While at the local county fair we approached a booth to obtain some Vacationing information from Premier Vacations a franchise of Global Vacation Network. Since we are going on our tenth year anniversary my wife and I are looking into vacationing options and this booth was a great place to get started. The sales agent expained to me that they are similar to a time share, but different and that I could get a Free cruise and a meal at their expense if I attended their presentation. I agreed to sit in their presentation, filled out the registration information, personal data and then they told me that in order to secure a spot they needed to hold $20.00 as a guarantee that I would attend the presentation. I reluctantly agreed and handed over my $20.00 bill. I was also promised a voucher for a meal a Red Lobster and a vacation package good for 18 months just for attending the presentation. The appointment was set for Monday, 04/06.
Monday rolls around we hired a babysitter for our kids, drove for 30 minutes to their office to hear their presentation. We arrived a little early, filled out their survey, sat for another 20 minutes while they waited for more people to show up. Next thing we know its 7:30 before and the presentation starts. (They started late not at 7 like they had promised but 30 minutes later.)
Dan, the rep for Global Vacation Network told us we would get everything we were promised at the end of his presentation. He told us how the program works and what we would get if we buy into the program. It sounded like a great product, and were actually thinking about buying into it. I politely asked Dan if the presentation would take much longer since I had to leave because the babysitter was only available for a certain time and afterall it was a school night.
Dan finished his presentation and then turned it over to the franchise owner. He started his own sales pitch told us how we would get a discount from the original price if we refered more people to join the program. It was at this point we got up and left not because we were not intrested, but because we had a legit concern for the babaysitter and our kids. Our sales rep was waiting for us in the back, we signed off on the paperwork where we declined the "today only special" and to be honest she was quite understanding of our situation, and was disapointed in seeing us go. Dan, the rep from GVN was about to hand us what we were promised when the Franchise owner stepped out from the presentation. It was at this point when things turned ugly.
He was rude because we did not buy into the program, he unstapled the twenty dollars from what I could see were a grouping of the vouochers, and dinner meal that were promised to us. He returned my twenty in a very rude manner, gave me a xerox copy of what seems to be a voucher.
He then took back the meal voucher that was promised for "not finishing his final presentation".
I believe I did sit through the presentation. Up to the point where he started asking us to start referring other people to join. I was in fact already thinking of whom might benefit from this offer at work. I believe we listened to everything Dan had to offer and were actually tempted at buying into the program.
So here I am now, with a xerox copy of a not so free travel voucher, it will cost anywhere from 179-299 per person to activate, out of $40.00 because I had to pay the babysitter for taking care of my kids for 2.5 hours, lost 3 hours out of my time, hungry and what did I get:
Not even a meal for my time.
If this is how GVN does business and takes care of its potential customers then I am glad I did not buy into it.
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