Progressive Design Of Jacksonville Florida - Scentura Creations Major scam They total lie to you Progressive Design isn't the real name Jacksonville Florida

I read your report about Scentura Creations! I must agree about it being a scam. I answered a ad in the local paper titled Manager trainees wanted! Learn how to become a successful business manager and get paid.

I thought cool! Awesome! I went down to the thing and interviewed in a little office. they said I could start immediately! of course I was young and naive at the time.

so on the day I was supposed to start I walked into this class room.

then the people whom I thought I was hired by started showing the class these bottles of Perfume. they claimed how they made millions of dollars and each person within a year or so would be making this kind of money... and how they went to business and sold their product. That was a LIE....

They didnt go to businesses they had us going door to door trying to sell the stuff for like 25.00 dollars a bottle.

one day they got us out around boston and we were driving around going door to door gas station to gas station It started to snow.. and up in boston at that time when it snowed we usually got 3 feet or better. Well It just so happened that they were expecting a Blizzard that day.. and the roads were getting worse and they refused to let us go home. by this time i was getting pissed. because where I lived was about an hour west of boston and I didnt want to be driving in 2 feet of snow. I ended up getting home at 9 pm that nite going thru 3 feet of snow... I had to get a ride because where I parked my car got snowed in. I honestly didnt appreciate that.

but being young and naive again I fell for it so when they said we would be going on a all expense paid road trip up to New Hampshire to make some sales I decided to go... now they said all expenses would be paid... They Lied again! what they didnt tell me was If i didnt sell enough perfume Id end up paying out of pocket! The guy we went up with his name was Dante... He was a total a*s hole. Once we got there he told me I had to let him drive my car and I could go in some one elses car and that he would put gas in it so I agreed. well I got my car back and i only had a half tank of gas in it when I let Dante Drive it it was Full.. at that time I decided I had enough.. I got pissed i got my stuff together and I didnt say anything.. and I left!! it took 2 cars to get every one up to New Hampshire and with one car gone being mine they were stranded! and would have to call a cab to get back to massachusetts.

I just remember dante and every one being pissed! I think overall I ended up spending over $200.00 trying to make money with them.

I read your report about Scentura Creations! I must agree about it being a scam. I answered a ad in the local paper titled Manager trainees wanted! Learn how to become a successful business manager and get paid.

I thought cool! Awesome! I went down to the thing and interviewed in a little office. they said I could start immediately! of course I was young and naive at the time.

so on the day I was supposed to start I walked into this class room.

then the people whom I thought I was hired by started showing the class these bottles of Perfume. they claimed how they made millions of dollars and each person within a year or so would be making this kind of money... and how they went to business and sold their product. That was a LIE....

They didnt go to businesses they had us going door to door trying to sell the stuff for like 25.00 dollars a bottle.

one day they got us out around boston and we were driving around going door to door gas station to gas station It started to snow.. and up in boston at that time when it snowed we usually got 3 feet or better. Well It just so happened that they were expecting a Blizzard that day.. and the roads were getting worse and they refused to let us go home. by this time i was getting pissed. because where I lived was about an hour west of boston and I didnt want to be driving in 2 feet of snow. I ended up getting home at 9 pm that nite going thru 3 feet of snow... I had to get a ride because where I parked my car got snowed in. I honestly didnt appreciate that.

but being young and naive again I fell for it so when they said we would be going on a all expense paid road trip up to New Hampshire to make some sales I decided to go... now they said all expenses would be paid... They Lied again! what they didnt tell me was If i didnt sell enough perfume Id end up paying out of pocket! The guy we went up with his name was Dante... He was a total a*s hole. Once we got there he told me I had to let him drive my car and I could go in some one elses car and that he would put gas in it so I agreed. well I got my car back and i only had a half tank of gas in it when I let Dante Drive it it was Full.. at that time I decided I had enough.. I got pissed i got my stuff together and I didnt say anything.. and I left!! it took 2 cars to get every one up to New Hampshire and with one car gone being mine they were stranded! and would have to call a cab to get back to massachusetts.

I just remember dante and every one being pissed! I think overall I ended up spending over $200.00 trying to make money with them.

I read your report about Scentura Creations! I must agree about it being a scam. I answered a ad in the local paper titled Manager trainees wanted! Learn how to become a successful business manager and get paid.

I thought cool! Awesome! I went down to the thing and interviewed in a little office. they said I could start immediately! of course I was young and naive at the time.

so on the day I was supposed to start I walked into this class room.

then the people whom I thought I was hired by started showing the class these bottles of Perfume. they claimed how they made millions of dollars and each person within a year or so would be making this kind of money... and how they went to business and sold their product. That was a LIE....

They didnt go to businesses they had us going door to door trying to sell the stuff for like 25.00 dollars a bottle.

one day they got us out around boston and we were driving around going door to door gas station to gas station It started to snow.. and up in boston at that time when it snowed we usually got 3 feet or better. Well It just so happened that they were expecting a Blizzard that day.. and the roads were getting worse and they refused to let us go home. by this time i was getting pissed. because where I lived was about an hour west of boston and I didnt want to be driving in 2 feet of snow. I ended up getting home at 9 pm that nite going thru 3 feet of snow... I had to get a ride because where I parked my car got snowed in. I honestly didnt appreciate that.

but being young and naive again I fell for it so when they said we would be going on a all expense paid road trip up to New Hampshire to make some sales I decided to go... now they said all expenses would be paid... They Lied again! what they didnt tell me was If i didnt sell enough perfume Id end up paying out of pocket! The guy we went up with his name was Dante... He was a total a*s hole. Once we got there he told me I had to let him drive my car and I could go in some one elses car and that he would put gas in it so I agreed. well I got my car back and i only had a half tank of gas in it when I let Dante Drive it it was Full.. at that time I decided I had enough.. I got pissed i got my stuff together and I didnt say anything.. and I left!! it took 2 cars to get every one up to New Hampshire and with one car gone being mine they were stranded! and would have to call a cab to get back to massachusetts.

I just remember dante and every one being pissed! I think overall I ended up spending over $200.00 trying to make money with them.

I read your report about Scentura Creations! I must agree about it being a scam. I answered a ad in the local paper titled Manager trainees wanted! Learn how to become a successful business manager and get paid.

I thought cool! Awesome! I went down to the thing and interviewed in a little office. they said I could start immediately! of course I was young and naive at the time.

so on the day I was supposed to start I walked into this class room.

then the people whom I thought I was hired by started showing the class these bottles of Perfume. they claimed how they made millions of dollars and each person within a year or so would be making this kind of money... and how they went to business and sold their product. That was a LIE....

They didnt go to businesses they had us going door to door trying to sell the stuff for like 25.00 dollars a bottle.

one day they got us out around boston and we were driving around going door to door gas station to gas station It started to snow.. and up in boston at that time when it snowed we usually got 3 feet or better. Well It just so happened that they were expecting a Blizzard that day.. and the roads were getting worse and they refused to let us go home. by this time i was getting pissed. because where I lived was about an hour west of boston and I didnt want to be driving in 2 feet of snow. I ended up getting home at 9 pm that nite going thru 3 feet of snow... I had to get a ride because where I parked my car got snowed in. I honestly didnt appreciate that.

but being young and naive again I fell for it so when they said we would be going on a all expense paid road trip up to New Hampshire to make some sales I decided to go... now they said all expenses would be paid... They Lied again! what they didnt tell me was If i didnt sell enough perfume Id end up paying out of pocket! The guy we went up with his name was Dante... He was a total a*s hole. Once we got there he told me I had to let him drive my car and I could go in some one elses car and that he would put gas in it so I agreed. well I got my car back and i only had a half tank of gas in it when I let Dante Drive it it was Full.. at that time I decided I had enough.. I got pissed i got my stuff together and I didnt say anything.. and I left!! it took 2 cars to get every one up to New Hampshire and with one car gone being mine they were stranded! and would have to call a cab to get back to massachusetts.

I just remember dante and every one being pissed! I think overall I ended up spending over $200.00 trying to make money with them.

I wish to apologize to everyone concerned, especially J.D. and Marie, for my two previous responses in this report on Scentura Creations and Progressive Design. It seems that I was mislead, and I have spent the last two years finding out just how wrong I was.

I have learned a lot about Scentura Creations, the company, and the people who own and operate it. And sadly, I have now seen first hand, just how destructive they are to young people starting out in life.

After 8 years of hard work and committment, our son has finally seen them for what they are and has closed Progressive Design and is pursuing another career.

J.D, if you're still out there and see these comments, let me know if there is any way to contact you. The information I have gathered is mind boggling, and I would like to discuss it with you.

Brian
Birmingham, AL

I wish to apologize to everyone concerned, especially J.D. and Marie, for my two previous responses in this report on Scentura Creations and Progressive Design. It seems that I was mislead, and I have spent the last two years finding out just how wrong I was.

I have learned a lot about Scentura Creations, the company, and the people who own and operate it. And sadly, I have now seen first hand, just how destructive they are to young people starting out in life.

After 8 years of hard work and committment, our son has finally seen them for what they are and has closed Progressive Design and is pursuing another career.

J.D, if you're still out there and see these comments, let me know if there is any way to contact you. The information I have gathered is mind boggling, and I would like to discuss it with you.

Brian
Birmingham, AL

I wish to apologize to everyone concerned, especially J.D. and Marie, for my two previous responses in this report on Scentura Creations and Progressive Design. It seems that I was mislead, and I have spent the last two years finding out just how wrong I was.

I have learned a lot about Scentura Creations, the company, and the people who own and operate it. And sadly, I have now seen first hand, just how destructive they are to young people starting out in life.

After 8 years of hard work and committment, our son has finally seen them for what they are and has closed Progressive Design and is pursuing another career.

J.D, if you're still out there and see these comments, let me know if there is any way to contact you. The information I have gathered is mind boggling, and I would like to discuss it with you.

Brian
Birmingham, AL

I am 21 y/o and living in the denver metro area. here they are called onyx whole sales,but it operates like every other scentura creations multi-level marketing scam. after i was "selected" for a second "interview" i was told it was NOT for a sales postion and NOT payed based on commision of sales. i showed up to a small office where i was takin back into a room with folding metal chairs with 25 or so other people while we waited for other people to come in they told dirty and raacist jokes trying i guess to show us how "Laid back" and "fun" it was working there. the rest of it happened almost step by step of all the bad reports i read ( so much so it's scary)everything from promises of free vacations a 52,0000 dallor average income every year, and 15-25 people working under me with in the first 60-90 days (training they call it). the whole time they tryed to keep us focused on all the "Positives" a the only downside according to them is ur relatively short trainig period i9n which u still would make about 275$-385$ a week. it wasn't til 2 hrs into my second interview we finally found out it's 100% comiision (i had already wasted 4+ hrs driving & "interviewing" time, so i was trying to be positive and give it a chance)it was finally over after almost 4 hrs. i went out side to meet my father who picked me up i told him about the "Manager" job they wanted me to train for. he asked me some basic questions and i had trouble answering them. because they spent so much time telling us how much money and perks we where going get and keeping us distracted with notes and random facts about prefume, and almost nothing about what we are doing just vague, general answers. my father was concerned so we tryed looking up the "Famous" larry hahn on Yahoo.com nothing at all came up (we found that strange) so i looked at notes and got scentura creations.com off them.i put it through yahoo and page after page of headings reading "Bad Bussiness" and "Scam" so i looked through a few, the results were scary every report detailed the exact exsperence i had from the way the office looked, the people talked, the promise of a office of my own, avg 52,0000$ a year and even little facts like they are under going a 5 mill exspansion (opening 25 new office in denver) one report came from Fox 31 kdvr-denver "Fox 31 Undercover" you can find the story (orginally posted 2.08.05) on fox31.com/_ezpost/data/12242.shtml "which come to find out went after my interviewer Rodney Cox! needless to say i felt cheated and taken advantage of and feeling more for those who need the income and being mislead to beleive they will make good money. I personally still on unemployment am going to go Mon. 27 . 06 am going to do my best to take it down from the inside make packets of info i found ect. hopefully help this group of 20 or more people get the facts and also am reporting them to and authority who cares to listen. to these company which ever name you go by in your own state BEWARE!!! THE PEOPLE WILL NOT STAND FOR INJUSTICE!!!!!!! we will take you down person by person if we have to i hope you all rott in jail one day, weather you realize it or not you are hurting people every day who really need income to feed thier family and just survive.

Christina wrote:
"The definition of a scam is when you have something taken from you without your awareness or approval."

Actual Scam definition:
A fraudulent business scheme; a swindle.

This is Scentura to a "T"

Notice how Christina ignores the 31 media reports?

It is all a lie, but don't take my word for it, or Christina's word for it, read the above 31 news articles about the Scentura "opportunity".

My name is Christina Packer, and I jsut want to comment on what Maria had written about myself and my former coworkers. First of all I am far from being a liar, never did I say that you would be giving or promised anything! My words exact were that "those of you that are willing to work hard and do the work will in then get an office of your own" I know that we stated on several times that you would be learning the sales portion of the job. You can not tell people to do something that you are not willing to do yourself. Anybody that came into that office and actually stayed to see what would happen would of seen that we were willing to work right along with you. As to us saying that we were part of the bbb, we never stated that we were part of the BBB, but said that our regional managers were part of the BBB of Birmingham, AL. Maria stated what crediable company would give a 21 year old keys to a business a set of keys, well I believe that anyone can do what ever they want, if someone wants to run a company of their own give them an oppertunity, don't discriminate because of their age. On the topic of Amber being a liar, she was not even in our office when Maria said that she was, so why is Amber even involved in this, you can not judge people if you do not know them. If you did not go through and complete the training than how would you know what happens, so my advice is before you go off of what all these people are saying view it for yourself. We tell everyone that anyone can do what we do, but it is not for everyone! The definition of a scam is when you have something taken from you without your awareness or approval. I nor Sean, or Elliot said to give us anything. Your success in this company is based on you and your efforts. I was with the company for just about three years, everyone that completed the training got an office, including myself. People are just blinded by the fact that they actually have to work for something, instead of waiting for it to be handed to them!!!!

I really tried to have an open mind about this "position". It sounded perfect; "Looking for wild and crazy person to work in wild and crazy office with nonserious people" or something to that degree. I mean, I am a 23 year old musician just looking for a day job to support my musical career, OF COURSE I would respond to that (like an idiot).

So I show up to this first "interview" (and boy, do I use that term loosely) and there are 5 other people around my age, all sitting in plastic patio chairs in a room the size of a walk-in closet with all of the positive reinforcement portraits all around us...you know, the ones that read, "DETERMINATION-The key to your own happiness lies in YOU" with someone windsailing in the picture or something of that nature.

After being barraged about how rich Larry Hahn is (and apparently, we are all supposed to know who this guy is when we walk in...sorry, but my age group doesn't frequently watch "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous") and pretending to be thoroughly impressed, I was taken into a small office and asked pretty generic questions, such as, "Are you money-motivated?"...jeez, who isn't, really? In fact, I asked in that interview, "What exactly does this job entail? If it is sales, or commission sales, I am not at all interested." I was told ABSOLUTELY NOT, this was not a sales position. That was a bold faced lie, my friends. But somehow, my bubbly personality warranted me that much coveted second "interview" which was much less of an interview than the first one.

We sat in a brightly painted room and took notes for a few hours and then were told we were selected by our participation and attitudes during the course of that day. Lucky me, I was chosen to be there on Monday at 10:30!! I was jazzed, having gotten a job so quickly after arriving back home to Jacksonville. My family members raised eyebrows when I told them what I would be doing, especially when I realized while trying to tell them, I had no idea what I would be doing! I was being trained to be a manager of what I then thought would be a perfume store like those you see in malls. That's what I told them. Their eyebrows relaxed a little. So Monday rolls around, and little dummy me couldn't be more excited to be starting my job.

An entire day's worth of taking notes later, we are told of a contest...and this, my friends, is what ultimately led to my not showing up on Wednesday. It seems Mr. Generosity himself Larry Hahn or some other bigshot decided to "donate" $1,050 dollars to a contest for the 9 of us new people. It was explained in such a rush and in such a POSITIVE MANNER (for if you know anything about this whole deal, it's all about the positive, and if you have anything to say that may be less than positive, basically you are just NEGATIVE), we were all stoked. The deal was, you go home and you hustle bottles to your family and friends.

There were monetary prizes for the top 6 sellers in this contest, from $50-300, depending on your placement. I sold a modest 3 bottles, but we were told that we would get double credit for the bottles we sold, so in all actuality, I guess I sold 6. Imagine how excited I was on Tuesday when I arrived at "work" and only 5 of us new recruits showed back up.

