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9/10/2007 - Edna writes:
I became a member on 9/1/07, wish i would have found this site before I joined. One thing I did want to mention is, after arriving and listening to the speech I was still hesitant. My fiancee and I talked about it outside for approximately 20 minutes at that time, our Director Vanessa came out and asked what the problem was, I said we are discussing it and she tried to make me feel stupid. After not listening to me I had to get rude and state I don't need you to explain it to me but I really need for you to go back inside and let me discuss it with my fiancee. I was told we would get a membership # within 5 to 7 days, well it is 9 and nothing yet. I tried calling the office today and they are closed, so I did the search for an extension by last name and she wasn't listed. I am writing this just in case if I have other complaints, I want to make sure there is documentation and for other people to be able to read what I didn't know about before I signed the agreement. Thanks

9/7/2007 - John writes:
My wife and I had been seeing the Direct Buy commercials here in New Hampshire for quite a while, so when a looming home renovation project (400 sq. ft addition) was getting close we decided to check it out to see if it really WAS this great deal it seemed. I have to admit here that, normally pretty savy consumers, we screwed up on our usual wary-ness on this one. We called them and made the appointment at the central Massachusetts location, the closest one to us (1 1/4 hour drive). After a short period of friendly "chattiness" with the person on the phone, probably the first question she had was asking if we made at least $40,000 a year. We were to be asked that same question REPEATEDLY in our dealings with them. After the initial contact, we received a number of phone calls from them just "helping" us...all of which were very friendly....but kept asking the same information over and over.....and also telling us how much money we could possibly save. We also received a number of pieces of mail from them, again telling us how much we might save. We read it all; lots of "save big" stuff but not much actual information. We arrived at the showroom on Route 9 about 15 minutes early for our scheduled appointment time, and were actually surprised at how small and how "old" the place looked. In fact, we drove right past it the first time because it was NOT at ALL what we were expecting from such seemingly a "high profile" national company. The building was a low brick 1960's-ish industrial looking space that had been adapted to their current office/showroom use, and which was a bit "shabby around the edges". The interior also needed some attention to paint and roof tiles and such. The space itself was not indicative of a highly sucessful national company. When we walked in, the fist two questions out of the receptionist's mouth were "Do you have your invitation?" and then "Do you make at least $40,000 a year?" We then were given a form to fill out that wanted a lot of personal information (AGAIN!), and that asked us what type of work we were planning in the next few years. This info I am SURE was then used buy our salesman to custom tailor his high pressure pitch precisely to us. We sat for a while in the reception area and there was a video loop touting the products and the savings. On the table was a loose leaf binder chock full of glowing customer testimonials. The receptionist got us both a diet Coke, and we waited, looking at a combination of company awarded "Six Gazillion Dollar Merchandise Sold" plaques and "Members only beyond this point" signs. Even though the place was pretty empty of ANY customers, and the staff there outnumbered the customers about 3 to 1, the salesman came out 15 minutes late for our actual scheduled appointment time. I guess Direct Buy's staff's time is more valuable than their potential customer's. By this time, about the third potential red flag was going up the pole. I have had some sales training; I know the techniques. The salesman was good. Very good. That is if you look at the typical car salesman's approach as "good". If I were an auto dealer trying to hire a salesman, I'd hire him; this guy was the type to sell snow to an Eskimo. He was personable, talked a good smooth "rap", and never was left without SOMETHING to say. He was very well prepared with his "spiel" and had numerous options ready in advance no matter what angle the consumer might bring up. It was obvious that he had read the forms that we had filled out because ths pitch was tailored to US. This is probably why he was late; preparing the room we were going to be in with printed stuff that was going to catch our attention. Yes, I'd have to say that Direct Buy has put a LOT of attention