A new multi-level marketing (MLM) company is in town and you may have been hearing a little about it. And now you may be wondering, “Is Pomifera a pyramid scheme? Is it a scam? Is it worth it to join?”
I’m going to take you through this company, show you who started it and give you all the details about it.
Then you can decide for yourself whether or not you want to join.
Let’s just get right into it, shall we?
What is Pomifera?
Pomifera is a brand new (at the time of this writing) skincare MLM that just opened its doors on February 1, 2020. Pomifera was started by Co-Founder and Chief Scientific Officer Todd Johnson and Co-Founder and Chief Visionary Officer, Lindsay Colombe.
According to Pomifera’s About page, Todd discovered Pomifera Oil, which is an oil that’s extracted from an Osage orange. If you don’t have Osage oranges where you live, they look like small, green zombie brains. They usually fall off trees in the fall and make a mess on the roads.
But squirrels and deer like to eat from them. And apparently, they’re good for our skin?
“Todd Johnson turned what was once simply folklore surrounding a curious green “trash fruit” and unveiled its incredible scientific truths.” Source.
The Pomifera Products
It looks like you can order products directly from the Pomifera website without needing to contact a distributor. The product categories available are:
- Hair
- Body
- Face
Hair contains just one product which is a hair oil. It’s $25.
Body contains products like bath bombs, lotions, and body oils as well as packages combining these together.
Here are some of the prices of these products:
- Body lotion (8oz) = $24
- Body lather (8oz) = $24
- Botanical bath bomb = $9
- Body Mist = $18
- Collections range from $56 – $83
Face has just a few products. They are:
- Facial cleanser = $25
- Purifying Pre-Cleanser = $18
- Anti-Aging Serum = $47
- Two-step collection (includes 2 products) = $68.50
- Three-step collection (includes 3 products) = $81
If we look at the image I posted above, I see an issue. And it’s something that I’ve seen in other new MLMs. In fact, it’s one of LimeLife by Alcone’s biggest problems.
But we’ll get back to that a little later.
Who is Lindsay Colombe?
Let’s talk about Lindsay Colombe for a minute. She’s not someone who just showed up out of nowhere. She was a top-ranked leader in Limelife by Alcone. Before that, she was a Black Status Presenter in Younique. She made a video about why she left Younique for Limelife.
https://youtu.be/B1tX5-E_pyA
An interesting note in the video…she says that she was a top leader at Younique and everyone assumes you’re just rolling in the money at that point. She said it wasn’t the case. Not even the top leaders can make a decent income in these MLMs. What do you think happens with the people at the bottom?
Younique was bad, but it seems LimeLife wasn’t any better. Lindsay jumped ship there too, then started her own MLM, Pomifera. Which is where we are now.
I have read some harsh things about Lindsay, her leadership style and the way that she exited LimeLife. But, to be fair, not everyone is going to have good things to say about people at the top of any company.
Let’s get back to Pomifera.
How Much Does it Cost to Join Pomifera?
At the time of this writing, there’s one Starter Kit option, and it’s $99.
What I found interesting is that in the banner above, it says:
“Select the rank and product you wish to enroll with.”
It sounds like there will eventually be more options to choose from other than just this one starter pack. That’s not what I find interesting though.
It’s the words “Select the rank” that’s interesting. Will you be able to buy into a certain rank at some point? We saw this with Valentus. You can buy bigger business packages that give you a higher rank in the company. We’ll have to come back to this at a later time to see exactly what that means.
As far as other fees go, like monthly website fees, or yearly fees, Lindsay says in this Facebook Live, “you shouldn’t have to pay a company to promote their products.” I mean, you do have to pay for the Starter Kit, but it’s good to know there aren’t additional fees on top of that.
Keep in mind that there are almost always additional expenses.
You may have to invest in things like:
- Travel
- Additional products to try out for yourself, or to have on hand for customers
- Company conventions
- Business cards and other marketing materials
These are all optional, but I see a lot of money being spent in these areas by distributors.
