This comprehensive Market America review will give you all of the details about joining this company. It will also provide the necessary information about whether there is a Market America scam.
Once you know more about this company, the earning potential and what other people are saying, you can make an informed decision about signing up.
What is Market America?
Market America is a multilevel marketing company. They use the direct selling method for those who join the company. They sell a variety of products, such as health, beauty, and nutrition items.
The company says that they are an UnFranchise Business. They promise to help people to grow their own businesses when they sign up with them. Their website says that they ensure profitability, longevity and stability through product brokerage.
History of Market America
Loren and JR Ridinger founded this company in 1992. They are located in Greensboro, North Carolina. They have since expanded to the global market with operations in Australia, Hong Kong, United Kingdom, Singapore, Taiwan, the Philippines, Mexico and Malaysia.
In 2008, the company said that they were going to produce MA Newsstand by partnering with iMirius. This service offers print and digital versions of books, catalogs and magazines.
The company purchased Shop.com in 2010 and they currently use this website as part of their operations. The buying of this website caused the company to switch to the Shop.com domain name. At this time, they wanted to put focus on the Market America cashback program.
Legal Issues
The US Securities and Exchange Commission brought charges against the company in 1999. It appears that the company did not deny or admit to the allegations but were able to resolve them. The issues were associated with how the company took itself public in 1994.
In 2006, there allegations of violations against the North Carolina Wage and Hour Act and breach of contract. This lawsuit was brought on by an individual who said that the company failed to pay the money that they owed him.
In 2017, two distributors brought a federal lawsuit against the company. This suit alleged that the company violated California state law and the Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act. According to the lawsuit, the company targeted Chinese-American immigrants to sell products to Asian family and friends.
Are Market America Products Good?
The company says that other firms manufacture their products. However, they say that they are the only company that markets them. The company offers the following products:
- Household cleaning supplies
- Personal care products
- Cosmetics
- Custom websites
- Weight management products
- Jewelry
- Auto care
- Dietary supplements
- Water purifiers
The overall quality of the products is mostly unknown. A few personal blogs have been written about them, but the opinions of the bloggers vary. Some of these people say the products are good while others believe they are wildly overpriced and that you can find better products from other retailers.
How Does Market America Work?
This company relies on their distributors selling the products and recruiting new distributors to sell the products by creating a downline.
Distributors receive their own web portal for the company. This is where the products that they need to sell to earn are offered. The distributor then shares their web portal and convinces people to purchase products through it.
There is also the potential to earn money from the people that you recruit to become distributors. According to the company, when they make sales, you will get a percentage of their income. However, it is unclear what this percentage is.
How Much Does Market America Cost?
To join this company and become a distributor, you will need to pay $399 as an initial startup fee. From here, you will also pay $129 per month to remain an active distributor. As an independent contractor, you are also expected to go through Shop.com and spend $130 to $300 on products offered by Market America.
There are sales volume requirements that you must meet monthly. This is $200 retail. There are fees for an annual subscription at $99.95 per year and $21.95 a month for access to the UnFranchise Management System.
There are fees associated with the required training that the company requires. These include:
- $5 for New Distributor Training that you must complete within 30 days of becoming a distributor
- $50 for ECCT that you must complete within 28 days of making your initial $1,500 in commission
- $200 for the International Convention
The ECCT and International Convention are in-person events, so you should also expect to pay all of the fees associated with lodging and travel. The company does not say that they will cover or reimburse any of these expenses for the distributors.
How Much Money Can Be Made with Market America?
This part of this Market America review focuses on the income potential for distributors. This information is important to know when you are trying to determine if there is a Market America scam.
The company does not put out earnings disclosure statements, so it is not possible to know exactly what the average income of distributors is. There are blogs from current and former distributors that talk about their individual earnings, but these vary wildly.
According to complaints, many people are not even earning a part-time income with this company. However, there is no way to verify this information due to the lack of earnings disclosure statements.
Their compensation plan says that you can earn cashback from the items that your customers purchase and from what you purchase. They also say that you earn 30 to 50 percent of your retail profits. However, according to the fine print, this is only if you sell the products at their suggested retail price.