into hiring and training their salesmen. If you are a business person looking for a model of high pressure sales, stop by to see how it is done. Among a LOT of other stuff, we got shown a bunch of small consumer goods items that had high markups in the retail store and got told (supposedly) the actual manufacturer's invoice costs. Knowing about some items like this, it likely WAS the actual costs. These items were clearly selected to "amaze" at just how we were getting ripped off at retail. Just before getting revealed "The RULES" of Direct Buy (up til now... we had NO knowledge of the cost or terms), we got worked with the technique of manuvering us toward making the "OBVIOUS" conclusion of agreeing that "anyone who would NOT want to save money like this is obviously totaly stupid". Of course, if we then did NOT join ... we just demonstrated we clearly are a couple of very stupid people. How embarrasing! Once he THOUGHT this beleif was firmly in place, we got taken into a sit down office to get the "THE RULES". At this point it was revealed there were some rules. Most of these made sense for this type of buying club....similar to some others that exist. We also finally got told the PRICE to join. We were quoted it cost $4500.00 for three years, plus an annual fee of about $150.00. We got told there were multiple payment options, but those were not revealed at this time. We were NOT told that we had to make a decision right then in an overt fashion...... the implication was very obtuse...... but my wife and I concluded from the whole approach that was going to be the case. We later asked him point blank to confirm this, and he did. We when stopped talking about price and went on to more of his "sales pitch". We DID get a chance to look at some catalogs and prices, but he told us that we could not, of course, look at EVEYTHING. Somewhere in here we got told that if we did NOT join today, we could not be reconsidered for membership for 7 years. And we were also then shown the payment options. We WERE able to select exactly WHAT we looked at. In our case, we selected some Kohler and Moen catalogs since whe knew the prices of some specific items we had recently purchased for a bathroom remodel. The prices shown there did result in some significant savings...about 40-50% over the big box warehouse home improvement stores. However, from looking at lower end items, the whole system is sort of "skewed" toward the REALLY high end merchandise. Those Kohler items we already used were a small "splurge" for us. If you are the type of person who has the disposable income to buy $80,000 worth of kitchen cabinets, you likely might benefit from joining. You'll quickly earn back your membership and annual fees. Remember that early qualifying question they kept asking? How many families in the $40,000 a year total income category do YOU know that are going to be spending $80K or even $50K on kitchen cabinets? If they do, they'll be in bankruptcy in short order. Seems to me this system is set up to prey on the lower middle income person who is maybe not too savy about financial stuff and gets sucked into the "big savings" potential that really likely is NOT there for them. Because of the way the payment structure is done, Direct Buy has NO INTEREST in whether you buy anything OTHER than the $4500.00 fee on that day. Worse, if you really can't afford this idea, and take that $4500 and do the "convenient" time payment plan they offer (36 months at a whopping 17.5% interest rate), you are then also adding in a huge interest charge every year. And also affecting your credit rating for other purchases. Oh.... we confirmed to the salesperson and all the Direct Buy staff there that we are really stupid people....because we did NOT join. We are WAY over that $40K income range, and we did not feel that it CLEARLY made sense for us. If we had TIME to go home and run some numbers based simply on the typical savings we might have had, we MIGHT have felt different on that point.....but they would not LET us do that. (Decide now or be banished from the kingdom of heaven for 7 long years!) With the high pressure "Impending Doom Close" tactic (a sales standard) combined with the witholding of significant IMPORTANT information until you are a "captive audience", we also REALLY didn't like their way of doing business. It made us wonder what OTHER things they were not telling us and how we would be treated once they had out money. So...... our final thoughts: Direct Buy...... Caveat Emptor! Do your financial homework BEFORE you show up there for the appointment, and know EXACTLY what you will be buying in the coming months/year so you can REALLY make an informed decision if this is right for you. If you are not immune to high pressure tactics, maybe you should stay away. Good luck.

