Amway, which allegedly stands for the American Way [though I have heard another version of the story], is a multilevel marketing company that sells products ranging from laundry detergent to televisions. The got their start selling the first concentrated laundry detergent generally available, which at the time offered a signficant sales advantage and was probably a good buy. But they have always been overpriced generally.
Speaking from my own experiences: Amway is not a pyramid because the number of tiers is finite, and they do actually sell product. Many people falsely believe that the downline - people whom you have sponsored into the business, and everyone they have sponsored, and everyone they have sponsored - is infinite, but there is a cut-off based on monthly sales figures. When someone in the downline goes direct, meaning that they get product directly from the factory instead of their upline, you lose their business and only get to count a fixed and small percentage of their sales. As they move farther up the ladder, IIRC, you lose them all together unless you continually advance beyond them.
I know that it is possible to make real money in Amway. And the proof of this is what finally turned me against Amway altogether. Money can be made in any number of ways. First, some people do actually just sell the product. But since they became non-competitive pricewise, I doubt this happens much any more. And even in Amway's hayday, this was never more that a small supplemental income. Next, money is made by selling product and starter kits to newcomers who are soon disillusioned, but who are constantly reminded that IF they are serious about the business, IF they are willing to do what it takes to become sucessful, then they will use the product. And the cult reference made earlier is exactly correct. I didn't see the cult side of this at first, but when I started meeting other people in the business, it was clearly a cult that worships the worst god of all: money. And that's where the real bucks are made - selling the love of money.
IMO and based on my observations, the big dirty secret about Amway is the source of wealth. Sure, the corporation makes money selling the product. But the upline, the diamonds, and double diamonds, and triple diamonds who inspire all of us mere mortals to be sucessful like them, only get a small percentage of the product sales. So they hold rallies where they show photos of their beautiful homes, cars, boats, and in particular, their motorhomes, and their trips to Hawaii, and they do everything possible to inspire greed. If you love your family you will do this. [See my diamonds?] If you aren't a loser, you will do this. [Look at my car.] If you are a winner, if you want to be sucessful, if you have what it takes to stand above the crowd, you can have all of this. [Don't you love your children?] And if you buy my books and tapes, and come to my rallies, I will inspire you to success.
And that is the secret. Why do they all have big expensive motorhomes? It is because they live in them! I remember looking up on the stage and noting the dark circles under our triple-diamond's eyes. And then it struck me that this rich man who allegedly retired at the age of 30 is trying to sell books and tapes in a hotel a thousand miles from his home, at 11 PM on a Saturday night.
Up until then I hadn't seen too much of this. But when I started doing well, the floodgates opened and I saw what Amway was really all about. It is a cult of greed that seeks to profit by inspiring more greed. It is a religion of money based on half-truths and spin; one that teaches that greed is good, and that money is all that we really want from life. And worst of all, they do this while hiding behind a smokescreen of family values and friendship. After all, if you love your friends, and if you love your family, then you want them to make money too!
As soon as I saw this, I couldn't stomach another minute of Amway.
