -- until she told us the membership cost, which was $4800!! We went out to our individual tables after the prestation to be assaulted and baggered into joinging "now, right now!" I was tempted (hadn't even thought about going on line to check them out BEFORE I went) but scared to plunk down the "low down payment" at that time. It wasn't until that moment that I found out "NOW OR NEVER!!" Somebody upstairs was looking out for me because I finally passed - I admit reluctantly - and went back to the office. I talked with co-workers and was beating myself up for not taking the "EXCELLENT DEAL" even though I was suspicious about the "do it now or you can't apply agian for 7 years!" WHAT?? I came home, still thinking about it and tonight found this site!!! OH MY GOSH...this is a life saver. I am always teaching my kids that "if it sounds to good to be true..." you know the rest. Or, if it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, quacks like a duck...it must be a DUCK and not a MIRACLE. Direct Buy is a scam. They play on your intellegence and have learned how to make the most confident and self-assured person feel stupid. It is not you. It is them. My pitch lady kept saying, "if you don't buy or are not sure it is a good deal, then it only means I haven't done my job well to convenience you." I found myself reassuring her that it wasn't her -- it was me. ME?? I just kept thinking about paying $150 a month for the next 36 months. Think of it this way. If you have $4800 to shell-out right now, or even a $1,000 down payment, then go buy what you want with the cash and make your own deal. Money still talks and if you have cash in hand at a furniture store, they WILL make a deal. When DIRECT BUY CALLS --- run the other way, don't answer, or tell them you will report them to the Better Business Bureau for being a scam. I am thankful all I lost was two hours of time, but like everything else, there is a lesson to be learned in everything you do. This was my "light bulb" moment and my lesson was: ALWAYS do research BEFORE you go meet anyone wanting to part you from your money.

3/27/2008 - Carol writes:
My Husband and I went to a Direct Buy presentation today in NJ. What A Racket! We both immediately felt like a timeshare pitch was coming. We both know our prices and the first person we spoke to claims he could have saved us a 1000 dollars on the kitchen we did but did admit we got a lot for our buck. Then the 6th grade video presentation with the next guy..Booriinng!!! Then they slip in the memebership. cost in between more boring videos, because by now your half asleep anyway......Guess they think NJ has money because we were given the great price of $5990. to join! But then they played more video and I heard the 8% handling fee and all warranties are thru the manufacterer of your product. So now I have to get the merchandise to my home and fight with the manufacterer directly if down the road I have a problem! No thank you. We didnt even stay for the sales pitch after that. I said sorry Im not impressed and we left! What A SCAM!!

3/27/2008 - Habiba writes:
I saw the captivating, almost to good to be true infomercial about Direct buy on tv and call in for more information. Before I knew it I was invited to an open house and sweet talked by an associate into believing I could get EVERYTHING I needed from personal products and apparel to toys and home apliances. The fact that I was bulldozed into making an on the spot descion with the threat that it was a "one time offer" did not help. To make matters worse, though I was told to read the contract the associate kept up a convincing argument throughout the process that distracted me. I was not told my contract would be sold and now I find myself making huge montly payments while paying stupendous finance charges for services I just can't use! My appeals to the "owners" to let me off the "sentence were met with incredible coldness which wasn't shown when they were trying to get me to sign up!!If ANYONE can show me a way out of this trap which has put my family in a hole I would be soooo appreciative

3/27/2008 - Carl writes:
No need to repeat all the negative comments below. They tell the real story. Do not waste your money with DirectBuy. They have a limited range (despite "700" suppliers), are not cheaper than retail (after adding on the extras), and you have to wait for weeks to get the goods. For this priviledge, you get to donate $5000 to the coffers of DirectBuy. I asked for a refund as soon as I had a chance to have a look at their Actual Catelogues/prices (5 days after signing and paying) but obviously was told that they would not do that. Stay away from these Guys!!!

3/26/2008 - Anthony writes:
My wife and I are senior citizens and since we live on a fixed income, we were looking for a way to make our income have greater buying powder, WRONG. Our first experience with Direct Buy was,purchasing a pair of recliners. Since we were so sure that Direct Buy would beat any other suppliers, we purched a pair. Later after seeing adds in the newspapers and on TV we realized we were sold a bill of goods. We plan to remodel our kitchen starting with the flooring. After pricing the product at Direct Buy, then at other suppliers, we found the other suppliers had much better pricies. The bottom line here is, that after paying $4264.31 to have the privliage of buying through Direct Buy, we realized we were misled. I hope this will help other old folks like us not to fall for their BS. They should be investigated and made to reimburse the fees paid by so many.

