DirectBuy Reviews

1) During the sales process we were told that that we would be able to do 90% of our shopping on the Direct Buy website. We received our login to the website on Tuesday May 5, 2009 at which time it was apparent that less than 60% of the products were listed on the website and less than 30% of the products had a price listed requiring that we visit the showroom. The evening of the 5th I contacted Bank of America and flagged the membership fee transaction as potentially being disputed. I spoke with the Direct Buy Showroom Supervisor the next day, Sarah **, and she explained, apologized and confirmed that 90% of the shopping cannot be done on the Direct Buy website. Regretfully, this did not rectify being deceived during the sales process for us. The promise of being able to do 90% of our shopping through the Direct Buy website was one of the primary reasons we chose to purchase a membership.

2) During the sales process we were led to believe that we would receive lower than retail prices on every item sold by Direct Buy. During the sales process we were told that the pricing in the member catalogs would be the price that we pay. During a visit to the showroom we compared two items from different categories as a litmus test and found that the member pricing was higher than standard retailers. When we raised this concern with Sarah ** she told us that they have to look up actual pricing on a tool that only Direct Buy staff has access to; a far cry from the what-you-see-is-what-you-get sales pitch promise.

These two examples are the concrete examples that we encountered. There are also several inferences and exceptional examples of savings that are implied to be the norm. The Direct Buy sales model forces customers to purchase their membership before being able to preview the actual savings of the membership. Overall, the Direct Buy staff established significantly inflated expectations and deceived us as potential customers. Then when we requested a refund based on these deceptions, Direct Buy refused our request for refund. Direct Buy is refusing our refund request based on the fact that the membership agreement form states that the membership dues are nonrefundable.

Our key objection is that the service we received was not as promised at the time we signed this agreement. We met with Sarah ** on Friday, May 8, 2009. We attended a private new member orientation and this is when we did our comparisons to other retailers and observed the significantly greater number of products available at the showroom as opposed to the website. It was during this meeting that we outright stated we have no confidence in our relationship with Direct Buy and requested a refund. Sarah ** stated that this would not be possible.

We have yet to make a single purchase using our membership and have no intention. We have disputed the charge on our credit card with Bank of America. Through the help of Bank of America, Visa and the BBB, we hope to receive a refund of our membership fees. We also hope that through raising this concern through Consumer Affairs, that Direct Buy adjusts their sales practices to more accurately describe their offering and avoid this situation with other potential customers.

I made several more attempts to contact you to schedule an appointment with no success. When I called again to ask for the sales associate who was supposed to handle my project, I was told that no one with that name or number worked there. At this point, I was at the height of frustration. I have been paying Direct Buy and have gotten absolutely no service from you. It seemed like once they heard I was from the South Bronx that they weren’t interested in coming to my home. I have gotten no service for the money that I have paid out.

After this experience we were very displeased with DirectBuy's false claim of esteemed buying power. I vaguely remember a law protecting consumers from false claims such as this; businesses that sell services with false representation - consumers disillusioned by the claims of businesses. I would like to be advised of any laws that would allow us to receive at a very minimum, a portion of our membership fees back.

We are in the middle of adding a second story to our house. We saw an advertisement of DirectBuy on TV and decided to visit their showroom to check it out. My wife and I were anxious to find out what products they carry, and how they might look in our empty home. We have five bedrooms to fill, one empty kitchen with no cabinets, no appliances. In all likelihood, we remodel only once in our life, and we don't really mind spending a little more on furniture and appliances.

We filled out an online form to get a free pass to visit DirectBuy. A lady called and told us that we cannot bring our minor child along. So we arranged to send him to a babysitter. My wife and I arrived at the showroom and were greeted by a host and the store manager. Then we were shown to a desk by the host for a short interview and to wait for the start of the infomercial presentation. While our host interviewed us, both my wife and I noticed the hardwood floor display behind him and imagined how it could fit with the design of our living room.

The infomercial was long and boring, and we found out how much the membership would cost. I was almost ready to pay that, if we find the right merchandise in the showroom. After the infomercial, we were walked to the showroom for more presentation on how low prices were at Direct Buy. Surrounded by interesting furniture displays, my wife started walking around to examine them. She did that also to escape the never-ending presentations. She was bluntly told by the store manager that she is not allowed to walk around and that she has to listen to the presentation. We were offended by his action. We are not used to being told what to do and what not to do within what we considered our right. Most consumers would agree that walking around a showroom to examine merchandise is not an unacceptable behavior.