I was sure to get at least $100, considering that most of the others had only sold 1 or 2 bottles. but the contest was not mentioned that morning, and then we were told that "today is a day of observation". Meaning, "today, we show you how to hustle people in parking lots." My trainer was a married father of 2 or 3, but that didn't stop him from hitting on at least 2 girls in the course of a few hours "in the field", making me feel extremely uncomfortable and embarrased, not only for me, but mostly for him. I watched him bother people in their businesses while they were on business phone calls, if we were even lucky enough to get through the door without someone shooing us off before we got the first foot in. This was not at all what I had signed up for.

Most of what I heard that day consisted of the trainers telling me not to listen to friends and family that were negative, how my boyfriend would just bring me down (after I had already told them my boyfriend was very supportive and just wanted me to be happy)...you get the drift. So we get back to the office, having not sold a darn thing (my trainer was brainiac enough to have actually forgotten his product, so he was trying to sell out of my measly box of 6 bottles), and I still hear nothing of the contest. So after one of the most pointless and pathetic peprallies of my life, I was a little confused. So, I did what any other "employee" would do- I tried to talk to Sean. But I was intercepted by 2 "executive owners" who said he was on the phone.

I relayed to them my concerns, and they proceeded to explain to me the real ropes of the contest, not even realizing they were revealing the heart and soul of the sordid business at the same time. Apparently, there was a team goal that had to be met in order for the contest to be on. We as a team (the 9 people who started on Monday, only 5 having returned on Tuesday) did not meet that goal, therefore the contest was null and void. My decision at that point was made by my ethics alone. Looking back on the futile notes I took, they were right, I had written a number down with the word GOAL next to it. Did it even register? Obviously not. They get you so s****.> I guess at that point, I was just writing words, and being brainwashed into hearing only what I wanted to hear. I really wanted to make a positive effort, and I did.

I AM positive about one thing, though - they were surprised not to see me there the next day. I really gave it my all, and then the last 2 minutes of that 2nd day are what killed it for me. I already knew before I left the parking lot that I wouldn't be returning. I don't think that Sean and Elliot are bad guys, even though they probably referred to me as a "weed" or a "flake" the next day. But I do think they could learn a lesson in honesty, which is supposedly one of the main traits they look for. If things had been a little more clearly explained and not so quickly skimmed over, I actually may have stayed there and given it a shot. I respect someone who gives it to me straight; I pity the karma of those who don't.--Aaron Marshall

I really tried to have an open mind about this "position". It sounded perfect; "Looking for wild and crazy person to work in wild and crazy office with nonserious people" or something to that degree. I mean, I am a 23 year old musician just looking for a day job to support my musical career, OF COURSE I would respond to that (like an idiot).

So I show up to this first "interview" (and boy, do I use that term loosely) and there are 5 other people around my age, all sitting in plastic patio chairs in a room the size of a walk-in closet with all of the positive reinforcement portraits all around us...you know, the ones that read, "DETERMINATION-The key to your own happiness lies in YOU" with someone windsailing in the picture or something of that nature.

After being barraged about how rich Larry Hahn is (and apparently, we are all supposed to know who this guy is when we walk in...sorry, but my age group doesn't frequently watch "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous") and pretending to be thoroughly impressed, I was taken into a small office and asked pretty generic questions, such as, "Are you money-motivated?"...jeez, who isn't, really? In fact, I asked in that interview, "What exactly does this job entail? If it is sales, or commission sales, I am not at all interested." I was told ABSOLUTELY NOT, this was not a sales position. That was a bold faced lie, my friends. But somehow, my bubbly personality warranted me that much coveted second "interview" which was much less of an interview than the first one.

We sat in a brightly painted room and took notes for a few hours and then were told we were selected by our participation and attitudes during the course of that day. Lucky me, I was chosen to be there on Monday at 10:30!! I was jazzed, having gotten a job so quickly after arriving back home to Jacksonville. My family members raised eyebrows when I told them what I would be doing, especially when I realized while trying to tell them, I had no idea what I would be doing! I was being trained to be a manager of what I then thought would be a perfume store like those you see in malls. That's what I told them. Their eyebrows relaxed a little. So Monday rolls around, and little dummy me couldn't be more excited to be starting my job.

An entire day's worth of taking notes later, we are told of a contest...and this, my friends, is what ultimately led to my not showing up on Wednesday. It seems Mr. Generosity himself Larry Hahn or some other bigshot decided to "donate" $1,050 dollars to a contest for the 9 of us new people. It was explained in such a rush and in such a POSITIVE MANNER (for if you know anything about this whole deal, it's all about the positive, and if you have anything to say that may be less than positive, basically you are just NEGATIVE), we were all stoked. The deal was, you go home and you hustle bottles to your family and friends.

There were monetary prizes for the top 6 sellers in this contest, from $50-300, depending on your placement. I sold a modest 3 bottles, but we were told that we would get double credit for the bottles we sold, so in all actuality, I guess I sold 6. Imagine how excited I was on Tuesday when I arrived at "work" and only 5 of us new recruits showed back up.

I was sure to get at least $100, considering that most of the others had only sold 1 or 2 bottles. but the contest was not mentioned that morning, and then we were told that "today is a day of observation". Meaning, "today, we show you how to hustle people in parking lots." My trainer was a married father of 2 or 3, but that didn't stop him from hitting on at least 2 girls in the course of a few hours "in the field", making me feel extremely uncomfortable and embarrased, not only for me, but mostly for him. I watched him bother people in their businesses while they were on business phone calls, if we were even lucky enough to get through the door without someone shooing us off before we got the first foot in. This was not at all what I had signed up for.

Most of what I heard that day consisted of the trainers telling me not to listen to friends and family that were negative, how my boyfriend would just bring me down (after I had already told them my boyfriend was very supportive and just wanted me to be happy)...you get the drift. So we get back to the office, having not sold a darn thing (my trainer was brainiac enough to have actually forgotten his product, so he was trying to sell out of my measly box of 6 bottles), and I still hear nothing of the contest. So after one of the most pointless and pathetic peprallies of my life, I was a little confused. So, I did what any other "employee" would do- I tried to talk to Sean. But I was intercepted by 2 "executive owners" who said he was on the phone.

I relayed to them my concerns, and they proceeded to explain to me the real ropes of the contest, not even realizing they were revealing the heart and soul of the sordid business at the same time. Apparently, there was a team goal that had to be met in order for the contest to be on. We as a team (the 9 people who started on Monday, only 5 having returned on Tuesday) did not meet that goal, therefore the contest was null and void. My decision at that point was made by my ethics alone. Looking back on the futile notes I took, they were right, I had written a number down with the word GOAL next to it. Did it even register? Obviously not. They get you so s****.> I guess at that point, I was just writing words, and being brainwashed into hearing only what I wanted to hear. I really wanted to make a positive effort, and I did.

I AM positive about one thing, though - they were surprised not to see me there the next day. I really gave it my all, and then the last 2 minutes of that 2nd day are what killed it for me. I already knew before I left the parking lot that I wouldn't be returning. I don't think that Sean and Elliot are bad guys, even though they probably referred to me as a "weed" or a "flake" the next day. But I do think they could learn a lesson in honesty, which is supposedly one of the main traits they look for. If things had been a little more clearly explained and not so quickly skimmed over, I actually may have stayed there and given it a shot. I respect someone who gives it to me straight; I pity the karma of those who don't.--Aaron Marshall

I really tried to have an open mind about this "position". It sounded perfect; "Looking for wild and crazy person to work in wild and crazy office with nonserious people" or something to that degree. I mean, I am a 23 year old musician just looking for a day job to support my musical career, OF COURSE I would respond to that (like an idiot).

So I show up to this first "interview" (and boy, do I use that term loosely) and there are 5 other people around my age, all sitting in plastic patio chairs in a room the size of a walk-in closet with all of the positive reinforcement portraits all around us...you know, the ones that read, "DETERMINATION-The key to your own happiness lies in YOU" with someone windsailing in the picture or something of that nature.

After being barraged about how rich Larry Hahn is (and apparently, we are all supposed to know who this guy is when we walk in...sorry, but my age group doesn't frequently watch "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous") and pretending to be thoroughly impressed, I was taken into a small office and asked pretty generic questions, such as, "Are you money-motivated?"...jeez, who isn't, really? In fact, I asked in that interview, "What exactly does this job entail? If it is sales, or commission sales, I am not at all interested." I was told ABSOLUTELY NOT, this was not a sales position. That was a bold faced lie, my friends. But somehow, my bubbly personality warranted me that much coveted second "interview" which was much less of an interview than the first one.

We sat in a brightly painted room and took notes for a few hours and then were told we were selected by our participation and attitudes during the course of that day. Lucky me, I was chosen to be there on Monday at 10:30!! I was jazzed, having gotten a job so quickly after arriving back home to Jacksonville. My family members raised eyebrows when I told them what I would be doing, especially when I realized while trying to tell them, I had no idea what I would be doing! I was being trained to be a manager of what I then thought would be a perfume store like those you see in malls. That's what I told them. Their eyebrows relaxed a little. So Monday rolls around, and little dummy me couldn't be more excited to be starting my job.

An entire day's worth of taking notes later, we are told of a contest...and this, my friends, is what ultimately led to my not showing up on Wednesday. It seems Mr. Generosity himself Larry Hahn or some other bigshot decided to "donate" $1,050 dollars to a contest for the 9 of us new people. It was explained in such a rush and in such a POSITIVE MANNER (for if you know anything about this whole deal, it's all about the positive, and if you have anything to say that may be less than positive, basically you are just NEGATIVE), we were all stoked. The deal was, you go home and you hustle bottles to your family and friends.

There were monetary prizes for the top 6 sellers in this contest, from $50-300, depending on your placement. I sold a modest 3 bottles, but we were told that we would get double credit for the bottles we sold, so in all actuality, I guess I sold 6. Imagine how excited I was on Tuesday when I arrived at "work" and only 5 of us new recruits showed back up.

I was sure to get at least $100, considering that most of the others had only sold 1 or 2 bottles. but the contest was not mentioned that morning, and then we were told that "today is a day of observation". Meaning, "today, we show you how to hustle people in parking lots." My trainer was a married father of 2 or 3, but that didn't stop him from hitting on at least 2 girls in the course of a few hours "in the field", making me feel extremely uncomfortable and embarrased, not only for me, but mostly for him. I watched him bother people in their businesses while they were on business phone calls, if we were even lucky enough to get through the door without someone shooing us off before we got the first foot in. This was not at all what I had signed up for.

Most of what I heard that day consisted of the trainers telling me not to listen to friends and family that were negative, how my boyfriend would just bring me down (after I had already told them my boyfriend was very supportive and just wanted me to be happy)...you get the drift. So we get back to the office, having not sold a darn thing (my trainer was brainiac enough to have actually forgotten his product, so he was trying to sell out of my measly box of 6 bottles), and I still hear nothing of the contest. So after one of the most pointless and pathetic peprallies of my life, I was a little confused. So, I did what any other "employee" would do- I tried to talk to Sean. But I was intercepted by 2 "executive owners" who said he was on the phone.

I relayed to them my concerns, and they proceeded to explain to me the real ropes of the contest, not even realizing they were revealing the heart and soul of the sordid business at the same time. Apparently, there was a team goal that had to be met in order for the contest to be on. We as a team (the 9 people who started on Monday, only 5 having returned on Tuesday) did not meet that goal, therefore the contest was null and void. My decision at that point was made by my ethics alone. Looking back on the futile notes I took, they were right, I had written a number down with the word GOAL next to it. Did it even register? Obviously not. They get you so s****.> I guess at that point, I was just writing words, and being brainwashed into hearing only what I wanted to hear. I really wanted to make a positive effort, and I did.

I AM positive about one thing, though - they were surprised not to see me there the next day. I really gave it my all, and then the last 2 minutes of that 2nd day are what killed it for me. I already knew before I left the parking lot that I wouldn't be returning. I don't think that Sean and Elliot are bad guys, even though they probably referred to me as a "weed" or a "flake" the next day. But I do think they could learn a lesson in honesty, which is supposedly one of the main traits they look for. If things had been a little more clearly explained and not so quickly skimmed over, I actually may have stayed there and given it a shot. I respect someone who gives it to me straight; I pity the karma of those who don't.--Aaron Marshall

I really tried to have an open mind about this "position". It sounded perfect; "Looking for wild and crazy person to work in wild and crazy office with nonserious people" or something to that degree. I mean, I am a 23 year old musician just looking for a day job to support my musical career, OF COURSE I would respond to that (like an idiot).

So I show up to this first "interview" (and boy, do I use that term loosely) and there are 5 other people around my age, all sitting in plastic patio chairs in a room the size of a walk-in closet with all of the positive reinforcement portraits all around us...you know, the ones that read, "DETERMINATION-The key to your own happiness lies in YOU" with someone windsailing in the picture or something of that nature.

After being barraged about how rich Larry Hahn is (and apparently, we are all supposed to know who this guy is when we walk in...sorry, but my age group doesn't frequently watch "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous") and pretending to be thoroughly impressed, I was taken into a small office and asked pretty generic questions, such as, "Are you money-motivated?"...jeez, who isn't, really? In fact, I asked in that interview, "What exactly does this job entail? If it is sales, or commission sales, I am not at all interested." I was told ABSOLUTELY NOT, this was not a sales position. That was a bold faced lie, my friends. But somehow, my bubbly personality warranted me that much coveted second "interview" which was much less of an interview than the first one.

We sat in a brightly painted room and took notes for a few hours and then were told we were selected by our participation and attitudes during the course of that day. Lucky me, I was chosen to be there on Monday at 10:30!! I was jazzed, having gotten a job so quickly after arriving back home to Jacksonville. My family members raised eyebrows when I told them what I would be doing, especially when I realized while trying to tell them, I had no idea what I would be doing! I was being trained to be a manager of what I then thought would be a perfume store like those you see in malls. That's what I told them. Their eyebrows relaxed a little. So Monday rolls around, and little dummy me couldn't be more excited to be starting my job.

An entire day's worth of taking notes later, we are told of a contest...and this, my friends, is what ultimately led to my not showing up on Wednesday. It seems Mr. Generosity himself Larry Hahn or some other bigshot decided to "donate" $1,050 dollars to a contest for the 9 of us new people. It was explained in such a rush and in such a POSITIVE MANNER (for if you know anything about this whole deal, it's all about the positive, and if you have anything to say that may be less than positive, basically you are just NEGATIVE), we were all stoked. The deal was, you go home and you hustle bottles to your family and friends.

There were monetary prizes for the top 6 sellers in this contest, from $50-300, depending on your placement. I sold a modest 3 bottles, but we were told that we would get double credit for the bottles we sold, so in all actuality, I guess I sold 6. Imagine how excited I was on Tuesday when I arrived at "work" and only 5 of us new recruits showed back up.

I was sure to get at least $100, considering that most of the others had only sold 1 or 2 bottles. but the contest was not mentioned that morning, and then we were told that "today is a day of observation". Meaning, "today, we show you how to hustle people in parking lots." My trainer was a married father of 2 or 3, but that didn't stop him from hitting on at least 2 girls in the course of a few hours "in the field", making me feel extremely uncomfortable and embarrased, not only for me, but mostly for him. I watched him bother people in their businesses while they were on business phone calls, if we were even lucky enough to get through the door without someone shooing us off before we got the first foot in. This was not at all what I had signed up for.

Most of what I heard that day consisted of the trainers telling me not to listen to friends and family that were negative, how my boyfriend would just bring me down (after I had already told them my boyfriend was very supportive and just wanted me to be happy)...you get the drift. So we get back to the office, having not sold a darn thing (my trainer was brainiac enough to have actually forgotten his product, so he was trying to sell out of my measly box of 6 bottles), and I still hear nothing of the contest. So after one of the most pointless and pathetic peprallies of my life, I was a little confused. So, I did what any other "employee" would do- I tried to talk to Sean. But I was intercepted by 2 "executive owners" who said he was on the phone.

I relayed to them my concerns, and they proceeded to explain to me the real ropes of the contest, not even realizing they were revealing the heart and soul of the sordid business at the same time. Apparently, there was a team goal that had to be met in order for the contest to be on. We as a team (the 9 people who started on Monday, only 5 having returned on Tuesday) did not meet that goal, therefore the contest was null and void. My decision at that point was made by my ethics alone. Looking back on the futile notes I took, they were right, I had written a number down with the word GOAL next to it. Did it even register? Obviously not. They get you so s****.> I guess at that point, I was just writing words, and being brainwashed into hearing only what I wanted to hear. I really wanted to make a positive effort, and I did.