9/6/2007 - Donna writes:
unfortunatly i was sucked in by directbuy also. i am writing this to warn other disabled people to save their money and don't join! i was planning to remodel parts of my home and buy some well needed furniture. i am paralyzed on my left side and can not drive on the freeway. i live 1/12 hrs. from the nearest directbuy so i asked my friend to drive me to the orientation. i suffer from severe pain so needless to say , the drive, the orientation and driving back were almost too much to bare. i was under the impression that i could buy their items off the internet. i thought that would work perfect for me and my situation. well, you know what i'm going to say next.....not!!!!!!!!!!!!!... i had to find a way to go back for the second time to be shown how to read the catalogs..here we go again. but i still thought it would be worth it. when i asked them to tell me how to order over the internet, it was a different story!... it was too late for me to get my money back but i also feel they weren't honest with me. i asked plenty of questions during the first invitation but i feel they just told me what i wanted to hear. i have read many of the complaints and it all sounds too familiar! i live in california and if there is a class action suit, i'll be there with the rest of you. i hope i can save other disabled people their hard earned cash! i lost $6,000.

9/6/2007 - Joanne writes:
I would like to take a few moments and space here to advise everyone and anyone who is contemplating 'Joining" Direct Buy, to not even go to the so called presentation. They have several phases to their sell, the worst being the Video presentation and "Other" memebers testimonials. (I could have just stayed home and watched the infomercial.) I had tried several times to find out the membership fee prior to the presentation and was told over and over again that all of my questions would be answered. They save the punch line to the very end of a tideous, boring, drawn out, presentation, $6,000.00 needed upfront and addiitonal yearly memebrship fees of $199.00 for ten (10) years, at which time possibly another $6,000.00 would be needed. We were also told that we had to sign up and pay the $6,000.00 right then and there and that we couldn't leave to decide or come back Ever, Ever, Never, Ever Never AGAIN???? I felt like a hostage. To make this short, I was even more amazed that Direct Buy actually had a finance arrangment with some company ( unknown name to me and didn;;t quite catch it) But low and behold this finance compnay would be more than willing, in fact, your approval was guaranteed for financing the $6,000.00 membership fee at the rate of 17%- I couldn't get out of the door fast enough, espacially since I was never really allowed to compare any prices in their manufacturers books- Hopfully, someone will read this and realize what a scam they are running and how they are preying on people who cannot aford luxury items. Fortunately my financial situation is stable and good- but there are many people out there that would fall for this, thinking they could get stuff like Plasma T.V.'s, Movado Watches, new furniture, rugs, appliances, and given the opportunity to FINANCE A Membership fee at the rate of 17% !!! OK, just stop yourself and think - do some math - : Direct Buy says thay are saving you at least 30% to 50% You already borrowed $6,000.00 at the rate of 17%, and if you purchase any items - if you didn't have the $6,000.00- you proabably will not be paying cash either-- so you pull out your credit card with a finance rate of about 19% to 26% FOR WHAT???? You just lost $6,000.00 plus 17% and about $2500.00 plus 19 to 26% and then you have to add on the delivery charges, or the truck rental fee to go pick the stuff up from their warehouse- and Oh! No Refunds, ever, on anything. Nice Deal -- Right??? Stay away, save your money and read the newspapers or shop around for your bargins. There is no bargin or benefit of Direct Buy for the average consumer. Possibly, if you are someone who has a twenty room mansion that you are going to completely gut, wnd refurnish with everything from flooring to appliances to rugs, to lighting to whatever, then maybe there is a benefit for you. If you have found a benefit, good for you but bad for everybody else, because You are only enabling a scam to continue to fester and grow.

