| Comment Number: | 522418-05977 |
| Received: | 7/4/2006 6:14:56 PM |
| Organization: | Quixtar |
| Commenter: | Edwin Charnock |
| State: | TX |
| Subject: | Business Opportunity Rule |
| Title: | Notice of Proposed Rulemaking |
| CFR Citation: | 16 CFR Part 437 |
| No Attachments |
Comments:
Dear Sirs, I am writing in regards to the FTC’s proposed “Trade Regulation Rule on Business Opportunities” and would like to comment based on my experience as a Quixtar Independent Business Owner (IBO). I have been an IBO since 1999 when the company was first formed. I grew up in the bakery business and as an adult have developed other businesses as well. The Quixtar business plan allows me to develop a secondary business in my spare time and teach others to develop their own businesses as well. The principles I learned there have make me quite wealthy in my other conventional businesses. When I registered with Quixtar I was shown the basics of how the business is structured, a form detailing average incomes, and felt I had adequate information for making a decision. My sponsors made it clear to me, and I make it clear to those with whom I discuss this business model, that as with any legitimate business a significant amount of work is involved and it may be a year before they make any significant amount of money. I do this to discourage those looking for a “get rich quick scheme”. I also make it very clear to them exactly what they will be expected to do to be successful and what the cost of registration will be. The cost is between $45 and $200 depending on whether they choose to buy some products to try. There is a 100% money back guarantee on the products and IBO’s do not buy or hold inventory. I don’t see the advantage of a 7 day waiting period before registering. There is a minimal capital investment so the decision is not nearly as important as buying a car, and there is no 7 day waiting period for buying a car. If the investment was over $ 1000 a waiting period might be reasonable. The waiting period would cripple our ability to help people build a profitable business quickly. If the first person on the team had to wait 7 days, as did the next and the next, what now takes a few weeks would take months and limit peoples ability to become profitable. The most onerous portion of the proposed rule is the requirement to provide references. Finding multiple local IBOs may be impossible in a new area and few of us want our personal information handed out to anyone, especially in the age of identity theft. I encourage our potential team members to meet those who are on the team already and we make numerous venues available for that. I want them to know the quality of people the will be working with, and if they don’t like them I suggest that they consider not joining the team. I applaud the intent of the new rules. I would love to see an end to the fraudulent “work-at-home and get rich quick” schemes that damage the image of legitimate businesses. Modifications that would target those fraudulent schemes with a high up front cost would be welcome. Quixtar has done an excellent job of ensuring that potential IBOs have adequate and understandable information prior to registering. Edwin H Charnock