Don't make our mistake
Complaint
Polly Globe
Country: United States
We attended their presentation and after some calculation decided to pay for the membership which was $4990. We wanted to update our kitchen and bathroom cabinets, as well as bedroom furniture. We put down about $1000, and the rest was financed through their lender Beta Finance.
A month later we started planning our purchases and realized we were about to pay more by buying through them than we would otherwise. What the don't tell you on their presentation is that while you save about 10% on furniture they add 8 % handling charge in addition to 7% tax, and that doesn't include shipping.
I am now trying to get our membership money back. Do not become a member! Buy from other stores.
A month later we started planning our purchases and realized we were about to pay more by buying through them than we would otherwise. What the don't tell you on their presentation is that while you save about 10% on furniture they add 8 % handling charge in addition to 7% tax, and that doesn't include shipping.
I am now trying to get our membership money back. Do not become a member! Buy from other stores.
Comments
We gutted our upstairs, did complete kitchen, bathroom, living room reno.
Yes, sometimes their service is slow, but I would have still rather paid $13,000.00 for my custom kitchen then the $56,000.00 or $63,000.00 I was quoted any day.
I agree DirectBuy is a rip-off. Stay away.
I have written them online, and left messages, but never received an answer.....Still in the dark....
We will be getting to the bottom of all of this; and right now, I'm very sorry we are members. They are very quick to send us our membership amount when due, though!!!
us to send $12.00 to register and 49.95 for the tablet. To cut a long story short I sent the money and the tablet never arrived.
They are CROOKS!
Class action is the only way to go!!!
I need to express myself to you over my situation why because when I was doing research on internet there I got in contact with you of which I do believe maybe your kind of person will help me upon this my critical condition now.
However my late father was a Royal King is called King Ofori Kwame in my Village which own a local Gold Mining Company in Ashanti Region Ghana after the death of my father in 28th Dec 2013, We the family has raw his willed of which we share all my late father property of which I his Son has to do inherited a Consignment box which contain $7.5million with 50kg Dore Gold Bar.And Diamond.
Please I need your help to assist me as my late father foreign partner investor So that we can transfer this said consignment box in your own country whereby you will invest this said consignment funds for me then you and I will share any commission that you will made every year on your investment 50%-50% why the capital funds investment will still remain under your control as well.
Kindly get back to me so that I will furnish you in details Thanks.
Regard
Monday.
us to send $12.00 to register and 49.95 for the tablet. To cut a long story short I sent the money and the tablet never arrived.
They are CROOKS!
We were given an option of Platinum $5200 or gold $4490 (I just learned from reading online the membership prices are even negotiable and variable!!!) which I gladly declined.
They send these so called invitation to get people into their door and hope that at least there are some poor souls to be sucked by it..... my husband made me promise NEVER to even read this type of mail before shredding it and I agreed.
After that it's damn near impossible..
I should have tried small claims court.. It's been almost 4 years since we joined for $5,490.00 in Tampa Florida..
We even tried a meeting with the owner to ask that we could unjoin and have our monies returned..
Franchise owner first tried talking us into letting him help us with purchases.. that didn't work.. I told him DB was not for us and we needed a refund.. then he went psychotic and said he didn't have the membership fee anymore, it had gone straight to corp. headqtrs.. and asked us how we thought he was gonna feed his son among other nonsense !
I truly believe DirectBuys all over US & Canada make a ton of money from individuals talked into the huge membership fees.. We're done with them and learned a hard lesson.. Please spread the WORD!!
BUYERS BEWARD - DON'T MAKE OUR MISTAKE
(but pick only one since legally it's about all you can pick)
1. small claims court (can rep self, go in for no or low cost)
2. class action law suits (though the return can be low amongst all the plaintiffs)
3. BBB (as Direct Buy recommends in contract)
4 (some American Arbitration Assoc or the like, recommended by DB also)
5 non payment of monthly fees, resulting in cancellation of contract, but also probably hurting credit score (default consumer)
6 hiring an attorney ("bad faith" provision of Uniform Criminal Code, or using mental illness: to negate contract)
Why doesn't everyone get together and hire a lawyer to sue Direct Buy so that we can all get are money back? That seems to be the only way to do this since no one can get answers from the corporate office.
What do you think?
bill
Advance payments upfront for products unseen... nothing easy to shop for in catalogues or online and then working & sweating it out to find any sales price one can come up with??? REALLY -
who in the H _ _ L do they think they are... It goes without saying, but I'm saying it loud & clear
RIP-OFF franchise store/making mulah for themselves/owners greedy ones, by HUGE HUGE HUGE and I do mean HUGE membership fees.... Watch out !
live & learn... BEWARE
whoever writes positively on this complaint site are either plushing for their own endowment or very very RICH people digging around for cheaper goods... which they can afford anyway
get out of town... you guys are BAD.. get a real job.. you & your fancy kitchen cabinets my foot..
