Comment Number: 522418-09585
Received: 7/14/2006 7:16:01 PM
Organization: LIA SOPHIA JEWELRY
Commenter: DONITA DAHM
State: MN
Subject: Business Opportunity Rule
Title: Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
CFR Citation: 16 CFR Part 437
No Attachments

Comments:

I am writing as I am concerned about the proposed Business Opportunity Rule R511993. I believe in its present form it could prevent me from continuing as a lia sophia Zone Manager. I understand that part of the FTC's responsibilities is to protect the public from "unfair and deceptive acts or practices", yes some of the sections in the proposed rule will make it very difficult, if not impossible, for me to sell lia sophia products. The 7 day waiting period to enroll new advisors for lia sophia would probably make some people decide not to join our TEAM. First of all, we have hostesses that decide the nite of their show that they want to join our team, for various reasons. If we had to wait 7 days, we couldn't order her kit which is only $99, we couldn't send in her jewelry orders from her show until the 7+ days were done. This will delay her ability to begin making an income, and also could cause problems as we may go into a different "sale" or "new catalog" at month end or year end. This would be quite a burden for the prospect, for the recruiter and for the lia sophia company. This waiting period gives the impression there is something wrong with the company or the compensation plan. This would likely cause a potential recruit to lose their enthusiasm for joining lia sophia. I think the 7 day wait is unnecessary as lia sophia already has a 90% buy back policy for all products including sales kits purchased by a salesperson within the last 12 months. This would be a very cumbersome process to monitor also. The proposed rule also calls for the release of any information regarding lawsuits involving misrepresentation or unfair or deceptive practices. Today, anyone or any company can be sued for almost anything, and doesn't matter if the company was found innocent. This isn't fair. Finally, the proposed rule requires the disclosure of a minimum of 10 prior purchasers nearest to the prospective purchaser. I am glad to provide references, when asked, but in this day of identity theft, I am very uncomfortable giving out the personal information of individuals without their approval to strangers. This is confidential info. Also, giving away this information could damage the business relationship of the references who may be involved in other companies of businesses including those of competitors. In order to get the list of the 10 prior purchasers, I will need to send the address of the prospective purchaser to lia sophia and then wait for the list. I also think the following sentence required by the proposed rule will prevent many people from wanting to sign up as a salesperson - "If you buy a business opportunity from the seller, your contact info can be disclosed in the future to other buyers." People are very concerned about their privacy and identity theft. They are reluctant to share. It would also be a negative for lia sophia or any direct sales company to produce the number of people who have cancelled within 2 years, as many join our team and don't pursue it. I would also not want to share my business earnings to prospects, who I may not have join my team in the end. I know that I may not have joined lia sophia had this rule been in effect 14 years ago. I am a Zone manager with over 825 advisors, and 65 managers. My life has been changed by this as well as many others that I have brought into the company. It would be a shame if they lives can't be enhanced by joining our company to earn extra income, etc. I appreciate the work the FTC does to protect consumers, yet I believe this proposed new rule has many unintended consequences and there are less burdensome alternatives available to achieve your goals. Thank you for your time in considering my comments.