9/6/2007 - Steven writes:
I live in Lebanon PA and I have a wonderfull story about Direct Buy. See I was the merchant member for Direct Buy of Lancaster PA. We were supposed to serve all the flooring needs for there members. We had a signed Merchant member agreement. and is stated and I quote. We will give Direct buy members a 50% discount for carpet and a 30% discount on all hard surface products IE Tile, hardwood ect ect.last year we did somewhere in the tune of 180K with Direct buy members and we serviced a huge area a member called we jumped we also offered to extend Direct Buy members a full five year installation warranty. Well to make a long story short we were asked to also supply displays as we are a flooring store and have so much more access to different flooring products that Direct buy does. Well I pretty much duplicated the displays I have in my showroom for Direct Buy plus had to pay them a 6% handling fee on all our jobs becouse they wernt getting that from there members who purchased there flooring through us. I spent about 17K in displays for Direct buys new showroom. Well then they wanted me to write out the check for the handling fee to one of the vise presidents instead of Direct Buy itself and when I balked at that they dropped the 6 % handling fee alltogether, great right....NO. A year to the day it was time to renew our merchant member agreement I get a call from the owner who says things have changed .. That if I cant meet or beat national pricing they dont want me selling products that they have national accounts with to there members, Now keep in mind they have my displays and with out telling me there selling off my displays I find this out one day when I go to do a flooring estimate and the member has picked my products that I never gave Direct Buy any pricing on yet but low and behold he had the prices. When I called the owner on this he said well Steve we talked about this and again went over the whole national pricing ordeal. well that was enough for me I cut my connection with Direct Buy and tried to get reimbursed for the displays, yea that wasnt happining we are now closing our doors No its not all Direct Buys fault its been a bad year and business is really slow but that money I expected to get from Direct Buy member sales to pay for there displays ect ect sure would have helped out alot but non the less Direc Buy stuck me with a 17K display bill, Just so everyone knows even at national pricing most stores are cheaper than Direct Buy when they get done with there freight charges handling fess ect ect there more or less $100-200 more expensive than any floor store. Direct Buy screwed me and my business and is a sham for there members and potential members and I woudnt recommend them for anyone. I have numerous Email saved from my dialoge with the Local Direct Buy owner and I would be more than happy to share them with anyone who is interested just Email me @ [] and I,ll see that you get them

9/5/2007 - Susan writes:
Yesterday my fiance, his mother and I attended a Direct Buy seminar yesterday in Woodside, Queens in NYC. Needledd to say they gave us the same show. They lost me after the statement was made that if I didn't sign up I would not be welcome back. I work too hard for my money to make a snap decision of this magnatude. We asked if we had the ability to talk it over and get back to them. The salesperson said "what's there to think about?" When she realized she wasn't going to make the sale she changed from sweet as sugar to tart as a lemon and abruptly got up from the table and walked away to speak with another couple. A true salesperson would want you to have the time to talk it over in the hope of making the sale.This woman was only interested in the immediate money. Needless to say we left without signing up. Don't get caught up in this scam.

9/5/2007 - Todd writes:
August 2007 my husband joined direct buy in RI. Let me tell you this was the bigest scam i've ever seen or heard of. They are great liers and deceivers they really good at it they must have alot of training on how to deceive people. the owner refused to give our $700.00 we paid in cash because when we joined we had to put some money down or we couldnt join that day or ever.. in our way out of the building he(the owner) called my husband an asshole.nice guy and company.. needless to say we are getting our cash back today.They know our layer would more than happy to contact him and his company.

9/4/2007 - Rob writes:
I agree with everything that i have read about Direct Buy They are a company that deserved to be shut down I was lucky enough to have some experience in direct sales when i went in there and when they told me we would never come back it sealed my vow right then and there that i would never become a member. They have a sweet way of talking to you and had i had the money i might of considered it a bit more but 4500 dollars Thats crazy. All those employees have to get paid sometime to. They wouldn't let me look at any catalog which I thought was pretty stupid. Now after reading these things I realize why. Boy am I glad that I didn't get suckered into it. Sure can realize how people do though. They are a bunch of smooth talkers. I was in the process of finishing out my house when i was asked and it all seemed pretty tempting. In my experience with direct sales I learned a few things (I sold air purifiers) If the sales person demands you make a decision today, its a scam. They realize that there product is defective or to expensive and if they give you time to think about it you will back out. If they are confident they will want you to think about it, and feel good about your purchase Another thing i noticed is that the sweeter or outrageous customer satisfaction they show means the more complaints very very true with direct buy. The video they showed had customer just gloating over there buy just crazy and last but not least if its sounds to good to be true it probably is Lets warn all our friends about direct buy, As far as i am concerned they don't have to be in business

9/4/2007 - Jacqueline writes:
We bought the membership and subsequently bought a Rowe microfiber couch. The price was a lot lower than the store BUT three of the cushions were not filled with down like we had ordered and paid EXTRA for. Then direct buy had the NERVE to send us a bill ONE YEAR LATER for extra frieght charges on the product. $140 extra that they claim they has mis-estimated. The people ordering your stuff don't know what they're doing and make mistakes that cost you money. Also, once you add on frieght and shipping, a lot of the stuff is higher than MSRP. Beware!!!!!!!!!!!