We know who you are _erry and co-horts and I'm glad my membership expires now cause shopping at DB is a total bummer... RIP-OFF & I've told everyone I know, including 8 on Your Side...you got our money but you don't got US.. go away... file bankruptcy and go work for the Romney campaign.. PTL
I didn't want to subject the wife to the presentation so at the time I called back I just told them I was single. They were fine with that. You may have gotten a bad representative. I would call back and this time just say you are single, have a drivers licence, major credit card, and earn the required income.
As for complaints about the tour and sales pitch, I thought it was entertaining enough. I have sat through 3 hour time share tours for show tickets so this was a walk in the park. They explained the "savings" then sent me to the Manager. He offered me several deals, payment options, and so on. I declined them all and explained that while it was a great value I didnt have that upfront money now. He thanked me for coming handed me my fake ipad and a card for $100 in restaurant coupons. He even then proceed to take the time to explain to me in detail how to use the card so I could get the best value out of it.
In short I think the concept is valid and if i was renovating a home, or flipping homes, it might have some value - but otherwise I will save that membership due.
I would love to know how you procured savings of over 5000 dollars in only two years on "small stuff" were you buying "walmart quality sunglasses" and comparing them to Oakleys. You are nothing more than a common liar or a complete and utter idiot who cannot decipher what "savings" are. Wow!
a rip off. Don't fall for it. A local kitchen remodel company gave me a bid for redoing my kitchen with
new cabinets and granite countertops, including a new stove, for $7500. My kitchen counters are 63 s.f.
of counter.
We had a class action that recooped $1200 per household.
Direct Buy is a total scam!!!!
You have to go thru the whole sale catalogues which i not a bunch of fun. But the is a huge selection. However you can never touch & try the products before you buy. But there is some nice stuff, Often you pay a similar amount but can get a better made product, or just something that is not offered in your local stores.
Blinds, furniture ac & furnaces is where I saved a bunch of dough. However I am no longer in that mode since we built the new house & sold most of our investment properties.
I do not think the market is very broad & most people will not benefit from it. But some can. Sorry to hear about a store closing. That sucks & is something that should be dealt with by the corporate office. Which I doubt they wlil do anything about.
KInd of a weird company. Good luck.
DON'T DO IT... they're just after membership fees... damn them
If you're building then you can use contractor's discounts, etc.. DB gave us ONE contractor referral.. so right there you can tell how they blow you off after joining..
I don't believe the success stories on this Complaint site... DB plants positive remarks..
DON'T DO IT - IT'S A RIP-OFF AND YOU'LL BE SORRY
For me, I know what it cost to re-do a kitchen or other areas in a home. I do all my own work, in 2004 I re-modeled my kitchen, through Home Depot, new cabinets, counter tops, flooring and so on. Not top of the line mind you, but what I could afford at the time and what the house would be able to re-coup when I sold it. Total cost: $16500.00 +/-. Same house, new Italian Porcelain 20x20 tiles, living room, bath, hall and Foyer...Bought from a wholesaler same year, cost: $2000.00 for about 800sqft. This year, different home, new tile, same type, 1100sqft bought from DB....$800.00. You do the math.
Ikea has cabinets for my kitchen for less then $1900 The cabinets ona kitchen might be expensive but the counter top is what kills you really. These people sent me a letter today and when I called to swing by this afternoon they say I could not go unless I bring my wife. If I was already fishy about a place just handing out tablets...this sealed the deal...so Icome here and surprise surprise...everybody that has dealt with them is angry and disatisfied...except for two people. Gee I wonder what truly is happening there.
Thanks for all the help...I will not waste my 90 minutes on these clowns.
Peace!!
Are you an actual member or just venting due to Direct Buy's sales tactics? Your post is rather incoherent.
I joined only after I made the salesman do a mock order for a Flexsteel couch. When the price plus handling and delivery came in at 60% off retail I was convinced that Direct Buy was legitimate since quality furniture is rarely discounted by more than 45%. I have found it typically to be @ 40% unless it is an overstock, discontinued, or floor model.
I am not rich. I lived in an apartment for many years and finally purchased an 1800sq home that needed a new kitchen and carpet. on top of that I needed to furnish nearly the entire house.
I purchsed semi-custom cabinets from Direct Buy for about the same price as the Home Depot Mills Pride ready to assemble stuff (Home Depot no longer sells it) To give you an idea, it cost me $132 for an 18x36 maple all wood wall cabinet. The cabinets are really durable and look fantastic. I saved over $1,000.00 on Shaw carpeting;$600.00 on GE Profile range, dishwasher and microwave;$900 on Crawford Furniture bedroom suite;$800 on Lexington Furniture bedroom suite.
I purchased HON office furniture for less than the cheap disposable stuff sold at Office Depot. HON furniture is made to last a lifetime.
I have pruchase many other items from Direct Buy at similar savings. The savings have more that repaid the $3,600.00 membership fee and then some. Additionally, I have found that catalog shopping at Direct Buy probably saved me time compared to shopping at stores or internet.