Pomifera Compensation Plan
Here is Lindsay to explain the Pomifera compensation plan:
I’m not going to get into too many details here because I would never recommend you join an MLM. I don’t care how new and amazing it is. They’re all terrible, in my opinion. It’s a bad business model for about 99% of the people who join.
Therefore, there’s no reason to learn these complicated plans. But, I do want to mention a couple of things from the video.
The Ranks
There are 13 ranks in Pomifera, and they are:
- Partner (not technically a rank. This is where everyone starts.)
- I
- II
- III
- IV
- V
- VI
- VII
- VIII
- IX
- X
- XI
- XII
Yes, each rank is a Roman Numeral. I suppose that’s better than being a “Diamond” or a “Purple”. Maybe? I’m just not sure how you would tell people your status. “I’m a Roman Numeral 12 leader in Pomifera.” It just doesn’t roll off the tongue.
Each rank has its own PV (personal volume) amount, but you’re only allowed to purchase $100 of that yourself in order to deter inventory loading. In other words, you’re not allowed to buy your rank or your qualification.
I think this is a good thing, but I also know there are ways around that. For instance, I have heard of distributors ordering products under a friend or family member’s name and address. This happens in MLMs because if you don’t have enough sales in a month, you lose your qualifications and you don’t get paid on everything.
Pomifera Income Disclosure
I hope to see a Pomifera income disclosure next year, but of course, there isn’t one now because the company just opened up. The thing is, we don’t even need an income disclosure. Because we already know that over 99% of people lose money in an MLM. (Source.)
Lindsay can say that her company and her compensation plan is different. Every MLM says that. Every single one says they are different and they have the best comp plan. But it turns out, they’re basically all the same.
No one makes money in an MLM (unless you’re the owner of the company or a top leader), no matter how good the comp plan is.
Pomifera Complaints & Positive Reviews
It’s too early for Pomifera complaints. It’s even a bit too early for positive reviews. Even though I’m sure you’ll find some out there from people trying to rope you into this “ground floor opportunity.”
But really think about it when you see people talking about these products. The company is brand new. No one has really had time to test everything out. Just keep that in mind.
Since we don’t have any real reviews – positive or negative – let’s instead take a look at a couple of videos from people who jumped ship at LimeLife (following in Lindsay’s footsteps, I guess) to join Pomifera.
You can also take a look at this Vox article that explains why people make videos about their resignations in MLMs. (Hint: It’s because they’re trying to get people into their “newer and better” opportunity. In other words, it’s just another sales pitch.)
Case #1:
Jen explains why LimeLife was such a great opportunity and how much she loves them, but she still left.
She says, “If you’re in direct sales, you know how important it is to get in in the beginning.” I love when these MLM’ers say this. Why were you dragging people into the bottom of your last MLM then?
Case #2:
Lauren tells us why she “rolled her team up” (not sure what that means) at LimeLife and moved over to Pomifera.
Related Articles:
- Selling Essential Oils Online [MLM vs Affiliate Marketing]
- MLM vs Affiliate Marketing – Why Affiliate Marketing is 100x Better
- Why I Quit Young Living [Any Why I’m Now Anti-MLM]
Is Pomifera a Scam or a Pyramid Scheme?
I wouldn’t say that Pomifera is a scam, and it’s too early to tell if they will head to pyramid scheme territory. Lindsay says all the right things when it comes to focusing on retail sales. But I have to say, I’ve been looking at MLMs for a little while now. I’m skeptical.
I can’t think of one MLM company that stands out and is actually one I would recommend joining. That includes Pomifera. It’s new and shiny, sure. But that almost always comes with additional problems. We’ll talk about that in a second.