After the presentation at the showroom, we were told to fill out a survey. I began to feel that we were being herded around like animals. So I told the host and the store manager that we are not going to do that. The manager asked us to leave. We asked if we can visit the showroom to see the merchandise. He said we cannot because there is confidential pricing information there. I told him that I am only interested in looking at the merchandise and will not look up the pricing information in the catalogs which are kept in a separate library. He said no and quickly showed us out of the store.

While at the parking lot, I had a second thought. We spent money and time to arrange for a babysitter, drove the distances to get to the store, and set aside time from our busy schedule. Why should we leave without fulfilling the objective of seeing the showroom? I have a free visitors pass to DirectBuy's showroom. I can challenge the store manager. I asked my wife if she wants to go back to see the showroom. She declined. So I went back in by myself and asked to see the showroom as part of the activities promised by DirectBuy's advertisement. He was visibly annoyed by my challenge to his authority as the store manager (I later found that he is also the owner of the store). He called his security team to throw me out.

Two heavy fellows and their security manager came. The heavy fellows grabbed my arms and started removing me from the store. Sensing that the manager's order was inappropriate, the security manager disobeyed him and stopped the forced eviction. He started reasoning with me. I gave my reason and he appeared to understand it. Then he said that any store has a right to throw any customer out. He seems to be a more reasonable person than the store manager, who appears to be more concerned about exerting his absolute power like a dictator. I also sense that he is so concerned about his big ego that he is willing to drag down the corporate image of DirectBuy with it.

I told the security manager that he has to call the police to throw me out. I ignored all their orders and walked around the showroom. But needless to say, by that point, I was in no mood to examine any merchandise. I did that just to make a point that a customer has the right to walk around a showroom. I don't know if he called the police or not. I am not a lawyer. I don't know what the limit of my right is within their store, and I don't really want to go to court to find that out. So I left after I proved my point.

Most stores treat customers with respect and trust. We can walk around freely in the showroom of almost any store because the store trusts that we would not do anything inappropriate. All DirectBuy needs to do is to inform visitors that it is not appropriate to look at the confidential pricing information during the visit, and almost all of us would have complied. For the few who do not, a case can be made to kick them out. At DirectBuy, my wife and I were treated like thieves even before we have done anything they considered inappropriate. The so-called confidential pricing information (?) is just a poor excuse for a brute business practice. I frankly do not see what benefit DirectBuy could derive out of such a practice. That is why I am dumbfounded by DirectBuy's insistence that they had acted properly when I complained about this instance to the corporate headquarters.

We do not know who is responsible for this matter, but were are not happy with services, we have not use any benefits and we want to cancel the account. We signed a contract on 4/30/08. We knew we had three days to cancel, but we did not received our account confirmation until May 2, 2008 at 3:57pm. Therefore, we did not have enough time to really see what direct buy was all about.

During the open house, we were told that we were going to save money by shopping direct, but when we actually had the opportunity to check the prices and compare we were not going to be able to save any money because their prices were higher than what it was outside on the stores. Then the delivery process was long - it would take up to 16 weeks for merchandise to be delivered to their warehouse and then we have to arrange to pick it up from there. So we would have to pay two delivery charges. Thank you for your help.

The charge for this was $6,000 of which I paid $2,500.00 and never got anything thru them. I am retired and it is a personal hardship and they will not release me from the contract.

I was shocked when I saw the membership price for the first 2 years and asked if I could think about it. The escort/salesman said no I had to make a decision now. I explained that I did not see this written anywhere and that if I had to decide now, then my answer is No. The escort got agitated with me stating that that information was posted and I should have been aware of this before coming in.

THe entire experience left me extremely angry at the escort/ salesman's tactics, high pressure pitch, and his attitude in the end. They offer fresh baked cookies, coffee, and lots of smiles, while in the store. They really lay it on thick. I will not go back due to the rudeness of the salesman and their outright dishonesty in their commercials and sales pitches.