Buyer beware of arrogant furniture company, Serena & Lily!
arltolex
2 years ago
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kayozzy
2 years agoUser
2 years agoRelated Discussions
anyone used direct buy?
Comments (43)From the Connecticut Post, May 18,2011: A Connecticut federal judge has rejected as "meager" the proposed settlement of a nationwide, class-action lawsuit against DirectBuy Inc. for fraudulent pricing practices. "The court cannot conclude that this settlement falls within the range of reasonableness," U.S. District Judge Janet C. Hall said yesterday in a written opinion. Judge Hall explained her decision by noting that the proposed settlement called for DirectBuy to provide free memberships worth some $3,000 each to approximately 800,000 class members. "The best possible recovery...may amount to well over $2 billion," Judge Hall wrote. "In light of this best possible recovery, the Settlement Agreement -- which the court has calculated as being worth, at most, between $15 million and $27 million -- appears quite small." In late April, the attorneys general of 27 states, as well as those from the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, objected to the proposed settlement, arguing in a 36-page amicus curiae brief that it "offers no real benefits to consumers. "The proposed settlement is, in essence, a sales vehicle for defendants designed to drive current and former customers into membership renewal contracts and to the same manufacturers and suppliers from whom defendants have acknowledged receiving kickbacks and incentives," the brief stated. DirectBuy promotes itself as an insider's buyers' club where members can purchase brand-name goods directly from manufacturers at wholesale prices. In addition to annual fees, members pay anywhere from $3,000 to $7,000 to join the privately held company's "clubs." The 2009 lawsuit (Wilson et al v. DirectBuy, Inc., et al) accused the Indiana-based company of fraudulent misrepresentation, alleging it received tens of millions of dollars in kickbacks and incentives from suppliers and manufacturers, inflating the cost of its goods well above the advertised wholesale prices. The lawsuit accused DirectBuy of failing to disclose this arrangement to customers until early 2009. DirectBuy spokesman Mike Georgeff told Consumer Ally in April the company was confident Judge Hall would approve the settlement. While yesterday's decision was disappointing, he said it wasn't completely unexpected. "We were disappointed to learn of Judge Hall's decision, but not entirely surprised given the great deal of publicity that has surrounded this case," Georgeff told Consumer Ally. "We were hopeful for a quick resolution to this matter which would have ultimately benefited class members. While we disagree with the decision, we look forward to successful closure of the matters at hand, and will continue to work with the attorneys general of any state to ensure we remain compliant with all state consumer protection laws," he added. The consumer advocacy group Public Citizen, which represented a class member who objected to the terms of the proposed settlement, applauded Judge Hall's decision. Had the proposed settlement stood, the group said a statement, more than 836,000 class members would have been forced to relinquished "a broad set of claims" against the company in exchange for extended DirectBuy memberships. "We are pleased that the judge agreed with our argument that the proposed settlement was essentially a coupon of little or no value to the class," Michael Kirkpatrick, the Public Citizen attorney representing one of the objecting class members, said in a statement. "Absent class members should not have valuable claims released in exchange for so little." Public Citizen also cited other class-action suits against the company, which alleged a number of abuses, including high-pressure sales tactics to pressure consumers into spending thousands of dollars on DirectBuy memberships, as well as prices that often result in little or no savings compared to traditional or online retailers. "Within the last several years, a number of lawsuits have been filed in addition to this one, accusing DirectBuy of misrepresentation, fraud, and coercion, " Judge Hall noted in her decision. Consumer Ally wrote about several of the lawsuits in an October 2010 feature on the company....See More1/2 gal. ice cream..........NOT
Comments (42)"kframe - By my calculations you need about 2.25 cups of HC to make 1.5 quarts of ice cream." Yes, it's generally more expensive to make your own ice cream. But have I said, anywhere, that the overall cost is what I object to? No. And besides, NO ONE makes my signature flavor of ice cream... cinnamon nutmeg. "To reiterate the point that I cannot seem to get through:... ice cream is a luxury." So what? The status of an item in a family's grocery order is NOT the issue. The issue is how the company is conducting its purchasing interaction with the consumer -- above board, or underhanded and sneaky. I know you've been tossing out the fact that ice cream is a "luxury" item. I've not addressed it because it's not germane for the reason I've stated above. The milk comparison is even less valid as I'll got months without purchasing milk. To me, milk isn't even a necessity, but again, its importance on my overall shopping list isn't the issue....See MoreWhich hopelessly trendy kitchen chair?
Comments (80)Oh, mtn I agree completely--- that's almost exactly what I said to our ID when he sent me to the tk collections site for kitchen chairs. Luckily my mother came up with 4 French ladderbacks and I filled in with parsons chairs at the ends. But I spent a good deal of time playing with the weaves and colors--- this was about four or five years ago at the very beginning of the trend. We ended up putting four bistro type chairs on our screened porch that are all weather aluminum but look remarkably like rattan, which I got as a close out from a furniture supply company for practically the cost of the shipping! And the ability to take a hosing and not lose your stomach for continued renovation seems to be a required trait in a homeowner :-)...See MoreOur finished home
Comments (97)@Jo Jo Awe, thank you! The playroom wallpaper map came from Swift Maps. Here is the info: https://www.swiftmaps.com Swiftmaps and Graphics Items 1 76x110 World Classic Wall Mural (Wallpaper) @ $103.96 = $103.96 Sub-Total: $103.96 The USA map is actually an Urban Outfitters tapestry. It was on clearance for $20 a few years ago. I bought it not knowing where it would go at the time. My son LOVES it. I don't have a ton of time so I have the new build on IG. My username is natalienoelle4 (but it also has my crazy, fun life mixed in, too). :-) It's normally set to private but I'll open it for a day or so if you want to have a look. We're still in the drywall stage so not too much excitement at the moment. And I'm in France this week. ❤️...See Moredecoenthusiaste
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