Scam or not?

Erinelisewaterson · January 2012

Ok heres the deal...you do get a vacation...you have to pay tax on each night not to exceed $49/person n u have to pay for airfare...you also have to pay the travel agency $49/person to register your voucher. I liked the pans but they were almost $3500 but it is not a high pressure sale.

mrs.dilligaf · January 2012

Alright. VENDORS ARE NOT ALLOWED TO POST. I'm really getting sick of it.

And IMHO, you can get a really nice set of pans and pick your own honeymoon for $3500.

gilll727 · January 2012

I don't see any posts that sound like a vendor other than people hating on stuff they haven't even been to. I do wish the trip included airfare though

mrs.dilligaf · January 2012

That's because I've removed them. All of them.

Erinelisewaterson · January 2012

I agree w u mrs. Dilligaf

kimh2012 · January 2012

Okay! So my fiance and I went to the meeting like we said we would earlier. Corey was the name of the guy giving the presentation and he was very nice and funny. He said upfront that the pots/pans have nothing to do with the trip so if we didn't want to buy anything then he said just simply don't buy anything and that is exactly what we did! haha. The presentation was pretty good and the cookware did seem pretty nice as the guy cooked for us and I saw with my own eyes how the pans cooked.

As for the trip, we all received brochures for the 3 day 2 night trip. The processing fee is 49.95 and it says it right there on the brochure. Before Corey said anything about the trip, he said "YOU WILL PAY YOUR OWN WAY THERE" after that, the trip is completely all inclusive meaning everything will be paid for when you arrive and you must pay your way back. The 3 day/ 2 night trip is free but before and after that is obviously not free I think that is where people get confused.

My fiance and I will most likely go on the trip because that seems like a pretty good deal to us not having to pay for a place to stay, activities, alcoholic beverages, AND food for a few nights! So we are going to try it out!

We may not take this trip as our honeymoon but rather as just a weekend getaway because it doesn't expire until March 2013 and it is also kind of a short period of time. If we do take it as our honeymoon, we would probably extend the stay a couple more days to make the honeymoon longer but the 3 day/2night part would still be paid for, we would just pay the rest of the days that we are staying for. Corey also said something about upgrading to an 8day/7night trip but I think you have to pay a little bit for that I cannot remember though!!

Our thoughts on this were we have to buy our plane tickets to and from our honeymoon no matter where we are going anyways why not just have a few free days, activities and meals!? I think it sounds legit and we are going to try it out! I'll let everyone know how it goes whenever we do decide to take the trip but it won't be for a while because we aren't getting married til Auguts.

As for the cookware, we were not pressured at all into buying anything at the meeting. But if people are going to the presentation just for the cookware, then I would be a little bit more skeptical because it is very expensive cookware and I have read on other sites that the cookware is falsely advertised. Other than that the trip sounded pretty nice to me!

ChiMadWedding · January 2012

Good to know! My fiance and I didn't go because it sounded weird and the roads were crap in Wisconsin that morning. I did get out of the woman on the phone that the airfare wasn't included. That made it sound slightly reasonable.

I think the thing that annoyed me and creeped me out of it was that I 80% SWEAR I didn't give these people my information. Pretty sure some other vendor sold my information to them.

My fiance and I BREEZED through the bridal show (Packers game that afternoon) and gave information primarily to DJs, men's formal wear and rental companies. I MAYBE gave info if I saw some free vacation giveaway but I doubt it.

The woman on the phone just sounded so scripted and obviously didn't know where I lived (I mentioned the storm that was coming through town and how that might effect the attendance and she gave me the audio equivalent of a dumb look).

Kinda wish I had gone after your experience but not that much.

