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7/19/2007 - Rav writes:
I got suckered in. I've been shopping for a bathroom remodel fixtures. I'm extremly disapointed in the prices. I found alot of items in a retail store priced cheaper than cost and thats not including 8% handling, Shipping and Tax. I'm having to buy my Kohler stuff from []. The items I was looking at aren't considered cheap either, with the $$$ sign. There is a Law against this. Put me down for class action law suit against this company. If you file a complaint with your credit card company, they'll take note and with everyone complaing to their credit card compaines eventually the credit card companies wont take any more business transactions from direct buy. I want out of this contract with Direct buy.

7/19/2007 - Christine writes:
Like everyone else, my husband and I were first intrigued by the TV commercials. I called and we received an invitation to one of their presentations. And we sat through the same schtick and video. I noticed that most of the couples were older and one wife looked way excited, as in "Let's take out our checkbook and get in on this now!" The idea of saving money is great, but the initial price of the membership, almost $6,000, was just way too much. I'm glad we walked away and I shudder to think about the other couples that probably signed up and will most likely deal with the horror stories that are coming out now.

7/19/2007 - Tracy writes:
My husband and I joined DB of San Antonio a little less than a year ago. We were about to start building a new house, and we could easily see how we could recoup our membership fee. It took longer than expected to get the house started, so we didn't end up placing any orders until May 2007. We ordered a sofa, two ottomans and a cocktail table. Compared to retail, the savings were 100%, so it was a great deal. However, when the furniture arrived (on time, to their credit), the sofa had a tear in the leather and one of the ottomans had a serious flaw in the leather in a very visible place. Now, our understanding of the 8% handling fee they charge on most orders is for them to (1) receive your merchandise; (2) inspect the merchandise; and (3) be your advocate with the manufacturer to replace damaged merchandise. To put it mildly, it's been a clown act from the start. For every time I've talked to their warehouse manager (who's in charge of handling damage claims), I've had to call 3 or 4 times. He dodges most of my calls, and when I do speak to him, he tells me the excessive delay in replacing my furniture is the manufacturer's fault since they want to repair the damages. I emphatically stated that I was not willing to accept repaired merchadise as new, and that I expected DB to earn their 8% by using their muscle with the mfg. and order me new furniture. By this time, we had been waiting around a month for a resolution. I was told that the local DB owner had given his permission to order me new merchandise, only to find out 2 weeks later (yesterday) that the merchadise was not ordered at all and that they were STILL trying to get Ashley, the mfg., to replace it at no cost. I finally had to get a higher up manager on the phone and threaten to get my attorney husband involved to get them to pay attention. How sad. I believe that DB has the ability to save consumers money, but after an experience like this, that seemingly has no end in sight, I truly regret becoming a member. I have so many more items I wanted to order from them for my new home, but after this horrible experience, what's next? We order tile that comes in cracked and they tell me they can glue it back together???

7/19/2007 - Jim writes:
My wife and I visited the local DirectBuy showroom after hearing it advertised by the couple on the morning show of the local 50,000 Watt Chicago talk radio station. We listened to their propaganda, and basically, I made the decision that I'm NOT going to commit to spend $5000 in a one hour meeting...ever. I make well above the median income. Still, $5,000 is a hell of a lot of money. It was an easy decision for us to decline membership and I'm glad we did. Based on the other comments here, it seems each location is charging different rates. We were told the first 3 years would cost a total of $4900. After that, the following 7 years will be $200 for each year. The showroom was not at all what I imagined it would be. It was small and cluttered...but clean. Not any worse than a typical retail establishment, I suppose. I guess I thought the place would be bigger. Anyway, we're looking to buy furniture and I really can't see buying a couch I can't sit on and touch first. Yes, I'm sure retail establishements make good profit. As much as I despise salesmen, I recognize the fact that they need to eat too. I don't know...if I spent $1M or more to establish a retail store, I'd expect to get some return on that investment. There's nothing wrong with that. It's the American Way!! DirectBuy's story about why you must join NOW is complete bullcrap. They told us that unreasonable people would take the DirectBuy prices to the retailers and demand the same prices...or threaten to go join DirectBuy. They claimed this situation would cause the retailers to get angry at their suppliers for doing business with DirectBuy. First, you'd have to be an idiot to think that ANY retail store would sell you anything for their cost. I don't work for free...do you? Secondly, if DirectBuy is so open and honest, why wouldn't they give you the freedom to come and go as you like? I'll tell you what...if my brother, friend, co-worker, etc told me he paid $5,000 to be a member of anything, I'd think they was scammed. That's another good reason not to join.

