Complaint Review: Team Winmark

As of Mon, 01/24/2011 - 13:39 Chris Coleman (post #8) was an EMPLOYEE of Winmark. He was advertising for Account Managers and Executives in South Jersey. While he may have been an ex employee at the time of his post, one must cast a critical light on his comment until he can clarify his past and current status with Team Winmark.

A Google search of ["Chris Coleman" + Winmark] finds a cached web site on page 3.

"Account Managers and Executives needed- Top Pay (South Jersey)
Mon, 01/24/2011 - 13:39

Team Winmark
is looking for top producers and managers with teams with experience in outside sales. We are a cost (sic) to coast company that represents a variety of forune 500 companies throughout the United States. We are currently
looking for those whom have experience in door to door sales in the cable industry, alarm sales industry, pest control, and energy sales.

The reward is that we have lots of work for everyone and a tremendous amount of potential for top management positions that pay well over 200k per year. If you are a motivated person whom is willing to work hard, put in a 6-8 hour day and work in a team enviroment. We pay weekly, there are no chargebacks or cancels. This particular gig is one that
will pay you consistantly the most per day and per week time and time again with a variety of different benefits for a qualified canidate(S).

Additionally, we pay for your recruites that you bring in plus daily cash bonuses.


Please call Chris Coleman at 801-381-xxxx and also e-mail your resume."

http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:vu1mC83DEHEJ:www.beachrehoboth.com/delaware_craigslist_jobs%3Fpage%3D91%26TB_iframe%3Ddxukqllei+%22chris+coleman%22+%2B+winmark&cd=26&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us&lr=lang_zh-CN|lang_de|lang_en&client=firefox-a&source=www.google.com

I had worked for Winmark for over a year and a half. I started in Seattle and took an opportunity in Salt Lake City to launch a market until I wanted to make a change to go back into financial services as this market has now turned back around.

I read these reports and it is very apparent that these people really did not know Brad Reynolds and Freddie Mills. You go to work and you work hard and at the end of the day, I was very satisfied with the work and the challenge I had each day. They have a corporate office staff in Roseville, CA that is on point and accurate as well as very friendly. I was with the company in the very beginning stages when I started in Seattle and at that time, yes, there was a few things that could have gotten better but it did as the company grew. We were always paid on time and with out problems. The folks that did not follow up with their clients and would have clearly found out that their jobs were either rescheduled by the client(s) or canceled by the clients expected to be paid regardless , even if the job was not even completed. This is not even realistic even after you have explained this to a salesperson a million times. Additionally,  This is a lack of follow up on the salespersons part and is a performance based job when the job is completed.. You get paid. All of these reports in this are a result of the fact and truth that the salesman did a horrible job at not following up to see if the job was even completed and blamed ownership and management for it. Another thing, if you don't call and not show up to work to resolve the matter or just don't show up because you felt like it to meet the minimum standards in any job, its a matter of time before you are asked to step aside so that you can be replaced by someone that will show up to work and follow up.

Brad Reynolds and Freddie Mills really do take care of you like family and treat you as a member of their own family. I always did what I had to do and worked hard and loved working side by side with Comcast in Salt Lake City. I enjoyed my time working for Winmark and have always wanted to rebute any objections on the web without any personal gain. Brad and Freddie have a heavy responsibility and have expanded quickly and have done everything in their powers to make the people whom work for them very happy. Not everyone can be happy and that is human nature. Would I recommend Brad and Freddie as an employer. Hell yes I would and this is a company that is expanding in the right directions.

My hat is off to winmark and I hope that anyone that reads this will see another side of the actual truth that this is an awesome company. I am pround to have worked for Brad and Freddie and everyone at Winmark.

Chris Coleman

I sell door to door for Motivation, one of the other companies and
sells. I have seen reps who sold as you were trained, and 80% of the
sales don't get paid to them, even though sold four times more customers
than I did.