I AM positive about one thing, though - they were surprised not to see me there the next day. I really gave it my all, and then the last 2 minutes of that 2nd day are what killed it for me. I already knew before I left the parking lot that I wouldn't be returning. I don't think that Sean and Elliot are bad guys, even though they probably referred to me as a "weed" or a "flake" the next day. But I do think they could learn a lesson in honesty, which is supposedly one of the main traits they look for. If things had been a little more clearly explained and not so quickly skimmed over, I actually may have stayed there and given it a shot. I respect someone who gives it to me straight; I pity the karma of those who don't.--Aaron Marshall

Part 2 from the above....



PERFUME SALES COMPANY RECRUITS IN MUNSTER, IND

The Times (from Munster Indiana), 06/22/2001 Kim Chievrue



Jun. 22--A Georgia-based company that sells knock-offs of designer perfumes has begun recruiting in Northwest Indiana, with classified ads, which offer "management positions" earning more than $500 per week.



While the business operates legally, according to the Better Business Bureau, one local resident who applied for a management position said he was surprised by what he found. The applicant is a Porter County resident who asked that his name not be used in print.



"At first, they wouldn't even tell us what they were selling," he said of the mass interview he attended. "I got as far as the second interview, but then I checked them out on the Internet."



He said the company offered to pay for the training, in cash -- that red flag made him suspicious enough to begin his online research.



What he found, he said, was pages of comments from employees and former employees of Scentura Creations nationwide. Some said they had made a good living selling the fragrances door-to-door, but others reported that, like the Porter County applicant, they felt misled by the offer of "management" opportunities.



"They said you'd be managing your own office, in charge of people going door-to-door, doing sales," said the applicant. "But the training is you going door-to-door. You're selling their product, so the office you're training out of makes money."



According to many of those who posted Internet notices about the company, the only opportunity for management requires the salesperson to recruit and hire his own staff out of his own profits.



The Better Business Bureau in Merrillville said the company's practices are legal. The BBB file shows Scentura Creations has been in business since 1976 under the name Wholesale Merchandise and W.M. Industries. The principle officers are Lawrence Hahn and Robert Hasty. There is no record of any complaint being filed with the bureau in connection with Scentura Creations.



Scentura officials told the BBB they sell fragrance products wholesale to independent contractors, who then resell them. Because the seller is not an actual employee of the company, the report says, the person going door-to-door is responsible for securing the proper business licenses and paying all applicable taxes to government agencies.



Vendors pay the wholesaler $17 to $19 per bottle for the fragrances, and resell them for whatever price they can.



Scentura is doing business as Extreme Enterprises in Portage. The applicant said he was told the company intends to open 25 more locations in this area. The Better Business Bureau report shows Extreme Enterprises was established in November of 2000; no complaints have been filed about the company.



A spokesperson for Extreme Enterprises would not give his title or allow his name to be used, and declined to comment for this story.





ADS SPUR WARNING ON JOBS COMPANY'S INTERNSHIP IS SALES SPOT, BBB SAYS

St. Louis Post - Dispatch St. Louis, Mo.; Jun 22, 1993; Linda Eardley







The Better Business Bureau has issued two warnings to young people seeking work this summer.



The bureau says American Prestige Co., which distributes Royal Prestige cookware and cutlery, has offered college students a "summer internship." But the positions are really "thinly disguised sales jobs," the bureau says.



American Prestige, of Sunset Hills, mailed letters to about 5,000 college students across the St. Louis area last month, the bureau said. The letter described the internship and said class credit and scholarship programs are available in some cases.



"Several students who were interviewed by the company said they felt misled by the use of the word 'internship,' while the firm's representative talked solely about making money selling the firm's products," the bureau said.



The bureau said the firm's president, Tony Miller, said that students have to arrange class credit on their own and that the scholarships offered by Royal Prestige are based on how much cookware the student sells.



Miller could not be reached for comment.



John Flotron, trade practice consultant at the bureau, said it received 143 inquiries about American Prestige this month and last month, most of them from students who received the internship letter.



The bureau warns students to be careful about answering internship letters or ads that offer any of the following:



Unusually large sums of money to be made.



No experience necessary for a job with good wages.



Pay based on "qualified" sales presentations, with the company determining what makes them qualified.



A requirement that money be paid in advance of employment.



The bureau also urges caution when considering employment with several local perfume distributors. These companies advertise in the newspaper for assistant managers. While salaried positions paying up to $40,000 are promised or implied, the positions are primarily commissioned sales jobs, the bureau said.



Seven such companies are Orion Enterprises, Genesis Enterprises of Overland, Mirage Enterprises of University City, Phoenix Enterprises of Sappington, Teka Ltd., London Express of St. Charles, and Borealis of St. Charles.



All are affiliated with Scentura Creations of Atlanta.





WORKERS SAY PERFUME BUSINESS STINKS



Employees Sell Knockoff Perfume

7:03 p.m. EST February 14, 2002









LAKE WORTH, Fla. -- It started as one small business that didn't smell right, but now it might become a state investigation.



Eyewitness News 25 reported Wednesday about complaints against a branch of Scentura Creations, a perfume company. People who responded to employment ads said they got roped into selling knockoff perfumes for no pay.



But it seems some of the workers do stay with the program and have gone on to start their own offshoot companies, doing the same exact thing to hundreds more people.



"There's nothing I can do," Palm Beach County sheriff deputy Kris Roy said. "I can't go in there and say 'Give this man his money back."



Derron sels tried to get back $240 that he said he paid as part of his job to sell perfume for Alan Moltandon (picutred, left). Moltandon runs Rhino Enterprises, a distributorship for Scentura Creations. Officials describe the company, which is based in Atlanta, as a multilevel marketing business. But some job seekers call it a scam. Officials might soon be investigating the incident.



"When we see something like this, it is time for us to turn it over to law enforcement who can actually make them pay for what they're doing," Kimberly Overman of the Better Business Bureau said.



Scentura Creations and some of its distributorships are being accused of running ads for employment, saying no experience is necessary "just a love of music and fun." But job seekers said they are roped into selling knockoff perfume on the streets, and turning most of their earnings over to Moltandon and others like him.



Eyewitness News 25 found four different offices in Lake Worth where job seekers are supposed to report for an interview. Officials said many of those offices move around, which is why it is difficult for authorities to track the businesses down.



"It's really hard to keep track of people when they're running this type of scheme, because things open up so quickly in different places," Oveman said.



Overman said Moltandon seems to be running the office without the right licenses. The Better Business Bureau is turning over their information on him and others to the Attorney General's office and the Division Of Consumer Fraud.



But the job seekers who say they got roped into the alleged scheme said they might be out of luck trying to get the money they are owed.





Too True To Be Good

Charles Elmore

The Palm Beach Post

July 27, 1992







Pam Butterworth, 33, answered an employment ad in West Palm Beach for managers and assistant managers earlier this month. The interviewer said she had the qualifications to make $30,000 and more with the company-- if she could commit immediately. Looking for a new start anyway, she quit a lower- paying job at a florist shop.



Days later, she and more than a dozen other recruits carpooled to Atlanta for a meeting that almost seemed like a revival. The company president said it was the opportunity of a lifetime. Several people, including a woman in a wheelchair, emerged from a crowd of 600 to talk about what it meant to them. The president rewarded some with a $100 bill on the spot.



It was exciting, but Butterworth asked about the $30,000 job an interviewer had mentioned. A recruiter told her, "Don't worry about it, Pam. It's going to work out."

But it never did. The job was selling knockoffs of designer perfume door to door for a commission of $2 to $9 per bottle. It amounted, she said, to "begging on street corners."



For the first generation that won't end up better off than its parents, The American Dream is getting harder to find. The $15-per-hour manufacturing jobs have nearly disappeared. Economists say a recovery is under way, but 10 million are out of work, 1 million have stopped looking, and 6 million have only part-time jobs when they need to be working full time.



And then there are millions who are employed who would gladly trade their safe, boring jobs for adventure, excitement, a chance to hit it big, anything except a pre-planned, financially prudent trudge to the grave.



The easy, smug reaction is to laugh. How could people fall for these get- rich-quick schemes, these no-money-down real estate seminars, these too- good-to-be true want ads? The temptation is to hand out boilerplate advice: "If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is."



But this isn't good enough. In real life, the things most people want -- the money to live out their ambitions, respect, happy relationships-- often seem like dreams too good to be true.



The truth is far less tidy: We need The Dream, even when we know that, chances are, it is The Lie.



The Dream explains why communism collapses and capitalism thrives. And why we buy our lottery tickets knowing the odds are against us-- but also knowing $1 will at least buy us, for a while, one heck of a beautiful fantasy.



Promoters of The Dream know exactly who they are trying to reach.



"You're 35 or 40 and you've reached a dead end. You aren't living the American Dream. It's the second chance you need."

.



Whether we embrace it or deny it, The Dream is still there, stretching before us like the sea. Experts find that if they can't stop us from diving in, they can at least tell us to stick a toe in first while while keeping one foot safely on shore.



"Don't quit your job until you've replaced the income in the new venture," advised Garvey, who once left a teaching job to go into the real estate business for herself-- but not before establishing steady rental income from properties she bought.



"If you go into business for yourself, remember you no longer have benefits like subsidized health insurance," she said. Also, qualifying for certain kinds of loans, if you need them, will be easier while you have a salaried job.



Also remember that unless you are smart enough to be born rich, work will always be involved.



"There are legitimate offers and there are ones that aren't, and in the legitimate ones you're going to have to work hard to make any kind of major income," said Ron Stephens, president of the Better Business Bureau of Palm Beach County. "The one that is the scam is usually the one that promises the most. There's no free lunch and no simple get-rich-quick scheme."



And keep an eye open for sharks. It isn't difficult for promoters to create an aura of wealth and excitement, said Jim Lyons, a Tampa-based investigator for the Florida Attorney General's Office.



"Frequently you find that the trappings of wealth are leased," he said. "Anybody can rent a Rolls and get up on stage. Testimonials can be plants."



The most common tactic is urgency, exhortations to act now while you feel the passion. As a motivational charge-up, a reason to get up off your couch, that's fine, Lyons said. Just don't let it blind you to reality.



Even before Pam Butterworth got to the meeting in Atlanta, she noticed a few things that bothered her, but she stayed with it. She wanted to believe it was going to work out.



Once, she said, a recruiter showed how to cheat McDonald's of a few hamburgers, returning a few minutes later and falsely claiming they had left out part of a large order.



Another time, her group stopped at a Jacksonville mall and approached strangers there to buy perfume, keeping an eye out for cops who might ask questions about permits.



The manufacturer of the perfume she was supposed to sell, Scentura Creations of Chamblee, Ga., accepts no responsibility for the actions of independent distributors who sell its product, said Vice President Bob Hasty. The number of the West Palm Beach recruiter Butterworth said she dealt with has been disconnected.



The Better Business Bureau of Atlanta lists an unsatisfactory record for Scentura Creations for reported problems with sales tactics, advertising for sales people and failure to provide requested written information.



In Butterworth's case, it wasn't just the money she spent on gas to Atlanta or the time she lost. There was also the opportunity cost, the economist's term for what you give up to do something else. She could not file for unemployment because she had quit her old job. She was a single mother with an 11-year-old child to support. She had a new car to pay off.



And there was a psychological cost as well. Butterworth laughed sadly while telling how one of the recruiters gave her $5 because she had a nice smile. Like a lot of us, she had wanted to believe. Recalling the experience, her eyes grew moist and red.



"You feel like you've been raped practically," she said.







WHO WANTS TO BE RICH? LARRY HAHN: FROM SLEEPING IN A CAR TO A $5 MILLION HOME.









E. Thomas Jr..Atlanta Business Chronicle, Oct 5, 1987 v10 n19 p1(5)



Larry Hahn's 18,000-square-foot Atlanta villa - one of the most expensive homes ever built on the Atlanta market - has been sold. if contingencies can be worked out. An affidavit acknowledging the purchase agreement was filed in Fulton County Superior Court in August.



The sale may signal the departure of one of the city's most successful entrepreneurs. Hahn is president of W.M. Industries Inc (WMI), a wholesaler of consumer products, which have included tools, artwork, and electronics. He is also president of Scentura Creations Inc. a perfume wholesaler.



Appearing in a 1984 video, Hahn addresses a throng of salespeople at a Fox Theater rally, telling them that selling WMI products. "The income is unlimited. We have people the first year with this company who made $200,000 or $300,000. We have people consistently making $250,000-$300,000 every single year who were $10,000 and $15,000 earners."



Hahn's own reported income is also impressive. A brief filed in Atlanta's district court in a proceeding involving Hahn asserts that "in 1983 WMI paid him a salary of $3,373,758." That figure is more than double Coca-Cola CEO Robert Goizueta's current salary. Hahn declined to discuss his plans or his business., but friends say he plans to buy a home in the San Francisco area.



Perched atop a hill in Northwest Atlanta's wealthy Winterhur neighborhood, Hahn's house contains a gymnasium, screening room, several terraces and balconies and a 2,000-square -foot bedroom.



"The whole three years we were building it, cars were stacked up outside four cars back just to look at the house." Says John Allen project manager for the contractor.

The home was put on the market for about $7 million two years ago, about the same time it was completer. The home recently listed for $5 million.



For a dozen years, the 43 year old Hahn has built a wholesale business relying on direct sales of products ranging from luggage to toys to perfume. Currently, Hahn serves as president of W.M. Industries Inc., founded in 1975, and Scentura Creations, Inc., incorporated earlier this year.



A W.M. Industries brochure has declared that more then 300 offices and 8,000 salespeople marketed products offered by W.M. Industries. The brochure also charts the company's first six years in sales, touting $150 million in gross annual product sales the six year, climbing steadily from 12.5 million five years before.



Current revenue figures for WMI, Scentura Creations or their distributors-all of which are private companies-are not available. A September 1987 Scentura Creations newsletter, however, states that more than 33,000 jars of one new products sold out in two weeks.



Independent firms purchase products from W.M. Industries or Scentura Creations and sell the directly to people in their offices, on the street and in their homes, The direct vendors of WMI products work for the independent firms not the central office.



None of their sales managers or salespeople, the people in the field, were on salary," says Gordan Gates, former WMI executive vice president. "They were all independent contractors."



In addition to the actual products, distributors receive motivational and informational material from W.M. Industries or Scentura Creations.



A 1984 WMI motivational film sent to distributors begins with the "Rocky" theme playing behind Hahn's narration: "Who wants to be a millionaire? Who wants to be rich? Who wants to be financially independent? To be in business for yourself to support yourself and your family and do everything you ever dreamed about?"



In the film, a sea of people attending a rally at the Fox Theatre cheer widely as salespeople deliver testimonials describing their success selling WMI products. Before a flag-dropped backdrop, salesperson after salesperson reveals success stories:



"My first year in business with W.M. Industries I made more than the prime minister of Canada." Says one speaker.



Says another, " The closest people to me tried to talk me out of it: they didn't know that last year the average age of our owner was 24 with an income over $125,000."



Hahn emerges on stage from a cloud of smoke. When the applause finally dims, he explains the opportunity: " I don't care what your background or education: if you're loyal, you're dependable and you're willing to work hard. I'll see to it that you have your chance to become an owner and be into business for yourselves."



The profit attained by salespeople and distributors varies widely. Speakers in the film and profiles in a WMI brochure say possibilities are endless.



A WMI brochure describes the experience of Johnny Whitworth, who is still with Hahn: " He left behind a salary of $150,000, but that didn't bother Johnny. With hard work, enthusiasm, and doing things the "WMI" way, after one year his income hit $600,000."



Indeed, certain former managers of WMI product sales who were interviewed confirmed high incomes in their own careers. Linda Fucci, an administrative aide to Hahn at the start of WMI and an independent distributor of WMI until 1984, says she and her husband took in about $5000,000 a year at their peak. Eric Bresler, former manager of Canadian sales, says he left WMI a millionaire.



On the other hand, former managers point out that turnover of salespeople was high in their offices. "We had very few that would stay with us for a long period of time." Fucci says, "You never could back off from recruiting."



WMI has supported distributors with training to help boost sales. "We have a three-part training program."? Hahn says in the film. "We teach them how to hire, train, motivate and get along with other people , ant thn once we do that, we then teach them how to become better businessman. The day that you complete the W.M. Industries training program is the day we hand you the money to go into business for yourself."



Though they buy their products and receive literature from W.M. Industries or Scentura Creations, independent sales offices are free to recruit and sell however they wish, says Kerry Brunson, current sales manager in the Dallas area.



After moving to Atlanta from Miami, Hahn worked in real estate and portrait plan sales and was part owner in the original Underground Atlanta's Scarlet O'Hara nightclub before launching WMI, according to Judy Adelman, a friend of Hahn's.



"Fifteen years ago," says Hahn in the 1984 film, "I slept in my car, and I had no finances, I had no education, and I just said one day, if I could hook myself to the proper vehicle toi get a break in life and make some money, I would help other people."