Pros
- New company, so you could “get in on the ground floor”
- Fairly inexpensive Starter Kit
Cons
- There have been some not-great-things said about Lindsay and the way that she leads a team
- Pomifera’s products are new and we don’t know if they produce results yet
- Everyone says their MLM is great and the products are great – until a new opportunity comes along and they jump ship, leaving their team behind
- It’s almost impossible to make money in an MLM
- The best way to make money in any MLM is through recruiting, but then that becomes right on the edge of being a pyramid scheme
- New MLMs, in particular, have additional problems that older ones have worked out
The Problem with New MLM Companies
When you have a new MLM, people get excited because they see dollar signs in their eyes. They are getting in early. However, from the research I’ve done on other companies, there are some additional issues that new MLMs have. These problems mostly occur in:
- Customer Service
- Products
Customer service issues seem to happen a lot with these new companies because they need to work all the kinks out. Meanwhile, you have mobs of upset customers ready to attack at any given moment!
Products can be another issue. This has been a problem for LimeLfe as customers wait and wait and wait on their orders. Who wants to wait 3 months for foundation when you can just go to the store and buy some? I really don’t get it.
But I digress…
I can already see that Pomifera is having one of these issues. In the image I posted above where I talk about the products, I can see that they already have a bunch of items out of stock.
If you go on Pomifera’s Body page, you can see that there are 5 items out of 12 total that are out of stock.
Distributors will try to turn this into a positive by saying the products are in such high demand that they can’t keep up with orders.
However, this is just going to create angry customers. The doors just opened on this company! Why aren’t they prepared with the appropriate amount of products?
An Alternative to Pomifera
If you love the idea of selling products and getting a commission for it and doing it on your own time, then let me suggest an alternative to you.
Affiliate marketing is where you promote other people’s products for a commission. For instance, you can create a website dedicated to body oils and lotions. Then you can join Amazon’s affiliate program and promote any products they have on their site.
If people click on the link in your articles and purchase via your Amazon affiliate link, you’ll make a commission. (You also get a commission on anything else they buy, even if it’s a new TV or computer.)
I’ve done both affiliate marketing and MLMs and affiliate marketing is 1000x better, in my opinion.
You don’t need to:
- Buy a starter kit
- Build a downline
- Train new people
- Recruit
- Buy products
- Cold-message people
- Warm-message people (your friends and family never have to know what you’re doing)
You can also choose to promote anything you want. You’re not stuck with one company or one type of product. Almost every major company has an affiliate program.
If you’d like to learn more about it, you can check out my free guide to affiliate marketing here.
Conclusion
Is Pomifera a pyramid scheme? No, it’s technically not. However, if recruiting becomes more important than selling the product retail (which is almost always true for MLMs), then things get a little fuzzier.
Even if they do manage to sell most of the products retail, you’ll have to see if the majority of those sales are coming within Pomifera. In other words, are the distributors that are signing on creating all the retail sales? This is generally what happens in an MLM, and it creates a closed-market system.
Even if the FTC doesn’t agree, this still puts them in pyramid scheme territory, in my opinion. Time will only tell with Pomifera.
Other related content:
- Best Programs to Make Money Online
- Learn How to Make a Site That Pays You Over and Over Again
- How To: Affiliate Marketing for Beginners (FREE Guide)
- Ultimate Wealthy Affiliate Review
I think you should have researched more before writing this article. On enrollment day 2,500 people enrolled. The post office was too small to ship thousands of kits. They rented a uhaul to bring the packages to a bigger Post Office so there wasn’t a long wait for shipping. The reason you see all of the out of stock products is because on public launch day they sold $1,000 a minute. In 26 days in Feb. the retail sales were almost a half million. The company sold $1.5 million as of last Monday. Pomifera is broke all the records for a start up company. I’m sure if you had done research you would have found out all this information.
That’s great until you have people who want to purchase from you and they can’t because everything is out of stock. They will get frustrated very quickly. I have seen many complaints about this sort of thing from other MLMs.
Also, the reason that Pomifera is breaking records, as you say, is because a lot of distributors jumped ship from Limelife by Alcone, and they’re buying up all the products.