I am very satisfied with Direct Buy. The only issues that I have had were the sales pitch and 2 issues with delivery; a lamp was backordered for 4 months and a badly scratched footboard had to be reorderd.
When you wrote,"whoever writes positively on this complaint site are either plushing for their own endowment or very very RICH people digging around for cheaper goods... which they can afford anyway", are you saying that the club works but only for rich people? That is not a true statement because I am not rich and it turned out to be a great investment for me.
The bottom line is that it impossible to recover the membership cost if you do not take advantage of what the club was designed to do. If you are not planning to spend over $15,000 on remodeling or new furniture, then simply don't join and find something better to do than bash Direct Buy.
I am very happy to read someone that had good results with DB. I will find out at my appointment today what the membership price is now but from what I am reading, you got in at a very good membership price. I have been reading that people have had to pay $8,000.00 for a membership. I certainly can't pay that. I was invited to come in for the free 90 minute show off hte place and pressure tactics to get me to sign up. All of this because I entered a contest to win a $50,000.00 home makeover. I did win a cruise or airline tickets and this free tour, plus I am still in the sweepstakes for the home makeover! I can't believe my husband has agreed to go with me to this. I know he won't be buying and he doesn't put up with pressure tactics, he walks.
Well, if I had known this information up front, we would have waited 4 - 6 months to go in when we were close to purchasing. Our situation was to go in and get information that day only. We are in the process of getting plans drawn up for a big addition, we then have to approve plans (2 weeks or so), then approach builders to quote the job ( 3-4 weeks), then look into financing ( 2 - 3 weeks), meet with interior decorator and get a design plan..etc, etc.. We are no where close to picking cabinets, floors etc..let alone if we can afford the addition yet. Again, we wanted to get some ideas about how it works, then consult with the right builders who would participate with us joining DB.
We really wanted to become members when the time was right for us, but due to false advertising and sneaky marketing, once very potential buyers are shut out for 3 years!!
My husband and I are both salesmen in our fields and get the wholesale/ retail/ mark ups/ shipping etc.. We get it. It was a huge blow when she said if you don't do something today, you can't come back in 3 years.
I asked her why the woman (delores) who pressured me to come today didn't mention this critical information over the phone and she never answered me.... Now, I am not waiting 3 years to start my addition in order to wait for them. I told my husband after that crappy experience, that I was happy to pay retail. We would have spent lots of money there..
After I got up to leave, my husband was the polite one to say goodbye, I though it was a poorly run business and if we were ready to join today, maybe there would be more troubles down the road..red flags every where!!
This experience happened today ( 4 hours of our sunny Saturday) in Farmington, Michigan while we paid for a baby sitter on top of that..total bummer and waste of our time.. So pissed!!
I've been a member for 2 years now and I haven't bought much, but what I did buy covered our initial membership fee plus some. We bought our house as-is and it needed more efficient windows installed as well as an air conditioner. Home Depot quoted us a little under $6000 for the windows installed (16 of them) and another $1500 for the AC. With materials bought and labor contracted through our nearest DB (Olathe, KS) we paid half that.
Unlike what you have said, I'm neither wealthy or getting a kick-back from DB. I'm a 30 year old military member that pays way more than I should on child support every month. I pretty much live paycheck to paycheck with a little excess that I throw into savings. I'm not saying people haven't been ripped off by their local franchise but I am saying that I don't think it's every franchise owner that operates that way.
When we went through our open house our franchise owner identified the fact that there are some areas in the store that provide much more savings than other areas and that we were encouraged to take a better deal elsewhere if it presented itself to us. If your local franchise owner didn't do that for you, then they are doing it wrong.
Bottom line, I'm sorry if your experience with them was bad, but I don't think that's the case with all locations. We have more things that we need done this summer so I just renewed my membership for the next year. Take into account both the good and bad reviews you read and couple that with the impression you get from the club itself when you make your decision about this membership. Knowledge is key. Inform yourself as well as you can.
I joined DP hoping to save money as I repair things that I have had to put on the back burner until the kids got older. I met a DB rep at a Home & Garden Show in Richmond, Va. who promised a free tablet ( which the oldest child needs for her senior year; becaues I scheduled my appt w/ him I got $200 restaurant card [ yipee, eat out time w/ the kids] I received my Tablet and an extra $100 restaurant card after joining!! I became concerned after being unable to register the $300 in restaurant cards; when I opened the tablet, it was scratched and obviously used. I called to set up my orintation I asked if I could bring the tablet back and was told yes.
While waiting for the orientation I asked the young lady at the desk to register one of the cards for me so I could take the kids out for dinner, after clicking around as I looked over her shoulders at her screen, she looked down and did not reply when I called her attent to the fact that regardless of the zip cod you put in the same restaurants come up - most that I have never hear of in my neighborhood. Some of the restaurants require you to spend $100 and they will give you $50 off !?!??
I pray and believe that the DB recommended contractors do not operate in this smae frame.
