Now is your chance to find out what really goes inside the strange and shady world of the DS-MAX/Cydcor/Innovage multi-level-marketing sales cults. Luke St. Germaine, who last shared with us an excerpt from a book he’s working on about his experiences, has agreed to let Consumerist readers interview him. Put your questions in the comments or email them to ben@consumerist.com and let’s find out the straight scoop. For the backstory on what DS-MAX is all about, Eric Wolfram’s List of Known Scams gives a very comprehensive overview, and you can also check out these posts from our archive. [More]
innovage
I Escaped The DS-MAX Multi-Level-Marketing Sales Cult
By 12.8.09
Luke St. Germaine worked his way up the ladder of Cydcor, a spinoff of the notorious multi-level-marketing outfit DS-MAX, d/b/a Innovage aka Granton Marketing, from sales grunt to running his own office, until he saw the true face of the sales cult and got out the game. Exclusive to Consumerist, this is an excerpt from a novel he wrote about his experience. [More]
4 Typical DS-MAX MLM Scam Job Ads Found On Monster, HotJobs, CareerBuilder And Jobster
By 6.19.07
Using the names of companies accused of being DS-Max (now known as Innovage) subsidiaries/affiliates on Ripoffreport and a list on DS-Max The Aftermath, I did a search of Monster, Hot Jobs, and other job sites to pick out real ads that are out there and should be avoided.
How To Spot A DS-MAX Style MLM Scam Job Ad
By 6.18.07
Here are some of the qualities of a “business” operating under DS-MAX (now known as Innovage, though the same company owns both trademarks...) principles, an organization responsible for many complaints alleging scams, fraud, and general employee deprivation in a “sales-cult” atmosphere. [More]
CPSC Recalls DS-MAX-Made Toy Trucks For Choking Hazard
By 6.18.07
Neither CPSC nor DS-MAX U.S.A. Inc. is aware of any injuries with the toy trucks.
Man Escapes Working For DS-MAX-esque Charity Scam, Lives To Blogs His Tale
By 6.12.07
A reader who used to work for Quantum Marketing, one of the “Aftermax” companies, (the term for companies that old DS-MAX (now known as Innovage) spawned), wrote several posts describing how his company scammed people who thought they were donating money to D.A.R.E.
DS-MAX Tries To Shut Down Our IDT-Energy Investigation
By 6.12.07
UPDATE: Nu-Life Owns The Trademarks For Innovage AND DS-MAX
While reporting the results of our undercover investigation into IDT-Energy through one of their marketing outfits, a battle waged in the background between us and the current owners of the DS-MAX trademark.
Why Most People In Multi-Level-Marketing Schemes Lose Money
By 6.4.07
This chart shows how a typical Multi-Level-Marketing (MLM) operation sustains itself by ripping off the entry-level salespeople. Most of each of sales commission flows upwards, or to the “uplinks.” Additionally, there may be entry costs, like Cutco reps who have to buy their $150 demo kit.
