Direct Buy-Any Experience (Stanley: new home, landscaping, transfer)

[ingrdo]

Originally Posted by atlanta2007

Did you save $4500 to make up for the joining fee? Probably not. This is the first product I've seen sold without an incredible amount of "handling charges."

I'll make up the joining fee while doing the bathroom. My original cost of bathroom renovation was 12K. It is now 8 b/c the tile, cabinetry, tub and glass for shower surround are over 1/2 off HD/Lowes, any 'warehouse liquidator', or any other place. I've done a lot of research into the products I want or what I would like to have if I had the budget for it. DB will work for us while we do major renovation, buy new furniture, major (and small)appliances, etc. I wouldn't save anything buying a computer or small electronics with them (which they were up front about) but otherwise, for what we are doing, it's worth it. There are many items/services that our franchise offers that don't have a handling fee. These are charged by the manufacturer and we pay them at any store, when ordering through any catalog, etc. So far, I've had really great customer service when I've needed it at our franchise. Apparently, this is one of those 'you either love it or hate it' deals. I'm sorry others haven't had such good experiences. I'll keep updating as the house progresses.

[hairguru]

INFOMERCIAL SCAMS.COM - DIRECT BUY COMPLAINTS
Hey friend, just thought u'd like to check out the above link i've posted; this is why i thank GOD for protecting me from scams like these. Actually, maybe it is not a scam- for members that are invloved in Amway-[and the like!]- it is just NOT for us. I think i can use the $4k on something else. It's like u hav to weigh how much thruout the 3yrs. u'll buy stuff- and IF - that is more than the $4k upfront, [heck how do we know we'll even be here that long?] then i guess go ahead. I only hope we can keep others from falling into this mess! Good luck, i HOPE i am not too late in getting this to u!
Lisa in NJ

[Lisa_from_Debary]

I am just curious why people don't get a Business tax id # and order your items directly from the maker yourself and leave Directbuy out of the loop.

My brother did this when he renovated his home and also saved the local sales tax as well.

[Wanna Leave Penciltucky]

With High Point and Costco right here I am not paying more than my 100.00 membership to Costco. You can buy furniture, shades, mattresses everythng at Costco. I am not paying more than 100 bucks for a shopping club. Nc is where most of the wood is milled for floors furniture and everything. With Lumber Liquidators right in town why would you need to pay 3500 to anyone.
It may have been a good concept 15 years ago but today anyone and everyone can buy at direct prices.

[marc515]

Especially with that high membership fee. Rationale:
1. you are losing interest on the up front fee
2. you can buy furniture direct anyway; we purchased from FurnitureLand South, and they were the best deal going at the time; saved us a fortune.
3. with the internet, you can usually find a great deal on almost anything.

just my .02 cents;Regards,......marc

[Lisa_from_Debary]

I wonder how they keep more then one family from going in one membership...think about it, if you had a couple friends who were doing some remodeling, split that membership fee 3-4 ways, that would bring the price down.

I also wonder for those of you that have purchased appliances, what do you get for a warranty??

When I purchased my microwave, I got an extended warranty...they have been out twice to replace parts on it, all free, I haven't even paid for the parts...

[nospamplease]

We spoke to some folks and have redone 6 houses over the past few years, so we should have known better, but we live close so we were curious. Here is how direct buy works.
The sales people make their commission from selling memberships, not much if anything, from selling the merchandise. To join: 1) You must sit in a small room with high pressure sales people for about 90 minutes watching videos. 2) They do not allow any questions before, or during the time you sit in the room watching the "presentation" 3) They will not quote any prices or allow you to "look around" before sitting thru the 90 minutes of videos. 4) They won't tell you any of this ahead of time.
It was a huge waste of time. We went to "the Dump" outlet just down I35E and found better products for less money, available immediately. We asked for and received discounts at Lowe's that gave us better prices than Direct Buy had on cabinets. Plus we could take back the pieces at Lowe's that we didn't need and got our money back immediately. Direct Buy doesn't actually carry many brands, but can "get anything" from various distributors. Gee, so can I if I have a tax ID. Much of what they do actually carry is previous year models that the vendors don't want back if they can help it. Outlets have this stuff cheaper, with no membership required. Returns are drug out for long periods of time, because Direct Buy gets to use your money for capital. An interesting observation: They made a big deal about us coming on time to beat "the crowd", well the other, very few, couples that were there with us were all from a long drive away. Dallas is a very competitive market so the only "fish" were from outside the metroplex where they don't have access to much. If you can comparison shop easily, you won't find the deals at Direct Buy to be worth the time or membership.

