MLM HORROR STORIES #20 | In Primerica for 13 years, spent $3000 on Mary Kay

[@Pharm2be]

As a chemist: literally everything in this entire world is a chemical. Chemicals are the building blocks of the universe

[@partysuvius]

I’m curious if you would ever test monat’s products and their long-term versus short-term effects on skin and hair? As well as the composition of their products? But only if you were gifted the products by someone who couldn’t return them? Idk. I haven’t seen anyone actually run experiments on the products to see exactly why they’re so damaging on the body. The FDA, apparently, has claimed that there’s nothing wrong with the products (but that’s not their territory).

[@willtroy1986]

Yeah but none of them are as good as brondo

[@james3440]

Literally? What if you approach it as, “not a Chemist”? What would everything in this entire world, literally be?

[@Pharm2be]

@@james3440 still chemicals 😜 and your reply to a three month old comment is a waste of redox reactions. Idk what point you’re trying to make but you coulda hit backspace, buddy. Even “natural” products are chemicals. The IUPAC name of (2R,3R,4S,5S,6R)-2-[(2S,3S,4S,5R)-3,4-dihydroxy-2,5-bis(hydroxymethyl)oxolan-2-yl]oxy-6-(hydroxymethyl)oxane-3,4,5-triol sounds real scary when compared to its common names of sucrose or sugar. And yet, you would _literally_ die without it lol

[@Pharm2be]

@@partysuvius analytics isn’t my specialty, my degree is in biochemistry, but it’s definitely an experiment that I feel like someone with the right equipment and expertise should conduct. I’m not sure how you could test long term effects without human or animal testing if I’m being honest, but I would love to know the _actual_ chemical formula of the products is and compare it to the published compounds and their purported generalized ratios. It wouldn’t even have to be malicious lying, could be something as simple as metals leeching in from the equipment or poor quality control that results in extra of some compounds usually benign in smaller quantities or cross contamination. I would guess though that the bad reactions are either allergies or perhaps widespread contamination of yeast/bacteria.

[@TheHonorableAudio]

1. Everything is a chemical. 2. The dose makes the poison. -Your friendly neighborhood chemist

[@yolandaponkers1581]

“The dose makes the poison” is the most gorgeous sentence ever written. Thank you, chemist. ❤️

[@zg5672]

@@yolandaponkers1581 why do ppl on hannahs vids write sentences so BEAUTIFULLY

[@zg5672]

im going to tattoo that quote on my ass cheeks

[@TheBlankInk]

Even water can be poison if you drink too much!

[@haydenanderson9912]

LD50s exist 😂👏🏻

[@theloverlyladylo9158]

As someone who passed high school chemistry: literally everything is a chemical. “Chemical free” beauty products are, like, anti matter. Not even air, air is chemicals.

[@Galworld761]

I don’t think these folks know about the periodic table of elements.

[@jaymel4691]

Our own bodies are made up entirely of chemicals! As is everything else around us!

[@cuckoophendula8211]

I loved your emphasis on the "water is a chemical" and "arsenic is natural" in order to combat the widespread belief that "natural = good & chemical = bad." There were some instances I've heard of that took the "water is a chemical" thing to the next step. I think some people put out a warning on April fools that their local water supply was infected with dihydrogen monoxide. Lots of people freaked out apparently.

[@HannahAlonzo]

Yesss I have heard of that! So funny 🤣

[@davekaio5934]

Me: Joining in with the joke : yeah, hilarious 😂.. Also me: madly looking up 'dihydrogen monoxide' ... Ohhhh...

[@tungstensmum1491]

The Naturalistic Fallacy is so, so strong in these MLMs. It is a problem in a lot of groups (I am vegan and crunchy granola vegans and "plant based" folks can definitely be influenced by this) but it feels like I see it brought up most often by MLMers and anti-vaxxers.

[@victoriashevlin8587]

I've been telling people this for 20 years. Most either dont understand, or don't want to 😊

[@AChickandaDuck]

Hahaha I love that! Another one I’ve seen is a meme that says “don’t put anything in your body if you can’t pronounce the ingredients!” Followed by a list of the chemical makeup of an apple, which looks just as scary as processed food 🤣

[@wurdnurd1]

Why Vegas and Atlanta (and Dallas, and Chicago): major airline hubs for cheap flights, plentiful hotel rooms at a range of prices, and easy (4 hours or less) driving access for a large population. It's not just MLMs that have their conventions in those cities.

[@soggytortillla]

makes sense! i’ve been to two conventions in two of those cities

[@TheLilyMustang]

Also Dallas offers groups deals & kick back to organisation to get them to host their convention here. Every couple of months the news is reporting new tax breaks the city is offering to wooo convention.

[@lilabrissette5473]

not to mention, these cities also have some of the biggest convention centers! Amway throws a massive convention in Vegas every year.