With that said, we WERE told about the service fee & shipping before purchasing our membership. We do buy things that are higher end/quality so for us we continue to save. If you buy lower end items and are not doing a major project then this would not be a membership for you!
Ashley Furniture makes cheap, low grade furniture. The type of furniture that is sold in a group, advertised in a group is junk. It is not well made, when it gets old (2 - 3 years if your lucky) the polyfiber fill they stuff it with falls and the cushions and the material over it wrinkles and the cardboard it's made with loses it's shape and it just generally looks awful. Do yourself a favor and do not waste your money on Ashley Furniture. DB is not just for high quality super expensive items for rich people. You have to do the work, I saved about $15k furnishing my new house and I purchased high quality, with everything you have to research and be selective.
Some will even take less if you get them in the back and offer to pay in full. The greedy scumbags in central California charge about 7K to join and pay their reps about $150 per sale.
I COULD GO ON FOR HOURS AND PROBABLY WILL AT A LATER DATE BUT THEY HAVE ALREADY SCREWED ME OUT OF TIME AND MONEY. THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH MAKING MONEY IF YOU ARE HONEST BUT THESE GUYS MAKE FUN OF THE GUESTS THAT COME IN AND I EVEN WORKED WITH SEVERAL BLACK REPS THAT WOULD ALWAYS COMPLAIN WHEN THEY "GOT STUCK" SELLING A BLACK COUPLE BECAUSE THEY SAID THAT THEY KNEW BEFORE HAND THAT BLACK PEOPLE WOULD NOT QUALIFY CREDIT WISE....
THE FINANCE COMPANY BETA FINANCE CHARGES FROM 18% TO 25% AND THEY RATE EACH FINANCE SO IF THE NEW MEMBER DOESN'T CREDIT QUALIFY THE SCUMBAG OWNERS ONLY PAY OUT $50 AND BETA PAYS THEM IN FULL....IT'S JUST GREED AT ITS PUREST AND RAWEST FORM
From the front of the store to the back of the store it's all one big scam. THEIR CLAIM TO FAME IS THAT THEY CUT OUT THE MIDDLE MAN....WAKE UP THEY HAVE JUST REPLACE THE MIDDLE MAN WITH DIRECT BUY....SCAM SCAM SCAM SCAM OH YEAH 1 LAST LITTLE TID BIT OF INFORMATION...I CAN PERSONALLY TESTIFY THAT THE "HANDLING FEE" OF 6% TO 9% IN SOME STATES IS ALL MADE UP AND THE SCUMBAG OWNERS MAKE ALL THAT MONEY IN ADDITION TO WHAT GOES THROUGH THE CLUB IN SALES VOLUME.
HANDLING FEE.....C'MON PEOPLE THEY DO HAVE REGULAR EMPLOYEES THAT ARE NOT 1099'D AND ARE W-2'D, THEY HAVE PHONE REPS THAT BOOK THE MEMBERSHIP APPOINTMENT AND REPS THAT SELL ON THE FLOOR. THEY ARE ALL COMPENSATED OUT OF THE HUGE MEMBERSHIP FEE. .08% X $250,000 IN MERCHANDISE PER MONTH. DO THE MATH. THEY COULD SELL THE MEMBERSHIP FOR $2,500 AND STILL MAKE A KILNING BUT THE NAME OF THE GAME IS EGO AT DIRECT BUY. ONCE A YEAR THE OWNERS MEET TO HOB KNOB AND COMPARE CLOTHING AND WHO HAS THE PRETTIEST WIFE OR BOY FRIEND IF YOUR GAY LIKE THE OWNER OF THE MOUNTAIN VIEW DIRECT BUY MARK...THEY GIVE AWAY BRAND NEW MERCEDES AND BMW CARS AS IF THEY WERE HALLOWEEN TREATS. THEY ALL COMPARE HOW MUCH MONEY THAT THEY MAKE.
ONCE AGAIN THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH MAKING MONEY THERE ARE EVEN SOME REALLY HONEST OWNERS OUT THERE. BUT IN THE NEW-AMERICA OF TODAY WHERE PRESIDENTS ARE NOT ELECTED BUT "S"ELECTED BEFORE BY THE CORPORATE HANDLERS DIRECT BUY IS JUST PART OF THE PROBLEM AND NOT PART OF ANY SOLUTION. VERY FEW PEOPLE BENEFIT FROM DIRECT BUY AND THEY GIVE NOTHING BACK TO THE PEOPLE THEY LITERALLY LIE TO AND DEFRAUD.
NO ONE OUT THERE ON THIS SITE CAN CHALLENGE ME BECAUSE I KNOW SEVERAL OWNERS AND HAVE BEEN ON THE INSIDE FOR MANY YEARS. AFTER I MADE 12K FOR 6 MONTHS MY COMMISSION STRUCTURE WAS QUICKLY CHANGED TO BENEFIT THAT OF THE OWNER AND HIS WIFE WHO NEED ONE MORE SURGERY ON HER FACE TO FIX THE LAST BOTCHED SURGERY.