Ok... It has been a year now and I have been through too much to really be concerned with this ordeal anymore.  What happened to me was bad and that is a fact.  I was pissed off and that remains true because I still havn't gotten paid however I have come to the conclusion that what happend to me was due to the fact that Team WinMark was still going through growing pains.  I had a chance to talk to the owner Freddie Mills.  We talked in great length and I found out that many of the things that I had complained about in the letter he was unaware of untill he read the letter.  He assured me that he was working on taking care of things in his business to better it and I made sure he was telling the truth by contacting some of the new managment that he had put in place to correct the problems.  He actually did place new managment into places of authority.  People that knew what they were talking about and that knew how to sell with integrety.  I am friends with one of them and I was impressed that they had placed him in a position to where he had some say.  He's doing a great job still to this day and the company is changeing from the inside out.  That is the positive thing that came from all of this.  So in retrospect I am greatful that I wrote the letter due to the positive actions that arose out of it to make the company a better company.  Now comes the whole when do I get paid stuff.  I made several sales that I never got paid on.  So you know what.  I don't care anymore.  I just want to get on with my life! So unless you feel otherwise you can keep the money.  I just want some peace of mind. 

What can I say here that hasn't already been said by others? Of course, Team Winmark will tell you that it's other contractors posting these negative reviews, but it's not. It's former and current employees who have experienced the Winmark way of business.

First off, if you are here because you were smart enough to search for "Team Winmark" before responding to a job ad, good for you. Read these peoples' posts and their experiences. If after seeing the pattern of how these people were treated you choose to still work for Winmark, then best of luck.

Winmark is very good at appearing that they are on the up and up, but it starts right from the beginning. You will be required to fill out some paperwork and sign before you can start. However, you are not allowed a copy of this paperwork for yourself, and you will be pressured to fill it out as soon as possible while only glancing over it. I'll pull some highlights out for you:

Paragraph 6:
"If this contact is terminated, all compensation, additional compensation and other benefits shall accrue and be paid to the Independent Representative to the date of the termination. Payments will be made with respect to each item of compensation or benefit as soon as the amount due is determined, except that in the event the termination is due to the Independent Representative's misconduct, the Company shall have the right to withhold any and all monies due to the Independent Representative and shall apply same as an offset against any monies due the Company from the Independent Representative as a result of the Independent Representative's misconduct. For purposes hereof, misconduct shall include any violation of the terms of this agreement, either before or after the termination of Independent Representative's employment. Company shall have the right to withhold funds due to Independent Representative if Company is of the opinion in good faith that Independent Representative has violated this agreement."

What that means, is that if you are terminated/fired/dismissed any and all money that Winmark owes you is forfeit. This also means that if you quit, they can refuse to pay you if they determine that any time during your employment you "broke a rule". Trust me, they'll find something. To date, not a SINGLE employee that has left Winmark either on their own or by being dismissed has been paid any money.

Paragraph 9B:
"The Company may in its full discretion for any reason refund all or any portion of the purchase price or rentals by any customer or may pay to any customer any amount in damages by way of settlement of any claim arising out of the furnishing of any equipment, systems or services and in such event the credit previously made to the Independent Representative's account on the amount so refunded or paid may be deducted at the option of the Company from the Independent Representative's account."

What this means is that you can be fined any amount at any time for any reason and you have no recourse. Winmark management loves fines. Late to a meeting? $50. Late to work? $50. Not answer your phone when someone calls? $100.

Paragraph 13:
"This contract may be terminated by either party on not less than five (5) days advance written notice thereof, or on verbal notice confirmed in writing within such five (5) day period to the other party. However, the Company may terminate the contract hereunder immediately if necessary in the best judgment in order to protect its business or its good name. If the Independent Representative elects to terminate the Contract without advance notice, the company shall have the right to make no further credits to the account of the Independent Representative after the last day worked, notwithstanding the right to such credits had advance notice been given."

If you don't get five days notice, you forfeit any money that they owe you. Betcha if you do give five days notice that sometime in those five days, you'll be fired and your money is forfeit.

This is from their Retention Agreement:
"There is a holdback (retention) account for all TEAMWINMARK Independent Representatives up to a maximum of $5,000.00, plus $500.00 to cover the IC compliance. The holdback may be satisfied either through a payroll deduction at a rate of 10% earned each pay period or a one time lump sum payment and the IC compliance at $25.00 per week.

The holdback is held by the Company in the event of customer cancellations and/or money owed to the Company. Chargebacks are to be debited from the Independent Representative's retention account. If Chargebacks occur within 90 days after the Independent Representative's separation from the Company, the retention account will be debited. The retention account is not a source to borrow money and bears no financial accumulation of interest.

The retention account will be paid in full, less any applicable deductions, 180 days after the independent agent's last install date. If the Independent Representative's retention account does not cover all Chargebacks and/or money owed, the independent agent will be billed for the balance.