[@whenimonmymoon6822]

I was just jumping in to say the same. Cheap flights and pretty much every airline flies in to both cities, and thus every airport has flights to each place.

[@iwapuniwai273]

Yep. I went to Supernatural VegasCon 2x. So worth it. Cheap hotels. Buffet food. Entertained just walking down the strip. I'm going next year with the boyfriend just for fun.

[@vanessar.6085]

I almost joined Primerica. They tricked me into an interview for a secretary/receptionist position, but I had to go to this seminar so I would "get a better idea" what they were about. This was at one of their offices. It all looked so official and professional, and promising, until the meet and greet. The first red flag was the number of "nurses" who quit their jobs and now earn 6 figures. The second were all the recruiting awards on the walls and Rep's cubicles. NOT sales awards. Recruiting awards. The third was the DJ. We were in one meeting room getting a powerpoint presentation about the company and what they do, and the other meeting room had a DJ to pump up the reps, complete with DJ lighting, air horn, etc... It was so awkward to hear the rep talking to us say "Oop, I'm missing the party." I stayed because I was convinced I was just there to observe as part of the interview process, not to be recruited. I didn't get the position, but was "perfect to be a new rep." I did almost join, because I was desperate for a job. BUT, something just didn't feel right and I declined the offer. I'm so glad that happened, though. It made me wiser and became a guide for other jobs I applied for to watch out for other direct-sales and MLM hiring schemes before I apply.

[@ScarlettRoseOfficial]

Oof!!

[@Anna-Rose-]

You should send your story in! It's something to learn from. Others need to know what to be aware of and look for. Those people have scruples when it comes to recruiting.

[@vanessar.6085]

@@Anna-Rose- I will!

[@ridinwithjake]

I wonder if the “receptionist” job was just a ruse to get you to come in…

[@rachellejoachim2652]

Sadly the person who post Primerica has a job was wrong it is a business that would be best done with a job, without a job you could still work the business but you need to put aside time to study for an insurance license, etc, you could still make money on other services they offer but you still need different tactics of method to find people outside of your friends and family that is the hardest part of all business such has these.

[@nicoledoubleyou]

I really like your channel because I never feel like you're preaching to me. You only talk mlms and what they do badly, never about the people nor about what they do or don't believe in. You don't think you're better than other people and it shows. I love it, you're definitely my favorite to watch.

[@CatLady555]

I misread the video length time and thought it was 3 hours long (been watching a lot of live streams lately so it didnt seem odd at first) and I was so ready LOL

[@HannahAlonzo]

Omg could you imagine 3 hours of me reading nonstop 💀🤣

[@aweXiomara]

@@HannahAlonzoI’d love that! I just watched a 4 hour doc from another creator. Love the long ones!

[@bagel_bitez1]

Hannah mentioning arsenic reminds me of my grandfather's favorite anecdote. He had malaria as a child, and back then the treatment was small dosages of arsenic. He was even trusted to climb up in the counter to get the bottle and take his dosage himself! He likes to say if he ever died in a suspicious way and they did an autopsy, my grandmother would be under suspicion for poisoning him 🤣

[@sarahg2653]

I have no experiences with MLM's but you're so gosh darn charming and compassionate, I can't stop watching.

[@HannahAlonzo]

Wow that’s very kind of you to say 🥺 thank you!

[@mcardleh0813]

Aahhh I was in this video! I won't say which story but thank you for being lovely as always, Hannah!

[@HannahAlonzo]

Thank you for sending in your story!!

[@cuckoophendula8211]

Thanks for sharing!

[@josefina5421]

Sorry for anything bad that happened to you!

[@mcardleh0813]

@@josefina5421 😘 thank you queen! I'm better and stronger than ever ❤

[@larkk7444]

What you said about MLMs changing how you see your relationships--basically monetizing your friendships, family, etc--is so spot on. I've never thought about it that way before. I love your approach, firm yet compassionate. Keep up the good work!

[@lingodelfo5415]

They always say the company is gonna change your life. They leave out "for the worse"

[@shawna-lynnrussell2703]

I think it’s so interesting that MLMs promote themselves as the perfect opportunity to be your own boss, meanwhile up lines micromanage their down lines 🤔

[@kateemma22]

Just sell these oil-based creams that absolutely don't have any chemicals in it (no, not even water, that disgusting evil chemical) and you too can grow to become a Quartz Director Unicorn or even an Arkenstone Tycoon Dragon.