[meisterx]

Yes, Direct Buy has its negatives. The biggest of these is the fee to join ($4000 in our case).

In purchasing anything, you have to be a smart consumer. Diving into the deep end of any pool is inherently dangerous. Check out the internet. Check your local retailers. You have to compare apples and apples. Total up all the charges from Direct Buy and compare that price to what you can get it for retail. Just like with Costco and Sam's Club, sometime you can get it cheaper at the local grocery store. We always check on everything we are considering buying from Direct Buy against the internet and local pricing. For example, I wanted a Garmin Nuvi 660 GPS unit. I checked the Direct Buy price and it was $600.00 plus shipping and service charges. I waited for a couple of months and saw it for $499.00 on Costco.com with free shipping!

Many people write about the high-pressure sales pitch. If you have ever been through a timeshare presentation or purchased a car, Direct Buy is a breeze.

Customer service on the telephone was simply awful when we first joined a little over a year ago. You would call the club phone and almost always get an answering machine or some kind of mechanical answering device. It was difficult to get to talk to a person. Lately (the last four months I'd say) this has significantly improved. Calls are answered by a live person and you can get to talk to a member service rep.

There are things that I would never consider buying through Direct Buy. Electronics, gadgets and anything less than $100. It just is not worth it. If you are going to buy new living room furniture, definately use Direct Buy. Retailers put a huge markup on furnitue. How do you think they can afford to have those 40-50% off sales every couple of months? If you are going to remodel your kitchen you can save a lot with Direct Buy. Remember though that you have to plan for the lag time between ordering and receipt of your merchandise. If you need instant gratification, Direct Buy is not for you.

When all is said and done, Direct Buy is a tool. Like any tool it must be evaluated intelligently, without emotion and used wisely.

[zeldashome]

i am a member of direct buy in florida....what a horror show, first of all things just dont show up when scheduled slow would be the understatement of the year. i was lied to i cant tell you how many times about delivery dates and im trying to reconstruct a home...sorta importsant to know when things will show up for my cinbtractors. also i was told i couldnt cancell an order after 8 months of waiting for a vanity that just didnt show. lucky for me i used a credit card and could cancell through the credit card company. i have repeatedly called and written for a quote on a rug and after 4 weeks i have given up and ordered else where. i do shop on line andf price compare i havent found direct buy to beat anything. they have very very high end items mostly and you will pay for shipping loading delivery and taxes which they dont tell you at first. also they do not deliver to your home you have to pay extra for that if it is a service that is offered at all. i have found them to be unreponsive, unreliable, and i think i have just broken even on my 5000.00 membership for two years.(which is higher now i know) if you ordersomething and dont like it there are no returns you are stuck. i am decorating around a couch that really isnt the same color that i ordered. the tone is off. the books you look through and manufacturers you see today wont be the same ones that are available when you want to order. they change frequently and i have yet to find anything that isnt a special order i couldnt find the same or less on line somewhere. i am a fool for joining and find every chance i can to post this experiance and hope to discourage someone sometime.....dont do it!

[nygoldengirl]

Went to a direct buy presentation, and it was absolutely what most people described: a boring video, and then the high pressure act. There were two other women there with me, who like me are business people, and they both reacted negatively to the 1. Price ($4900), non-cancellation, 2. The decide now or never. Firsr of all, there is no such thing as never. Second, as I told the high presure salesman, I deal in Real Estate sales ( as well as Private Investigations) and my customers would walk away if I gave them that act. I also could not get straight answers to what the real costs would be. I want to do some kitchen renovation, and have looked at a lot, so I wanted hard facts, and they would only give vague answers. Also, someone mentioned using a tax I.D. to order directly. We have a Tax I.D., being self employed...does this actually work? Also, am consulting witwh a decorator...they get 40% to 50% off generally, and of course pass some of this cost to you. But handing over $4900.00 without verification, and this now or never: I walked away. FYI, my sister-in-law went to a presentation in New Mexico and was quoted $400.00 a year, as was her friend. How can this be?