With funds secured from friends, Hahn in 1975 purchased his first load of products, 31 piece sets of bake ware. At first, Hahn was head trainer, head salesman and head deal-maker, recruiting and training distributors himself.



Hahn went out in the fields for about the first year and a a half and "he personally trained about all the people he brought on board at the beginning." Fucci says. "Larry would take them out and show them how they could make $100 in a day. He'd go business to business, just walk in, and the pitch was very short and sweet."



The independent contractor concept "was preconceived before the first truck load was ordered in." Fucci says. "It was already planned out before we ever opened up."



Although other companies also sold door-to-door, W.M. Industries differed by selling to distributors in numerous permanent locations. "Larry just made it more professional." Says Fucci, now a real estate agent in Lawrenceville.



Soon, the product line swelled to include pots, pans and carving knives. Initially, W.M. Industries sold its products to about 10 distributorships, Fucci says. "And then it just started going like wildfire. It just caught on and we expanded our line to artworks, then luggage, then clothing and electronics."



WMI products were manufactured in both the United States and abroad, including Asia. The products tend to be "impulse buys," items that can be sold for $20 to $40.



"All we were was a moving Sears or Belks," says Mike Brewer, former WMI vice president. "If you went fishing, would you like to go fishing off a pier or a boat?"



As the product line proliferated, Hahn created divisions of WMI, whose managers often worked out of the WMI home office, though generally still only on commission.



By the early 1980's, rallies like the one shown in the 1984 film had grown to accommodate thousands of WMI product salespeople and sales managers.



"In 1982, we had the rally in the Fox Theatre," Fucci says. "We had about 4,000 people in and they came from Canada, Australia and Puerto Rico, where we had an office at the time.



"People would absolutely go bonkers." She says, "They'd holler 'super juice' a lot-that was just a thing to get the adrenaline flowing, and, of course, they chanted, 'Larry' a lot. There were balloons flying and horns going and confetti being thrown every which way."



Incentive prizes at rallies were substantial: Porsches, Cadillacs and trips to Monte Carlo. Inspirational, sometimes tear-jerking testimonials gave the rallies structure.



"We'd have 2-3-4-5-6,000 people," says Brewer, now president of North Carolina's M.B. Industries, a sales company. "The tears would just roll down their eyes. Because I'd tell them my testimonial and, you know, my testimonial was that I was a high school dropout - and that I came from a normal background and this was an opportunity for an above-average income and get all the things they ever dreamed of."



Promotional materials distributed by WMI and Scentura Creations stress the concept of "family". The song "We Are Family" plays in the background of the 1984 film. One section of the WMI and Scentura Creations newsletters is entitled "Family News" and congratulates salespeople for various accomplishments, such as high sales volume or the opening of a new distributorship.



Says Hahn in the film: " there is somebody that cares. I don't know every one of you, but I can feel that you're hungry, that you need a break in your life. That's what this is all about."



Fucci agrees the opportunity was substantial. "I certainly was very proud to be connected with a company that gave people so much opportunity as Larry gave them." She says, "to make what they felt they were worth, not what someone else thought they were worth."



Today Scentura Creations concentrates on selling "eight well-known designer fragrances," according to the flier. Billed in fliers as "Obsession Type" "Giorgio Type" and "Poison Type" the fragrances have been sold throughout Atlanta as well as other cities.



"Our perfumers select the finest imported oils and essences and blend them into top designer scents at a fraction of designer prices," a flier states.



Bruson's office sells 500 to 1,000 bottles a week, or $10,000 to $20,000 worth, he says.



Despite the fact that the promotional fliers clearly sates that the fragrances are "Obsession Type" or "Giorgio Type" officials in Texas and Iowa have found fault with the vendors of WMI products. An El Paso County, Texas, police report from April states: "The subjects [alleged to be] 'Managerial agents' for W.M. Industries, had employees selling their products on a door-to-door sales campaign and all were purporting that their products were manufactured by the authentic companies who also manufacture the trade name products. (i.e. GIORGIO, OPIUM, POISON, OBSESSION, etc.) and that their products were the same but bottles without the trade name so that they could be sold for less. An officer, working in an undercover capacity, was able to link the five subjects by admissions that they were aware that their products were actually inferior products and knew that they were being passed off as authentic brands."



A 1986 complaint filed in the Iowa District Court for Polk County by the State of Iowa against numerous defendants including W.M. Industries states: "In the course of conducting their business, Defendants have violated the Iowa Consumer Fraud Act, Iowa Code 714.16 (1985), either personally or through their agents, [by]:



"a. making false, deceptive and/or misleading statements to potential customers about the nature of the transaction and the origin of the goods being soldabout the quality of the goods[and] the price of the goods being sold[and] about the prior sales of the goods to other individuals."



Hahn discouraged illegal tactics some former managers sat. "Larry would tell you not to misrepresent," Fucci says. "But then again we were not out there with the people all the time. If it did get back to us that one of our salesmen come to misrepresenting the product, that person was called in and asked why."



"I never heard Larry tell anybody to be dishonest in the business," she says. "He said there was too much business out there to lie about it."



While Scentura Creations distributes products across the country, friends of Hahn say the entrepreneur has long wanted to move to the West Coast. In one of the few articles on Hahn ever published in the local market-a 1984 feature story in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution about Hahn's house -Hahn articulated that ambition.



"I want to move to San Francisco," he said. "It's got Camel. Monterey, the wine countrythere's more action there."







Phony perfume salesmen





Anchorage Daily News. Anchorage, Alaska: May 27, 1991. p. B.2

Finally, here's an update on the apparently phony perfume salesmen who were around town recently. They told would-be customers they were selling famous- name perfumes dirt cheap as part of a promotion.



Buyers reported the scents were similar, but not identical, to the originals.



The line sold evidently was by Scentura Creations, an Atlanta firm that's up front about selling imitations.



Joan Buhler in customer relations said the firm has no sales force and doesn't deliberately do business with retailers who represent the perfumes as originals, which is what readers say the Anchorage group evidently did.

....

Had enough? Write the Troubleshooter at P.O. Box 149001, Anchorage, 99514-9001.







Job warning





12 News Phoenix Arizona March 22, 2004

http://www.azcentral.com/12news/consumer/articles/JobWarning03222004-CR.html#



There are a couple of companies here in the valley, and there may be more, that a number of young job seekers are concerned about. The ads offer management positions, or entice you to own your own business, or ask if want to be in the fashion industry, but what is this job opportunity really all about.



If you're between the ages of 18 and 25 and you're looking for work in the valley, you and your parents should look at our investigation, then decide if this career choice is a good investment for you.



Related Video

One ex-worker talks about the experience

A mother loses her son



The ads are enticing to the young and the promises are great, but for some job seekers who choose to affiliate themselves with SCORPION PROMOTIONS in Phoenix, the opportunity is a deception. We talked to one young woman, who hooked up with Scorpion, and she gave us her take on what it's like to work at this perfume selling business.



"Anything could have happened to me or anyone of those young girls that were out there. I was out to 4 o'clock in the morning selling perfume."



20-year-old Ashlee Williams says she put her own life at risk going to bad neighborhoods to do her work. She says the gamble was just part of the job. When she answered an ad last month under the heading *fashion industry*, she expected something else.



"They don't let you ask any questions about what the company's about, cause I did. I ask fashion industry, what does that mean. She said they'll go over that in your interview."



The company that enticed Ashlee is called SCORPION PROMOTIONS on the 2300 block of East University in Phoenix. She says the interview consists of a room-full of people, listening to a motivational speech from Scorpion owner.. Jeff Frankel. Ashlee says most of the interviewees were around her age, but more naive.



"They had no goal in life. They had a goal that this guy was setting forth for them but it wasn't their own goal. They were promised something and they were working toward something for him."



Ashlee says the Scorpion promise is: If you agree to sell *SCENTURA CREATIONS* perfume, in 6 weeks, you can open up your own office and attract eager recruits yourself. She says she hated hawking fragrances in parking lots and outside convenience stores, but it was nothing compared to what happened back at the office if you didn't succeed.



"People could throw pies at you or shaving cream or whatever he decided to basically humiliate you cause you didn't meet that quota."



Ashlee says most salespeople never saw any commissions or opened their own offices.



She has a message for other young people who are interested in Scorpion or any other company affiliated with Scentura Creations.



"I say don't do it. Don't waste your time. There's so much more out there. If you really want to sell perfume, go down to Dillard's and stand at a counter and get paid $15 an hour to do it."



We tried, on several occasions, to talk with Jeff Frankel about his business operations and get him to respond to these allegations. He refused us every time.



There's also another valley company selling Scentura Creations perfume. It's called SKY ENTERPRISES. It's on McDowell road in Scottsdale. They essentially operate in a similar fashion to Scorpion.



We've talked with Phoenix police, the Attorney General's office and the Arizona Better Business Bureau. They all say that Scorpion Promotions and Sky Enterprises are NOT doing anything illegal. However, the employment practices of companies selling Scentura Creations perfume have been questioned in four other states and Great Britain.



Through our investigation, we found out that anyone selling non-food items on private property in Phoenix is required to have a "privilege sales tax" license. If they stay in the same location for more than 30 minutes, they are also required to have a "mobile vendors" license. Any sales agent without the proper licenses is subject to a fine.



All the Scorpion and Sky sales reps we spoke with say they sold perfume products on private property and never obtained any licenses. They say the owners of both companies never mentioned anything about the need for a license.



As for the pie in the face routine, we verified this with three sources. If this practice is going on at Scorpion and Sky, I would like to ask the owners a question. How does it motivate a young, impressionable person to do better in their job by throwing pies in their face in front of their peers. Since neither one is talking, I guess we'll never know. We hope our investigation gives the information needed to determine whether a career in perfume sales is right for you.







If Scent Of A Job-Ad Is Foul, Be Wise, Trust Your Senses





12 News Phoenix Arizona Apr. 5, 2004

http://www.azcentral.com/news/columns/articles/0405action05.html



Help-wanted ads in newspapers tout "management positions" and "opportunities to own your own business." A Call 12 for Action investigation found some are for 100 percent commission selling Scentura Creations perfume.



Several Valley residents who have peddled the perfume say the job is a typical multilevel-marketing experience: Sell enough perfume and one day, they are told, they can recruit others to do the same from their own office.



"They don't let you ask any questions about what the company's about," says Ashlee Williams, 20, of Phoenix.



The former salespeople also described humiliating rituals, such as having pies and water balloons thrown in the face of salespeople who didn't meet sales quotas.



Two Valley companies, Sky Enterprises in Scottsdale and Scorpion Promotions in Phoenix, are affiliated with Scentura and manage the sales teams. Call 12 called and visited Scorpion's offices, but President Jeff Frankel refused to speak with us. Sky never returned several phone calls seeking comment. Scentura Creations, based in Atlanta, also did not respond to our calls.



State and local authorities say companies like these are not doing anything illegal. Before you take a job with a multilevel-marketing business:



Check with the Better Business Bureau of Central/Northern Arizona to see if the company has any complaints on file locally or nationally. Call (602) 264-1721 or go to http://www.phoenix.bbb.org/.



The Federal Trade Commission provides advice on checking out MLM businesses. Call 1-877-382-4357 or go to



http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/menu-fran.htm.



Reach Call 12 for Action from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. weekdays at (602) 260-1212 or 1-866-260-1212.







WAMI-TV





Miami Beach, FL 1999



WAMI-TV reports that "An Atlanta-based company has been hiring people over the last five years, promising them management jobs. All the company delivers to its new employees though, is conning them into hocking counterfeit perfume on street corners. After initial training sessions, employees are promised that they will receive a salary, an office and a car. After two to three weeks of hocking the counterfeit perfume with no pay, the employees get disgusted and leave...."



John C. Mattes 1999 WAMI-TV (Miami Beach, FL)







Perfume Selling Business: Recruiting Methods Questioned





WAOI Television, San Antonio

5/29/2004 9:03:54 AM

http://www.woai.com/troubleshooters/story.aspx?content_id=82BD24CE-5571-4002-A389-44B80B042130



The newspaper ads promise high paying, management jobs, but the young people who respond end up selling imitation perfume in parking lots. As Trouble Shooter Jaie Avila shows us in this undercover investigation, what seemed like the sweet smell of opportunity, turned out to be a very sour disappointment.



"I looked at the paper and it said 'management trainees, $30,000 to 40,000 a year, guaranteed paid training,'" Eric Debona says. He's looking at the eye-catching ads running in San Antonio newspapers for more than a year. With headlines like "circle me", and "fun job," they promise "serious money" and "no experience necessary."



Debona says the real catch comes later because "you don't actually see what they're doing' until you're already in." He's just one of the hundreds of job seekers who responded to the ads. He says the "fun management job" was nothing but a smoke screen. He ended up hawking imitation perfumes in parking lots.



"If they would have said, 'yeah, here's what you're doing, you have to go out, put it in your car, drive from parking lot to parking lot to parking lot and walk up to people and try to sell them this in the parking lot, I wouldn't have had anything to do with it."



After receiving numerous complaints from people like Eric, the News 4 WOAI Trouble Shooters went undercover. We answered the ad and were told to come to an interview at an unmarked Northside office on Wetmore Road. Inside, we noted loud music played constantly to create a hip, casual atmosphere.



Just as Eric described, our photographer was ushered into an office by a young woman who explains the company is called "Texas Scents Incorporated" or "TSI." The interview says they distribute a line of knock off fragrances called Scentura Creations.



Here's how the interview went: Interviewer: "I'm a manager here at TSI. We work alongside another company called Scentura Creations. Have you ever heard of them before?" WOAI Photographer: "No." Interviewer: "They're a fragrance company. We have over 300 worldwide locations, and we're looking to do a big expansion in San Antonio and the surrounding area. So, we need managers and assistant managers."



The interviewer never mentions the job involves selling perfume. She says after a few weeks of training, applicants get their own office, and can make a lot of money.



The interviewer says, "Now income your first year here out of the training program, you're looking at $30-40,000 in your own location."



Eric tells us it's during that so called training program that new recruits are told to go out and sell perfume, and that they should start by targeting their relatives. He claims, "They want you to go out and sell to your friends and family, see how you do."



We were invited back for a second interview a few days later. This time the room is filled with other applicants. Again, the speaker gives few details, other than the job will include lots of perks like bonuses and company paid travel.



"If you're a money hungry person you'll make a lot of money during the training program," the interviewer says. "You'll make a hell of a lot of money. We also pay out bonuses."



Eric says there were no bonuses, and the travel usually involved driving your own vehicle to another town to sell perfume. "We went out for the trip, and they say the hotel's paid for but we had to sell the perfume to pay for the hotel."



One claim we caught on tape from the interviewer is, "I've been here 2 1/2 years. I'm making six figures. It's incredible."



On the third interview, we finally meet the man behind TSI, owner Brian Warner. His three hour lecture to applicants is short on specifics, and at times sounds more like a motivational seminar.



"You got to have an open mind, what do you want me to do, attitude," Warner explains. "Do what we tell you to do, even if you question it in your mind."



Eric says Warner tells all new recruits not to listen to family members who may be skeptical about the business. "They tell you straight out that your family will turn on you, they will try to tell you that you're getting brainwashed. They'll tell you the company's bad for you. They tell you straight out, 'don't listen to your friends and family.'"



Day after day we saw Warner in front of the office, sending recruits out to sell boxes of Scentura Creations perfumes. Each bottle sells for $30. The salesperson only gets to keep $7 to $10. The rest goes back to Warner.



"I don't know anybody that made any money," Eric tells us. "I mean, not more than 50 bucks here, 60 bucks there."



Eric says the young salespeople are never told that most cities require a permit to sell merchandise. On one occasion everyone in his car got tickets for selling in Alamo Heights, which they then brought to Brian Warner.



"We all got tickets. He took them and said 'don't worry, I'll take care of this...forget about it. My permit covers all of you,' because he had a business permit to do it, and he made it sound like it covered each one of us individually, which of course I found out later, wasn't the case." The ticket was never paid and Eric ended up paying off a $500 arrest warrant, on top of the money he spent for gas.



Companies distributing Scentura Perfumes have been springing up in many cities. Some young recruits have lost more than just gas money, and the hopes of a lucrative career. In Phoenix, two young people were killed in a car accident while on a sales trip for a local distributor of Scentura perfume.



The mother of one of the victims says her son was working long hours, and was under a lot of pressure from the manager of that office. She told Phoenix station KPNX, "It's basically like they're taking young lives and just smashing them into the ground. These kids are all going to fail."



We wanted to get some answers from the man behind the operation here in San Antonio, Brian Warner of TSI. He wasn't as talkative with us, as he is in his perfume selling pep rallies.