(also, found this post through a google search for the company. As well as a post on scambook)

linsanator · January 2012

Ladies, I received the same call from a Bella Bridal representative the other day (and another similar call a month ago from a different vendor). After the first call for the other vendor (the name of which I can no longer remember) I did a lot of Internet research on the company, promotions, and cookware. Most reviewers indicated that the sales pitch for the cookware was high pressure and high priced (I'm cannot remember if it was the same cookware company as the organization partnered with Bella Bridal). There were many complaints that the cookware demonstrated was NOT the same as the cookware they received in the mail. As you might suspect, the cookware received performed more poorly than what they remembered at the demonstration (food stuck to the bottom and stained the pot/pan). I researched the cookware further because I am interested in acquiring good quality stainless steel cookware made inthe USA (not China!). Although the cookware company's website did not specify where the products were made, pictures of the plant appeared to contain blurry Asian-looking faces. Please don't get me wrong, I have several friends from China but I've read a lot of information about unhealthy products being imported from China (e.g., I will not purchase any cermaics made in China because of issues with lead in the paint). Based on others' experiences and my own research I decided it wasn't worth my time to attend the presentation (so I am one of those who is writing without any actual experience -- take what you will from my post). The other main piece of information gleaned from my thorough Internet search on the first company was that, yes, the vaction was real. However, like what other's have posted in this thread, you must pay for your own transportation, you must pay tax, you must pay the travel agent fee, and you'll probably have to sit in a timeshare "sales pitch" once you've arrived at your destination. If you are someone who can "keep their eye on the prize" and not be swayed by shiny offers, the vacation getaway sounds like a decent deal (my parents have done these types of things before...attended the dog and pony show, not bought anything, and then used the incentive). I thought I would post what I've learned so that others can make their own informed decisions (I'm a college professor...so research and informed decision making is part of my personality).

ccdub87 · February 2012

Super Scam!! i like how the vendors keep saying they are not vendors and that they are saying negative things because they think people are stupid and wont realize they are trying to use reverse psychology on ppl. Seems like no one on here is that stupid except for the vendors! They acted like there was no catch for us to attend. They lied, And vendors....you keep saying you cant talk about something you havent been to. Some of these people have been there are you not reading the posts? They are still saying its a scam or that its got a catch to it. STOP TRYING! You lose!

robin.mckinley · February 2012

Have the skeptics considered that maybe the Arkansas reps are just nicer than the northerners?

Just so everyone knows I'm not a vendor, you are welcome to search me online. I am a bank examiner who works in Memphis, TN. I am going to a presentation tonight at 8 and I found this thread by google searching the company to see if it is a scam.

If I can find the thread again tomorrow, I'll let everyone know how it goes

Robin McKinley (not the author)

ebr877 · February 2012

I just got a call too here in Indiana. I couldn't get the woman to accept my turn down for the package! It was a high-pressure sales pitch to just get me to attend! I can't imagine what the actual show would be like.

For those considering going to the 90 minute presentation, (which, by the way, threw up a red flag in my head from past experiences with "TIMESHARE" presentations), remember, it's probably too good to be true. I'm not positive it's a scam, but it sure sounds fishy. You have a wedding to plan and you don't need to be stressed out by high pressured sales folks right now. Enjoy your time with your fiance doing something fun!

Pampered Chef sells a great cookware!

robin.mckinley · February 2012

So I attended last night like I posted yesterday.

The presentation was informative. I did learn a few things about cookware. While, I was kind of tempted to purchase, we can not afford the price right now. The set was about $3000. My finace' liked the knives, but that set was $700. The salesman did seem a little disappointed that we didn't purchase, but he shook our hands and thanked us for attending. We were the third couple he talked to, so there were several more that might have purchased.

I did leave with the vacation information and the Carlson Craft coupon. He said they had run out of the coupon books, so I'll see if they actually mail one to me or not. Overall, it wasn't bad.

randomequine · February 2012

I got a call in Indiana too -- we're going on Saturday morning just because -- even if we have to pay airfaire, we'll take a resort considering our current option for a honeymoon is a few days at a cabin near Albion!!! I'm good at saying "NO" to people, particularly because our budget is less than what a lot of brides spend on their dress alone!!!

If it's a scam, it's a scam. But I'm pretty good at recognizing them and it's only two hours, tops.

DramaticNickel05 · February 2012

I just got a call from them. I have missed their previous calls (they have been calling me every day, twice a day, for a week now), and the only reason I answered the phone was to get the calls to stop. I knew who it was, I know what they wanted, and I didn't want to hear it. After trying to turn her down numerous times, and her continued pressuring of me, I comtemplated hanging up, but figured the calls would keep coming. So instead, I gave them a fake email, fake phone number (I said it was easier to get a hold of me at my fake number than the number they called), and made an appointment that I don't intend to keep. I have a friend who went to this thing and it was a disaster. I'm not going to share her personal story on here because it's not my story to tell.