9/3/2007 - Mark writes:
terrible time i had wth this company they wanted to take my money didnt care about my question really or my family. i would like to let everyone know about what i went throught.

9/2/2007 - Carla writes:
My husband purchased the membership in June 2007, and I have taken advantage of it a couple of times. To actually make a purchase is a complete hassel. You must have a lot of free time in order to make a purchase.

9/2/2007 - EJ writes:
We made the mistake of purchasing a membership to Direct Buy approximately 2 years ago. In retrospect we should have been tipped off to problems when we were told that if we didn't join the very evening we would NEVER be able to join. They did allow us to view a few catalogues in a specific area of interest before signing up, but were somewhat secretive abaout their "deals." Unfortunately we did join to the tune of $3999, anticipating that we would save more that through our purchases. What we have found is that products are difficult to find in the catalogues, particularly if the product has multiple parts necessary for installation such as plumbing. In addition to the listed Direct Buy price, a shipping and handling fee is charged that, at least in some cases, brings the price above the MSRP. The most recent experience we had was a toilet we ordered on 3/30/07 with an initial delivery date of 7/18/07, which was then changed to 7/24/07. By the middle of August when we still had not received the product we began to investigate. We were told that the toilet came in and was damaged. About a week and a half later they reordered it and it AGAIN came in damaged. At that point (which was past the time our plumbers had been to our home to install the new bathroom fixtures), we cancelled our order and asked for an immediate, full refund. After a couple of days of talking to various people and attempting to talk to the branch owner, we did get a check for the full amount which they had collected on the date of our initial order. I went online and found another company with the very same toilet and the price, including shipping, ended up to be a mere $18.20 more than Direct Buy said they were going to be charging. They also delivered the product in less than 7 days with no damage. The other day I got a bill from Direct Buy for an additional $80.28 for shipping on the same toilet which we never received from DB. When I called they did say to ignore this bill. However, if I compare the price that we would have paid if we had received the toilet through Direct Buy to the price I DID pay to the online store, Direct Buy would have been $62.08 MORE EXPENSIVE than I found online with very little effort. We have also purchased lighting fixtures that have had problems which we have put up with since returning products after signing for delivery there appears to be little recourse on defects. My husband and I have decided that we just chalk this membership up to a very expensive lesson, but if a class-action suit against Direct Buy ever comes up, we would be right there! We have found it to be a complete waste of money!

9/1/2007 - Jan writes:
Please run and hide! Don't buy into this scam as my husband and I did. Direct Buy stopped sending me their catalogs and I called and asked why TWICE! They said both times they would begin sending them again and guess what? They didn't. They got their money from us and they have dropped us.

8/29/2007 - Anonymous writes:
I joined meaning to do a complete remodel on a BR,B apartment. The initiaion fee was steep to be sure but I figure I saved the money. The time and effort is completely another matter. They sucked my brains about call back, less than up and above board suppliers, the web site for shopping is a complete bust, the pix are so small you can't even see what it is they're offing and to try to use it is totally time consuming and frustrating. In addition, no one ever mentioned the 6% handling fee. Which means, that for most things bought, Direct Buy tacks on an additional fee. You could do as well surfing the web for what you want in merchandise without the hassle of going there, putting in a requisition and sometimes being sent to the ass end of nowhere to pick up the stuff you ordered when there is no direct shipping to your home. The experience was a wash. I won't renew.