SURE I LOVED MAKING THAT KIND OF MONEY AND WHO WOULDN'T I THOUGHT I WAS SELLING A LEGITIMATE PRODUCT UNTIL AFTER YEAR 3 I FOUND OUT HOW IT ALL WORKED AFTER ONE OWNER ( WHO DID LOT'S OF DRUGS) WENT ON A COCAINE RANT ABOUT "HOW MUCH HE MADE FROM JUST SHOWING IDIOTS HOW TO BUY CHEAPER FURNITURE" IT WAS THE YEARLY 8% THAT IS THE REAL MONEY.... SOME CLUBS SELL BETWEEN 5 TO 10 MILLION A YEAR IN INVENTORY THAT NETS THE OWNERS ABOUT $600K PER YEAR THEN ADD IN THE 5K PER MEMBERSHIP FEE AND YOU WILL SEE WHAT A CASH COW THIS BUSINESS IS. ONCE YOU ARE AN OWNER YOU DO NOT WANT ANOTHER DIRECT BUY IN YOUR AREA BECAUSE YOU WILL LOSE POTENTIAL MEMBERS LIKE THE CASE OF THE 2 PORTLAND, OREGON CLUBS. THEY HAVE THE SAME OWNER. THAT'S RIGHT WHY OWN 1 DIRECT BUY WHEN YOU CAN OWN 3?????????
I researched 5 items (65" TV, fridge, carpet, hardwood flooring, washing machine) and the only thing DB was cheaper on was the washing machine and only by $50 on a $1000 washer. Hardwood and carpet can both be purchased cheaper at FloorTrader.com. Maybe you can buy high end items for mid level prices, but I'm a bargin shopper looking to SAVE money, not just put it into a slightly better item. If you want to flaunt yourself as a savings club then save people money.a $50k kitchen for only $30k or a $20k bedroom for $15k. This thing has scam written all over it....don't fall for it or you'll be STUCK like me and out $4500. ENSURE YOU READ THE FINE PRINT ON THEIR CONTRACT!!! I now let EVERYONE I know what a ripoff they are!!
YOU SAID IT PERFECTLY! This is true with ALL businesses -- only the owner gets rich! Paralegals at my job bill our clients at $250 per hour (approximately a half million annually), yet a paralegal's pay is around $70k! Where does that half million go that the paralegal made? - To the owners, of course! THAT'S THE WAY THE "BREAD" CRUMBLES! Here's the thing, though: if you can save yourself money, in spite of the owner getting rich, don't we all win?!
Your question of can you save on building your house is the KEY question. Yes, I am completely convinced that you can -- because you're BUILDING a house. If you're going to purchase only a washer/dryer and a sofa, your membership will likely not be worth it but if you're purchasing floors, cabinets, furniture, etc., the membership will pay for itself before you've even finished building.
Loved your post! Especially the botched face lift comment ;) funny stuff....
I wish I had read all of these comments before I went to the open house.
I also should have followed my instincts on that day. When I went to the open house, during the fall of 2011, and heard that you only had that one chance to sign in, and that once you left the club you were not allowed to sign, it made me think that that was the catch. It took me hours to make up my mind. Everybody, including the owner, came to convince me of the benefits of being a member and I finally gave in. THE WORST MISTAKE OF MY LIFE!!!!!
I have only purchased a bedroom set from them which cost me around $2,900 including shipping, handling and taxes (shipping alone was $600, can you believe it?). The next day I went on line and found the exact same set, same magnufacturer, Magnussen, same pieces, bed, mirror and dresser, high chest and one bedside table-for only $2,000 including everything. Shipping was free.
As per their policy they were supposed to give me back the difference but they decided not to honor it because the cheaper price was from the internet.
I received this purchase on January/2012, I had lots of problems with it. The storage foot board that I purchased, under recommendation of the Office Manager, didn't fit under my mattress. The delivery guys scratched off one side of the dresser; the mirror itself is of very poor quality. No matter how often I clean it, it is always foggy. Some of the drawers don't close all the way, some of them require two hands to open.
Six months later I'm still dealing with them to correct the issues. It's been six months of hell, making hundreds of phone calls, giving hundreds of explanations and having constant arguments. I have tried to speak to the owner to see if I can sign out my membership but to no avail. This is the same owner who dedicated so much time to me to convince me to sign in.
I thought it was only my club, the Brooklyn-Queens Club in New York located in Queens, the one with irresponsible people, but I see now that it is most of them.
People, DO NOT ACQUIRE A DIRECT BUY MEMBERSHIP!!! Yes, it is a SCAM!!!! Buy from the stores when they have sales.
Do not buy from this manufacturer either, "MAGNUSSEN", the quality is poor and they don't work with you.
It is a pitty that this club is in business. Needless is to say that I haven't purchased anything else from them but still I'm paying $158.10/month to cover my membership.
Hope someone learns from my mistakes. Take care......