[@snooganslestat2030]

🤣

[@LDrosophila]

i just rub salmon all over my face its all natural and now Im at Big Fish Carbon Boss Babe level

[@lacedhexes]

@LDrosophila ooo, who doesn't love a good dose of heavy metals

[@violettefemme21]

I would love a deep dive on Beautycounter, especially since they aren’t talked about much at all. They got really big with a lot of “paleo bloggers” that I used to follow (who aren’t really paleo anymore cause that was also just a fad but names like Diane Sanfillipo and Cassy Joy Garcia) and they skew a bit older and already had large followings when they started selling and got in near the beginning. I’ve purchased some products before I really knew much about MLMs and while the products were decent they were SO overpriced (obviously).

[@MaggieMumblesThings]

After watching many many mlm horror stories I want to say to everyone who has submitted one or who ever will submit one the following. Your story is interesting and you do not need to preface it with “it may not be as crazy as others” or something along those lines. I think the fact that we live our lives makes our experiences seem unremarkable. But to a stranger, it’s incredible. Humans are storytellers, we love it all.

[@karolinakaluzna]

I just watched another one of your videos and I clicked on this one. Then I read the title. And I honestly can’t even watch it because I know I will be emotional. I have such horror stories with this company. Long story short. They recruited my dad. They got my parents to take out a line of credit against their house in order to invest the money. That was in 2006. Then the recession happened and my parents basically lost all that money. They were paying off the line of credit without ever being able to pay it off like they would with a mortgage. Eventually they had to sell that house and get an actual mortgage for their next one. Now my mom and dad are in their 60’s and still have over a decade left on their mortgage. The guy who recruited them also got two of my best friends’ parents to “invest” and they lost their money. My best friend’s parents are in their 70’s and already had their house paid off and now they have a mortgage again. Her dad had to work way past retirement age to be able to afford it. The guy recruited a bunch of other people from our church. Even scammed an elderly couple. My mom’s best friend lost $100 000 through him. It’s such a nightmare. And the effects of it are so long lasting.

[@cuckoophendula8211]

"_________ sells you on a mission that feels right in order to make you do wrong." I agree that this should be on a t-shirt, but it's kind of scary how well this applies to most cults out there.

[@HannahAlonzo]

Very true 😳

[@kourtnikourt9308]

I work in postpartum care and this idea is sooo ramped and dangerous.

[@BrookelynnM8]

@@kourtnikourt9308 may I ask why? Not in a rude way, just genuinely curious.

[@lingodelfo5415]

​@@BrookelynnM8 my guess would be, because new parents are always doubting themselves, their abilities as parents and what to do to provide the best care possible. Which is a huge vulnerability and many of them can then fall for scams

[@Celepom]

I was too poor to join an mlm. I had just graduated college, moved to a different city and the job market was abysmal. I was applying to everything, not just things in my field and one of the job listings had some flashy graphics (much graphic design) instead of a text post that laid out all the benefits and saying that you'd make $15/hour! Sounded great. Applied. Got a phone call that same day where they explained the "opportunity" and it was a "sales job." Having moved to a new area, I didn't know anyone and wasn't about to go knocking on strangers doors trying to sell them knives. And then she dropped the bomb that I'd have to pay $200 for a starter kit to demo for prospects. My heart sank into my stomach. I didn't *have* $200. I was selling my things to afford rent at that point and was living off a box of rice per week. I told her that I couldn't afford that and this didn't sound like a good fit for me, and she kept pushing, INSISTING that I at least come to their group interview so that I could have a better understanding of "what they do." I declined and hung up and they kept calling me FOR WEEKS, and every time I felt awful because I was so desperate for a job, but here I was turning down an "opportunity" In hindsight, I now know that vector marketing/cutco is an MLM that specifically preys on college students and recent grads, and I suppose you can say I was "lucky" to be too poor to be roped in because I was so vulnerable, that had they convinced me to go to that "interview," I'm certain that would have tried to coax me to put it on a credit card. I'm much more savvy to scams now, thanks to anti-mlmers like you. In more recent times (2020) I had a job interview over zoom that had been advertized as a marketing job, but kept getting further and further from that description as the interview went on. To the point where yellow flags became orange, became red, and I asked outright if this was an MLM. She said no and IMMEDIATELY ended the interview. 100% sure that was an mlm but not sure which one as the name she gave was for "her" company and not the top of the pyramid.

[@SindyJ37]

Wow the first story was so well written!! I loved the "orange flag" reference. Ty for sharing 💓

[@LDrosophila]

I always love saying arsenic is natural and oxygen is a toxic chemical (it ages you) glad to be on the same wavelength

[@krisdiane]

"chemical free" - our products are made of gravity and positive thoughts

[@whenimonmymoon6822]

I need THIS on a shirt

[@krisdiane]

@@whenimonmymoon6822 😂😂😂 that would be awesome

[@emilyward4388]

Yes I’ve heard of that app and USED to use it..The app isn’t specific to beauty counter BUT everyone be careful when looking up your own products up on that app to see if your products are “dirty” because I’ve heard of companies paying that app to score their products on a good scale as “clean” and “natural” so even if your product rates well it still may not be the cleanest or best product to use! If you don’t know if your product is a good one look at the ingredients yourself and type each one into google.. it’ll take longer than using the app but at least you’ll know the truth about your specific product.