7/19/2007 - Patrice writes:
My husband and I have been reeled in. I too are waiting for furniture to arrive. It just feel uncomfortable. I would love to join in on a class suit.

7/17/2007 - Alma writes:
I recently joined Direct Buy when a sales person convinced me that I would save on the cost of materials for remodeling my basement. I have had problems with the few items I purchased so far, and I actually spent more on tiles than if I had gone to a local hardware store. I ordered a washer and dryer and the delivery company has yet to show up with them. On four separate occassions I was told they would be delivering them to my house; the contractor or myself were around for each scheduled delivery date and tiem and when they did not show up the fourth time I compalined, and they returned the washer and dryer to the manufacturer claiming that I rejected the delivery. I am stunned. It has been more then 5 weeks since I am without a washer and dryer and now Direct Buy will not return my calls. Does anyone know how I can get out of this costly membership legally? I have a monthly payment plan. And as someone else has written, I would be very interested in a class action suit. Unfortunately, I did not know about this site until a friend advised me to check. How can we get media attention to let people know they are being scammed?

7/16/2007 - Barbara writes:
After seeing a TV advertisment for Direct Buy in Mountain View Ca, my husband and I sent for the invitation to attend a presentation to join-First of all they assign a grandmotherley salesperson to you who refuses to answer your questions and then instructs you to first watch the video which will "explain everything". You then are taken to a room with several other folks to watch the most boring and redundent video I have ever seen. Then when you are exhausted from watching this hogwash, your original salesperson swoops in to corner you once again and put the pressure on to join "now for the tidey sum of $6,800-" Of course if you do not decide in the moment to do this, the chance is lost forever-The way they justify having you decide then and there is that you might leave and put pressure on sellers to lower their price etc etc etc.- I am shocked that this kind of outfit is allowed to be in business-If anyone knows of a way to expose this sham please share it with all of us.

7/16/2007 - Sandy writes:
I remodel and sell houses for a living. We have been very successful in that we find bargains on the materials we install. I joined Direct Buy thinking that I could recoup the initial investment in one high-end home we are working on now. I WAS WRONG!!!! My partner said not to join, but I was guaranteed that I would save money over any "retail" stores and even E-Bay! I thought for sure that I would save money on something, but after at least six visits and probably 16 hours of labor intensive catalog shopping, I HAVEN"T SEEN ONE DEAL. I hate that everything takes so long to get shipped, that there is a handling fee, that there is tax and shipping on top of the "discount" off suggested retail which NO company really uses. This is a scam to the max. DON't join. I would be interested in a class action law suit for false advertising. It just is a lie. I would have loved to use the $5000 for a beautiful new countertop which I am getting locally for less than the Direct Buy associate offers. Let's get this stopped. I am so angry I was lied to and hooked.

7/15/2007 - Sean writes:
My wife and I endured the hour long sales pitch, which proceded along as most have described here. I will say that we never felt the high pressure tactics, but it was made clear that you only had one chance to join. Prior to signing on the dotted line we did not research potential complains, but I also knew that in PA, like most states we would have three days to withdrawl our contract. I read the complaint on this and other sites upon returning home from the presentation, and began to think about many of the shortcomings I failed to see originally - such as the fact that the third day (for cancelling the contract) conveniently fell on the one day the Direct Buy showroom was closed; or the fact that we would not have Internet access to products and pricing until four days after our contract went through (again after the 3-day buyer's remorse period expired); and finally the fact that we were closely guarded from looking through any catalogues while in the showroom, except those that our salesman would retrieve on our behalf. After reading several reports that stated the online pricing, with added handling fees, shipping fees, taxes, etc. were no better off that other Internet sources (in many cases) we decided there was too much risk involved and went back the following day to cancel the contract. While the Direct Buy manager did ask why we wanted to cancel, there was no attempt to dissuade us at all, and he gladly made a copy of the signed release form, which is on the backside of the original contract (for those who noted they did not receive one). It seems that I've read several reports from consumers that installed kitchens through Direct Buy and were thrilled with the savings. Unfortunately we have no need for a new kitchen as our home is only a year old. I'll never know if we could have realized the potential savings, but on average we figured that we would have to spend $15K just to make up the $5K+ investment. We'll take our chances elsewhere.