8/29/2007 - Bob writes:
As a licensed contractor in California and a person who has been around consumers who have purchased memberships and consumers who have not, the misrepresentation of certain aspects like getting cabinets, countertops, flooring etc. WHO IS GOING TO INSTALL THEM once purchased? Direct Buy DOES NOT hold a contractor's license. So THEY can do the install. In the State of CA it is against the law and the business and professions codes to even refer a contractor to do the work. Most average consumers don't know this but in order to even sub work out still must be licensed in that category or hold a (B)GENERAL CONTRATORS licensed. Because how do you know if they know if the sub is doing the job right? It's like going to the Dentist to have them do a colonoscapy. NOT! But still as advertised they even do labor? WHAT? In order to do work or sub the work the contractor MUST be LICENSED in that category. Say doing a backsplash or a tile floor they must possess a C54 license or a B (General Contractor) license. That C54 contractor is NOT allowed to do linolium or wood floors a (C15) and vice versa. YES that goes for even if you own a "retail" store or "selling private memberships". YOU MUST be licensed in that category. So if they are doing this it is illegal. AND the consumer has NO recourse. As a licensed C54 and owner of a retail tile store, not only do I give my customers the same so called "discount" as Direct Buy I sometimes get a better price from my distributor just to beat out Direct Buy and give my customers a better price I can guarantee my labor will be less and that Direct Buy "makes it up" in the labor even if they do get better pricing from distributors them me. And still after giving hundreds of quotes to consumers with and without memberships I get comments of what a rip off and scam Direct Buy is. So buyer beware, and I feel it is my obligation to report my experiences with this so consumers may make a more educated decision.

8/27/2007 - Sharon writes:
After persistent calls to my home and cell phone from Ella, I finally broke down and came in for the tour in Hunt Valley, MD. It sounds like this is the main center with a larger selection than some of the other locations but other than that I was NOT impressed. After the presentation (which I couldn't keep awake through), Courtney the sales guy who greeted me upon arrival looked utterly disgusted when I told him it wasn't worth $5grand considering my new home was almost perfect. Told him IF (BIG IF) I did anything it would be a cabinet and counter job and that I didn't want to do it right now anyway. He asked me why I came and I said to just look. After a while he basically TOLD me that he wouldn't waste anyone's time like that just looking and he didn't just look; he shopped! Said that window shopping is a waste of time... we got waaaay off subject and I got up to leave, upon which he said "well, if $150 or so a month is going to take food out of your mouth I guess you can leave because we wouldn't want to do that." Bastard!

8/27/2007 - Rita writes:
My appointment with the new DirectBuy of Burbank, CA was last Friday. I'm only sorry I didn't think to check the Web first - it would have saved me 3 hours. Those who have ever sat through a timeshare presentation will be familiar with this type of "sales process." The terms I was quoted were $6000 (plus $495 in sales tax) for a 2 year membership, with an option to renew for another 8 years for $300 per year. Having completed most of the major remodeling of my home several years ago, I had real doubts as to whether my savings over the next 10 years would more than offset a nearly $9000 investment. As a test, I insisted on looking at the catalogs for two major items that I was certain I would be purchasing in the next 1-2 years. That's when I discovered what others have reported: the choices among manufacturers was very limited and, among the handful I reviewed, two had handling fees of 8% - which on large purchases is not insignificant. Add to this the inconvenience of having to pay extra for having large items moved from the DirectBuy warehouse to my home and the inability to deal directly with the vendor in case of problems, and I realized why they did not want you to go home and "sleep on it." As the old saying goes, "If it sounds too good to be true,..."

8/26/2007 - Donna writes:
Much to my dismay, my husband and I were taken in by Direct Buy. I was in shock when I was told that our fee to join was $4200.00. I was in shock. We were told that the fee to join was the only income for the company to operate on. Of course, this was on a Sunday and only the sales representative and few other future customers were there. When I went in to look at some catalogues I was in shock how many employees they had. I realized that, no matter how high the intial fees were to join, there was no way they could pay wages for all of the employees I saw working there and knew something was not right with this company. I haven't found anything that is less money there. I even had a friend check a wholesale price for me on a piece of furniture, since we were told that everything was sold for wholesale prices, and it was not near the wholesale price. They lied about that also. They also charge so much for shipping and handling that I think they may be making a profit from that also. Whatever you do, don't join this company. It is a hugh ripoff. If anyone starts a class action suit I will definitely join in on it. Something needs to be done to these people. What they are doing isn't right. They truly misrepresented everything to my husband and I.

