Complaint Review: Campus Enterprise Inc - Campus 41

I should have done more upfront investigation.  On the surface this 1099 sounds like a great position for a good cause.  You are seeling ads to local merchants to pay for the publication of a drug and alcohol prevention folder that is distrubuted to the high schools for use by students free of charge.  You are told to respresent this as a service that will be used at registration, parent/teacher conferences, etc. 

Sounds good, right?  Until the first time you go to a merchant who wants to verify with the school that this is legit.  That's what happened to me.  See, you are told NOT to contact the schools directly.  They have an "inside sales team" that take of that.  Well, that kind of makes sense too.  Although I thought it would be nice to know that contact as well.  Once I stopped at a merchant who asked who our contact was at the school, I called the office and was given a name.  The merchant called the school and asked for the person who was listed as a Vice Principal.  That person was no longer there.  Okay.  That happens, people move on.  We got the new Vice Principal's name, and left him a message.  He hasn't called back, so I went to the school.  He wasn't in and neither was the Principal, so I spoke with a guidance counselor who thought the folders were a great idea, but said the Vice Principal would have to approve the donation of the folders.  I rc'd a message from her today that the school doesn't want them.  I thought that strange, but okay, maybe next year.  The problem was I had already sold a couple ads in the school's folder.  When I called Campus Enterprise to see if I could get the merchant's money refunded I was told "No.  We've done our part & we will ship the folders whether they distribute them or not."  Well, that's not the way I want to do business.  You are basically telling me to mispresent the distribution aspects of sale to participating merchants.  I am NOT okay with that.  When I told Lewis Victor of Campus Enterprises, I would not sell further ads for this school he basically said "No worries, we have another rep who is selling in that area anyway."  This, after telling you when you sign on that you have a protected territory. 

On the company's behalf, the contracts do state "This Authority to Distribute shall automatically renew until cancelled in writing by either party".  But personally, I don't want to misrepresent the distribution when the school is saying they don't want them and the person who signed the contract isn't even there any longer.  Although it's a tax deductible ad, and a good cause, if they are going to just sit on a shelf and I know it I will not tell the merchants differently. 

It will be interesting to see if I get paid for my efforts to date.  I hope I do, so I can pay the 2 merchants back who purchased ads in a folder that will not be distributed in Pacific Grove High School as far as I know.  I would have been happy to continue working on the school, but the flippant attitude of Lewis Victor was very dismaying.  This sentence can be found on their ad for sales reps "We've been in business for over 37 years due to the philosophy in which we do business; honesty, ethics, customer service and our belief that Student Athletics are important. We do this in a way where the schools, communities, students & our firm all win!"  I would vehemently disagree. I would have no problem selling ads for folders where I know the schools are distributing them, but this attitude Lewis Victor espouses is abhorreent to my personal ethics and I think if you value your reputation in the community you sell in, you would feel the same way.  Very disappointed.