I do want to sue these people... please help me do that.
I'm sorry you had this terrible, very expensive experience. I attended an "Open House" yesterday and immediately saw it was a classy sales pitch. Many years ago, taking some time off from college, I was in direct sales. I stuck around because I was amused at how well the salesman (franchise owner) pitched the con.
The idea that you have just this one time to join is of course nonsense. Anyone who declines and then shows up next week, next month, or whenever, and offers the $5K – do you think DB will say, “We can’t take your money. You lost your chance.”???
I am refurnishing my den – have a deal in place (online) for about $3K. I thought maybe DB could save me some money. They actually don’t do business with the manufacturer of the furniture I want, and obviously I would not have saved anything anyway with the high membership fee. The salesman went down from $5990 to $4990 and finally to $3990, but I told him I’m broke (I would have paid cash up front) so they showed me the door with no “free gift.”
This may be a good deal if you’re young and furnishing an entire house and/or redoing your kitchen IF you comparison shop everything, which of course you can’t do because your are signing up blind. But for the average person who is pressured into signing (you were under the hot lights for how many hours?!) it does not make sense. It especially doesn’t make sense if you can’t pay the full fee up front, because the interest will add unbelievable $$$. Actually thousands – even without compounding 17.5% on $5990 is $1,048.25. You can be sure the interest is compounded, no matter what they may say initially.
Chris with a 6,000-sq. ft. home – obviously with more money than most of us – believes DB saved a lot of $$$. People who believe that probably would be dismayed if they were to comparison shop their purchases.
BTW, Thanks, Frank, for the inside dope.
If you want people to take you seriously, at the very least use a text editing program to build your post, run grammar and spell check on it, then copy the edited product and past it into the post field. Then reread it afterward.
The Club is for those who will nitially save a large amount of money on their initial purchases, between our cabinets, plumbing, carpet, and other major purchases we were able to upgrade our countertops and cabinets too, like granite countertops for our entire home.
There is a certain level of frustration though, customer service at our particular location has been lacking, we found ourselves getting involved in resolving issues more than we should have to, which creates an high level of frustration. However, if you are not willing to do the planning, research and comparisons before you buy DirectBuy is not for you.
Also DirectBuy sells a higher grade items like furniture they don't usually sell press wood furniture which is cheaper in regular furniture stores.
The key is to make sure you are saving over the long run do not buy the membership for $4000.00 + if you are making purchase for less, I suggest that you make sure your initial purchase will be enough to have the membership pay for itself, ever purchase after that should be an additional savings.
We were able to build our 6000 square foot home for about 30 to 40% less than it would normally cost. We continue to work with DirectBuy because we see the benifits and savings, however it comes with tremendous frustration but I would rather be a little frustrated while saving thousands.
I continue to be a frustrated but money saving Direct Buy Member.
So far, I have ordered:
*7 Thermatru exterior doors and a Greentree door. The distributor provided me with the incorrect RO sizes and caused me to have to either increase or reduce the framed openings, all at my expense. Also, the Thermatru hardware was scratched and one of the units came in damaged which deleayed my project a bit. It took forever to received the initial doors as well. However, I did save $1800, so it was almost worth the frustration but not really.
*2 fireplaces. This was a horrible experience. I worked out the order with the distributor and odered them. Two days later, DB told me that the manufacturer no longer uses that distributor and I will be ordering directly from the manufacturer. That is when the problems begain. The manufacturer vetted my order and mentioned that I didnt need to order a particular part. great. The items arrived and I had my sub contractor install, but it was missing peices and also had other parts that I did not need. Long story short, I am sitting with $250 worth of parts that I do not need. The manufacture wants a 20% restock fee and shipping to take them back, even though it is their original distributor that screwed up the order... Nonsense! I am not even sure what I saved because nobody around me carries this brand...
* I ordered $6000 worth of Interior and Exterior lights back in early June. I am still waiting for 25% of the order to ship. I was told back order til mid August. Now I am being told mid-September. However, I did save about 10% on what I was seeing in the stores even with my contractor discount. $600 is not worth the headache for me though.
* I ordered Omega cabinets. Suposedly really high end and retail for $60000 and I paid $170000. I suspect I probably could have gotten them for low 20's at a normal store and not had to deal with the lack of knowledge with one particular kitchen staff members. Dealing with this person was like pulling my own teeth. Actually pulling my own teeth would have been more enjoyable. If took MONTHS of back and forth emails, meetings, phone calls, etc before we had a final design and purchase. I am keeping my fingers crossed that everything comes in okay. I doubt it though.
* I ordered custom bathroom vanities and two of them were damaged during manufacturing. Who knows what the savings was on these, but I suspect I saved a little.
* I ordered a garage door and saved about $750. There is a 6 week lead time, so it is not really worth the savings to me on this but I am trying to save as much as I can to absorb the membership fee cost.
* I am now pricing out tile and they are DEFINITELY NOT cheaper than my local supplier. Also, they have horrible lead times.