But I wish you luck. I hope you succeed.
Have you ever entertained that the products are awesome, affordable, Sustainable. and produce results? Have you tried them? Please by all means, go to my website, order, and then follow up with your own investigation to be complete and fair. Obviously you have spent time researching that it is direct sales. So, what is the real point of this article? Everyone knows that it is Sales as is any cosmetic or skin care line. The items ARE selling and if products are out of stock, they are back in stock within a couple of days, which you did not investigate or report on. The reason is, quantities are not overstocked to maintain nutrients and performance. They are fresh and do not set on warehouse shelves. They are grown on the tree (Osage Orange) , cold pressed, packaged, shipped all in house in Iowa. Obviously bottles are not and COVID 19 has delayed that part. I have been here since day one and have never seen anything out of stock for more than a couple days. Obviously new products sell out. I will be glad to give you a before after of myself after using the products.
$25 for a 4 oz bottle of facial cleanser is not exactly what I would call affordable. I’m not even knocking MLM products (except they’re almost always overpriced). I know a lot of the products are good. I enjoyed the Young Living oils when I was in that scheme.
It’s the MLM concept that I don’t like. (You call it direct sales, but Pomifera IS an MLM.) it’s a losing situation for most people. And I’m sure you know it. In fact, I know a lot of people hopped from LimeLife to Pomifera. Why wasn’t LimeLife good enough to stay in? Why do people end up leaving MLMs even though they have convinced people to give up money because they’re so good? Why is Pomifera any different?
In any case, you’re free to do whatever you like. I’m just giving people another side of things so they can make an informed choice. 99% of people lose money in an MLM. I want to make sure people know that before joining.
How did you come up with the number 99% lose money in MLM crap? Is this your opinion since you got burned? People lose money in MLM if the company fails at the product or management level. Rather than saying they lose money, you should say they don’t make money in MLM and that is almost always due to people not willing to do the hardwork that is required to be successful, just like any business. Stop blaming the industry, the problem is in the people. People who quit and people who complain, like you.
TQ
Wow, TQ, I’ve neeevvvveeer heard of any hunbot saying that it’s not the fault of the pyramid scheme, but rather the fault of the distributor because they didn’t work hard enough.
(Note…ALL hunbots say that.)
This is where I got the 99% stat, and I sourced it in my article. That’s straight from the FTCs website.
And yes, I also was a part of that 99% statistic, just as you likely will be. (There’s about a 99% chance of it…)
I’m not complaining at all. I tried an MLM. It didn’t work out. I understand now that MLMs are set up for failure and I’m trying to warn others of that fact.
I find your blog very limited and insulting to those of us who have worked successfully in Network marketing for most of our adult lives. I earned almost 2 million with my first company. I saw women on my team and others of all backgrounds grow and earn money, cars, jewelry, new friends and extended family and nevermind the travel that they would normally never get to do. When that company closed, it was like a death to me and thousands upon thousands of others.
Yes I agree there are bad apples in all business models. But don’t be ugly and negative about something obviously you know very little about. How sad for you and anyone who takes what you have written to heart and misses out on fabulous opportunities and new friends with Direct Selling companies. BTW what is your angle really? You must have some agenda.
Well, I understand that there are some people who do make it in network marketing, but at what cost? First of all, the ones who make it seem to never stop working. Ever. Secondly, the people who make it do so because the people below them are losing money. People at the top of an MLM make money off the backs of the people below them. That’s just how they’re set up, so don’t try to argue that they’re not. I know you know this. If you were doing so well it’s because you were good at pushing the people below you to buy more stuff.
And you also brought up something else. You said your previous company closed. MLMs are unreliable. They can close or be shut down at any time. (Which is why it’s not really your own business.)
I’m part of the anti-mlm reddit and somebody mentioned this company so I came to check out your article, but the comments from the hunbots cracked me up!
Keep up the good work!
Yes, they are quite funny sometimes! Thanks for stopping by!