News 4 WOAI Trouble Shooter Jaie Avila confronted Warner, "I'd like to ask you about your business. Aren't you misleading these young people, telling them that they're going to be managers earning 40 grand a year, and they end up selling perfume in parking lots?" Warner only offered, "No comment, please leave."



While a judge in Illinois called Scentura Perfume a "pyramid sales scheme," there's not much local law enforcement can do.



Aaron Valenzuela with the Texas Attorney General's office, says they've started tracking complaints from parents. "They're concerned that their children are being exploited in the sense that they are promised you know, high paying managerial type employment and really what they turn out to be is door to door salesmen."



For now, all law enforcement can do is offer the same warning as Eric Debona, before you fall for one of those too good to be true employment ads: "Smack yourself in the head. Think. Take a minute. Stop. I wouldn't recommend anybody going anywhere near that place." Basically, take the time to sniff out what's really going on.





Company Leaves Perfume Peddlers Feeling Betrayed







http://www.wftv.com/money/3556228/detail.html

July 20, 2004



ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. -- They may have approached you in a parking lot, selling designer perfume knock-offs. But it's the perfume peddlers themselves who many times feel betrayed.



Shelby Sillen had spotted a job ad that read, "Managers ... first time okay, for sales distribution center."



"I went expecting a management job and they did nothing but lie to me," says Sillen.



At an office for EOE Management, on Forest City Road, she got the job as manager.



"They promised us that we would be making $30,000 a year," she says.



Action 9 intern Jessica Salitsky heard that when she was hired. Then, the first day, the new "managers" were told they had to "survive" boot camp, selling perfume to learn the business.



"Within four weeks, what were you going to have?" Action 9's Todd Ulrich asks Salitsky.



"Our own location. There were going to be two managers and we were going to manage 10 to 15 sales people," she says.



But first they were independent contractors, selling perfume eight hours a day to strangers on the street. There was no paycheck, but they could make a few bucks profit on each bottle sold, if they could sell the perfume for more than $20.



Eventually, recruits like Sillen realized they were being hustled as free labor.



"They're pimping you, basically. They have you out on the corner making money for them," she says.



It's the same kind of tactics Action 9 first uncovered eight years ago. Then, the company was Transworld Creations, owned by David Babb, who advertised for $35,000 "managers." Two years ago, published reports had David Babb running the same operation in Missouri.



Today in Central Florida, it's EOE Management, and recruits like Shelby Sillen claim they were trained to lie and tell people they just left a perfume show and had to sell at cost.



"You're lying to these people. You were never at a perfume show. This is what they taught you in training," Sillen explains.



When another woman from EOE approached us, while we were undercover, to make a sale, suddenly the perfume "knock-offs" were the actual designer fragrances.



"And this is really Jean Paul?" Ulrich asks.



"Yes, the true ode de perfume. The oil based," the salesperson replies.



Consumers got hustled in parking lots and no job seekers that we talked to ever got paychecks as managers.



Michelle Andrews runs EOE Management. So does "Monica," who won't disclose her last name.



They refused to speak with Channel 9.



EOE Management was opened by Kendall Management in Casselberry. It too runs ads for managers, then sends you out to sell perfume.



All the companies sell perfume made by Scentura Creations in Atlanta, which says it has nothing to do with the way its independent contractors do business.



No one we talked to who responded to the ad was actually hired. Instead, they were trained to set up another office to run ads for managers, who will actually sell perfume in parking lots.







Team 4 Investigates Perfume Sales (You can watch video of this at this link)





Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Nov. 23, 2004



The following investigative report by Jim Parsons first aired Nov. 23, 2004, on Channel 4 Action News at 6 p.m.



It's a scheme that victimizes two sets of people: The customers who buy the phony fragrances and the unsuspecting job applicants who end up doing the selling. Our investigation unravels the setup and takes down the guy at the top.



Parsons: "Why are you misleading consumers?"



Kevin Neal, Pittsburgh Wholesale owner: "I'm not misleading anybody."



For two years, he's been running his operation out of an office near Ross Park Mall. By most accounts, something here doesn't smell right.



When you think of buying designer perfume, a store counter like the one at Sephora in Shadyside probably comes to mind. Lots of light, lots of glass, lots of steep prices.



Cathy Ingold: "I only use Chanel."



Ingold is a Chanel No. 5 woman, through and through. She doesn't like paying $200 a bottle, the going price at most department stores.



When she received this e-mail last year from a co-worker's daughter, it caught her attention: Chanel No. 5, along with dozens of other well-known fragrances, all for just $27 a bottle. How can you pass that up, the e-mail asks.



Ingold: "I thought I was buying a bottle of Chanel No. 5. When the package came, it was in a red bottle. When I contacted them, they said that's why it's less expensive, because it's generic packaging. Then I smelled it, and I don't know what it was."



Parsons: "Was it even close to Chanel?"



Ingold: "No."



Parsons: "You know the difference?"



Ingold: "I know the difference."



She had purchased an inexpensive fragrance manufactured by a Georgia company called Scentura Creations. They're known in the business as renditions, or knockoffs of popular brand-name perfumes.



Scentura is up-front about its products being imitations. Not so with the local independent office that sells them, an unincorporated outfit known as Pittsburgh Wholesale.



Jill Barrett, former employee: "We were supposed to tell them that it was the exact same thing, just promotionally packaged. And we were supposed to say the reason they paid so much for Calvin Klein was the bottle it was put in -- that whatever is in the Calvin Klein bottle is in this bottle."



Barrett and Tanya Pant quit good-paying jobs last summer to work at Pittsburgh Wholesale. They were drawn in by a classified ad that promised management jobs, and by persuasive boss Kevin Neal, 23, who came to Pittsburgh from Alabama to set up the operation.



Pant, former employee: "He can get you to believe anything. And you do."



Pant and Barrett told us the same thing several others have complained to Team 4 about -- that Neal and his staff got them to believe they'd be making $50,000 to $70,000 a year managing their own distribution centers.



Barrett: "They never, ever used the words, 'You will be selling perfume,' or that you have to make sales. They never said the word 'sales.'"



But that's what they were doing -- helping Neal meet his goal of selling 500 bottles of perfume in a week.



Barrett: "The job was selling perfume on a day-to-day basis in the street, walking into stores, stop people going to college campuses."



That's where we found Neal peddling his perfume -- on the campus of California University of Pennsylvania. He was dressed like a college student, had his bottles in a backpack, then strolled in and out of dormitories.



Barrett: "They're lying to their customers, lying to people who come into their programs. I left a good job with good pay to make no money, to be lied to, to be vicitmized, and I think these people need to be stopped before they hurt other people."



Parsons: "Kevin Neal, Jim Parsons from Channel 4. I want to ask you about the business you've been running here."



Neal: "Yeah, guys, no."



Parsons: "Well, why don't you talk to me about your business and the business you've been giving consumers around here?"



Parsons: "How many people do you think you've ripped off in the past year?"



Neal: "Nobody."



Parsons: "Nobody?"



Neal: "We run a very legit business."



Parsons: "So you're not telling people that they're buying Chanel or Calvin Klein perfume? Your people aren't doing that?"



Neal: "No. Our people understand that everything we sell is a rendition."



Ingold didn't understand it. She thought she was getting Chanel from Pittsburgh Wholesale.



Ingold: "I sent them a letter and they wouldn't do anything about it. That's when I filed a complaint with the attorney general's office and they didn't do anything about it."



Team 4 did something about it.



Parsons: "Why all the deception, Kevin?"



Neal: "There is no deception at all."



One day after this exchange, Neal packed up the contents of the office into a U-Haul and vanished. Pittsburgh Wholesale is no more.



It appears Neal has left the Pittsburgh area. Documents in his office indicate he may have headed for Minnesota.



Pennsylvania's new attorney general, Tom Corbett, tells Team 4 his office will do a better job responding to these types of complaints -- especially, he says, in a case like this, where Ingold provided the attorney general with evidence in the form of that e-mail, yet nothing was done.







2 Teens Say Sales Trip Turned Into a Nightmare





Orlando Sentinel Tribune, January 3, 1991



Two teen-age former employees of an Altamonte-based company that sells imitations of high-priced perfumes say they quit after feeling exploited during out-of-town sales trips.



The mother of one of the teen-agers contends her daughter worked excessive hours and went for days without money for food.



The owners of Chic Enterprises, however, said the former employees are whiners who did not work hard enough to excel in the sales job, refused to take money for food and failed to return more than $600 in merchandise.



"If they're not willing to work hard, I'm not going to waste my time on them," said Debra Sheridan, co-owner of Chic Enterprises, 370 Whooping Loop. "This is a business where only the strong survive".



"When people interview I tell them, 'You're going to have to work your tails off and always give 110 percent,' " she said. "There is nothing illegitimate, illegal or scandalous about our company."



Cretia Force, 18, hocked a Gucci watch given to her by her grandparents to get home from Charleston, S.C. Force, who drove her car on the sales trip, said she did not eat for three days until she pawned the watch.



Rick Varnum, 18, of Winter Park, said he went on two sales trips, one to Valdosta, Ga., and the other to Charleston. Varnum, who was 17 when he worked for Chic, said he received little training in selling the perfume and made about $30 in the three weeks he worked there.



"They said you could make $40,000 a year, but you had to pass standards and sell so many bottles," he said.



Varnum and Force said small groups of employees were taken to other sales trips. Once there, the complany trainers rented hotel rooms and sent the group out to sell. The trainer would accompany the trainees, who would go out in pairs. The hotel room would remain locked until 5:30 p.m. when they were allowed to return. Sheridan said Force and Varnum left in the middle of the Charleston road trip and did not return the merchandise assigned to them. Since the Nov. 14 incident, Chic has filed civil suits against Force and Varnum seeking $332.50 or 19 bottles of perfume from each of them.



Force and Varnum said they left the bottles in the hotel room.



Sheridan, 25, said the sales trips are made so "manager trainees" can sell in untapped markets. Orlando and other large metropolitan areas can have as many as four or five companies selling the imitations of well-known perfumes such as Obsession or Chanel No. 5., she said.



The trainees sign out bottles and are supposed to turn in $17.50 per bottle sold and return the unsold portion, Sheridan said. Anything employees get above the $17.50 is profit for them, she said.



The company also offers bonuses and incentives for trainees who sell a large number of bottles. Chic buys the bottles at $9 apiece and suggests a sales price of $25.



Sheridan stressed that Force and Varnum were manager trainees, not salesmen. Road trips are designed to show trainees the business with the goal of setting them up in business elsewhere, she said.



The trainees are supposed to work all day and can work after dark if they want, she said.



Force said she and Varnum were treated badly and made to sell in dangerous neighborhoods.



"These were bad neighborhoods," she said. "People were telling us to leave before someone hit us over the head and took our stuff."



Cretia Force's mother, Karen, said, "These young kids aren't streetwise. They tell these kids to go into apartment complexes and sell."



According to the city's licensing department, Chic opened in May 1990 and renewed its distributor's license in October.



The Better Business Bureau has received no complaints or inquiries about the firm.



Sheridan said the company has changed some of its practices. It had required a $25 fee to check the references of potential employees and required employees to deposit $150 to pay for any merchandise not returned.



"It's riskier for us now, but those things were scaring off potential employees," she said.





DENVER POST: RAPE

Denver Post November 11, 2001; Page B-02







3 rape suspects sought in 2 incidents in Denver. Denver police are looking for three suspects in two rapes that occurred on Friday and Saturday. The first rape was around 4 p.m. Friday. The victim was walking along West 32nd Avenue near Zuni Street selling perfume when two men approached her and dragged her into an alley. They took turns sexually assaulting her, according to a police report.





Thanks to Schauds (schauds@att.net ) for alerting me to this:



In this past Sundays Denver Post I read an article that horrified me. A girl selling perfume less than 1/2 mile from the Ol' Factory Wholesale office [Scentura distributor] was raped at approx 4:00 PM on Friday. This was the first day of training folks. And although I cannot say that she was selling Scentura Products, I can only imagine someone that I had interviewed with was walking away from her first day of training to find her very first sale and becoming a victim of a horrible crime. [Posted on November 12, 2001 at 11:11:42 on http://www.seniors-site.com/fraud/]







Serial Killer was a Scentura employee

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette







An 18-year-old convenience store clerk was strangled early Friday at the Jackpot Inc. store at 9520 N. Rodney Parham Road, the police said. It was the second murder of a convenience store clerk in Little Rock in 18 days.



A perfume salesman who had been living in homeless shelters and had served prison time for a strangulation slaying in Erie, Pa., was arrested at the store and later was charged in her death.



...



Ward was a salesman at Wholesale Fragrances of Arkansas, 8 Shackleford Plaza, a division of Scentura Fragrance, said a receptionist at Wholesale Fragrances who asked not to be identified. She said she did not know how long Ward had worked there.



(This article shows two things:

1: That Scentura will hire anyone.

2: That Scentura distributors often do not do background checks.

Why would a homeless man be working for a Scentura distributor?

Why would a convicted killer pass Scentura's "background checks"? --editor)



(Full article)







Former Scentura employee robs and shots distributor







3 charged in shooting, robbery in Timonium; Wounded woman tells how she comforted her 6-year-old daughter

The Baltimore Sun August 7, 1996, Wednesday



As three suspects were being charged in the attack, Shannon L. Senna recalled yesterday from her hospital bed how she comforted her 6-year-old daughter with prayer after being shot and bound alongside her in the garage of their Timonium home.



"She was sitting in the front seat next to me in the Cadillac, and the guy reached in over her and shot me," Senna said. "Then they taped her hands up just like mine, and I just kept telling her to be calm and to pray out loud and that everything would be all right."



And that seemed to be the case.



Although she had been shot in the chest, and the bullet had passed through and remained lodged in her arm, Senna, 41, was released late in the day from Sinai Hospital and left accompanied by her family.



Her daughter, Amber, was doing fine, she said.



Her husband and teen-age son also were at home but were not injured when three men -- who were masked -- invaded and ransacked the house on Pot Spring Road Monday morning.



By midafternoon Monday, police had three suspects in custody -- one of them a former employee of a Cockeysville perfume business, International Designs, owned by Senna's husband, Jozef F. Senna Jr., 40.



Police identified the former employee as Gilbert J. Dent III, 29. Checking his home in the 2900 block of W. Cold Spring Lane in Baltimore, police found a dented pickup truck similar to one seen leaving the Sennas' neighborhood Monday.



Dent was arrested with William E. Sharper, 39, of the 2100 block of Elsinore Ave. in Baltimore and Joseph M. Johnson, 21, of the 2700 block of Helmsley Road in Woodlawn as they left Dent's home late Monday afternoon.



Police said the men were questioned and held at different police lockups overnight, and were formally charged yesterday with attempted murder, a handgun offense and armed robbery.



Police said jewelry and money were taken from the house, where Mr. Senna also was threatened, before the trio fled in the family's other car, a Mercedes-Benz that was abandoned nearby.



According to charging documents filed in District Court, Dent told detectives that he and two others were responsible for the robbery.



Mrs. Senna said she worked part time at her husband's business and knew Dent.



"He seemed like such a nice guy," she said. "But I have since changed my mind. He went to church with us twice. We always invite those who work with us to go to church with us."











Death Linked to Local Perfume Selling Group





WAOI Television, San Antonio

5/29/2004 9:12:47 AM

http://www.woai.com/troubleshooters/story.aspx?content_id=0A74D76D-918F-4DF3-9C15-7957D8C3D682

Jaie Avila Trouble Shooter News 4 WOAI



Our News 4 WOAI Trouble Shooters' undercover investigation revealed how one San Antonio company promises young people big-money management jobs, then puts them out on the street selling imitation perfume. Now one family blames that company for the death of their daughter.



"We'll never have the same life we had before," Sandy Lewis says. "Misty was our only daughter. She was our baby. She had a lot going for her."



Like a lot of young people, Misty Lewis, 19, was eager to make a success of her life. On her own for the first time and engaged to be married, she was searching for a job with a future.



"She was looking for something that she could get into to help make her car payment and her insurance payment and she went to the paper in San Antonio and saw the ad," Misty's mother explains.



The ad promised a fun job, serious money and no experience necessary. It was posted by a company called Texas Scents Incorporated, or TSI. A Trouble Shooters undercover investigation showed how TSI recruiters lure applicants with promises of a well paying, management position, running their own office. Instead, recruits end up selling a brand of imitation perfume called Scentura Creations.



They're often sent on long road trips, using their own vehicles to sell the perfume on the street and in parking lots.



In March of 2002, Misty Lewis was returning from one of those perfume selling trips to Laredo with three other young salespeople when the 17 year old driver fell asleep and crashed. Misty died from massive head trauma.



Sandy Lewis says, "I blame the company entirely only because they put my daughter and every kid that they bring in there in danger because t

PART ONE ....