[@emilyward4388]

Woah! Maggie is so talented!!!! Running to her Instagram to look at what else she has for sale😍

[@maggibrown8279]

thank you!!

[@MrsMuffin11]

Sending you my Primerica story soon 🤣🤣 You posted at the perfect time! Getting ready for work ☺

[@cg8713]

Super excited to hear a primerica story too. I have my own, and I don't hear many stories of the company. If I had heard more, I may have thought twice about joining in the first place!

[@jessielynn]

I was apart of Primerica for 3 years. I don’t hear many stories about them either. I may have to send my story in.

[@CarboneCat]

What I appreciate of these horror stories is to see that no matter their names and their products, the lies are always the same.

[@angelah.810]

I love your videos, and I really like how you have a shout out to a small business. Now THATS how women can help women. Not by MLMs. God bless

[@erinadams2298]

Hey Hannah! First of all, you’re adorable ☺️. I had no idea what MLM’s even were until I started binge watching your videos lol! You’re honestly a natural teacher, you helped me understand a lot about MLM’s in general. I found out that I almost joined a couple of them, AND I was actually a beach body subscriber..yikes! So thank you so much for your informative and entertaining content. It’s much needed 💜

[@Friesnchicken]

Idk how I found this Cause I was watching a murder trial but now I’m obsessed with anti MLM content. So bingey lmao

[@whenimonmymoon6822]

Right?! It hits all the psychology wtf of true crime, but a break from the gore. My KZbin algorithm is all confused, anti-MLM, True Crime, and make-up being done in conjunction with either thing. 🙃

[@emilylerman9028]

The story of the person's mom who started selling Primerica after her sister passed away at age 18 is especially fucked to me and here's why. My sister died when I was 4 and she was 7. One of the things my parents regret is not getting her life insurance to help pay for the funeral and medical bills. I wonder if the person who recruited her mom used that to persuade her into joining Primerica, or if her mom uses that story to sell life insurance.

[@brandonmatt4091]

I’m sorry you feel that way and there is definitely a wrong way to go about this but let me ask you a question Emily. If it was such a traumatic experience which I absolutely think it is, why is it so wrong to want to help other families god forbid something similar happened to them. Maybe I am wrong but, like it or not, having life insurance with child riders on the policies dramatically helps families god forbid something as sad as a child passing happens. And there are many families out there who don’t understand that and need to be educated god forbid they went through the same thing.

[@maureenp2248]

@brandonmatt4069, I think the issue isn't them selling life insurance, but specifically selling *primerica* life insurance, which is sketchy bc it uses the MLM business model.

[@carlakniffen9100]

Hello Emily, People do need insurance. My husband would not get insurance. He died at age 46. He made good money but he would always say we can't afford it. Long story short........I lost our house and had to file bankruptcy. Mind you, I did not get one penny from the sale of the house. It has been very hard on me and my children. I must say it was a Primerica rep and another insurance rep that helped me through this rough time in my life. Neither insurance reps asked me to buy insurance or become an insurance agent for their company. I am having another difficult time from cancer as medical insurance does not pay the whole bill. It has been quite awhile since I've seen the Primerica rep, yet he wants to help me out. He has not asked me to join the company. I am considering asking him what is involved in being with Primerica. Emily, please, please, get insurance for yourself and your family, if you have children. Get it from Primerica, get it from Farmers Insurance, get it from Colonial Life, get it from Mutual of Omaha, just be sure to get some. Best to you.

[@cassiusvoidkin]

Thanks so much for all the work that you out into making content, and for the super long playlist. I've been looking for casual but interesting things that I can listen to while doing housework, to keep me motivated, but I hate the unpredictable and awkward "live" nature of podcasts. These videos are perfect.

[@Gingerrrrsnapps]

I worked at my office yesterday and when I got to my car we all had primarica cards in our car windows. I immediately thought of this channel and googled to see if it was an mlm.

[@lureeoly]

My husband is currently out of state for a conference..a real one😂 airfare, overtime salary, hotel, entrance fee, and meals completely paid for lol As it should be

[@LesleyHayes4]

My husband works for a bank. He recently had to go on a work trip for a conference in D.C. (we live in Southern California). His employer paid for his flight, hotel, meals, Uber rides, etc. Basically everything but souvenirs. Oh, and he also GOT PAID because it was part of his, y’know, actual job.

[@erkyperkyy]

I remember a couple years ago I was put into a Instagram group chat with 2 girls I have never met trying to recruit me to sell Monat. I remember googling the brand and seeing those lawsuits, and when I asked the girls they told me the exact same thing. So weird. But this story made me feel validated.

