Will Aviance follow LUX?

Will Unilever Aviance follow the path of Electrolux LUX?   LUX was a direct selling division of the giant Swedish home appliance manufacturer, Electrolux. LUX was established in the late 1960s and the company has activities in more than 35 countries. Lux sells high-end household appliances, such as vacuum cleaners, water purifiers, washing machines, and air cleaners directly to consumers.

In 1998 Electrolux divested LUX division to a group of investors with broad experience of direct selling. The owners are Reinhard von der Becke, formerly president of the direct selling group AMC International, Jonas af Jochnik, founder and co-owner of Oriflame International, and Philip Zepter, founder and owner of Zepter International.

The purchaser, Lux International AG, continues to sell products under the Lux brand name. Electrolux will be the main supplier.

A subsequent management buy-out of the LUX business in Malaysia changed the company’s name to Blondal.

Electrolux group re-enter the Malaysian market a few years back, selling the home appliances through conventional dealer outlets.

Blondal continues to sell it’s product under LUX Appliance.

What is Unilever’s long term commitment to Aviance?  Will it persevere with all the regulatory obstacles and the constantly changing direct selling rules in Malaysia?

Which is a better channel of distribution? Direct selling or conventional retail outlets via stockist and wholesalers?  Direct sellers like Cosway, Amway and a few established players are opening retail outlets and franchised stores.  But the conventional channel marketers are moving into direct selling, albeit some variation. Aviance is a combination of retail franchised store plus direct selling. Hence, they called it Multi channel business.

Island Red Cafe Scam owners fined and jailed

 Island Red Café Scam.

Father and Son team found guilty.

Who says crime doesn’t pay? For cheating 93 people RM1.04 million, the fine is only RM160.000 plus one day jail sentence.

SHAH ALAM: A father and son have been sentenced by a Sessions Court here to a day in jail and fined a total of RM160,000 after they admitted to two counts of cheating and misleading investors of over RM1mil in an Island Red Cafe programme.

Syarikat Island Red Cafe Franchise Sdn Bhd executive director Teow Wooi Huat, 45, and his son Chee Chow, 22, who is also a director at the company, were charged at the Ampang Sessions Court on Feb 9 last year with fraudulently inducing 93 people to invest RM1,040,400.

They had committed the offence at the company’s premises in Pandan Indah between Jan 1, 2008 and Feb 28 last year.

They also pleaded guilty before Judge Aslam Zainuddin to offering shares of the company to the public through the programme although at that time, it was not involved in buying and selling shares.

For the first offence, Teow and Chee Chow were each sentenced to a day in prison and fined RM20,000 in default of 20 months’ jail.

They were also slapped with a day in prison and fined RM70,000 and RM50,000 respectively – in default of 30 months jail – for the second offence.

Judge Aslam ordered for the jail sentences to run concurrently.(Extracted from the Star).

Malaysia is a fertile ground for MLM Scam. In spite of the Direct Selling Act, with tough regulatory control, MLM scam still flourish in Malaysia..

Everything on earth are being sold via MLM.  Today, Burial plots, cremated ash compartments at  COLUMBARIUM, education programs, Sea weed farming  and Swiftlet farming (birds nest) are being marketed via direct selling channel.

There are two reputable and genuine cemetery management companies, Nirvana Memorial Park and Nilai Memorial Park selling burial plot and cremated ash compartment. These burial plots and compartments are transferable and hence, became investment properties for speculation.

A few new organisations are joining the bandwagon. Are they genuine players or scam? No research is done on them yet.

Malaysian being gullible and greedy would be easy target for the unscrupulous MLM players. The key words used by these crooks are 

"Be the early bird to reap the reward. Otherwise, you loose out to those who join earlier and over-ride you”.

This is their tactics to secure your commitment. If you understand the MLM marketing plan fully, irrespective of when you join the MLM company, you do not loose anything. MLM company pays your commission based entirely on you and your group’s (your sponsored downlines) sales volume. Nothing else.

Do you homework and check the background of the MLM company before parting with your money.

There is no easy money and no free lunch.