Brian, choke on it. I have nothing but ill will for your sleezy, slick kind, don't attempt to be civil when you cheat people day in and day out. I would like nothing more than to see your "son" in jail.



Notice how "Brian" doesn't even mention the BBB report? Of course not! Instead he mentions a couple of out of date facts which I have compiled.



"Brian", guess where I got that information on your "son"? From angry people like the person who filed this report. Just because it is out of date does not make my credibility in less, nor does it make your credibility any greater.



In fact, you just proved that the information I had before, about Amber Belknap, was true, and the person (and there have been many) who complained about this scam where legitimate and didnt lie. There was an Amber Belnap and she did once scam people just like your son does now.

Thanks for confirming that.



READERS THIS IS WHAT IT COMES DOWN TOO:



Some guy on the internet or 31 television and newspaper reports on Scentura, and also a finding that Scentura is an illegal MLM in Illinois.



Read all of these reports and slink back into your hole, Brian, along with all the other sleezy snakes. Nice completly destroying your credibility, come back soon for some more.





http://www.state.il.us/court/Opinions/

AppellateCourt/2001/2ndDistrict/September

/Html/2000964.htm



APPELLATE COURT OF ILLINOIS SECOND DISTRICT SCENTURA CREATIONS, INC. court case September 18, 2001



Ruled AGAINST Scentura Creations inc. because it was found to be a multi-level marketing scam.



Scentura ruled by Appellate court to be a multi-level marketing "pyramid sales scheme":



"In our view, the consignment contract between plaintiff and defendant is properly characterized as a chain referral sales technique or pyramid sales scheme, which falls within the protection of section 2A of the Act."



"By virtue of this legislative enactment, the state has determined that the eradication of chain referral sales techniques and pyramid sales schemes is an important interest. Although the power to declare a private contract void as contrary to public policy is to be used sparingly, we may utilize this power when the contract at issue is clearly contrary to the constitution, the statutes, or the decisions of the courts."



"While defendant contends that the consignment contract falls squarely within the protection of section 2A of the Act, plaintiff contends that the contract cannot be construed as a chain referral agreement or pyramid sales scheme because furnishing names of other consignees is not a condition precedent to defendant's financial gain. Plaintiff also asserts that section 2A of the Consumer Fraud Act does not apply because plaintiff did not "sell" merchandise, but, instead, it delivered the perfume on consignment. We find plaintiff's asserted distinctions to be unpersuasive and nothing more than an exercise in semantics. "



Defendant said that the:

"plaintiff breached the agreement, that the agreement was not supported by consideration, that plaintiff destroyed evidence, and that the agreement was illusory and unconscionable."



Scent firm pays damages

Nottingham Evening Post April 5, 1999 (England)



A perfume company which sacked three men on the spot has been ordered to pay damages by an employment tribunal.



Gary Spencer, Norman Campbell and Chukudinma Wakama were promised GBP 25,000 a year and travel to America in an advert for sales staff by the Scentura Creations International perfume company in January last year.



The Notts trio were encouraged to sell thousands of bottles of perfume, and were told they would eventually be able to set up and manage their own sales offices.



But a Nottingham Employment Tribunal heard that after only a few months they were sacked without notice by Scentura.



The company claimed the three men had never worked for Scentura and were self -employed.



But the tribunal ruled their employment contracts were breached by Scentura and that the company should pay them damages.



Scentura was ordered to pay GBP 1,041 to Mr Spencer and Mr Wakama, the equivalent of one month's notice.



The tribunal agreed that Mr Campbell was also employed by the company.



But he was not awarded damages because it was decided by the tribunal that he had not reached office manager level.



Scentura Creations International, an American company with 900 offices worldwide, had earlier told the tribunal that the men had received training and GBP 3 of the GBP 20 sale price on each perfume bottle.



But Alison McFarlane, counsel for Scentura, told the tribunal the men had signed a form agreeing that they were not company employees, but were only buying stock from it.



Mr Spencer, 30, of Sherwin Walk, Nottingham, said: "We did sign the agreement.



"But we were told it was just to cover the company in case we ran off with the bottles of perfume."



In a written decision, the tribunal members were unanimously agreed that the three men had been employed by Scentura.





DREAM JOBS THAT TURN OUT TO BE NIGHTMARES





(02/11/02) -- Each week you see ads in the paper offering high paying jobs that offer on-the-job training. But sometimes those dream jobs turn out to be a nightmare and you're left paying for it.



"They said they'd pay you $52,000 a year, and they're training. That's easy. Train me. I'll make that," Amanda Henderson told Action 9. She answerd an ad in the local paper for management, but soon she felt scammed.



"They don't tell you that you're going to go walking around the Walmart parking lot and ask people as they're getting in their cars to buy perfume," she explained.



Rebecca Baldwin responded to a similar ad and the pitch was the same. Company representatives explained that hands-on-experience was the only way to go. "Now you'll be managing a team that's going to be selling this imposter perfume. In order to manage a team to do that, you need to walk in their shoes." Rebeca recalled company representatives told her.



Walking in their shoes meant showing up in parking lots and gas stations. Both Amanda and Rebecca soon discovered their dream jobs were nothing more than peddling imposter perfumes by Scentura Creations -- right out of the trunk of their cars.



How does it happen? Our Action 9 team went undercover to find out. Action 9 Consumer Investigative Producer, Lawan Williams, answered an ad in the paper for an administrative assistant. She ended up at an Orlando company called E.M.O. (See BBB report on E.M.O.)



Day One - our producer is told there is no admin job, but there's a better opportunity to run her own office and make big bucks. But there is a small catch - first there's 8 weeks of training -- all at no pay. And that's not all. Our producer soon discovers, she's not the only candidate - there's 30 others applying.



First assignment, sell perfume to family and friends. Candidates are told if they can't sell to family who could they sell? The mission - prove you can sell and cut that 8 week training in half.



"The more you sold, the quicker you got out of training. Then you could get into your office and then you could make money," our producer reported. Candidates are told to get the product sold - even if it means blackmailing family and friends or simply buying the product themselves.



The next morning, the candidates collectively turned in orders for 68 bottles at $20 a bottle. And E.M.O. representatives were on hand to collect the cash -- all tax free and labor cheap.



That same week, our producer is paired with a trainer to learn the ropes fast. Back roads, even gas stations . . . trainers show us how easy they peddle phoney perfumes in parking lots -- far, far away from high paying office jobs.



Action 9's Consumer Investigative Reporter Todd Ulrich caught up with E.M.O. president, Lisa Piccione at her office. "Are you really hiring any managers for 30 to 50 thousand dollars. Do you tell your salespeople to lie?," Todd asked. Lisa Piccione had no comment.



But, to Rebecca Baldwin it was clear. She wasn't being "hired" to do anything, just tricked into peddling perfume. "They're taking advantage of you. They're using you and she's keeping the money," Rebecca concluded.



Now, Scentura Creations in Atlanta makes the perfume and supplies it to independent contractors like E.M.O. A Scentura spokesman says it's not responsible for the job ads or the way it's sold.



Remember, whenever unemployment rises, so do the number of risky job ads. Be careful with any company that requires unpaid training. Stay away from any job where you have to pay a fee first. And finally, always check out any company's record with the Better Business Bureau first.



And if there's confusion of whether you should be considered an employee or a contractor - check the IRS definitions of employees. If you feel you've been classified incorrectly you can file a complaint with the IRS and they will investigate.



*************



From chat message 92 at http://www.seniors-s*te.com/fraud/:

The person selling the perfume in the news (Dream Jobs That Turn Out To Be Nightmares) was my "partner" -- Karyn Ramirez KRamirez1@cfl.rr.com





PERFUME-SELLING OPERATIONS SMELL LIKE SCAM, WOMEN SAY

Monday, March 4, 2002

By Lornet Turnbull

Columbus Ohio

Dispatch Staff Reporter







The lowest point of her short-lived career in perfume sales came on the day Kim Aston and her colleagues were shooed away from the Bogey Inn near Muirfield.



A 30-year-old from Pataskala, Aston and the others had been hitting strip malls, parking lots and office buildings around Columbus peddling rendition perfume -- knockoffs of designer fragrances.



But instead of offering to buy, Bogey Inn managers called police. The salespeople were a nuisance, restaurant managers said, and had no license to sell. They were asked to leave and not return.



It was an early clue to the peculiarity of the new career Aston had chosen when she responded to a newspaper ad offering "serious'' money for a management opportunity that required no experience.



Midwest One in Worthington recruited her and more than a dozen other central Ohioans -- mostly women, and none of them licensed -- to peddle Scentura Creations' line of rendition perfume called Observe L Essence.



Based in Atlanta, Scentura creates fragrances that mimic such designer brands as Giorgio, Poison and Obsession. The company sells them through a network of independent distributors such as Midwest One, which opened here in January.



"Most of these kinds of operations are as predatory as hell,'' said Columbus police spokesman Sgt. Earl Smith. "Over the years, we've had companies bring in vanloads of kids and send them out into neighborhoods, cold weather, hot weather . . . If it's not legally dishonest, it's morally and ethically so.''



The vendors were told that potential buyers were everywhere: in hotel lobbies, elementary schools, grocery stores, bars and strip clubs.



Not even hospitals and funeral parlors were off limits.



"We'd go through the drive-through at fast-food restaurants and ask if they wanted to buy perfume,'' Aston said, laughing at the memory of the sales pitches. "We wouldn't be buying anything ourselves.''



Eventually, after five to eight weeks of training, the promotion says, the vendors could open offices of their own, with free startup money from Scentura. As entrepreneurs, they could expect to earn $52,000 or more annually after recruiting new vendors for training -- starting the cycle all over again.



Aston and the others learned quickly that the path to entrepreneurship wasn't paved in gold: One disappointing sales stop followed another as they tried to convince people that a $20 bottle of imitation Giorgio was as good as the real thing.



"People treated us like we were nothing; it was embarrassing,'' Aston said. "We felt like the people who walk up to you on the street in New York, opening their coats and trying to sell you hot watches.



"The one thing that kept me going for two long weeks was the belief that I would be able to make $52,000 a year.''



It would never materialize.



And eventually, the company's entire sales force quit at once -- all after three weeks or less.



Midwest One owners Stan and Sarah Niemeic and their now-former sales force disagree over various aspects of their relationship.



The sellers, for example, said they were promised a weekly paycheck of $295 or more.



But the Niemeics say the sellers were told that as independent contractors, their income would come from the profit of each sale.



They could keep any amount over $18 for each bottle they sold, Mrs. Niemeic said.



"They were being trained, and during that time they were given the opportunity to make money,'' Mrs. Niemiec said.



She said most of the vendors were under 20, unmotivated and most probably would have been dismissed if they hadn't quit.



"This is an opportunity for a person who does not have a lot of education or experience,'' she said.



The positions are an alternative to $6- and $8-an-hour jobs in fast- food restaurants and retail stores, she said.



"If you want to make more money, you work a little harder. I don't think there was a lot of effort among many of them.''



The Niemeics came to Columbus from Arkansas last December. They have been Scentura distributors for seven years, opening their first office in Mobile, Ala.



Janet Robb, president of the Better Business Bureau of Arkansas, said inquiries and complaints against the company there centered around its hiring practices.



"We'd get calls from the parents of 17-year-olds asking about their financial claims,'' Robb said.



"We never got complaints about the knockoff Gucci perfumes. It was always about these management positions that paid a lot of money. In most cases, there were no management positions, and there was not a lot of money to be made.''



Hundreds of Internet postings make similar accusations against Scentura distributors across the country. A scattered handful of them are from people who had completed the training and were successfully running their own businesses.



Kip Morse, president of the Better Business Bureau of Central Ohio, said that although businesses such as Midwest One are legal, their hiring practices can be misleading.



"If you're advertising management positions and it takes three days of somebody's time, energy and hopes before they come to grips with what it is really about, you've got deception.''



Morse warns potential recruits to check out these kinds of management offers before responding to ads.



"You've got to be realistic,'' Morse said. "Is it feasible that this is a product somebody will want to buy? Is there a market for this product? Am I the kind of person who would want to sell this product this way?''



On top of everything else, Aston and the others were operating illegally when they sold their perfumes without peddler licenses throughout Columbus and some other central Ohio cities.



Niemiec said sellers are told from the start that they are responsible for obtaining their own licenses, as well as paying taxes. Vendors disagree.



Columbus also requires Midwest One to have a peddler promoter license, said Craig Coloby, a licensing officer in Columbus. He said neither the company nor its vendors are licensed.



It's not unusual.



Often, officials don't learn of peddler violations until someone complains; businesses seldom do, Coloby said.



Unlicensed vendors roll into town offering a variety of products for sale.



"Magazines are the big thing,'' Coloby said.



Experts say these kind of "business opportunities'' seem even more appealing when the job market is weak.



Sheena Wicks, 18, said she was looking for a job to help pay the bills and prepare for college after she lost her job when American Eagle Outfitters closed its Northland Mall store.



The Columbus resident earned less than $20 during her two weeks with Midwest One.



"So many people would laugh at us,'' Wicks said. "Some would just plain get mad.



"Or they would smell the stuff for half an hour and then not buy anything -- wasting your time.''



Aston, a mother of a 7- and a 4- year-old, said that in the end she probably sold 13 bottles before she finally quit. In two weeks, she, too, had earned about $20.



With transportation expenses and child-care costs, the position she had taken to help with the household bills ended up pushing her deeper into debt, she said.



"I didn't have a car, so I was offering the others gas money,'' she said. "We were all broke all the time because we weren't selling anything.''



lturnbull@dispatch.com





IF IT SOUNDS TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE

Richard Reeve/Eyewitness News

Noblesville, Indianapolis Aug. 26





So why are people crowding a Noblesville parking lot? "They said we're going to make like $75,000 the first year," recalls Dan Penale.



Callista Kellas came "with the impression I was, you know, (going to) have this great management job."



They saw an ad for international wholesale assistant managers, maybe $400 a week.



"It fell into the category of, too good to be true." Kent Koven, a recent Ball State grad, liked what he heard from a regional manager for Scentura Creations, assistant manager, cool! "The truth is, you have to sell so many bottles to open your own store."



Bottles? Bottles of what? Perfume, it turns out. "Selling is not important, that's what they told us, over and over, we're management, we're not supposed to sell, however that's not what I found," says Koven.



But he, and several others, soon discovered they were going to be salespeople, not managers.



Linda Carmody with the Better Business Bureau thinks, "it's misleading."



Not illegal, the BBB says, but maybe not very truthful. "Our report does state about the ads, about it saying that it's management. And that people should realize it's an independent contractor and would be responsible for their own business."



That means you'd make the sales and get a cut, but pay the taxes and get your own licenses, if needed.



Eyewitness News wanted to find out more, but company representative Katie Metzger wouldn't speak with us at first. She later told us we'd have to leave.



Dan Panale left too, after hearing Scentura's pitch. "It was more gonna be all sales and like the managing was going to be one or two people getting a managing job. That's not, that's something false from what they said last week."



One young person said, they should've just come out and told us.



PERFUME JOBS SMELL FISHY, BBB SAYS



New Orleans news report on Scentura:Trainees Promised High Pay, Given Hard Labor





Recent college graduates and teenagers looking for summer jobs need to be aware of one local business that advertises high-paying management positions.



When he responded to a classified ad posted by a company called International Designs, Michael Torres thought he was applying for a good job. But he said the training turned out to be more like hard labor.



"You go out and spend eight hours in the field and you basically made $4," Torres said.



After interviewing with the company, Torres and about a dozen others were sent out on aggressive sales ventures. With just a list of product names, trainees were told to sell as many products as they could to friends and family.



Another part of the training involved sending the employees to parking lots to approach people and sell perfume using a tactic called "cover and smother," 6 On Your Side reporter Stephanie Boswell said.



The trainees made just $2 for every bottle sold, and Torres became suspicious of the job and the product.



"We didn't have these products until the day after we sold them," he said. "And then they brought in the different types of cologne and perfumes, and that's when it really caught me. I said 'Wait, this isn't what I was selling to people.'"



Scentura Creations of Atlanta manufactures the perfumes. International Designs is one of its distributors. Both stand by the product.



One of Torres' friends, Chris St. Pierre, was not happy with his cologne purchase.



"When I called Scentura in Atlanta, they said they had scent tests," St. Pierre said. "Fifty percent (of respondents) say it's the same, and the other 50 percent say it's close. And it's not."



Torres said he's embarrassed that he sold the product to his friends and wants to put this work experience behind him.



Boswell said this is not the first time that 6 On Your Side has received complaints about Scentura Creations and International Designs, but Scentura said it is not affiliated with the individual distributor.



6 On Your Side was unable to reach the distributor, but the Better Business Bureau warns consumers to beware of high-paying jobs that require little training.



Have a complaint about employment compensation?

