First and
foremost, the vacation/prize portion of this is NOT a scam. HOWEVER, if you
decide to go to the 90 minute sales seminar via Bridal Registry to receive the
prizes, DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES PURCHASE ANY OF THE PRODUCTS. To be
quite frank, you get sold on supposed high quality cook ware for a premium
price and they're FAR FROM QUALITY. In fact, CookWorld Cookware are the WORST
products on the market in my opinion.<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />
I attended a
Bridal Expo and received a call from Bridal Registry a few days later. The
woman communicated that I had won my choice of either a 3 day, 2 night all
inclusive vacation to Bahamas, DR, or Mexico, a set of wedding bands, or a 4
day, 3 night vacation (hotel only) to a variety of locations nationwide. After
reading mixed reviews online, I could not decipher if the offer was legit.
My fiancé and I decided to attend the sales seminar, not knowing what product
was going to be sold.
Upon arrival
we were immediately told that we were about to sit through a 90 minute sales
seminar on cookware products and were NOT obligated to purchase any products.
During the seminar, we were shown the disadvantages of other cookware (was very
informative) and the shown the benefits of CookWorld products. The seminar
included a live cooking demo of vegetables and chicken. CookWorld markets
themselves as "organically" made pots (meaning the metals are
healthier for you), that are non-stick and do not require butter, oil, or
water. They claim that their pots have a heat transfer technology that enable
your food to cook WITHOUT stirring or flipping your food, and everything will
be cooked evenly. The sales woman made it sound easy, that all you do is put
food in, turn stove on low, wait for the pot to whistle, and your food is
done... claiming that you can cook chicken cutlets in 4 minutes or less (with a
demo to prove it). They advertise easy clean up with no need for comet, brillow
pads, or heavy scrubbing. THEN, they advertise the ability to stack the pots on
top of each other. The bottom pot apparently would cook at the same rate, with
the same ease, as the top pot. They claimed that the pots are made in the US
and were made using quality machinery and with great precision.
Needless to
say, the pitch sounded great and my fiancé decided to purchase the starter kit
for $1,600. I was enthusiastic and excited to receive my cookware. After 3 days
I received a phone call from the sales department confirming my order. Two
weeks later I received the cookware and that is when I realized that I ALL OF
WHAT I HAD BEEN TOLD WAS COMPLETELY FALSE. I was ripped off.
NOTHING is
ever cooked when the pot whistles. I called to complain and the customer
service rep told me, "OH NO, SWEETIE! Once it whistles while on low heat,
you have to remove the pot from the burner and let it sit on a cold burner for
10-15 minutes depending on the food"
I tried that
and in total it took 40+ minutes. Every piece of food was burnt. Some were over
cooked, some cooked fine, some under cooked. The clean up was horrendous. I had
to soak for 2 days with comment, then place in the dishwasher, then use the
brillow pad to scrub off the rest. THERE ARE STILL BLACK BURN SPOTS. Needless
to say, THEY ARE NOT EASY TO CLEAN AND REQUIRE SOME BUTTER/OIL.
In addition,
the whistle is similar functionality to a tea pot, the steam causes the
whistle. The whistle device is in the lid handle, so if its whistling (AKA
literally BOILING hot), you cannot grab the lid off without an oven mitt,
otherwise you'll burn your hand. If you close the whistle, the steam comes
shooting out of the sides of the lid and the juices/water splatters all over
the stove and causes a BIG mess. Clearly not built with quality and precision
they promised.
The CookWorld
"logo" on the handle is supposedly made from quality materials that
are also used to manufacture bowling balls. THIS IS FALSE.I don't think bowling
balls are made from stickers. The stickers are already peeling off after the or
deal of cleaning and scrubbing them.
Needless to
say I have a cheap set of stainless steel cookware from Cuisinart that I
bought on sale at Home Goods and that product is 900000000 times better in
every aspect. I don't think these CookWorld pots are worth $100, forget $1,600!!!!!!
The final
kicker of this whole story is their customer services and their policies. When
I called customer service to ask for a return, their response was that I signed
a legal binding contract and that my opportunity for a refund was in the first
72 hours of the sales seminar. MIND YOU, I DIDNT GET THE PRODUCT FOR 2 WEEKS!
How are you supposed to return a product before you receive it? Also, during the sales seminar, the sales
rep did not indicate that the form I was filling out was a legal binding
contract. The customer service rep said that I can request an in home consultation
and that I need to have more patience and there is a science to using the CookWorld
products. THEY'RE POTS. I was not sold on a product that needs an exact science
or an in home consultation to use. I was sold on a product that was apparently
SO EASY to use and QUALITY. AGANI, they're POTS. I'VE NEVER HEARD OF A FRY PAN
OR A SAUCE POT THAT NEEDED A SCIENCE OR A LESSON TO USE! The only time anyone
ever needs a lesson on how to use a pot is when they're like 9 and your parents
are teaching you how to cook.
This company
prowls on young couples who are just starting off and who are excited to start a
life together. They count on those couples who are eager to build their own quality home. They steal your money and
keep the whole operation a secret, saying that "it's an exclusive product
for exclusive members" ITS ALL BULL.
OH and the
prizes! The whole reason why you get lured into this scam. The wedding Bands they offer you are not quality. They come from China and they're overprices stainless steal bands (probably the same crap they make the pots from)! They give you cheap
champagne flutes, and the vacations are just OK. You still have to pay hundreds
of dollars to actually utilize the trips (registration fees, taxes/fees per night,
air fare, other 'membership fees')
ALL IN ALL,
DO NOT DO IT. STAY FAR AWAY.