Five hundred dollars ($500.00) will be used to cover the IC compliance, i.e. background checks, drug testing, DMV records, ID badges, uniforms and all other contract related costs and will not be refunded."

This is one of my favorites, right here. Here it states that your money will be given to you in 180 days after your last install date. However, as noted above in the original contract, you forfeit all of your money if you are terminated. It also states that 10% will be deducted every paycheck for hold backs/charge backs up to $5000. So, not only will money be deducted from your paychecks, they'll also hold any money due to you when you leave. How many thousands of dollars can that add up to that you won't see? Note also that you'll be charged $500 to "cover the IC compliance". $500 for a UA, an online background check, a laminated piece of paper, a ballcap, and a vest? Riiiiiiiiight.

Next, let's talk about transparency regarding your pay. You will rarely (if ever) receive anything telling you about your pay. Occasionally you'll receive an install report (usually a month old) that tells you what was installed. You will never receive a cancellation report on a regular basis that shows which of your orders were canceled. Essentially your pay comes down to how much faith you have in Winmark to pay you correctly. It's been my (and other people) experience that you'll never get paid correctly. If there is a problem with your pay, you'll be given the run around from your manager, your general manager, and the corporate office. Emails will go unanswered, and phone calls never returned. Essentially, you'll be told to "get over it" and "go back to work". Don't want to come to work anymore because you're not getting paid? You're name will be slandered and humiliated in front of the entire group at meeting time.

Part of the problem is, IF you make it past training (woo h*o... $200 for 3 weeks of work!!), once you do start getting SOME kind of pay, you won't want to leave because you will have learned that Winmark will never pay you the money that they owe you. It's a nasty catch-22.

So, I await the inevitable response to this by someone in Winmark management claiming that I must have been some sub-standard agent or how I did everything wrong blah blah blah. I'm sure it'll be up here soon claiming that I did this or I did that... but, this is my story. Hopefully you got to read this before you filled out that agreement and decided to get the shaft by Winmark.
I've experienced pretty much every thing that has been stated in these complaints from other people.

What can I say here that hasn't already been said by others? Of course, Team Winmark will tell you that it's other contractors posting these negative reviews, but it's not. It's former and current employees who have experienced the Winmark way of business.

First off, if you are here because you were smart enough to search for "Team Winmark" before responding to a job ad, good for you. Read these peoples' posts and their experiences. If after seeing the pattern of how these people were treated you choose to still work for Winmark, then best of luck.

Winmark is very good at appearing that they are on the up and up, but it starts right from the beginning. You will be required to fill out some paperwork and sign before you can start. However, you are not allowed a copy of this paperwork for yourself, and you will be pressured to fill it out as soon as possible while only glancing over it. I'll pull some highlights out for you:

Paragraph 6:
"If this contact is terminated, all compensation, additional compensation and other benefits shall accrue and be paid to the Independent Representative to the date of the termination. Payments will be made with respect to each item of compensation or benefit as soon as the amount due is determined, except that in the event the termination is due to the Independent Representative's misconduct, the Company shall have the right to withhold any and all monies due to the Independent Representative and shall apply same as an offset against any monies due the Company from the Independent Representative as a result of the Independent Representative's misconduct. For purposes hereof, misconduct shall include any violation of the terms of this agreement, either before or after the termination of Independent Representative's employment. Company shall have the right to withhold funds due to Independent Representative if Company is of the opinion in good faith that Independent Representative has violated this agreement."

What that means, is that if you are terminated/fired/dismissed any and all money that Winmark owes you is forfeit. This also means that if you quit, they can refuse to pay you if they determine that any time during your employment you "broke a rule". Trust me, they'll find something. To date, not a SINGLE employee that has left Winmark either on their own or by being dismissed has been paid any money.

Paragraph 9B:
"The Company may in its full discretion for any reason refund all or any portion of the purchase price or rentals by any customer or may pay to any customer any amount in damages by way of settlement of any claim arising out of the furnishing of any equipment, systems or services and in such event the credit previously made to the Independent Representative's account on the amount so refunded or paid may be deducted at the option of the Company from the Independent Representative's account."

What this means is that you can be fined any amount at any time for any reason and you have no recourse. Winmark management loves fines. Late to a meeting? $50. Late to work? $50. Not answer your phone when someone calls? $100.