[@FawnieFox]

I’m glad you brought up progressional development. I work in education and every semester we have activities and presentations we can sign up for as professional development. Adjuncts get paid to attend them, full timers are required to complete a certain amount of hours as part of their salary. If there is a conference I want to go to that costs money I can petition the school to pay for it. They will even cover hotel (all costs or a portion) and meals.

[@natalietitus3234]

These are amazing points! Natural is not always good and chemical is not always bad! Ty Hannah

[@morgreeen]

OMG THE FACIAL THING HAPPENED TO ME TOO. I entered a raffle at Dunkin Donuts to win "a free facial" I went with 2 friends and we had no idea it was Mary Kay until we got inside the room in the building otherwise there was no branding anywhere. Immediately we were so annoyed it was Mary Kay and NOT a formal spa facial like we thought. We did not purchase anything, sign up, or anything at all and left as soon as we could.

[@sharronaa]

I'm from Las Vegas and work in design. Majority of our economy is driven by tourism. All larger resorts have convention centers and all vegas attractions make it convenient for convention goers to stay entertained while working. Vegas is literally designed for conventions.

[@kat0153050]

I work in a deli grocery store people who complain about chemicals in beauty products remind me of people who ask if lunch meat is processed. All lunch meat is processed or it would rot and you couldn’t eat. Like wise as you said if beauty products didn’t have chemicals them they wouldn’t perform correctly and go bad.

[@juicyparsons]

I had an old roommate who got sucked into Primerica. She must have been losing money because she fell behind on her rent (without telling me) and eventually abandoned our apartment and her lease and moved across the country. She skipped out on housing court. I was pissed and angry at the time but it was so long ago now I'm genuinely curious how long she stayed in that mess

[@Gurkhyvel]

Yes Hannah, love hearing you say every beauty products have chemicals! I work at a pharmacy and specializes in skincare. There is nothing more that annoys me then ”natural ingredients”, as you say heavy metals are also natural but you wouldn’t want that in your cream. I also live within the EU where ingredients are heavily restricted cause of the laws. Thank you for fighting the good fight! 💖

[@WhatTheFriedRice]

My moms been in legal shield for 13+ years and it’s a constant strain on our relationship. I lived in a different state and told her I got a new job. She flew out to my job and dropped my name (I’m a brand new employee) to try to sell her “products” to HR. She didn’t even tell me she was there, I ran into her at the office.

[@bexlovesart3751]

The constant pressure to be selling in Mary Kay is ONE of the reasons I got out. I couldn't even enjoy taking my daughter to the park because I felt guilty if I didn't strike up a conversation and give a sample to another Mom. I'm sad at the loss of quality time I gave to my child because I had to constantly be focused on working the business.

[@AJMackey1]

Let these numbers sink in: I got recruited into the Primerica cult way back in 1994, 20 years ago. At the time, they had 107,000 active reps (I don't know why I remember that). They now have 135,000 reps. They recruit approximately 200,000 reps per year company wide. So out of 4 million people the last 20 years.... not even 30,000 stuck. Less than 1%. So you pay the money, do all the work it takes to get licensed in the business, annoy your family and friends for a less than 1% chance of making the company average of $7,185 per year. In summary, since the numbers don't lie, join Primerica and you have a less than 1% chance of making $138 per week.

[@soapylulu]

I have a friend that starting selling Monat and she wanted to talk to me about it since I have my own (independent) aesthetics business and I would already have large and established clientele that I could sell to. Ugh. I politely refused and knew this was something they had learned in one of their seminars that friends with already established businesses would be a golden opportunity. Her mom bought the shampoo and her already thinning hair fell out and broke off so badly she bought wigs! When I told the mom about the law suits she stopped using Monat, her hair came back, and she no longer has to wear a wig.

[@calliegisler3502]

I'm not sure if it's the specific app Beauty Counter uses, but the Think Dirty app sounds just like that. Thanks for putting out such great content, Hannah! I found your channel a week ago...and already finished binging all your MLM content. 😅 I've seen so many friends fall victim to this "business" model and have gotten my fair share of "Hey girl!" DMs because of it.

[@HannahAlonzo]

Yes I think that’s the app!! So happy you’re here Callie, thanks for your support 🥰

[@AshRenee0424]

I have an app that sounds similar called Yuka, but I use it solely to avoid products with endocrine disruptors (I have PCOS so they affect me much more than the average person), as well as scanning food products to see if they have anything I’m allergic to. It’s so crazy people in MLM’s will use these apps to sell their crazy overpriced products! There’s cheap, clean products out there.

[@Amanda-sj5sb]

Making Friday better one Starbucks analogy at a time!! 😂❤️ Love your stuff, I look forward to every upload.

[@Subtletext]

That nail art was absolutely stunning!