I know you Arkansas ladies are going to say "How can you judge something you didn't even go to?" but let me just say that I trust my friends, and there is no way she just made this story up. And I also can't help but notice that each of you only has a couple of posts, and those posts seem to be on this thread, so your continued claims that you aren't a vendor are more than likely false.

esmecabrera · February 2012

Wow its a scam. I got the call and went in hopes it was true. Nopes! Scam

lauren9009 · February 2012

I just received another call from bella bridal network. They had left a voicemail before but I didn't call them back. They said there is a show this Thursday niight and they had a table reserved for my fiance and I. These posts were very helpful. I thought it might be a scam, but I thought well surely they wouldn't have something like that at a bridal fair.. Very disappointing to find out all the catches... But i guess if you are planning to spend money on airfare somewhere it would save you some money. I think we may still go just to see for ourselves. I mean its just 1-2 hours.. why not? lol

auburnjennifer · February 2012

I went to a bridal show a few months ago here in Alabama. I got the call last night and tonight. I've done my research and can't seem to find anyone who has gone to the "presentation", gotten their honeymoon and actually gone on it. That's a big red flag to me. And, every positive review I've read online has basically said the exact same thing... "The presenters were funny and laid back." "No pressure!" "I brought my friend/mom/etc." Another red flag that people are being paid to post possitive things about this company. Just Google Bella Bridal Network and you'll see the same reviews written by different people. I mean, they could at least be a little creative with it. What's funny is that I don't remember signing up for anything with Bella Bridal Network at the bridal show and I'm tempted to contact the radio station that put on the show and the hotel that hosted it. Either way, I most likely won't be attending the presentation. I'm registery for really nice cookware so I see no need to buy any (not that I could afford it anyway!). And if the honeymoon isn't 100% free, we can't afford to go either.

Ashrly · February 2012

Do you mind if I asked how your experience was? I received a call from them tonight after attending a bridal expo in Conway, AR today. I signed up for a showcase on Tuesday but don't want to waste my time. Thanks!

sjbrooks89 · March 2012

This is not a scam. I went to the bridal show in Chattanooga, TN a couple weeks ago and also recieved a call from the Bella Bridal Network the next day. A week later my fiance and I went to the 90 minute seminar on thier cookware, where they cooked chicken and veggies for us and talked about the benefits of their cookware as compared to cheaper alternatives. The explained all of their options to pay down the balance by only having to pay between 5-50 dollars a month. Having just graduated college recently, niether me or my fiance wanted to make that large of a purchase and financial commitment. At the end of the seminar, we simply told them we did not want to purchase anything, they handed us our honeymoon package, the $25 gift card for the cookware website and the instructions and code for getting the 1 year free membership to the couponing website as well as the 20% off the sationary website. My fiance and I were both very skeptical walking in, ready for a hard-sell or for it to be a scam, however it turned out not to be. This is simply the way the company advertises. They do not sell the full set of thier pots and pans in stores or online. If I was not on a tight budget and already had a very nice set of pots and pans, I would have considered purchasing the pots and pans from them. And for the record, I am in no way associated with the company. I am just a very happy bride-to-be with a free honeymoon!

hmarie72592 · March 2012

I'm from Virginia, me and my fiance received a call from Bella Bridal Network a few weeks ago. The lady on the phone said straight up that for the vacation, i would have to pay airfare and taxes. Which is a no brainer considering that anything you win you have to pay taxes for! We went to the presentation which lasted maybe sixty minutes, and the guy doing the presentation was awesome, he was hilarious and he cooked up an apple cobbler in the pan on the stove! We ended up buying a set because of the financing plan they had, and we just got our pans the other day. The very first day that we got the pans i cleaned them and used it to make a cake on the stove, it came out awesome lol. Now as for the free things that we won, we did walk out with the 3 day 2 night vacation package. our demonstrator told us that we would have to pay to get there, he said we could fly, take a cruise or swim if we wanted to lol. we also got a Carlson craft coupon, which you have to pay for shipping and handling to receive the coupon book, which is 4.95. we decided not to use that one though. The last thing received was a membership to coupon dough, which is a coupon website that you can print off coupons from and discounts to like restaurants and what not. So overall, the sales guy for us wasn't pushy at all! the free gifts were awesome, i booked our vacation to Dominican republic, and can't wait to go in December, when it'll be freezing here and nice and warm there