Paragraph 13:
"This contract may be terminated by either party on not less than five (5) days advance written notice thereof, or on verbal notice confirmed in writing within such five (5) day period to the other party. However, the Company may terminate the contract hereunder immediately if necessary in the best judgment in order to protect its business or its good name. If the Independent Representative elects to terminate the Contract without advance notice, the company shall have the right to make no further credits to the account of the Independent Representative after the last day worked, notwithstanding the right to such credits had advance notice been given."

If you don't get five days notice, you forfeit any money that they owe you. Betcha if you do give five days notice that sometime in those five days, you'll be fired and your money is forfeit.

This is from their Retention Agreement:
"There is a holdback (retention) account for all TEAMWINMARK Independent Representatives up to a maximum of $5,000.00, plus $500.00 to cover the IC compliance. The holdback may be satisfied either through a payroll deduction at a rate of 10% earned each pay period or a one time lump sum payment and the IC compliance at $25.00 per week.

The holdback is held by the Company in the event of customer cancellations and/or money owed to the Company. Chargebacks are to be debited from the Independent Representative's retention account. If Chargebacks occur within 90 days after the Independent Representative's separation from the Company, the retention account will be debited. The retention account is not a source to borrow money and bears no financial accumulation of interest.

The retention account will be paid in full, less any applicable deductions, 180 days after the independent agent's last install date. If the Independent Representative's retention account does not cover all Chargebacks and/or money owed, the independent agent will be billed for the balance.

Five hundred dollars ($500.00) will be used to cover the IC compliance, i.e. background checks, drug testing, DMV records, ID badges, uniforms and all other contract related costs and will not be refunded."

This is one of my favorites, right here. Here it states that your money will be given to you in 180 days after your last install date. However, as noted above in the original contract, you forfeit all of your money if you are terminated. It also states that 10% will be deducted every paycheck for hold backs/charge backs up to $5000. So, not only will money be deducted from your paychecks, they'll also hold any money due to you when you leave. How many thousands of dollars can that add up to that you won't see? Note also that you'll be charged $500 to "cover the IC compliance". $500 for a UA, an online background check, a laminated piece of paper, a ballcap, and a vest? Riiiiiiiiight.

Next, let's talk about transparency regarding your pay. You will rarely (if ever) receive anything telling you about your pay. Occasionally you'll receive an install report (usually a month old) that tells you what was installed. You will never receive a cancellation report on a regular basis that shows which of your orders were canceled. Essentially your pay comes down to how much faith you have in Winmark to pay you correctly. It's been my (and other people) experience that you'll never get paid correctly. If there is a problem with your pay, you'll be given the run around from your manager, your general manager, and the corporate office. Emails will go unanswered, and phone calls never returned. Essentially, you'll be told to "get over it" and "go back to work". Don't want to come to work anymore because you're not getting paid? You're name will be slandered and humiliated in front of the entire group at meeting time.

Part of the problem is, IF you make it past training (woo h*o... $200 for 3 weeks of work!!), once you do start getting SOME kind of pay, you won't want to leave because you will have learned that Winmark will never pay you the money that they owe you. It's a nasty catch-22.

So, I await the inevitable response to this by someone in Winmark management claiming that I must have been some sub-standard agent or how I did everything wrong blah blah blah. I'm sure it'll be up here soon claiming that I did this or I did that... but, this is my story. Hopefully you got to read this before you filled out that agreement and decided to get the shaft by Winmark.
I've experienced pretty much every thing that has been stated in these complaints from other people.

What can I say here that hasn't already been said by others? Of course, Team Winmark will tell you that it's other contractors posting these negative reviews, but it's not. It's former and current employees who have experienced the Winmark way of business.

First off, if you are here because you were smart enough to search for "Team Winmark" before responding to a job ad, good for you. Read these peoples' posts and their experiences. If after seeing the pattern of how these people were treated you choose to still work for Winmark, then best of luck.

Winmark is very good at appearing that they are on the up and up, but it starts right from the beginning. You will be required to fill out some paperwork and sign before you can start. However, you are not allowed a copy of this paperwork for yourself, and you will be pressured to fill it out as soon as possible while only glancing over it. I'll pull some highlights out for you:

Paragraph 6:
"If this contact is terminated, all compensation, additional compensation and other benefits shall accrue and be paid to the Independent Representative to the date of the termination. Payments will be made with respect to each item of compensation or benefit as soon as the amount due is determined, except that in the event the termination is due to the Independent Representative's misconduct, the Company shall have the right to withhold any and all monies due to the Independent Representative and shall apply same as an offset against any monies due the Company from the Independent Representative as a result of the Independent Representative's misconduct. For purposes hereof, misconduct shall include any violation of the terms of this agreement, either before or after the termination of Independent Representative's employment. Company shall have the right to withhold funds due to Independent Representative if Company is of the opinion in good faith that Independent Representative has violated this agreement."

