The Dangers of MLMs & Why We Aren’t One

Brandon Love
The Dangers of MLMs & Why We Aren’t One

Picture it: little preteen Brandon on the kitchen floor playing Neopets (I was not the cool kid in school) as a dozen women I’ve NEVER met pile into our home.

Mom has prepared appetizers, a roast, and fancy drinks. We’re a Bud Light family, so this is weird. The living room is spotless, with two presentation tables covered in tablecloths.

Red flag: Dad lost his job about a month earlier. School was coming up, the golden boy needed clothes (hi, it me), and we needed groceries.

My parents were open with me about money. Not having much of it didn’t mean I couldn’t learn how bills worked. So even little Brandon had questions about all this food we couldn’t afford.

Oh, sweet pea. Mom’s new investment. Insert confetti cannons here.

The tables were scattered with wax melts, bars, warmers, and signs from her… “kit.” It looked suspiciously like the party a “friend” I’d never met had hosted at our house a month earlier. Déjà vu.

There was munching, momming, sniffing, and snacking. Some people placed orders. I sat with Grandma, who can’t smell, describing the fragrances to her. I specifically remember saying “clown feet.”

I clearly never changed.

This little fragrance company took over Mom’s life, then spread through our aunts, cousins, neighbors, and family friends. And almost as quickly as it arrived, the excitement sputtered out.

Did Mom get a cruise? A fat check? A new life of scented splendor?

No. She lost slightly over $1,100 selling MLM fragrance products. Dad also had to take out a loan on the house that year. We were already struggling, and this did not become the rescue we’d hoped for.

That’s why this subject is personal. My mom wasn’t foolish for wanting to help her family. She deserved an opportunity that was honest about what it could cost her.

So, what even is an MLM?

Multi-level marketing combines direct product sales with a network of recruited sellers. Participants may earn from their own sales and from purchases or sales within their “downline”: the people they recruit and the people recruited beneath them. The FTC explains how MLMs work.

My question is simple: can the opportunity make sense for someone who wants to sell products without building an organization underneath them?

Wait, are they pyramid schemes?

If you haven’t imagined my eyes rolling out of my head, now is the time. Picture Harry Potter with red glasses and cotton-candy hair. Got it? Good.

But let’s get the distinction right: an MLM is not automatically an illegal pyramid scheme, and pyramid schemes can sell actual products. A nice-smelling wax bar is not a legal force field. What matters is how the business operates and what its compensation structure rewards. FTC guidance on pyramid schemes.

I care about the pressure to recruit, buy more, and keep qualifying—and whether ordinary participants are actually making money.

The boring numbers matter more than the cruise photos

In a 2024 review of 70 MLM income disclosure statements, FTC staff found that many participants received no payments and the vast majority received $1,000 or less per year. Most disclosures also failed to account for expenses and left some low- or no-earning participants out of displayed earnings calculations. Read the FTC’s findings.

Those findings describe the disclosures reviewed, not an identical result at every MLM. They also do not mean everyone ended up in debt. The documented numbers are concerning enough without stretching them.

A commission check is not the same as profit. Spend $500 earning $300 and you’re $200 behind, however cute the announcement graphic is.

Wanting flexibility is not a character flaw

A parent juggling childcare, a military spouse moving again, or someone trying to keep groceries in the house might find a promise of flexible income very appealing. Of course they might.

My problem is not with the person who wants a way forward. It’s with a pitch that makes financial freedom sound easy while the costs and conditions get the fine-print treatment.

The joining fee is only the beginning of the questions. What else will you spend? What happens if you don’t buy more? Can you stop without pressure from someone whose income depends on your participation?

My mother needed support and useful information. She did not need her financial stress turned into a test of how hard she believed in the opportunity.

Our promise

Bewilderment will not become a multi-level marketing company. Period.

People have asked about consulting, hosting Bewilderment parties, and generally Boss Babing themselves into the Bewilder-world. I understand the appeal. Recommending something you love can be fun.

But a party, an affiliate link, or a commission does not by itself make something an MLM. The structure matters. Our ambassador program is built around your referred customers, without downlines or payouts for recruiting other ambassadors.

And a commission percentage alone cannot tell you whether the work is worthwhile. You need to know what you’ll actually receive, what you’ll spend, and how much time it takes. That standard applies to us, too.

Before I rented my first apartment, I read the bad reviews so I knew what I might be signing up for. Apply that energy here. Read the terms, ask uncomfortable questions, and talk to people who left.

It’s not betraying the babes. It’s due diligence.

Running a business can be exhausting. I’ve had difficult months as a business owner, too. If you’re buying into a dream, understand the possible nightmares: the costs, the slow sales, and the time you won’t get back.

Already run a shop? You can also ask us about wholesale. Buying products for a retail business is a separate conversation from recruiting a downline.

You can love a product without selling it. You can try selling, decide it isn’t worthwhile, and stop. Neither choice is a personal failure.

Stay thoughtful about where your money goes. You are loved, whatever you choose. Just use that brain Mama gave ya.

Mwah,

Brandon Love
Owner, Founder & Sassypants
Bewilderment, the non-MLM fragrance company

P.S. Someone on Reddit pitched “The Anti-MLM Candle Co.” We’ll take it, hun.

Further reading

The FTC links above support the updated explanations. These are additional articles, videos, and resources from the original post; they reflect their authors’ views and publication dates.