* I am not ordering the appliances from DirectBuy because they are more expensive than my local store.
Long story short, DirectBuy is cheaper on some items but not everything. Ordering is a drag and the lead times are ridiculous. Also, returning something or getting credits is a nightmare. We are hoping to see larger savings when we purchase the furniture, but are skeptical. I would not use them again for any of the building material; they do not have the local knowledge to handle a customer of my volume and technical requirements.
Thank you all again and have a good day.
Anyway, we joined in 05 and paid around $3000 fee for the first 3 years and $159 a year for the the next 7 or something like that. We have definitely made our fees back in savings, but it is a pretty big hassle and our store in PA is really not that helpful. The people are nice, however. Plus, we live in DE (sales tax free) and anything that ships to the Club in PA is charged taxes. We were also given the line when we joined about them probably opening up a DE store in the near future to avoid those sales taxes...nothing yet.
Normal things like electronics, appliances, and some of the lower priced items are just not worth it through DB. After fees, shipping, etc, you are better off buying at a local retailer (better/easier returns too) or online. There are times, however, that DB runs promotions in their catalog where you can find good pricing on those items mentioned and it COULD be worth it. Keep in mind, the margins on those items (electronics/appliances) are already pretty tight, so DB isn't going to help you much with pricing...again, unless it's a special. The "specials" however, are usually on items that are closeouts or models that are being replaced. That said, we did save money on a couple flat screen TV's by paying attention to the sales and making sure they shipped tax free to our house.
You also need to have the TIME to deal with everything that comes with DB. My wife and I both work, so we really can't do anything except on Saturdays (our DB store is closed Sun/Mon) and guess what, Saturday's are usually the busiest. Our very first order (blinds) was messed up and it took forever to resolve and it was NOT our fault. One of the customer service reps at our store messed up the order. They wanted to charge us twice to fix and I would have none of it, so the owner finally stepped in and relented/resolved the issue. It was so frustrating for a first experience that when we bought our dining room set we ended up just getting directly through Kincaid's store...big mistake and my wife and I got in a fight about because that purchase alone would have knocked out our initiation fee. She just wanted a dining room set (quickly) and I wanted to save the $$$. Ha.
There are also many times that samples of carpet, wood, fabric, etc. are not available to view. It is very frustrating when you go into your Club and want to finalize a purchase, only to find out you CAN'T see the materials on what you want to buy. This just happened to us. We got an email from DB on a bedroom set we thought we liked and it was a really great deal (furniture has huge mark up), but our DB store did NOT have the wood sample and we wanted to make 99% we liked the wood color. We asked them to get a sample and it just came, but guess what...the furniture is no longer listed for sale. VERY FRUSTRATING.
We did have good experience with ordering stuff when we remodeled our master bath and for carpet we've used in the basement and other areas. They have a local installer that is good. Again, it's higher priced cabinetry, tub, granite that we used, so it was worth it. Tile was not, we got a better deal at a local retailer and could actually VIEW the tile because they had in stock...DB, as mentioned, often does not have the sample you want to see. It's mostly catalogs and pictures...not real helpful when about to drop a lot of $$$ on boxes of tile or something else expensive.
Finally, I would point out that since these are franchises, it very well could depend on the store you are using as to how helpful, or not, "sleazy", or not, that DB store is. Our DB store would probably sit somewhere in the middle. That said, I think our store actually has been taken back by Corp DB, as the franchise owner's are no longer involved per my understanding. I'm waiting for the letter or email saying our store is closing and our new store is an hour away. Ha.
Overall, I would ONLY recommend to someone to join if they are looking to spend quite a bit of money over the next few years, so they can recover their fee. Again, think BIGGER TICKET items. Also, I would highly recommend trying to negotiate the "Fee", if you go to an open house. In this economy, they need you more than you need them.
I'll echo Chris's comment to close..."continue to be a frustrated, but money saving DB member". However, when our time is up, I'll be hard pressed to continue our membership if they ask for "thousands" again to re-up. Good Luck!
Second, I would love to see how you are saving 30-40%.
I've looked through quite a bit of murchandise on Direct Buy and there may be a few items that save around 10%, but an average of 30-40% on hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of merchandise? I would love to believe you, but in truth I don't, and I think that most others that read your BS will be just as skeptical. Saved $50,000 dollars, what a joke!
And I agree with you on the terrible practice of NOT telling attendees of their presentation that it's a "one time only" visit...sign up that day or no dice. Really bad marketing.
Thanks for your service.
Has anyone been able to join after their initial presentation?
I have saved on many wedding gifts, appliances and furnature but not everything, you do have to shop around.
You wrote several months ago, so possibly you will never see my response. But it is NOT true that you can never join DB in Ohio, having declined the presentation in Maryland. That is part of the sales pitch. 99 percent of people who “want to think it over” end up passing on any and every sales presentation, so they (and all hard sales) try to close you on the spot. Also it is a franchise so the people in MD won’t get anything from OH. When you get to Ohio and offer DB $5,000, do you really think they will tell you to go away? You can join anytime.