What that means, is that if you are terminated/fired/dismissed any and all money that Winmark owes you is forfeit. This also means that if you quit, they can refuse to pay you if they determine that any time during your employment you "broke a rule". Trust me, they'll find something. To date, not a SINGLE employee that has left Winmark either on their own or by being dismissed has been paid any money.

Paragraph 9B:
"The Company may in its full discretion for any reason refund all or any portion of the purchase price or rentals by any customer or may pay to any customer any amount in damages by way of settlement of any claim arising out of the furnishing of any equipment, systems or services and in such event the credit previously made to the Independent Representative's account on the amount so refunded or paid may be deducted at the option of the Company from the Independent Representative's account."

What this means is that you can be fined any amount at any time for any reason and you have no recourse. Winmark management loves fines. Late to a meeting? $50. Late to work? $50. Not answer your phone when someone calls? $100.

Paragraph 13:
"This contract may be terminated by either party on not less than five (5) days advance written notice thereof, or on verbal notice confirmed in writing within such five (5) day period to the other party. However, the Company may terminate the contract hereunder immediately if necessary in the best judgment in order to protect its business or its good name. If the Independent Representative elects to terminate the Contract without advance notice, the company shall have the right to make no further credits to the account of the Independent Representative after the last day worked, notwithstanding the right to such credits had advance notice been given."

If you don't get five days notice, you forfeit any money that they owe you. Betcha if you do give five days notice that sometime in those five days, you'll be fired and your money is forfeit.

This is from their Retention Agreement:
"There is a holdback (retention) account for all TEAMWINMARK Independent Representatives up to a maximum of $5,000.00, plus $500.00 to cover the IC compliance. The holdback may be satisfied either through a payroll deduction at a rate of 10% earned each pay period or a one time lump sum payment and the IC compliance at $25.00 per week.

The holdback is held by the Company in the event of customer cancellations and/or money owed to the Company. Chargebacks are to be debited from the Independent Representative's retention account. If Chargebacks occur within 90 days after the Independent Representative's separation from the Company, the retention account will be debited. The retention account is not a source to borrow money and bears no financial accumulation of interest.

The retention account will be paid in full, less any applicable deductions, 180 days after the independent agent's last install date. If the Independent Representative's retention account does not cover all Chargebacks and/or money owed, the independent agent will be billed for the balance.

Five hundred dollars ($500.00) will be used to cover the IC compliance, i.e. background checks, drug testing, DMV records, ID badges, uniforms and all other contract related costs and will not be refunded."

This is one of my favorites, right here. Here it states that your money will be given to you in 180 days after your last install date. However, as noted above in the original contract, you forfeit all of your money if you are terminated. It also states that 10% will be deducted every paycheck for hold backs/charge backs up to $5000. So, not only will money be deducted from your paychecks, they'll also hold any money due to you when you leave. How many thousands of dollars can that add up to that you won't see? Note also that you'll be charged $500 to "cover the IC compliance". $500 for a UA, an online background check, a laminated piece of paper, a ballcap, and a vest? Riiiiiiiiight.

Next, let's talk about transparency regarding your pay. You will rarely (if ever) receive anything telling you about your pay. Occasionally you'll receive an install report (usually a month old) that tells you what was installed. You will never receive a cancellation report on a regular basis that shows which of your orders were canceled. Essentially your pay comes down to how much faith you have in Winmark to pay you correctly. It's been my (and other people) experience that you'll never get paid correctly. If there is a problem with your pay, you'll be given the run around from your manager, your general manager, and the corporate office. Emails will go unanswered, and phone calls never returned. Essentially, you'll be told to "get over it" and "go back to work". Don't want to come to work anymore because you're not getting paid? You're name will be slandered and humiliated in front of the entire group at meeting time.

Part of the problem is, IF you make it past training (woo h*o... $200 for 3 weeks of work!!), once you do start getting SOME kind of pay, you won't want to leave because you will have learned that Winmark will never pay you the money that they owe you. It's a nasty catch-22.