[@itsAngiAKAlovejunkie]

Cities are ranked for business conversations by how many hotel rooms they have. I used to work for the opryland hotel (unfortunately) and while I was there, Nashville built a convention center. Whenever someone asked if it was going to take conventions away from us, they would tell us that it would actually bring us conventions because it would increase Nashville’s overall hotell and convention availability.

[@lucky0211_]

sheesh i actually worked at Sephora when they launched Beautycounter.... I was the one that put up the endcap ;((( there was so much backlash for it!!! Like hello, how shady is that company actually made a deal with sephora. thankfully only lasted like 3/4 months and then it got pulled.

[@violettefemme21]

Didn’t they also have a small stint in Target as well? And you can buy their products off their website without purchasing through a consultant… I do believe their founder truly believes in their “cause” for “non toxic beauty” and that might also lead to why they sell through non-consultant avenues as well. It’s definitely different than a typical MLM.. but it’s still an MLM.

[@BoxOfFeet]

Hey Hannah, love your content. I've been on the anti-MLM train ever since Vector tried to get my wife back in 2014 with an ad for, no joke, a graphic design job. No. It was selling knives. Thanks, Indeed. Anyway, I like your calm demeanor, and that I can listen to your vids while I work. These stories are all great. Keep being awesome!

[@carlgrimeseyepatch27]

Ok first You’re so beautiful girl! Second thank you for these videos I’ve been having A tough day and your videos popped up and although sad I’m glad you are sharing these stories! My lil story: I had a coworker who I was never really close too but after we both left the job we shared together we ended up reconnecting because she needed some help with her hair and I wanted to practice on someone so it was perfect. I spent a night with her and met her husband and they were so great i remember the end of the night she said “wow I wonder how we were never close before!” I genuinely thought I had made a friend and was happy to be there for her and her family… she ended up selling Monat and I immediately was in the line of fire. I’m so against MLMs obvious that I just stopped talking to her and I felt so bad like I was being a jerk and on top of that I felt I lost a friend I barely gained! I don’t see her posting much anymore and I hope she’s outta of that she’s an amazing mother and a hard worker and I hated seeing her fall into that.

[@daughter_of_yeshua]

My 6th grade teacher sold Mary Kay. She even had a personalized MK license plate. It explains a lot.

[@Brooklyn-rj3np]

The arsenic example was brilliant

[@libertymedicalcommunicatio4908]

MLMs are exempt from the franchise rule because they always ask for fees that never exceed the statuatory limit

[@alessandramontes6104]

Just started watching your series in MLM horro stories! I love them! I have a close friend who’s in Primerica and she’s second generation, her parents are currently in it and it’s a whole crazy scam! Can you do a deep dive on Primerica?

[@rachelnothnagel7911]

Oh man… I get so giddy when a new Hannah video comes out 🥰

[@trulytart3534]

I don't know if Pharrell knows this or not but his song "Happy" is basically an mlm conference/meeting anthem. I almost got roped into ACN. I went to 3 meetings and each time they played that song fully at least 3 times and partially when introducing speakers.

[@ProfessorChaosKitty]

To the Mary Kay lady in the last story - Weird Al Yankovic has done a send up of Happy called Tacky. It seems appropriate 😂

[@thrifthavenct558]

For the conferences - I think they probably do Vegas bc it’s cheap and feels like a party. Atlanta has the busiest airport in the us (and in the world, until recently) and is also the Delta hub

[@dahliacheung6020]

Beauty Counter is often presented as a "less scammy" mlm, but man they've got a good (powerful) and terrifying (scarily effective, dishonest, and so twisted!) methods of drawing people in.

[@J0YB0X]

I’ve always called them “pink flags”. “Orange” works, too! 💗🧡

[@turkeydudegaming]

OMG Maggi's nails were gorgeous! Please show off your free set when you get them! I loved the Scooby-doo ones. I'm so glad she is an actual small business owner and not an MLM "small business owner".

[@maggibrown8279]

Thank you so much!!!

[@jennwhyte3837]

Woot woot!! Best way to come home from work on a Friday! Happy weekend, Hannah! 🥰🤩💜

[@zucetmartinez5877]

The app is called Think Dirty. I also used to be in an MLM (Monat) and used the app a lot while being a rep. It was like the holy grail app for reps to show how bad other brands were in comparison and just how “clean” and “natural” Monat was. The thing is, the app doesn’t even begin to show the interaction between the ingredients or of the ingredient should be used for that specific need. AMD natural does not mean safe. It’s so much more than just rating the ingredients as the app did. But we were, in a sense, “brainwashed” to think the app was the ultimate tell all for what products we should use. One day I will share my story with you as I not only did Monat, but hopped to another MLM believing I was at fault and thinking I needed something that would suit me better. Oh how my views have changed since then. Love your videos and the way you present information/facts and how you share your own views in a respectful way. I’ve been binge watching your videos for the past week week and a half since I discovered your channel. Keep up the amazing work.

