I am a college graduate who responded to one of the public relations/non-profit/fundraising ads that Nova Marketing in Woburn, MA placed on Career Builder. Like Executive Advertising, Nova also claims to work primarily for DARE America, Toys for Tots and other local charities.
After my first interview, Kate Malone (now owner of another DS-Max sweatshop named Nova Marketing) invited me back for a day of observation in which "You will learn the ins and outs of our company and why we're growing so fast."
I accompanied a "top training manager" and a "trainee" to an outdoor event (keep in mind that this was July in Boston, where it was almost 100 outside) where they asked for information about my work history and what I would like to do in the future.
Learning that I had worked for several public activism organizations during college, he emphasized the public service that the company supposedly did by holding events at "major retail locations." In addition, he told me that the company also "helped out" missing and sick children's organizations. He claimed that they weren't salespeople, but that they had the "gifts" on the table for people to pick up if they wanted to help out the cause.
The saddest part is that I bought this garbage hook, line, and sinker. But of course this is what these manipulative people at Nova are trained daily how to do. They are in the buisness of deception and in that they excel!
After they brought me back and "granted" me a third interview, I was taken on as a new member. The owner, Kate Malone, artfully dodged all of my questions about salary, but I was told vaguely that "you've been a waitress before, right? It's kind of like that" and benefits ("Naturally, like all major Fortune 500 corporations, there is a probationary period). Everyone in the office/cult seemed so nice and excited that I got excited at the same time without thinking of the consequences.
After joining the office, though, I began working fourteen hour days, seven days a week and still couldn't make my rent at the end of two months. It's not that I'm a poor salesperson, either, but simply that at first I could not morally tell people that the money they thought they were donating was actually "going to help out local community safety programs" when I knew that the only safety program it was helping out was my pocketbook and Kate Malone.
I am not a DARE expert, and I don't personally help find missing children, but part of gaining success in this particular distribution subsidiary of DS-Max is in being able to make people believe that you are helping the community when you are only helping yourself.
As far as I'm concerned, this makes this division even lower than C*, Gr*, and In* (ROR REDACTED FOR SECURITY PURPOSES) because we actually prey on people's emotions about serious issues like the safety of their children in order to make a profit. (Worse yet, we're actually trained how to do it in morning meetings)
Also, the funds that go to help DARE is only 20% of the suggested retail price of only certain items and owners use this "donation" as a tax write-off, yet they still have the nerve to list their ads under "non-profit" and "fundraising."
After I became a leader, I transformed from a caring, socially-conscious individual to someone that I did not even recognize. I started learning the office tricks: using vague and misleading classified ads in order to sucker the young workforce, false contact names in the ads so you can know exactly how to pitch the opportunity when a caller uses that contact name, and indoctrinating an individual using cultish tactics to the point that they no longer have the ability to think independent of the office cult.
I was supposed to be a great example of the system for my "retrains, " but a large number of sales that I made were either to men who wanted my phone number or to wonderful people who just wanted to help out a good cause. Trust me, these people who stand outside or inside of malls, grocery stores, and other retail locations with suits and smiles, claiming to be all about helping kids are not a good cause to help out.
I have watched individuals break complete contact with family and friends who ask that they leave the program. I have seen distributors take and pocket what they knew to be donations from consumers. I have witnessed intense and unchecked sexual harrassment towards female "employees" from members of the highest levels of this "business." Most importantly, though, I personally have destroyed countless numbers of lives in the same way that mine was destroyed by this 'opportunity.'
Thankfully, I saw the light before I racked up credit card debt and I left Nova Marketing (the day after I was singled out as one of the top leaders in the office, for those of you who would say that I just couldn't cut it).
Naturally, after I did leave, all of my "friends" stopped calling me and were discouraged from speaking to me because a "neg-bomb" like me (i.E. Someone who has seen the truth and won't stand for it) can destroy an office.
I've salvaged my life, though, as so many more of you can when you are ready to leave DS-Max. I am currently teaching high school. I must admit that I am incredibly happy being one of the "9-5 drones" that I used to mock while with Nova.
It is as a public school teacher that I am writing this now. DS-Max's Quantum division (the "non-profit" division) is allowed to use the D.A.R.E. Name in order to hock their crap outside of malls around America. As a teacher, I take the work that D.A.R.E. Does very seriously and I resent that their good name is being used to fleece consumers and turn a profit.
When you walk outside of any store and a young person with a suit and a table tells you "Hey, check out what we're doing for child safety today. We're just out here on behalf of D.A.R.E. Or the CPEA..." either run the other way or tell the store manager that you do not approve of the store allowing multi-level marketers to harrass customers in the false name of fundraising or community safety.
If you want to give money to D.A.R.E. Or the CPEA (and you actually want all of your money to go to them), visit their website and give a direct donation. Don't support these organizations that are preying on naive kids who don't know enough about the world to realize that this is a scam.
If you interview with this office, or any other DS-Max distribution subidiary, realize that they are not offering marketing/public relations/non-profit jobs. Offices like this are the scummiest of all DS-Max MLM scams. What makes these people worse is that they can't even come out and simply sell their discount garbage outside of any mall in America.instead, they have to use non-profit ploys in order to convince people to buy their trash and join their team.
Be Aware of these cults,
Upset in New England
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