So, I await the inevitable response to this by someone in Winmark management claiming that I must have been some sub-standard agent or how I did everything wrong blah blah blah. I'm sure it'll be up here soon claiming that I did this or I did that... but, this is my story. Hopefully you got to read this before you filled out that agreement and decided to get the shaft by Winmark.
I've experienced pretty much every thing that has been stated in these complaints from other people.

What can I say here that hasn't already been said by others? Of course, Team Winmark will tell you that it's other contractors posting these negative reviews, but it's not. It's former and current employees who have experienced the Winmark way of business.

First off, if you are here because you were smart enough to search for "Team Winmark" before responding to a job ad, good for you. Read these peoples' posts and their experiences. If after seeing the pattern of how these people were treated you choose to still work for Winmark, then best of luck.

Winmark is very good at appearing that they are on the up and up, but it starts right from the beginning. You will be required to fill out some paperwork and sign before you can start. However, you are not allowed a copy of this paperwork for yourself, and you will be pressured to fill it out as soon as possible while only glancing over it. I'll pull some highlights out for you:

Paragraph 6:
"If this contact is terminated, all compensation, additional compensation and other benefits shall accrue and be paid to the Independent Representative to the date of the termination. Payments will be made with respect to each item of compensation or benefit as soon as the amount due is determined, except that in the event the termination is due to the Independent Representative's misconduct, the Company shall have the right to withhold any and all monies due to the Independent Representative and shall apply same as an offset against any monies due the Company from the Independent Representative as a result of the Independent Representative's misconduct. For purposes hereof, misconduct shall include any violation of the terms of this agreement, either before or after the termination of Independent Representative's employment. Company shall have the right to withhold funds due to Independent Representative if Company is of the opinion in good faith that Independent Representative has violated this agreement."

What that means, is that if you are terminated/fired/dismissed any and all money that Winmark owes you is forfeit. This also means that if you quit, they can refuse to pay you if they determine that any time during your employment you "broke a rule". Trust me, they'll find something. To date, not a SINGLE employee that has left Winmark either on their own or by being dismissed has been paid any money.

Paragraph 9B:
"The Company may in its full discretion for any reason refund all or any portion of the purchase price or rentals by any customer or may pay to any customer any amount in damages by way of settlement of any claim arising out of the furnishing of any equipment, systems or services and in such event the credit previously made to the Independent Representative's account on the amount so refunded or paid may be deducted at the option of the Company from the Independent Representative's account."

What this means is that you can be fined any amount at any time for any reason and you have no recourse. Winmark management loves fines. Late to a meeting? $50. Late to work? $50. Not answer your phone when someone calls? $100.

Paragraph 13:
"This contract may be terminated by either party on not less than five (5) days advance written notice thereof, or on verbal notice confirmed in writing within such five (5) day period to the other party. However, the Company may terminate the contract hereunder immediately if necessary in the best judgment in order to protect its business or its good name. If the Independent Representative elects to terminate the Contract without advance notice, the company shall have the right to make no further credits to the account of the Independent Representative after the last day worked, notwithstanding the right to such credits had advance notice been given."

If you don't get five days notice, you forfeit any money that they owe you. Betcha if you do give five days notice that sometime in those five days, you'll be fired and your money is forfeit.

This is from their Retention Agreement:
"There is a holdback (retention) account for all TEAMWINMARK Independent Representatives up to a maximum of $5,000.00, plus $500.00 to cover the IC compliance. The holdback may be satisfied either through a payroll deduction at a rate of 10% earned each pay period or a one time lump sum payment and the IC compliance at $25.00 per week.

The holdback is held by the Company in the event of customer cancellations and/or money owed to the Company. Chargebacks are to be debited from the Independent Representative's retention account. If Chargebacks occur within 90 days after the Independent Representative's separation from the Company, the retention account will be debited. The retention account is not a source to borrow money and bears no financial accumulation of interest.

The retention account will be paid in full, less any applicable deductions, 180 days after the independent agent's last install date. If the Independent Representative's retention account does not cover all Chargebacks and/or money owed, the independent agent will be billed for the balance.

Five hundred dollars ($500.00) will be used to cover the IC compliance, i.e. background checks, drug testing, DMV records, ID badges, uniforms and all other contract related costs and will not be refunded."