The Wage and Hour Board advises people who have not been paid or who have questions about the payment they've received. (504) 589-6171

Or call the 6 On Your Side hotline at (800)416-NEWS.



PERFUME BANDITS. (FAKE PERFUME OFFERED IN PARKING LOTS)

Kristen Stieffel.

Orlando Business Journal, Sept 14, 2001 v18 i16 p23



The message: A cautionary tale describing people who approach women in parking lots and ask them to "sniff perfume that they are selling at a cheap price. This is not perfume - it is ether. When you sniff it, you'll pass out, and they'll take your wallet and heaven knows what else."



The e-mail usually contains several accounts of people, who were approached in parking lots or at gas stations but, because they had. read' a Previous version of the email, avoided disaster by escaping.



The truth: Although it is wise to avoid strangers in parking lots, ether isn't potent enough to knock someone out with only a couple of casual sniffs.



As with many urban legends, however, this story does contain a grain df truth. Two unrelated grams, actually.



According to the Mobile Police Department, on Nov. 8, 1999, Bertha Johnson claimed. to have been rendered unconscious after having smelled an unknown substance. She told. police that, as she was entering a bank (with $500 of her own money and $300 belonging to her employer), she was approached by a woman selling perfume. Johnson sniffed the perfume, lost consciousness and came to some time later at another location. All the money was gone.



Johnson's case appears to be the only one of its kind. Toxicological reports showed no unusual substance, ether or otherwise, in her system. No arrest has ever been made, and the case remains, open.



As for bands of perfume-wielding villains prowling the nation's parking lots, there appears to be some truth there also, though whether the perfume in question contains ether is anybody's guess, since all of their would-be victims have been tipped off to the scheme But at least one company, Atlanta-based Scentura Creations, does sell perfume in this way.



Scentura is described by the Better Business Bureau as a "multilevel selling company." The firm manufacturers inexpensive imitations of designer fragrances. Salespeople are sent out, often in pairs, to hawk the product door-to-door or, yes, in parking lots.



Sightings of such peddlers seem to have lent credence to the original scare story, in spite of the fact that, other than Johnson's univerified assault, no one has ever been found to have been "ethered" by a perfume salesperson.



If a suspicious e-mail lands in your in-box, before forwarding it to everyone in your address book.







KNOW WHAT YOU ARE APPLYING FOR WHEN ANSWERING A WANT AD

Richmond Times - Dispatch; Richmond, Va.; Jun 9, 2002; Iris Taylor;







A Richmond reader who is employed but actively looking for a new job answered an advertisement in The Times-Dispatch for an assistant manager.



She said she went on two interviews but became suspicious of many things, including the company's complicated, multitiered training and money-making structure and its use of many different telephone numbers in ads, all leading to the same office.



She said in a group interview, "a very smooth-of-the-mouth, very fast talker" spoke of bonuses, benefits, profit-sharing, trips, awards, giveaways and future office locations.



But, she said she had trouble getting straightforward answers to how much money she'd make and whether the job involved selling, which she did not want to do. She said she was offered a position "on the spot," but declined after deciphering that the 'job' entailed consumer watch selling bottles of cologne to family members and people on the street.



She said while trying to research the company on the Internet, she learned it was linked to the Atlanta-based perfume products company Scentura Creations Inc., the subject of scathing denunciations by people who claimed to have worked for it.



"Suppose I had been green enough to quit my job and be put out there?" she asked. "I have a mortgage, two children and a car note. I can probably tell you after the first day, I would have been gone. I would have been out there starting over from point one."



She said she believes this is an employment scam and she wants other readers to be warned.



I contacted the company that the reader complained about - Infinity Management in Richmond, which is one of many independent distributors of Scentura Creations. Scentura supplies, but does not own, Infinity Management. There are no complaints filed against Infinity Management at the Office of Consumer Affairs in Richmond or on the Better Business Bureau's Web site.



John Barber, the general manager in Richmond, said Infinity Management is an 11-month-old sole proprietorship that recruits and trains people to go into business for themselves as independent contractors.



He said people are made aware that they're not being hired as employees and that selling is involved because they sign independent contractor and consignment agreements "saying we're giving them merchandise [to sell] on a signature.



"Yes, there is sales involved in the learning process," Barber said. "We completely state that." But, "we don't come out and use words like selling. We would lose those types of people we're trying to appeal to." Rather, business jargon such as "direct marketing" is used, he said. Knowledgeable applicants understand that direct marketing means selling, he said. If they don't, "it's on their end to ask those types of questions."



Barber said Infinity Management uses multiple telephone lines because "we have about 300 different ads" and want to see which ones "pull" the best. Whether the ad asks for a branch manager/manager trainee, assistant manager or manager, "it's the same position," he said.



Infinity Management is licensed to sell business-to-business and to individuals on the street "anywhere in Richmond that is zoned commercial, but not on private property" such as malls or store properties where soliciting is not permitted, Barber said.



Training is progressive, done in several phases, and when completed, those who "prove themselves" are set up in a location with a small staff and budget. They are expected to turn enough profit to support operating expenses. They have other requirements, such as they must "do 30 transactions in one week" in order to keep their office location.



Income is commission-based, and there's no guarantee how much will be made, said Barber. Income is boosted by recruiting others to sell. Selling is done in teams - three-person groups that get cases of products to sell on consignment. They must report their progress twice a day.



I also called Scentura and spoke with Karey Smith in accounts receivable. She said the people who complain on the Internet think they're working for Scentura, but actually they're recruits of the independent distributors. "We've got some great owners," she said. But, "sometimes people open, and are not ready to open," while others misrepresent themselves as part of Scentura, but they're not.



On its Web site, however, Scentura takes credit for developing the concept that distributors use as a model for running their businesses. Also, the distributors receive from Scentura what Barber refers to as "overrides" or "residual income." So, Scentura and its distributors are strongly linked.



If you were looking for employment, would you, like the reader, wonder if you were being offered a job that enables you to support yourself and your family? Or, would you conclude that this is a business opportunity that involves hard work and risk?



Here are five tips from experts which, together with the questions contained in the help box, can help clear up confusion, misunderstandings and miscommunication that can occur in any interview:



* Be persistent in learning what the position entails. What a company is doing might not be anything illegal, said Sue Scott, a spokeswoman for the Virginia Employment Commission in Richmond. But, if the interviewer isn't being up front, the job seeker needs to ask probing questions.



* Look for buzzwords. "Selling" or "sales" are terms that scare off applicants. They often are camouflaged by such terms as marketing, direct marketing, telemarketing or telesales. "Probably the best suggestion is they should learn some business terminology," advised Infinity Management's Barber.



* Look for red flags in the advertisement. Ads of legitimate companies should contain the company name, a job title or job description, said Ron Brown, vice president of Excel Staffing Services Inc. in Richmond. "If you have two or three" of those pieces of information, "fine. If you have none of them, I'd start raising my eyebrows. Any company on the level will be proud of their name and give their name."



* You should be asked to fill out an application. Most legitimate businesses ask respondents to fill out an application, said Brown. "This isn't always true," but it is "in most instances. If they bring you in, take your Social Security number and say they're going to put you on the payroll, I'd start to question that."



* Do not rely on verbal promises. "Get all details regarding an employment opportunity in writing," advises the Greater Atlanta Better Business Bureau in its report on Scentura Creations. To review the report, go to www.atlanta.bbb.org. Click "company reports," then, "additional options," and "Scentura Creations." You will learn that it sells "fragrance products" to wholesale distributors who then resell the items to the public.



One method used by the independent distributors to recruit sales people is the placement of classified advertisements in the employment section under the heading of "Management," the BBB reported.



It said, "Scentura Creations has had no complaints." However, you can read plenty of complaints by going to a search engine and typing in Scentura Creations. Scentura Creation's Web site is at www.scenturacreations.com.





PERFUME PURVEYORS ARE REAL THING, EVEN IF THE MYTH ISN'T

Richmond Times - Dispatch; Richmond, Va.; Dec 6, 2000;







Like the scents they sell, tales of alleged perfume-wielding perpetrators continue to weave and waft their way about town.



For those who are joining the program currently in progress:



On Nov. 17, The Times-Dispatch ran a story about a mass- distribution e-mail that warned shoppers to watch for people selling perfume in parking lots.



The e-mail warning - featuring various women in various places who consequently were drugged and robbed - turned out to be an urban myth most likely based on a single incident reported in Mobile, Ala., more than a year ago. (That case is still unsolved.)



The bottom line was "Don't believe everything you hear, but better safe than sorry."



Within two days, however, several women from the Richmond area called to say something similar had happened to them.



One anonymous caller said she was approached on Election Day by a young woman selling inexpensive perfume at the Mechanicsville Wal- Mart. "I was going to my car, and luckily a man came along who was parked by me. Then she walked away."



No crimes reported



Apparently, people are peddling perfume in public places. But they don't appear to be doing so with evil intent, as suggested by the warning e-mails - no ether sprays or robberies associated with perfume sales have been reported to the Richmond Police Department's Economic Crimes Unit, which usually handles scam-related reports.



One young salesman even offered cologne to a Henrico County policeman at the scene of a crime. The officer was in uniform at the time, so it's likely the vendor's intentions - if not his timing - were benign.



A similar encounter alarmed Betty Anne Howell at the Midlothian Turnpike Kmart. "A nice-looking lady had a box in her hand and said something like, 'Would you be interested in some perfume?'"



Howell thought it was unusual and left quickly. The woman probably was selling something cheap at a hiked-up price, she said, but who knows?



Mary E. Woodley said she was approached the morning the article appeared by a young man in front of the Library of Virginia on Broad Street. He asked her what kind of perfume she liked and began to open a black bag.



"I immediately said no and proceeded on my way back to work," said Woodley.



Another Mary, who asked that her last name be withheld, said she was getting out of her car at the Short Pump Wal-Mart last spring or early summer when a young man suddenly appeared behind her.



"He said, 'Excuse me, ma'am, if you have a minute.'



"I don't know that there was anything dangerous about the situation, but I put the fear of God into that young man. I said, 'You are making a big mistake' . . . I don't know what you have in that backpack, and you have no idea what I have in my pocketbook."



As he took off, Mary noticed one or two other young people with backpacks toward the rear of the parking lot.



Filling a quota



"These poor kids are probably brought out here and dropped off in the middle of nowhere," she said. "They probably have some quota . . . but it's just not a good idea, even in broad daylight."



Whenever someone reports such an incident, said Jim Kloosterman, manager of the Short Pump Wal-Mart, "We go right out and tell them to leave our property."



Kloosterman said the vendors usually are college-age and generally are selling perfume. "In the last three years, we've probably run them off four or five times."



Mary Brinkley, an assistant manager at the Wal-Mart at Parham and Brook roads, said people have been asked to leave because solicitation is not allowed on Wal-Mart property. Generally, they cooperate and move on.



Diane Pedraza of Richmond thinks the proliferation of perfume peddlers may be related to a company called Scentura Creations.



Scentura, according to its Web site, began about 25 years ago in Atlanta and has evolved into a "multimillion dollar company that distributes perfume to independent business owners on an international level."



The company revolves around the sale and distribution of its Observe L Essence line of "rendition" fragrances, created to mimic designer perfumes at a reduced price.



Scentura's Web site - though it includes no contact information for prospective employees or interested parties - offers a "once-in- a-lifetime opportunity to be in business for yourself," claiming the potential for a six-figure income and financial independence.



Not so, said Pedraza, at least not in her experience. She worked for a division of Scentura near Old Bridge, N.J., for about three weeks in 1998.



"When you first starting working for them, they say you get paid at least $200 a week.



"The only money I made was from perfume I sold on the street. I'm not a very good hustler, so I probably sold seven bottles the whole time."



According to Pedraza, her employer "took me to bad places. Where they tell you to go, you have to go . . . to parking lots, inside random office buildings."



Problems like that stem not from Scentura itself, but from its business owners, or "customers," said Karey Smith, who works for the company in Atlanta.



"Customers buy the perfume from [us], and the way they sell it is up to them," she said. "They cannot misrepresent the product [by saying it's the real version of a given scent] or say they're employees or work for us."



Web sites set up by Scentura representatives - which seem a safer venue than parking lots from which to sell a product - offer the 3.3- ounce bottles of perfume for anywhere from $19.95 to $39.95. Because customers own their own businesses, Smith said, they set their own prices and keep the profits.



Customers may employ anywhere up to 50 people on the local level to make the actual sales.



Most people, Smith said, learn about Scentura from having been introduced to its products. "People who want the perfume will call and say, 'I bought it in the Wal-Mart parking lot and can't find the girl who sold it to me.'*"



Customers and their employees are allowed to sell wherever they like, Smith said, as long as it's not illegal.



Scentura has about 200 to 300 customers at any given time, including some currently in the Richmond area.



If customers' tactics are questionable, Smith said, they usually don't last. "It's very easy to cut off the supply."



Whether or not the perfume-mongers can be traced to Scentura customers or similar operations, it pays to be alert, especially during high-volume shopping days.



And it wouldn't hurt the sellers themselves - whoever they are and no matter how good their intentions - to take a tip from Mary:



"I don't have Mace or anything, but some people have that on their key chain.



"You run into one of these feisty middle-aged West End women, and they're likely to sling it at you."





THERE'S BIG DOLLARS IN STREET SCENTS

Intelligencer Journal; Lancaster; Mar 07, 1997; Flannery, Thomas L







To hear Warren Jentis tell it, peddling bottles of perfume on the streets of Lancaster will catapult you into the world of the rich and famous.



But to hear city officials and business leaders tell it, what Jentis is doing will, in all likelihood, make only make one person rich:



Warren Jentis.



A Barnegate, N.J., native. Jentis said he moved to Lancaster on Jan. 31 with his girlfriend/partner Betsy Schuyler, rented a vacant three-story building at 114 E. Chestnut St. and opened WBI--short for Warren and Betsy International.



Jentis, who has the intensity of a get-rich. quick infomercial, describes himself as a "direct marketer of rendition perfumes he buys from Atlanta-based Scentura Creations.



Since no one may patient a scent, what Scentura dues is analyze the contents of popular fragrances, then replicate them and sell them under their own names at rates far lower than their original counterparts.



Jentis said he buys the perfumes at a deep discount and provides them to his sales force at prices ranging from $10.50 to $20 a bottle, and they, in turn, peddle the products for $24.95.



After about two months, Jentis said that "successful" salespersons are offered contracts with annual salaries ranging from "$30,000 to $35,000 and a car," and that free vacations are commonplace.



None of the seven people interviewed by the Intelligencer Journal said they have ever met or known anyone who received a contract, but two said they were off to Florida this weekend on Jentis' tab.



Since Jentis' arrival in Lancaster, police said they have been inundated with complaints of high-pressure sales tactics by the young sales crew Jentis calls "independent contractors"--made up primarily of felons, admitted drug dealers and hard-luck youngsters, the youngest being 17.



Hardly a day goes by, said the Downtown Investment District bicycle police officers, when they don't cite one or more of Jentis' crew for soliciting without a permit.



DID Police said most are repeat offenders and face fines between $50 to $600 on each daily charge.



Jentis and Schuyler insist the ordinance is not legal and said they plan to challenge it in court.



Jentis' attorney, Kevin C. Allen, could not be reached for comment.



"Crazy, Greedy ... Must like $$$, music and fun. Office and general work. Call Warren ... ," reads Jentis' ad in all three local newspapers.



And, according to Jentis, 29--a ponytailed, modern-day version of super salesman Prof. Harold Hill of "Music Man" fame--call they do.



"What's wrong with giving people the opportunity of a lifetime," said Jentis, waving his right hand, bedecked with a gold ring topped with a dollar sign. "I'm just teaching people to do what I do, and they learn as they earn."



After paying a non-refundable $25 fee for a nondescript "background check." the fledgling salespeople begin a four--to eight-week training program that includes stints at various locations throughout the county under Jentis' tutelage, Schuyler said.



Jentis said hundreds of people have passed through his doors, but admittedly few make the cut. One training class started with about 70; five remain.



Sam Loth. the DID's new executive director, said Jentis has scheduled a meeting with him next week.



What Jentis won't find when he gets to Loth's office is a sympathetic ear to his pleas of police harassment.



"Apparently Mr. Jentis feels he's free to operate outside the rules and regulations of the business community," Loth said.



Loth said he plans to continue to utilize the city's ordinance regulating vendors and peddlers "to help protect the community."



As does the man who heads the city's licensing and permits section, W. James Schelling.



"The problem is that Mr. Jentis is portraying his business as one that participates in business-to-business sales, and that's just not the case," said Schelling.



"The city doesn't issue permits that allow anyone to enter a business or stand directly outside a business and solicit that business's employees or customers," Schelling said. "Why? Because that's not legal."