But read some of these warnings! BEFORE you sign the DB contract, shop around and see what things would cost without DB. What they tell you about 70% savings is just part of the scam. And consider whether or not you would want to purchase everything without seeing the product in front of you. You will have to buy from catalogs and what is delivered may not be what you thought you were buying.
Thanks for your service. Good luck!
We also found out the same with the "crappy" free gifts. They gave us 2 $100 restaurant cards which were useless and then the tablet we sold as is for $60 in Craigslist saying, "never been used." Needless to say since we never used it the guy who bought it later wanted his money back...we told him sorry but we read the reviews and priced it according to amazons used prices.
I am not sure why people are saying that they have had any type of bad experience? Kinda shocks me. I highly recommend everyone that likes to save money should join!
I also agree that if you have to finance you will lose money. You will feel the savings if you able to make a big purchase initially so that you can make your money back right away. I can respect those of you who feel that its not worth it. There have been a number of times when I have wanted to go in and just get something and take it home, but cant becuase of the long wait time or because viewing items in the catalogues doesn't give me enough information. I never buy if I have not done comparisons. Working with DB requires patience. The sales reps at my store are also very helpful so I havent had the bad service experiences that some of you have had. Also, we didn't buy the membership after the initial pitch. We thought about it and then went back and purchased a membership right before we redid our kitchen.
Happy New Year, everybody.
near our home again. I am sorry for those of you who have had bad experiences. Our club here in Indy
has been STELLAR in it's ordering, response and civility. We have sent back only 1 item -- damaged by freight company - and have ordered over $100,000 for our home, office and for gifts for our children and relatives. The club here is extremely friendly, up-to-date on ordering catalogues and VERY helpful in
locating wantede items and comparisons.
We are ready to redo our kitchen - and the savings (including shipping and handling) have been significant
on every item we have priced.....Our experience has been delightful.
Zuck
My wife and I attended a presentation / open house yesterday in Illinois. When the boring film was over, we were asked to go sit with a rep. I had one question that set me back when I got the answer:
- If I have a life changing event occur and could no longer make payements to the memebrship, can I cancel? The answer was no.
Tha alone would stop me from joinging a club that has such high dues. They never did divulge what the finance company charges were going to be, and I certainly did noty have the 5K they wanted to join.
The sales rep that was helping us disappeared when we started questioning the true savings. Note that they try to tell you thet the 5K membership fee is good for life, but that is not the case. You have to pay an annual fee from years 4-10 which is currently at 200.00. Add that amount (1,400) to the 5K and you now have a new #. About 5 minutes of just sitting at the table, the owner shows up. He tells us that the girl that was helping us had to go help with some paperwork and he would help us.
This guy was nothing short of arrogant and insulting. We told him we shop for things we need in the discontinued and open box / scrath n dent sections for appliances and such. I really don't mind these items being in this condition since they still have a warranty in most cases. The owner said that if we want to live our lives that way and not purchase new, high end items, than that's fine, but he and his wife only buy the best and not low end junk. I then tried to get them to look up a 70" TV I had just purchased for around 1,700, and he argued with me that looking to see what I could have saved after I already bought the TV was pointless. I tried to explain that it would prove that DB would have saved me $ (or not) by looking this up. By this time we are all standing in the middle of the store, and he is talking very loudly and asked me how much money would I make over the next 10 years. I told him that was none of his business and that it does not relate to the discussion. We went back to the table we started at, and no one ever came back or talked to us.
We also think they plant "members" in the store while giving these tours. the owner asked one guy sitting there how long he had been a member and he said 7-8 years. He then asked the member what he was in the store to buy, and he said fencing. The "member" then went on to say he built his own home and saved a fortune using DB. After we went back to our table, we peeked over his shoulder and he wasn't looking at fencing ot anything that had to do with fences.
After about 5 more minutes, We got up, went to the counter, asked for our gifts ( a tablet and 100.00 dinner card) and left.
What a rude man and terrible experience. We were there almost 2.5 hours. It sucked. Stay clear.
I did play Angry Birds on the tablet last night with my wife!
I mentioned to my husband that is was empty when we got there, then so packed whe we came out..like it was all set up. Creepy creepy...
After we didn't joined. we was dismissed
We was given A I pad that never worked
http://dockets.justia.com/docket/indiana/innd...
Plaintiffs: Arcangelo Inc and Buying Power United LLC
Defendants: DirectBuy Inc and Trivest Partners LP
http://dockets.justia.com/docket/indiana/innd...
Plaintiffs: YTC Dream Homes Inc , Jasi LLC , Buy The Way LLC , RYM Inc , Prew International Group LLC , 3Ba LLC , John J Menchaca , Pacjo Inc , Makson Enterprises LLC and Vest Enterprises Inc
Defendants: DirectBuy Inc, Scott Powell, C Joseph Yast and Bart Fesperman
General when you need them?