This is one of my favorites, right here. Here it states that your money will be given to you in 180 days after your last install date. However, as noted above in the original contract, you forfeit all of your money if you are terminated. It also states that 10% will be deducted every paycheck for hold backs/charge backs up to $5000. So, not only will money be deducted from your paychecks, they'll also hold any money due to you when you leave. How many thousands of dollars can that add up to that you won't see? Note also that you'll be charged $500 to "cover the IC compliance". $500 for a UA, an online background check, a laminated piece of paper, a ballcap, and a vest? Riiiiiiiiight.

Next, let's talk about transparency regarding your pay. You will rarely (if ever) receive anything telling you about your pay. Occasionally you'll receive an install report (usually a month old) that tells you what was installed. You will never receive a cancellation report on a regular basis that shows which of your orders were canceled. Essentially your pay comes down to how much faith you have in Winmark to pay you correctly. It's been my (and other people) experience that you'll never get paid correctly. If there is a problem with your pay, you'll be given the run around from your manager, your general manager, and the corporate office. Emails will go unanswered, and phone calls never returned. Essentially, you'll be told to "get over it" and "go back to work". Don't want to come to work anymore because you're not getting paid? You're name will be slandered and humiliated in front of the entire group at meeting time.

Part of the problem is, IF you make it past training (woo h*o... $200 for 3 weeks of work!!), once you do start getting SOME kind of pay, you won't want to leave because you will have learned that Winmark will never pay you the money that they owe you. It's a nasty catch-22.

So, I await the inevitable response to this by someone in Winmark management claiming that I must have been some sub-standard agent or how I did everything wrong blah blah blah. I'm sure it'll be up here soon claiming that I did this or I did that... but, this is my story. Hopefully you got to read this before you filled out that agreement and decided to get the shaft by Winmark.
I've experienced pretty much every thing that has been stated in these complaints from other people.

I feel your pain bro. I sell door to door for Momentivation, one of the other companies and sells. I have seen reps who sold as you were trained, and 80% of the sales don't get paid to them, even though sold four times more customers than I did. He had 2,000 worth of claims that never were paid. I am overly honest, explain post-promotion prices, and have had my sales paid correctly almost every single time. Why isn't Winmark paying you? because they aren't getting paid by Comcast. They have teams (I am making an educated guess here) of people pouring over all the paperwork turned in on every deal looking for mistakes in paperwork. If you write the wrong after promo prices Winmark is not going to get paid, and believe me no pay for them mean $0 for you.

I feel your pain bro. I sell door to door for Momentivation, one of the other companies and sells. I have seen reps who sold as you were trained, and 80% of the sales don't get paid to them, even though sold four times more customers than I did. He had 2,000 worth of claims that never were paid. I am overly honest, explain post-promotion prices, and have had my sales paid correctly almost every single time. Why isn't Winmark paying you? because they aren't getting paid by Comcast. They have teams (I am making an educated guess here) of people pouring over all the paperwork turned in on every deal looking for mistakes in paperwork. If you write the wrong after promo prices Winmark is not going to get paid, and believe me no pay for them mean $0 for you.

I feel your pain bro. I sell door to door for Momentivation, one of the other companies and sells. I have seen reps who sold as you were trained, and 80% of the sales don't get paid to them, even though sold four times more customers than I did. He had 2,000 worth of claims that never were paid. I am overly honest, explain post-promotion prices, and have had my sales paid correctly almost every single time. Why isn't Winmark paying you? because they aren't getting paid by Comcast. They have teams (I am making an educated guess here) of people pouring over all the paperwork turned in on every deal looking for mistakes in paperwork. If you write the wrong after promo prices Winmark is not going to get paid, and believe me no pay for them mean $0 for you.

To Ken or any other employee of this company that wants to give me their two cents on what kind of company or industry that I need be involved with in any capacity whatsoever. Until you have 20 some odd years of experience in sales or marketing and know your head from your behind maybe you should consider taking a back seat and figure out which end is up. The cable industry as well as any other industry that involves direct sales is and has always been my forte'. When I came to Team Windbag I must remind you that I had been invited to come from clear across the country to be a part of this so called company. There is a reason for that! My reputation as an honest and integral sales manager gave me that opportunity. However when I arrived to Utah I had no prior experience working with Comcast due to the fact that Comcast is not yet available in the Midwest where I am from. So I was completely unfamiliar with their pricing or standards. As I stated before in my prior announcement to the world about this company. I never was told by my manager ever during my training period or anytime soon after that of the correct roll to pricing for Comcast Alchemy deals. After 20 min. of shadowing my manager while you were with me Ken, I was told to go on my own without a badge # or even an agent id #. I was only told the promotional prices for these 3 particular deals and for 2 weeks I sold them without any idea of what the hell I was doing. NUMBER 1 that is in direct conflict with Comcast policy for contractors. You are never suppose to allow any of your reps to sell without a Comcast Badge! NUMBER 2 forcing someone to sell under another persons ID # is not only unethical but it is a classic sign of a company that has intentions of stealing commissions from sales reps. But what the heck was I suppose to do? I was thousands of miles from home in a City that I knew nobody in and I had no car or way to leave because I had no money. I was at these peoples mercy so I went along for the ride.