7/15/2007 - Robert writes:
We went for presentation in Fort Worth, Texas. We thought this might be a good idea since we were buying a new house, starting fresh and planning to supply it totally with new furniture, appliances and such. When we got to the show room, it is much like they say where they show you books to look through, you never get to touch and feel the merchandise you would buy. Basically it is catalog sales. Just prior to the presentation we heard a couple find out the buy in amount and that stopped us in our tracks at $4995. OUr sales person told us that if we looked at what we could save we would understand. She refered to a bedroom set that retail was $6500 and with Direct Buy could be $3000. But I said well if I give you $4995 that bedroom set now cost me $7995. We left promptly. In the following weeks after purchasing our home we were able to totally furnish our home by shopping, feeling and wheeling and dealing with sales people to where we spent just slightly over $6000 for a bedroom set, living room set, dining room set and buffet, washer & dryer and refrigerator. All you need to do is shop, ideally have cash in hand because that makes the sales price drop. Stay clear of Direct Buy.

7/14/2007 - Vince writes:
We are remodeling a home in MA and a home in NJ. We joined the local NJ Direct Buy after going through their high pressure sales pitch and paid $5,000. We are very disappointed in both of the Direct Buy centers. We can not get timely quotes, Prices are not as they represented and in general we have not seen anywhere near the savings that they represent. After they tack on their delivery and handling fees the prices are usually over most other discount retail outlets. Delivery times for Direct Buy items is usually much longer that through other distributors. Service through other distributors is usually much better also. DB has the highest shipping charges that we have seen. The statement that they get manufacturer prices iis false. In our estimation, Direct Buy is not worth the time or money. We would never consider renewing this membership. I would be interested in joining a class action suite against DB to retrieve the $5,000 we paid to join.

7/12/2007 - Cynthia writes:
My naive partner called these clowns after viewing one of their ads. I was on vacation and received a call from my partner explaining how she needed information from me to set up a Direct Buy appointment. Immediately, my hackles rose. On the phone, they had already applied high pressure techniques without mentioning all the high fees involved. When I returned from vacation, I found Direct Buy had called many times every day since my partner had called them. In an effort to warn them about calling us, I tried to call the number that showed up on my caller ID, only to discover that the number had been disconnected. That only served to heighten my suspicions. A few hours later, a young woman called back to insist we schedule one of the infamous show room appointments about which I had read on the internet. I told her not to call us again. She became condescending and insulting when I explained my naive partner had mistaken them for a legitimate business. She said how could I say such a thing. When I explained how I researched their reputation on the internet, she said how pathetic I was for believing anything I read on the internet. At that point, I started to point out she was dealing with an educated consumer who holds a PhD and who did not appreciate being condescended to by someone who earns a living ripping off unwitting consumers. Somewhere during that speech, I heard her hang up on me. I suppose she was too ignorant or greedy to realize her internet theory cuts both ways, since her company uses the internet to drum up business. If you see one of Direct Buy's infomercials or ads, keep channel surfing. Don't go near their showrooms!