[@ericaerica8031]

Thanks for the heads up about Beauty Counter. Truly appreciated. 💛

[@ashleyanthony4854]

Hannah: There are many reasons why Atlanta is a major convention site. The main 2 being because it's a huge city, and a central thoroughfare through the South. It's also a fashion/trend originator. They have quite a few arenas, 4 & 5 star hotels, major corporate headquarters and other business sites. A company I worked for (not MLM) was going to attend a beauty trade show there one time. Atlanta is known for these shows and they're honestly great for businesses who want exposure and growth beyond just creating a website. You can get a lot of sales here. For reference, check out The Southern Women's Show. There's also a huge cluster of all the typical MLM targets: Poor, immigrants, students, stay at home moms, and influencers. If you look at Vegas, it's no different. All the same reasons why people come to ATL.

[@IFBBProYeo]

Deprogramming is the perfect word.

[@champagnehand]

To be fair, for someone like myself who has a permanent chemical injury (ES/MCS), apps like Think Dirty are extremely helpful for keeping myself safe. The issue isn't the app itself. As you rightly and regularly point out, the lack of research/education/accountability in the hundom is where it becomes an issue. Third-hand greenwashed jargon on top of a deliberate ignorance of science with an otherwise-legitimate app as a prop gets a toxic total of 10/10.

[@blackmber]

I was pitched Primerica under the guise of a teaching job. I worked as a private math tutor for high school students, and advertised on an online classifieds site. I saw an ad there for a job teaching people about finances and preparing for retirement. I went for an “interview” at Tim Horton’s, and the guy first explained about how much money people need to retire, interest, and Primerica’s products. When it became clear that I would be responsible for finding people to “teach” (ie sell to) and that I would not be paid for my time, I was out. I knew I would not be good at that. It’s a good thing I was already being paid hourly for my tutoring work, otherwise I might have been sucked in.

[@tokiobabe99]

Primerica is a weird mlm. I've had one person who took me along on a trip to just get some forms (she said) and then acted kinda annoyed when I saw there was a meeting about starting a business and I wanted to stay and watch, but she didn't try to sign me up and I've never been pitched by any other Primerica person. I know for a fact, though, that my mom's acquaintance who is in Primerica and has sold her a retirement plan has been in it for at least two decades, and my friends dad who got in it had been in it for years as well. It really keeps people in it.

[@jessielynn]

Yea I was in Primerica for 3 years. It is a MLM but ppl stay in it longer than most mlms because they are an actual company providing actual services that actually help people. I still wouldn’t advise anyone to join but I do still have investments and life insurance through them because their products are actually good. If you need life insurance, I would recommend them over anyone else.

[@laurenr5095]

The $3000 from Mary Kay was probably advised to that person because if you buy a large amount of inventory right out of the gate when you sign up you get a bunch of free stuff included. Still a scam.

[@simparq]

Would love a BeautyCounter deep dive. I was looking for ethically made and sustainable makeup and came across them but when I noticed they were an MLM I decided against purchasing

[@TheBlankInk]

Something that brings me lots of joy is that no way my mother will get sucked into mlms Shes of the opinion that lots of money aint easy to get fast.You cant achieve greatness without busting your butt a bit. She also knows what mlms and pyramid schemes are(i called her because ive been binging this channel and wanted to chat about it and i started talking about mlms and she immediately caught on.What a pleasant thing indeed lol) She told me to absolutely stay away from that and i told her that im educating myself on mlms to prevent myself from getting scammed and she seemed happy about it. Love my mom lol Also my friends are anti mlms as well so this is great

[@catherinearredondo2092]

Ugh I signed up for Primerica not realizing it was an MLM. I feel so embarrassed that I ever signed up. I backed out immediately, but not until after I paid for my membership 🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️

[@brandonmatt4091]

If you quit before a certain amount of time you could’ve gotten your $99 back which is how much it is to start now but I’m sure you would’ve rather just complained about it on the internet.

[@pris1378]

life is chemicals. i hate this type of fearmongering.

[@Pippa87]

So rare I’m this early and get to watch. Maggie: I’m following your Instagram and hoping you ship to the UK 🇬🇧

[@TheThriftyBroad]

It is so sad the lengths that some of people go to to manipulate people to join the cult

[@gojiberry7201]

I think MLMs are like an abusive relationship. "You can't leave me! You'll never find anyone better! It's all your fault it's not working!"

[@cakesnpies9559]

I did isagenix for a while. It wasn't horrible, but they definitely pushed you to be a consultant at first. I signed up a couple of people but felt bad about it because the stuff was expensive. I never really pushed the products but would get so annoyed when people would ask me about how I lost weight and how I did it. There was this weird thing where people would push so hard to try the products because they also wanted to lose weight. I felt pressured to sign them up and never wanted to because you had to enter their personal information including their SSN. I never felt good signing up people even when the person insisted they wanted to do it. I always told them it was expensive and that it doesn't work for everyone.