Weeks of living with the owner and his entourage of sales managers and no attempt to resolve these issues of integrity were ever put forth. Well now I imagine that after my post as well as others that your company is being forced to re-evaluate there ethical standards of practice, which in my opinion is a good thing! WAY TO GO... However that still doesn't take away the fact that this company has a track record of being dishonest and disloyal to their reps and their customers.

Oh yea and the other point you happened to make about the secretary who was put in place to make sure reps were getting paid. Yea I am glad you brought her up. I remember how frustrated she was after weeks on end went by while her husband (the top salesman in the office) went unpaid for an unbelievable amount of money and sales. I give her props! She and her husbands pressured the top management as well as ownership nonstop for weeks to get to the bottom of it but like you said, he was the top salesman and who wants to FIRE your top rep?? Yea the handwriting was on the wall and Team Winmark knew that their little scam was coming to an end so better save face eeah... Well whatever, it still doesn't take away from the fact that I as well as others are still waiting to get paid for our good work that we put forth during our time at this company. It still doesn't take away from the fact that we are having very hard times due to this company's disrespect and arrogance, whereby they feel they have the right to hold onto and in some cases even keep others hard earned effort and work. So my hat is off to all of those reps that are still there who are trying to make a difference but for those who put me into the predicament that I am in now, I must say I am very disappointed and I hope one day you will realize how much your dishonest ways hurt people and JUST STOP! It simply is not good karma and what goes around will eventually come back around.

I do hope for the sake of all the good people that I met during my stay there, that the few who had the ability to change their minds about the way they were told to sell these services, that they somehow pull this company out of the bull shady ways they do business, because as far as I could see you were all being mislead and that was a shame because that team was by far the most talented I had ever seen assembled ever in over 20 some odd years of my sales experience.

Peace!!

I know personally around 10 people(they all know other 10 themselves) with same time of complain against this company. I know that Comcast had been notified by many people who worked for Team Winmark, but they continue to work with Team Winmark to rip-off their customers and contract workers. Yes they do teach you to lie to the customer about after promotional price and equipment charges. I won't be surprise to see Comcast gets sue along with Team Winmark.

John,
I understand you are upset. I was with you for your first day of "training" and your version albeit somewhat accurate, is a bit misleading. The company was not aware of the repercussions of such actions until later, at which time all activities were promptly put to a halt. We came here into a new market and were not aware of all the specifics of rules regarding the training of new individuals. Winmark now has an absolute strict policy regarding the training of "new hires". It is a very different industry than most. It is difficult to give people an accurate portrayal of what the job truly entails until you take them out. Most new hires are very eager to get out training because they know very little about how direct sales operations function. Seeing is believing so to speak..

As far as pay issues go, to be honest I was skeptical at first also. I sold a lot of customers and counting my eggs before they hatched so to speak. I was "losing" a lot of deals due to cancels, claims and reschedules. We now have secretaries who help the General manager keep payroll organized. This "secretary" is the wife of one of ours salesmen. Why would they give the wife of one of our top salesmen complete transparency to company invoices if they were "scamming" their employees. All my pay to date is accounted for and I have total faith in Winmarks integrity. It may not pay the week after you sell it, but if you sell honestly it will pay eventually. Step down from your soapbox and look at it from their point of view. Ripping off their good salesmen will cause them to eventually lose their salesman's business. Skimming 10% off the top for a few weeks to rip someone off is far less profitable in the long run than being honest and treating employees fairly and retaining someone who will make them tens of thousands of dollars over the course of a year.

I thought you were a nice guy John and I wish you the best in whatever you end up doing, you were an excellent salesmen but every sales gig isn't for everyone. Perhaps cable just isn't your "gig". I realize you are frustrated and angry but slandering a reputable company on the internet will not bring you solace.


Best Wishes,
Ken Babenco
Team Winmark