7/11/2007 - Lisa writes:
If you are deciding to join Direct Buy, in the NJ area, run like hell. This is the biggest most aggravating BS going. When they get you in their showroom for there high pressure sell tactics it's join or don't. If you are that great and have nothing to hide, why the pressure? During their sales pitch, it is never mentioned that there are extremely high freight charges, a 6% handling fee, then to top it off, they charge you a 3% fee, to use your credit card. The 3% fee, must be paid in cash or by check. Now, when it comes to there products well make sure your really ask what manufactures they have, because they do not sell all the brand names that most people are looking for. No Thomasville, no John Deer lawmovers, you have to spend your day there going through there catologs if you can find the one you are looking for. Further more the hours in the NJ showroom suck. How can you afford to pay there membership fee, which is not cheap and take off from work to spend your time there. Then it takes 3 to 5 weeks to get your merchandise. But first you have to own a van or truck depending on what you are purchasing to pick it up. As for the staff, I have seen kindergarders with higher IQ's. If you do not want to get frustrated and hurt someone this is not the place to be looking for bargains and saving money. You will be mad as hell, and probably like to kick yourself in the ass for joining. I know that the few times I have been at the showroom, as see these poor people who are there for there high pressure sales pitch I would like to tell them, save your money and go to your local retailer. Talk to your retailer it is amazing what you can work out. If I was lawyer, I would have a civil suit against this company to try to regroup everyones monies who has had the same frustrating experience. Again, run like hell as this is not a bargain. It will take you until you are in your grave to regroup your monies.

7/10/2007 - Jim writes:
Hey all, I just returned from a 3 hour presentation from DirectBuy. When I walked in the door of my home, I went straight to the computer to find out if their were any testimonials against DirectBuy. I wish I had visited this site before we drove an hour to listen to their spill. If I had visited this site I would not have wasted an evening. We did not join, and I have no regrets, especially after reading the complaints on this thread. I did not appreaciate the high pressure sales talk, the insistence that I had to join tonight, the high price of membership ($4600, plus a yearly rate of $198 afterwards), and the lack of proof that I could actually save those thousands of dollars that I was told I would save since I am going to build a house. It is to good to be true. I will tell as many people as I can to not waste their time with the DirectBuy presentation. I am sooooo thankful that I did not join.

7/10/2007 - Tom writes:
I saw the DirectBuy commercials and am in a time when we are looking to possibly purchase lots of items for the home and looking to save money. I'm not going to bash DirectBuy but strongly warn people of this deal. Before I shock you with the sticker price, let me explain. DirectBuy claims to save you 26 to 45% off the cost of different itmes and that is probably true. They also say they deal with hundreds of companies, true again. But, what they don't explain very well is that with that saving comes other charges. Just about every item has a freight charge. That charge varies by item and where it is delivered also affects that charge. Problem is, that charge could significantly take away any savings you might get. That's number one. Second, there are hundreds of manufacturers to purchase from, but, the products that you can buy is limited. One of the biggest savings is supposed to be furniture. But, sometimes you will find what you want and sometimes not. You are limited to their companies and product lines. We were told that the Kitchen cabinets they sell are made by Thomasville, they were not. You are limited to those lines they sell, which are not bad, but if you shop around, you can find just as good a deal at [] or []. Lastly, when you purchase an item, if the price of that item goes up, you have to pay for that. When was the last time you ordered something online and they changed the price after you paid for it. That's not an honest practice. One other comment, when someone says to you, if you don't decide now, you can't get in on this great deal, RUN! If it's too good to be true, it usually is, sound familiar. Okay, how much does this cost. Are you sitting down. Over 10 years, approximately $6000. If you purchase a few thousand dollars in merchandise a year, the cost of $600 may work for you. If you are a contractor, this may work for you. But this is not for the typical consumer. My 12 year old even picked up on this. DirectBuy said that there were only a handfull of complaints against them and all solved. Go to [] and look at other web sites like this, you decide. GOOD LUCK!