[@Spencer900]

I go through anti MLM phases! Found you on this current one. Subscribed

[@LilyFengari]

As a member of a company that does both User Conferences and Conferences for our own Sales Org, I can answer your question about why the conferences are where they are. Most conferences are placed at an airport hub location in the USA that is fairly accessible to most countries, that has a large conference center space and that has a lot of hotel rooms available. They are also usually hosted at the closest airplane hub to the headquarters of the company for smoother logistics. So for instance Salesforce hosts their user conference in SF, Microsoft will host theirs in Seattle etc. A lot of MLMs are headquartered in SLC (which while a hub only has one large convention center space and its expensive to fly to) so a lot of Utah based companies tend to host them in Las Vegas, which always has an abundance of convention spaces.

[@nataliaisav]

Watching this a little later but just had to say it’s so funny how I’m 21 and an insurance salesperson in an actual real insurance company lol. I triple checked it was real and not an MLM, so far so good! Don’t have to recruit anyone and all commissions are based on sales :))

[@NUMBEREDidentity]

I went to a Primerica seminar once... I have a real estate license and a mortgage license so a friend thought I should go get an insurance license as well, friend told me to bring my boyfriend at the time along as well. The presentation seemed fishy to me ... When the focus is stories about how great your life can be, rather than facts on what the product is. My boyfriend was doodling Egyptian pyramids the whole time and little mummy Pusheen kitty's, giving me looks like "why are we here? Don't you dare sign up" and I was trying to not laugh the whole time. A couple months later I was job hunting and someone invites me to an interview I should come to that would be a "great opportunity" for me .. I was open to anything and decided to go. Found the place, weird location next to the airport, weird building that I needed to use the side entrance, got there late, and walk into a room with a Primerica sign upfront. I realized what it was , decided I wasn't going to waste my time on that shit, left, and wrote a serious message to the person that invited me that I was not interested, would never sign up for a mlm, and that he wasted my time that day.

[@SpaceSoundMedia]

In my recent MLM, they used buzzwords like 'virtue signaling' and 'values' and all these cult like words to dismiss non believers and recruit more people

[@ArahNightshadow]

"We have a chemical free product." - Produces a bottle of air.

[@Oceana-Crystal]

I NEED THOSE SCOOBY DOO NAILS

[@lillyvaughn5398]

As I’m watching this video, I got a text from a Pampered Chef consultant asking if I wanted to do an in home party! 😂

[@kasiannatrimble9523]

I worked in Mary Kay for a little less than a year. And where I was and the group I was in was very much social media base. They wanted all of us to be posting every single day multiple times. We also did in person stuff as well.

[@DoingStuffWithDiana]

“MLMs sell you on a mission to do right so you can do wrong” I’m gonna PAINT THAT

[@jincao6537]

No thanks, greenwashing industry. I'll stick with my gross lab-made skincare that's perfectly effective 😂😂

[@rmk815]

We need a Hannah deep dive on Mary Kay! I have stories!!

[@BloodSweatandFears]

One of my favorite things to show people who spew the “chemicals are evil” narrative is the chemical compound makeup of a banana 😂 it’s a rather long list!

[@nicolesnaturalpath8010]

I dont think starbucks follows those zone-ing laws 🤣🤣 they are always across the street from eachother

[@gigii2013]

Lol yes! And they’re both super packed

[@marythompson3831]

I have relatives who post nothing if they do not have a quick line about their "business". I sometimes want to check their pages to keep updated on the family, but I end up missing out on special events because of the strong push of how great their business is. It's a shame really.

[@aaroncatron2306]

A "chemical-free product" just wouldn't exist.

[@jsmnfisher4]

Off topic, but GIRL!! You are SO BEAUTIFUL! ✨

[@oleanderwyvern]

"No one would think water is toxic because it's a chemical" just reminded me of an article one of my middle school teachers had us read an article about the "dangers of dihydrogen monoxide" and we discussed our feelings about the article after reading it. Then the teacher revealed that dihydrogen monoxide is just H2O aka water, and we had a conversation about the dangers of fearmongering using scientific sounding words and cherry-picking anecdotes to suit the agenda of the article ('this chemical in sufficient quantities has caused suffocation') and how to use critical thinking when presented with new information.

[@sarapinkandpurple]

That makes sense with Mary Kay since I haven’t seen posts about them on Facebook. I have seen posts on beach body, monat, and IT works. Primerica would be an interesting deep dive and financial education services is one that is an mlm. I also had no idea jafra is an mlm. My mom used to buy their products, along with pampered chef and Tupperware. My parents had no idea.