Complaint Review: In Catalog - Shop America - Weston Florida

I am writing this hoping to warn all future "victims" that fall prey to the lies of the company that presently goes under the name of "In Catalog". I am not a disgruntled employee but a current employee of the company. I have no reason or benefit to lie. I stayed silent long enough and my conscious cannot take it any longer. What I write is the honest truth and hope that potential future clients come across this website to prevent them from being "ripped off".

I began working with this company when it was going under the name of "Shop America". Shop America posed to be like QVC (a home shopping network). Its purpose: to spam innocent companies in hopes of getting someone to reply. The gullible that would reply and had products to sell would be convinced by the salespeople to send in $20,000 to feature their products on a "home shopping network" like that of QVC. The salesmen promised that their products would be featured on television stations throughout the United States and would receive alot of exposure which would ultimately mean incredible sales of their products.

The catch was their products would receive little if any exposure on the so-called television stations because these stations owned by John Kyle (owner of Tiger Eye Broadcasting and Shop America) had weak signals and the public could not see the products. Of course, prior to stealing their $20K, they would try to persuade the client to send the company a "sample" of their product - whatever it was - in order for a "focus group" to test it and make a determination whether their product was good enough to put on tv.

The catch? There was no "focus group". They would receive their products and it was taken home by the president of the company, Diane Mercer and the Sales Manager, Jon Diamond. People would send anything from expensive, custom-made jewelry, gourmet chocolates/pastries, instructional videotapes, electric shoe polishers, vitamins supplements, and the list goes on and on.

Once the sample arrived, it was directly taken to the back by the president and never seen again. All of us knew she would hog all the samples. But nobody said anything. Everybody was scared of losing their jobs if they opened their mouthes. (Eventually I learned that Ms. Mercer had a warehouse where she was storing the excess of all these "samples" she had received!)

After months would pass and the customers were not receiving any orders (due to the fact that their products were not being aired!) they would call the company to complain but the receptionist was instructed not to give these calls to Diane Mercer or the sales managers (Jon Diamond and Joe Perez) even if they demanded to speak to them! Even we, the salespeople were warned to refuse taking any calls from the customers once we took their $20,000. Therefore, the customers started suspecting after calls were not returned, refunds were not being given. Customers started posting their complaints on this website (you can read the numerous complaints from people like yourself that got ripped off).

I eventually found out this past summer that Shop America and its owner John Kyle were being investigated by the Attorney General of Florida. (Mr. Kyle has had previous companies previous to Shop America that were being investigated and therefore had to be shut down). Suddenly, Diane Mercer made an announcement claiming that Shop America was not making any money and therefore was going to shut down - except we all knew what the real reason was.

They kept all the employees (except for a few that resigned due to the guilt they felt) and changed the name to "In Catalog". We stayed at the same location in Miramar, FL for about a month but then moved to Weston, FL just a few minutes away. They changed the phone number very conveniently. But for awhile old Shop America customers would call and ask if they had reached Shop America but the receptionists were told to lie and state that they had the wrong number.

Diane Mercer, the president remained in the back but we were not to tell anyone that. They removed any evidence of all the samples that remained in the offices and removed the Shop America sign and put a new sign in the reception area that now read: "In Catalog" - "We get you in". The walls were painted and everything was redecorated in case someone came in there was no trace that Shop America ever existed. It looked like a completely different company had moved in.

Basically, In Catalog (now located in Weston, FL) uses the very same techniques that Shop America employed. They lie and cheat hard working people like you to send in samples (which are now kept by the new president of the company, Doreen Diamond and her husband, Jon Diamond - previous employee of Shop America) and money.

The only thing that has changed is that you get ripped off of $7000 instead of $20,000 and instead of promising to put your products on television they promise to put them in over 10,000 catalogs! 10,000! There aren't even 10,000 in the world! The customers await orders from the catalogs we promise their products will be seen in. Except we do not place their products in catalogs. But this is what we're told to tell people as part of our "script". Also, they hired an entire new staff of salespeople that have no clue what this company is doing. They are under the assumption it's all legitimate.

But they too, like myself, will find out the truth soon enough. Also, a few months ago they brough in a camera crew to videotape all the employees at the Weston office so that this footage could be added in the company website for credibility. What the company website fails to mention is that the company is not located in that gigantic building you see when you open it up. It's a small office in an office building that only fits about 25 of us!

Let me add that John Kyle not only owns this company but anothe one in Miramar, FL that is dba "Crystal Blue Media" and is similarily ripping people off w/ air-time. It's all a scam in every company he owns. He is a millionaire who owns two Ferraris, a BMW and an Aston Martin (and those are just the cars we're aware of), he lives in a mansion and owns tigers. Need I tell you more? Doreen Diamond and her husband live very affluently also. And they have gotten all this by ripping off innocent people like yourselves.

I am seeking employment elsewhere as I can no longer withstand to live with myself taking innocent peoples' money. I can not live with the guilt or shame I carry for participating in this scam. I am sure the company will reply by stating that this is all a lie and written by a disgruntled employee (like they normally rebuttal with) but PLEASE do not be fooled by these people. Call the Better Business Bureau, call the Attorney General in Florida, call Senator Rudy Garcia, they will ALL concur that John Kyle is indeed being investigated along with his company Shop America. Do not be misled or taken. They are wolves in sheeps clothing! Do not fall prey to them like I did and so many others.

Employee of In Catalog

bJ

Miami Beach, Florida
U.S.A.

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