The company says that you can manage and develop two UnFranchise Owner teams. It is unknown exactly what you earn from this effort.
What Other People Are Saying in Their Market America Review?
It is imperative to see what other people experienced during their time with Market America. This is one of the best ways to see if there is a Market America scam. Several websites have reviews from people who worked with this company, including:
- Better Business Bureau
- Indeed
- Glassdoor
- Blog comments
Better Business Bureau
This company became accredited with the Better Business Bureau in 2004. They currently hold an A+ rating. Out of 27 customer reviews, they have four stars at the time we compiled this Market America review.
Most of the comments left on this website are positive. They appear to be mostly from people who are working as distributors. A few of the reviews say that the products are high in quality.
One review says that they bought a piano from the company and it arrived damaged. This reviewer says that they contacted the company for help, but the company is refusing to help them with this issue.
Another negative review says that the company does not refund unopened products. They also state that the products were past the 30-day mark when they tried to return them.
In the past three years, there have been 18 complaints on this website that have been closed. They break down into the following categories:
- 11 complaints about an issue with services or products
- One complaint about warranty or guarantee
- One complaint about delivery
- Two complaints about collections and billing
- Three complaints about sales and advertising
Many of the complaint details are not available. Of the ones that are, people seem to be upset with the products that they ordered. They say that the products were not as advertised or that they received a completely different product.
The company has 4.8 of five stars on Facebook at the time this Market America review was written. This is from 560 reviews. Most of these reviews appear to be from current distributors who are trying to recruit people to join their downline.
The reviews talk about how much the products are loved and the overall product quality. Other reviews say that the company makes it easy to become an entrepreneur.
However, there are some reviews that are not happy with the distributor opportunity or the products. One reviewer says that the products are too expensive and that they lack quality.
Another review mentions that the company is often charging their distributors extra fees that are not disclosed upfront.
Another review says that there are too many ecommerce limitations with the website where distributors sell the products. This person says that you are better off getting your own website and selling products independently.
Indeed
On Indeed, this company has 3.4 out of five stars at the time this was written. This is based on 107 reviews. Most reviews seem to be from people who worked for the corporate office.
Some of the reviews are from former employees who say that they are happy to no longer be working with the company. A few say that they were terminated without a good reason.
The positive reviews talk about the good work environment. A few people mention that the management team was good to work for and that they helped their employees to succeed.
Another employee says that the workplace is stressful and that the company puts too much pressure on employees. However, this person also said that the company does offer some perks to employees, such as covering half of their health insurance costs.
There are a few reviews from people who worked as distributors for the company. One says that the pool of distributors is far too saturated and that this makes it difficult to make any sales.
Glassdoor
On Glassdoor, this company has four out of five stars at the time this Market America review was written. This is based on 239 reviews. These reviews appear to be from people who work for the corporate office.
One complaint said that trying to park is difficult. The parking lot is not large enough to accommodate the guests and employees who visit the corporate office each day.
Some of the positive reviews talk about how the environment at work is positive. The people who work there seem motivated and happy to be at work.
Other positive comments say that the benefit package is a good one. They say that there are also opportunities to advance within the company.
Blog Comments
Most of the blogs that have been written about this company are negative. Some even allege that the company is a scam. The comments on these blogs are highly mixed. Some people are defending the company while others are agreeing that it is not ideal to become a distributor.
One comment talks about the different lawsuits that have been filed against the company. They feel that this means that the company is not a reputable one.
Some comments talk about the products. One says that while they are overpriced, the quality is relatively good. Other people feel that it is easier to find better quality products at most stores.
One commenter said that the company would spam them with emails. This continued even after they were no longer a distributor for the company.
Another commenter says that the company frames the distributor opportunity as a way to get rich quick. However, making money by selling the products was too difficult.
Our Verdict on Market America
This is the end of this Market America review. There does not seem to be a Market America scam. WE DO NOT BELIEVE THAT MARKET AMERICA IS A SCAM. However, since the company does not seem to release any recent earnings disclosures that we could find, it is unknown how much people are really making. Because of this, we mark this business opportunity as recommended with caution.
YELLOW BADGE
RECOMMENDED WITH CAUTION
(Learn more about our rating guidelines.)