Schelling said the only permit Jentis' sales force might be able to get is a peddler's permit that allows for door-to-door sales.



But that would require criminal records checks, and because most of Jentis' workers admittedly have had run-ins with the law, the applications would be denied, Schelling said.



Lancaster Bureau of Police Chief Michael L. Landis said enforcement of the city's vendors and peddlers law is complaint-driven, and that legitimate operations know they need a permit to do business in town.



Landis said he has received a number of complaints about Jentis' high-pressure tactics, misleading help-wanted advertisements and calls from parents of minors worried about what Jentis is really up to.





PERFUME SALES JUST A SMELLY SCAM? YOUNG PEOPLE SAY AMHERST COMPANY FAILS ON TRAINING, PAY PROMISES

Buffalo News; Buffalo, N.Y.; Mar 28, 1992; By James T. Madore







A group of young people is accusing an Amherst perfume distributor of falsely advertising career opportunities and of asking them to smuggle products into Canada.



They describe Nautica Stars Inc. as nothing more than a sophisticated "scam" that preys on people made desperate by unemployment and the recession by promising them career advancement and paid training -- and then not delivering on the promises.



They say they were told they could earn up to $35,000 a year or about $600 a week. However, they say they were lucky if they made $50 per week.



The 18-to-23-year-olds have reported their concerns to the Better Business Bureau of Western New York, which has launched an investigation, according to Dolores J. Liberatore, the bureau's vice president.



Founded in January, Nautica Stars, 331 Alberta Drive, distributes generic perfumes that are similar to Obsession, Eternity and other popular fragrances. The products are manufactured by Scentura Creations of Atlanta, Ga., a 17-year-old company with 570 sales offices worldwide.



John D. Disbro, a Williamsville resident, owns Nautica Stars. He and Michael E. Wallette of Cleveland, a regional vice president for Scentura, deny all the accusations made by the young adults. Both described their venture as "honest" and "not meant to hurt anyone" in an interview Friday.



Jennifer E. Andrews of Kenmore disagreed, saying: "We were basically misled . . . it was totally different than they said it was. We ended up spending more money than we were making."



She explained that she and her friends were given perfume by Nautica Stars to sell on consignment. They could charge whatever price they wanted, as long as $19 was paid to Nautica Stars for every item that was sold.



Financial records provided by Nautica Stars show that the disgruntled individuals earned between $20 and $66 during the two weeks they spent selling fragrances. All of them left the company about a week ago when their sales declined.



Wallette, the firm's supervisor, said it is possible for teen-agers to be successful selling perfume. For example, he said, a 19-year-old woman from Rochester was Scentura's top salesperson in New York in mid-February. And Mark M. Riedel, 28, of West Seneca is planning to open his own sales office in Cheektowaga, after being with the company for barely 3 1/2 weeks, Wallette said.



"This isn't a scam," he said. "And I don't want our name to be tarnished by a few bad apples."



Amy Eddy of Buffalo and Brian Bader of South Wales don't consider themselves troublemakers. They say all they want is to be reimbursed for their expenses and paid for the training sessions they attended.



Bader explained that he and his friends applied for jobs with Nautica Stars after reading a newspaper advertisement seeking managers and assistant managers. The ad promised paid training, and the potential for cash bonuses plus health benefits in the future.



"We never got paid for training," Bader said. "There was a lot of talk and promises; not must else."



He estimated that Nautica Stars owes him $655 for the use of his car and $442 in training wages. Miss Eddy and Miss Andrews each claim they are owed $260 for expenses and $680 in wages.



"If they have receipts, I will reimburse them. But I won't be raped," responded Wallette, who supervises Nautica Stars.



Owner John Disbro acknowledged that his advertisement was misleading and said it has been changed. "It was unintentional," he said, adding "I will do anything to make this right."



The young adults also allege that Wallette took them to Canada on selling trips and told them to lie to customs inspectors. He forced them to smuggle, they said.



Wallette denied the charge and said Nautica Stars has never sold perfumes north of the border.



Since January, about 250 people have sold perfume for Nautica Stars. However, only about 50 are still with the firm, Disbro said. "This isn't for everyone. But we are providing an opportunity for young people to make money," he said.



Paul Gabriel, a former salesperson, described Nautica Stars as a revolving-door operation, where young people are urged to sell perfume to their friends and family, and then discarded when sales drop.



"No one stays very long, they give up because they can't sell enough of the stuff to make money," said the 34-year-old Buffalo resident.



"They know these kids can't get jobs elsewhere so they use them," he added.



Bader, whose 18 years old, concluded: "We had such great hopes and then we found out it wasn't for real."





FORMER EMPLOYEES CHEER REPORTS PERFUME FIRM IS OUT OF BUSINESS

Buffalo News; Buffalo, N.Y.; Jun 13, 1992; By James T. Madore







Nautica Stars Inc., an Amherst perfume distributor, has apparently gone out of business after being accused by a group of young people in March of false advertising and smuggling products into Canada.



Sources say the small business closed its doors in mid-May -- just six weeks after the students' allegations were reported by the media and an investigation was launched by the Better Business Bureau of Western New York.



The young people never did get the money they alleged was owed them by Nautica Stars. But Amy L. Eddy of Buffalo says she is pleased her former employer has shut down.



"I'd rather have them go out-of-business than get my money back and see them do this to other people," the 20-year-old said Friday. She claims the company owes her $260 for expenses and $680 in wages.



Founded in January, Nautica Stars distributed generic perfumes that are similar to Obsession, Eternity and other popular fragrances. The products are manufactured by Scentura Creations of Atlanta, a 17-year-old company with 570 sales offices worldwide.



Miss Eddy and five other whistle-blowers describe Nautica Stars as nothing more than a sophisticated "scam" that preyed on people made desperate by unemployment and the recession by promising them career advancement and paid training -- and then not delivering on the promises.



The 18- to 23-year-olds say they were told they could earn up to $35,000 a year or about $600 a week. However, they say they were lucky if they made $50 per week.



The young people explained that they were given perfume by Nautica Stars to sell on consignment. They could charge whatever price they wanted, as long as $19 was paid to Nautica Stars for every item that was sold.



The young adults also allege that they were taken to Canada on selling trips and told to lie to customs inspectors. Nautica Stars forced them to smuggle, they said.



The company's owner, John D. Disbro of Williamsville, and his supervisor Michael E. Wallette of Cleveland denied in March all the accusations made by the young adults.



However, Nautica Stars closed its offices at 331 Alberta Drive during the first or second week of May, sources say. The telephones were disconnected and mail has been returned unopened to senders.



In addition, no one seems to know where Disbro has gone. His home telephone number is unlisted. And New York Telephone Co. and the Amherst Chamber of Commerce say he did not give them a forwarding number.



"He's not doing business with us anymore," said Bob Hasty, vice president of Scentura Creations, the Atlanta-based manufacturer of the perfumes sold by Nautica Stars.



"I think he's gone out of business," Hasty said. He also noted that Wallette, the Cleveland man who was supervising Nautica Stars, also has stopped selling perfume.



Before closing his business, Disbro wrote to the five young people who had accused him of fraud. In the letter, he denied owing them any money because they had worked as independent contractors.



Between January and March, about 250 people sold perfume for the company. However, only about 50 were still with the firm on March 27.



The apparent disappearance of Nautica Stars, however, hasn't ended perfume sales in Erie County. Earlier this week, a young man was seen selling similar fragrances in Buffalo Place, the pedestrian mall downtown.



SEE PART 2 BELOW TO THIS... this REBUTAL WASS TOO LONG ....

It sounds like J.D. from Utah is on a mission. It's too bad he doesn't read more carefully and get the facts straight.



I am not the owner of, nor a partner in, Progressive Design. My son is the owner. Amber Belknap is no longer associated with the firm and hasn't been for close to a year now. I responded to comments made by Marie because she obviously had a "first hand" experience with my son's company, not another company, from another state, owned by someone entirely different.



The additional addresses he has listed either are, or have been, mini offices set up as the final training phase before an individual makes the financial investment and logistical move to establish their own independant distributorship. I guess you would have to stick around for a while before acquiring that information.



Obviously, J.D. has had a bad experience, but it has NOT been with my son's company, Progressive Design. If someone has had a "first hand" experience they would like addressed, I would be more than happy to look into it. Reprinting other people's comments, especially taking them out of context, can be very misleading.



I do, however, also wish J.D. good fortune in finding suitable employment.

28 newspaper reports on the Scentura scam.



Negative BBB reports about similar distributors.



Scentura ruled to be a pyramid sales scheme by the Illinois Appellate court.



Information on the Brain's local Progressive Design Scentura pyramid scheme:



Progressive Design

10405-1 Saint Augustine Road Jacksonville, FL 32257

4604 Atlantic Blvd Ste 2 Jacksonville, FL 32207

4221 Baymeadows Road Jacksonville, FL 32217

904-731-8668 904-346-1250 904-880-6546 904-288-4410 904-260-5587 904-399-3701

[According to resident, number doesn't work]

Original Business Start Date: September 1999

Managers: Amber Belknap and Mr. Sean Shinick Owner

Advertise in the Florida Times Union

[From: http://dcregistry.com/forums/employment/messages/8493.html

http://seniors-site.com/fraud/3077.html Melissa.Leader@citizensfla.com]

2nd address: 3035 Powers Ave. #4 Jacksonville Fl 904-256-4674

From: ucf_grad@hotmail.com



Like many distributors, it looks like Brian moves frequently.



Many distributors have bad ratings with the Better Business Bureau. (Dozens Below)



Because Scentura headquarters is technically only a supplier of the perfume, regardless of how bad the distributors are (which are using Scentura's script, created by Larry Hahn), they are legally separate from their independent distributors, thus their reputation is not sullied.



Progressives BBB file can be found here:

http://www.jacksonville.bbb.org/common.html?location=/home/common/www/mis67/report.php&bureau=jax&compid=10630



It is empty.



Brian wrote the following lies and half truths:



"To "make the cut" of 24 out of 300, however, Marie must have exhibited some pretty decent qualities."



Everyone is hired at Scentura. Everyone. There was no "300 people" this is a lie. As long as Scentura is open, it will keep running the classified ads as long as the office is open.



"The fact that she was not asked more questions about herself and her past work experience is really quite simple. An entry level sales job doesn't require any past experience. Motivation and positive attitude are the most important factors and the sales techniques are taught during the training period."



This is why Scentura distributors in the past have hired serial killers, thieves, and murders.

[see media reports below]



"I also looked at the other postings regarding Scentura and found them to be mostly complaints from people like Marie who either didn't think the employment ads matched the job, were looking for a desk job and a pay check, or tried the sales training period and found it wasn't for them."



Although the majority of the people who quit Scentura quit in the first week, after realizing that it is a multi-level marketing scam (as described by the Illinois Appellate Court)



There are people who have worked for Scentura for months, years and even a decade (Mike Barrick) which describe Scentura as a scam.



The classified ads are intentionally vague, and some even list non-existent receptionist jobs. [see typical newspaper ads, below]



Scentura distributors claim that there actually will be a paycheck--$40,000 a year is typical. This is a lie. The job is 100% commission selling perfume in parking lots and to relatives and friends FFAARR. If you do get an office (only 1 in 100 get there) as a distributor will be constantly running fraudulent classified ads too, just like Brian.





"The office itself has over 1600 sq ft. with a long term lease. It has a good sized reception area, a large office Mgr's office, a sales mgr's office, a very large group interview room, a product storage room, a large gathering area with drink machine, coffee machine and water cooler, two rest rooms, and a very large executive office. "



Brian is probably at the top of his regions pyramid scheme, and has many distributors below him.



"I know, I helped pick the furniture out. Yes, the group interview room has around 60 metal folding chairs"



Every week young people answer the same fraudulent classified ads and go through training. That is the job of a distributor like Brian, to pump them up to sell perfume illegally in parking lots with no peddlers license. Again, most people quit within a week, and only the most devious or the most gullible stay.



This doesn't matter to a distributor like Brian because the ads are run every week, and up to 60 more new trainees will be hired.



"Guaranteed $70,000 in the 2nd year? It's been done....has everyone done it? Not hardly...Not everyone can sell, in fact, most who have tried have found they hate it. But at least they tried and learned it wasn't for them. "

This is a lie--and Brian basically admits it--Guaranteed $70,000 in the 2nd year--but he turns around and says few have done it--few actually make the $70,000 or few actually stay in the program? There is no "Guaranteed $70,000 in the 2nd year" it is all 100% commission.



"Progressive Design is a viable and legitimate company."

Progressive design is a distributor for Scentura, which was ruled to be a pyramid sales scheme in Illinois, 28 newspaper articles expose the lies of Scentura distributors (below). All distributors, Scentura and World Perfume use the same deceitful script, which I have a copy of, and have typed out.



"To criticize something, you should know something about it. Not even showing up for the first day of training really doesn't give you an opportunity to learn anything. To name individuals and call them "Liars" because a job interview did not turn out to be what the person was looking for is not only unfair, it is irresponsible."



Your deceitful business practices are more than irresponsible, they are reprehensible.



(items mentioned above in next message)

I would like to respond to the comments made by "Marie" on 12/9/04 regarding Progressive Design.







My son, Sean Shinick, started the company in Sept, 1999. It is a legal partnership with a Federal Tax ID, and appropriate business licenses. While a very large number of businesses are not listed with the BBB, since Marie has made a major issue regarding it, I will look into the matter today and if prospective employees are being told that, then the company will either list itself with the BBB or cease claiming it.







I don't know what Marie's experiences have been with other job interviews and I don't know what she was expecting. I have personally experienced similar situations where a large number of applicants were whittled down to a select few. To "make the cut" of 24 out of 300, however, Marie must have exhibited some pretty decent qualities. The fact that she was not asked more questions about herself and her past work experience is really quite simple. An entry level sales job doesn't require any past experience. Motivation and positive attitude are the most important factors and the sales techniques are taught during the training period. If one were applying for a technical job, requiring certain specific skills, I could see the need for more in depth, personal interviewing. But this is not a 9-5 desk job with the same pay check every week. I don't think "young" and "immature and naive" necessarily equate, but I don't think you'll find many 45 yr olds with kids and a house payment looking for an entry level sales position.







Marie stated that she looked up Scentura Creations web site. So have I, and the web site clearly states the Scentura Creations is a wholesale manufacturer of perfume that is marketed thru independant dealers like Progressive Design. Since there are thousands of these dealers, Scentura's web site does not list them all. I also looked at the other postings regarding Scentura and found them to be mostly complaints from people like Marie who either didn't think the employment ads matched the job, were looking for a desk job and a pay check, or tried the sales training period and found it wasn't for them. The vast majority couldn't even be called "disgruntled employees", since, like Marie, they didnt' even start the training period or quit after one day.







I too, don't like loud music, but then I'm not 21 yrs old anymore. As far as the foul language goes, I don't use it or like it either, however, whenever I have visited Progressive Designs office, the employess I have met have been very respectful and if any foul language was ever used, they immediately excused themselves and appologized.







The office itself has over 1600 sq ft. with a long term lease. It has a good sized reception area, a large office Mgr's office, a sales mgr's office, a very large group interview room, a product storage room, a large gathering area with drink machine, coffee machine and water cooler, two rest rooms, and a very large executive office. I don't know where "small and unfurnished" comes from, but every office has modern desks and comfortable chairs. I know, I helped pick the furniture out. Yes, the group interview room has around 60 metal folding chairs, but it would be hard to get 60 leather rocker recliners in there....Oh, and the new computer, printer, fax, copier and other assorted business machines are located in the executive office. But if you never showed up for the first day of training, I don't imagine you would have gotten to see them.







As far as packing a U-haul and moving in 24 hrs, I know about that....I helped pack the U-haul...but only after several months of planning, several trips to Jacksonville to look at office locations, set up phone lines, arrange advertising, hook up utilities, etc. And all that, only after months of training, selling in the field, supervising new trainees, doing interviews, and well, basically, learning every aspect of the business and the product sold.







Can a 21 yr old own their own business? Sure, happens every day. Will they all succeed? Not hardly. It takes hard work, dedication, self motivation, and a positive attitude...sound familiar? Guaranteed $70,000 in the 2nd year? It's been done....has everyone done it? Not hardly...Not everyone can sell, in fact, most who have tried have found they hate it. But at least they tried and learned it wasn't for them.







Progressive Design is a viable and legitimate company. To criticize something, you should know something about it. Not even showing up for the first day of training really doesn't give you an opportunity to learn anything. To name individuals and call them "Liars" because a job interview did not turn out to be what the person was looking for is not only unfair, it is irresponsible.







In spite of all of what she has said, I do wish Marie good fortune in finding a suitable job that she will be happy and prosperous with.







I trust that my entire comments will be posted as a response to Marie's initial report.