7/10/2007 - George writes:
Well my story begins by hearing of DB Figured it to be a good deal and making an appointment online, The showroom was actually 10 minutes away in Burbank CA so i figured what the hey, I am actually very sad to say I was very close to signing the bottom line,( I usually amalot smarter about laying down big amounts of cash) Heck I even left kicking myself in the butt for not doing it but after sitting down and thinking it thru things just didnt seem right, first they dont allow you to go anywhere in the showroom without an employing following you around, then is the 45 min presentation where they tell you how its a know or never BS and of course the great hit of the membership fee, 6,000 or a few payment plans which actually raised it to over seven after interest. As you can see by the rest of the posts this is a scam and waste of time but the reason im writing is because im tired of thiefs making money off innocent people ....to all who have been scammed, its very simple ....MAKE THEM PAY get your moneys worth...there is something we can do , take money from their pockets as they did to you , they live on membership fees, I would have saced two hours of my life if someone could have warned me please please please do all you can to get potential people from buying into this, if it takes going into the center and telling as many people of the scam ( for those who are already a member ) or posting a sign outside their building, that one person you warn cost DB 4,000 - 6,000 Dollars if everyone that has gotten scammed could at least warn one person think of the money they loose, i guarantee that if you stood outside the street warning potential people of the scam (their open house times are very easy to find just go to their website as if you are a new customer) after a while DB would rather pay you your small amounts of money compared to the money that they will loose from you driving their potential business away, I for one am tired of these scammers but without people fighting back instead of just sitting down and taking it, these people will comtinue to profit. I for one promise to do my part even if i get one person to turn away from losing their money I have done something Please do the same if you honestly feel that this company has scammed you out of your hard earned money.

7/5/2007 - Clarissa writes:
This is definitely a Scam. Two years ago I went to their Fort Lauderdale office after watching the infomertial which sounded fenomenal, after being there and having this salesperson pushing us to make a decision, we joined. After leaving the office and thinking it over, my husband and I decided to cancel and mailed them a letter the day after, nobody contacted us and now after two years it appeared on my credit. I am now buying a new home and contacted them to see how could we resolve the issue, they claim they never received my cancellation notice (I kept copies of everything, and since we were buying this new home, called and asked how to make the complete payment and reinstate the account to be able to use it. I was told by a supervisor to go ahead and pay the collection agency and they will reinstate the account. After 3 weeks of paying it, I receive a letter from them telling me that since I paid the collection agency, for them to be able to reinstate the account, they will now need an extra $755.00 to do so because they had to pay the collection agency their fees. At this point, I don't know what to do. Please advise, is this legal?

7/5/2007 - Ted writes:
I too am the unfortunate owner of a direct buy membership. I was redoing my kitchen, they showed me how cabinets for a kitchen my size would cost @ $6k, a lot less than I was quoted elsewhere, so I joined. When it came time to order that price was $32k, 12k more than the other place installed. The faucet we wanted was $20 more at direct buy, the appliances were a little cheaper but I had to pick them up and install them myself but still pay the "fees". I feel sick everytime I see one of their commercials. Recently I ordered a dishwasher, 9 weeks later it came in, great service. I have made it my crusade to let everyone know not to join. Unfortunately for me its too late.

7/5/2007 - Mary writes:
Very high pressure from one female sales person in Manhattan. Ordered table and receive part of one delivery and part of another. Took many attemps and photos emailed to have them understand. As of today I still have the pieces of someone's table! I also called to get out of this contract. I am a senior citizen who was taken advantage of by a slick sales person. I was in the store one day and saw her beinging extremely nasty when a couple decided not to join! Why can't someone help us get out of this nightmare! I cancelled a delivery and never received a refund. It is very difficult dealing with the help who are defensive. I go on a saturday and comment to those who are about to go on the "tour" to be very careful! At least I feel it may help others

7/4/2007 - Scott writes:
I am in the same boat as other frustrated and betrayed members. I too bought into the 20-70% savings scheme as my wife and I had just purchased a home and were going to remodel. The sales tactics are absolutely untrue for the average american purchaser. I have been requesting to talk to my franchise owner as well as to talk to someone at the Corporate level however you guesed it, no one will call or discuss my concern. I am at a point where I have spoken to an attorney and the next step may be to gather enough people to file a class action lawsuit against them. Companies that oversell there product and defraud people should not be able to exist. DirectBuy should refund prorated membership fees for unfair marketing and false advertising. I will be pursuing my case further

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