3/26/2008 - Tom writes:
We purchased a membership to directbuy of Spokane several months ago. We are building a new house and thought we would save money on several items. I must say the customer service once you become a member is about as poor as I have ever seen it. They are more interested in getting new members than they are in helping the ones they have. If you do not live in the town where your directbuy is I would highly recommend that you not join. Trying to get them to respond to you via phone or e-mail takes literally weeks and that is if they respond at all. We started the process months before our house was going to be built and we will have to push the start date back at least six months because of their lack of customer assistance. I think this would be a very good investment if you lived and had time to visit the showroom but believe me not if you have to travel to them. Hope this helps others.

3/26/2008 - nita writes:
My husband and I went to see this in jan/07 after believing them we signed up $495 credit card and the balance $4,000 in payment from Beta Finance. We went home and discovered the Direct Buy was not as it was represented to us first we couldn't even get on the membership page. I called and told them we didn't want this because it was all a lie. After 2 mos. 2/6/07 they finally saw they had the wrong email address. I finally 2 mos later received the welcome package. We went on the internet alot and tried to use the Direct Buy but they had nothing we were asking for. I got so tried of calling & faxing long distance to get them to Help me. Todate they still do not have what we want. How do you get out of this? I reported it to the Attorney General, Better Business ect. I am now stuck with rude people called Beta Fince calling me on my cell phone and even at my work. How can we stop this? HELP!

3/26/2008 - Kibs writes:
Thank you to everyone who took the time to tell us their experience. I've seen the informercials, logged onto the site and tried to set up an appointment. Due to scheduling issues, we kept having to reset the appointment date and each time the sales person would insist on repeating the same stuff on the company. The question regarding my marital status and that I MUST attend with my husband was a HUGE turn off. Also the fact that the sales person wouldnt give me information on the membership fees over the phone, that I could only get that at the meeting. I told her to forget it and take my name of the lise. Its a very clever push because until reading this site, i was still thinking that maybe I missed out on a great membership club for discounted housegold items. Good to know that it wasnt worth my time.

3/25/2008 - Evangeline writes:
I almost fell for it! I went to their site and signed up to see the showroom. Later that day I got a call from the Chesterfield Mo office. The lady set an appoitment and said she sent me email and some pass in the mail, never got either. I thought maybe I deleted the email and that my crackhead postal lady might have lost it. Now I know she never sent nothing. I got it for me and aunt so we can both go and check out the merchandise. Ok. The time comes to go and my aunt decided that she wanted to cancel and set up another appointment. I called told the lady and she said to leave a message with customer service. Did that. Left a message. Now when I called back to let her know that I would not be showing up she said ok. She calls back and check this out, she does not say hello or goodevening nothing like that. She calls and says who is this, as if she knows me. I said who the hell is this you called me. She hangs up. Calls back and ask, may I speak to Evangeline, I says yeah and asked her did she just call here and ask me who is this, I was hoping she would lie so I can have a reason to go off. She did as planned. I said lady, I got caller I.D. She dismissed that and went on to say, will you be coming tonight. I said lady, we already discussed this. I can not make it tonight and I wanted to make another appointment. She said oh. I said yeah. She then says you wanna make it for friday. I said no friday is not good how about Monday. She says well if you can not come now you wont be able to apply for 7 years. I said OMG! Like I was concerned, and then added, you seemed to mistake me as a person who give a flying F^&&k! Hung up. She calls back and tries to curse me out. I just said if you call me back again I am going to show up and dot your eyes, now try me! I have not heard from her since. Don't expect to. I thought I would do some seaching on the company and found this site. I am sooo glad I did. I can see myself having a stroke dealing with these people and my money, not to mention the service. I am glad I did not go. If I want crappy stuff, I can order from FGRHT!

3/25/2008 - Bill writes:
ATTENTION!!! READ THIS !!! I was scammed by DB. I was mad as I'm sure you are. Now is the time to strike back. First, if you placed your "membership fee" on your credit card, call your credit card company right now and put the charge in dispute. Second, write your local Better Business Bureau and tell them what happened. You would be surprised what power they have. You can find their phone and address online. Don't stop now! Write you states attorney general (indianaattornetgeneral.gov). The United States Attorney General. The Federal Trade Commision. I recently did this and got my money back. These agencys have never heard there was a problem. If nobody writes, they have no idea there is a problem. I urge you all to stop what you are doing and write these letters now. Direct Buy must be put out of business now!!! You wouldn't want a family member to get stuck, why a stranger? Yes, you can make a difference. Good luck!

3/24/2008 - Mark writes:
I went to a presentation in Houston Texas. After viewing the show I said I was not going to buy today that I always think about these things.We are talking about a lot of money. The attitude changed and I was shown the door.I ask to see a copy of the contract and was refused. This is a scam big time. Do not fall for this.

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