8/24/2007 - Laurel writes:
My husband and I went to the Direct Buy warehouse last night. We had building our own home, and wanted to hear abou the great savings we all hear so much about on the TV and radio. The warehouse in North Seattle is in an office park (which I thought was an odd place for a "showroom"). As we went in, an elderly couple were finishing up and trying their key--big surprise--it didn't work! The gentleman just laughed and told his wife they were better off not winning than having to deal with "these people" anyway. THAT was a bit of a red flag, just walking in the door. We were introduced to our "director," Colleen, and sat chatting with her for at least ten minutes. I asked her about the schedule for the evening--just to get a sense of what to expect, and she was vague. The presentation was unbelievably bad: a video of a facially challenged woman and a retired newscaster, punctuated by an over-rehearsed young man in a shiny shirt. We knew we were walking out the door when we heard that we had to make our decision then and there. My husband refered to it as walking the plank. You either decide now--or never--argh! The dues they quoted us were $5,390.00 for three years, but if we paid the full amount we would get a fourth year for free. After that, if we wanted to renew our membership, it would be $200.00 a year. I asked Colleen to explain the pricing gap. 200 x 3 years = 600.00 NOT 5,000.00. What is the reason for that?? She hemmed and hawed (in fact that seemed to be her standard answer for everything) and told us that their market analysis showed that we would realize our greatest savings in the first three years. Now we know how much it costs to save all that money---$5,390.00!! Also--I think I remember hearing Jim Gagin's name connected to some criminal indictment. When I asked Colleen about that, she siad he was never prosecuted! Nice!! Just say NO to Direct Buy!

8/23/2007 - Linda writes:
I saw the product service on tv and thought this would not be for me as it has to be very limited in it's ability to service people like myself who like unusual and higher end products. But since I am remodeling kitchens and bathrooms and adding an additon, I thought I should find out. The sign up process made it feel like one was getting into fort nox, I'm single and although I do not have a spouse, I'm not sure what difference it would make, like a man is needed to make the final decision, give me a break. I asked if my mother could come who is is involved with the remodel, they said no. They said no children, I got a sitter and when I arrived three younger children were milling around. They said three days in a row, it will take two hours, show up 10 minutes early. I got there, the place was empty besides one guy and one couple all doing remodeling of kithchens. I knew when I walked in the place was not for me. It was very limited in the kinds of companies they represented, only two kitchen cabinet manufacturers (not of the best quality) one tile manufacurer and floor product company. Most of the products were not displayed but there were hundreds of books\. We were ushered into the presentation that was delivered in the style of being presented to morons. The last step was it's defense of why and how they are charging their fees, which was 5 grand. I thought it would be more like 1 grand but was taken aback at that. I then thought it was funny how they arrived at it by showing some stupid demagraphics of how much people earn, how they spend, and how much expendible income they have. Luckily I had spent a good 15 minutes discussing my project, the selected products, finishes etc and the fact that I usually shop and get discounts do to my involvement as a designer or buy on sales which most stores have now. Most kitchen and tile stores have far more selections on how they advertise themselves as having all the major brands even after questioned by phone. Afterwards we were not allowed to look at any of the books but ushered to tables to make up our minds about joining. I thought it was really in bad taste that one had to decide then or else you could not come back, and all based on some stupid notion that you would tell the retail stores about the discounts that you were never allowed to actually see and compare until you wrote the check. Lucky for me I shop and know the prices. I was taken to a seprate table and asked to give a list of what I needed in appliances, cabinets, windows, floors, which I did. None of the products I wanted were on their lists and in fact some of them are even available in the larger specialty commercial design stores like []. The sales person had not even heard of some of the appliances I was interested in. So I easily was not pressured into the membership which I would not have paid. if one is a consumer of the major brands, has more mainstream tastes and buys things like standard sets of ugly furniture, sets of china, watches and rooms of TV's and plans to over a long period of time then I guess this place if for them but the false pretense leaves little to applaud and the presentation smells of a scam.

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