. another thing that we got because we bought something was a 4night 5 day vacation to one of the destinations. also the guy that did our presentation told us that they got our information from just signing up to go to a wedding show, if you registered to go to a wedding show then that's how they got your info! so from my EXPERIENCE i say it's not a scam, and I had a great time going.

thank you!

sbgruthy1308 · March 2012

I just got a call. I'm wondering if anyone here yet has returned from their vacation. I see a lot of you said you were going, but did any of you actually go? I really dont want to waste my time or money, (I'm a huge pushover,) so I'm thinking even though I told the sales rep on the phone I would go, I'm just not going to show up.

And FYI, I got this SAME phone call last year after I left the bridal show. I'm from the Twin Cities Minnesota btw. Anyway, anyone actually go on this trip yet?

Hess11 · March 2012

So my fiance and I just went to this tonight. The dude had a whole sales pitch and i felt bad for him. I don't doubt their product is good quality or that you receive it- i beleive that part. The part I don't get is the free trip regardless of whether you purchase or not. I also don't get why you have to buy it on the spot for the discount.. if it was a good enough product, seems like they'd give you at least a day or two to mull it over. Just seems weird is all. Any info on the trip?

Also- on BBB, Bella Bridal network goes unrecognized, Integra Marketing (their other name) is unaccredited and their travel agency, Simplicity Travel (if its the right one out of NY) is accredited. This just leaves me confused and not likely to act.

babeco19912 · March 2012

I just got this call as well. I would really like to know if anyone actually went on the trip or not.

bendvan1 · April 2012

In Response to <a href="http://forums.weddings.com/Sites/Weddings/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_ohio-cincinnati_scam-not?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:108Discussion:549817f8-4785-41ee-a12a-1fe13e9cd4fbPost:4aca93cb-a4b2-4d6e-88cf-65e46ca75a2f">Re: Scam or not?</a>:
[QUOTE]I just got this call as well. I would really like to know if anyone actually went on the trip or not.
Posted by babeco19912[/QUOTE]

<div>
</div><div>We got the call too, we are going tonight - i will update everyone as to how it goes tomorrow.....</div><div>
</div><div>We are going to the one in blaine... will let you know babeco.... </div>

ajmom2two · May 2012

Obviously I dont live in Ohio but I just got a call for this too. I am not a vendor. You can see that I post on TK all the time! When I was trying to research it online this thread popped up in my search results. I would say its a scam. There are a lot of negative reviews online. I am going to say thanks but no thanks when the lady calls me back tomorrow to schedule. Here are some of the links I saw...

http://bella-bridal.pissedconsumer.com/bella-bridal-network-20120210296042.html

http://www.everycall.us/phone-number/1-615-462-0304/

Also some of these post defending the place are word for word on complaint websites, like the post above from hmarie (who also, convenientyly has only ever posted 4 times). I think the a lot of the defenders work for the company. I would definitely NOT attend one of their "showcases" Hope this helps anyone else who looks into it.

BallerinaGrl003 · May 2012

I too received this call earlier today and from the tone of the caller knew something was fishy (lots of "doesn't this sound amazing?" and "you'll simply love the vacation", etc etc. Also said my name with nearly every sentence). After agreeing to attend, I received the address of the hotel (it was a La Quinta Suites, which screams low class to me), chose a date and time, and received the confirmation number I had to use when we arrived. I also found it interesting they required me to bring my fiance.

After I ended the phone call with the representative, we decided to do some research and found this forum first, which pretty much confirmed our suspicions. Found a couple more forums and basically realized that it's a high pressure sales event with a loop hole incentive (aka, the vacation/honeymoon). Glad we did the research, we definitely won't be going to the event and have already prepared a crazy response for when they call back and continually try to get us to attend (as I read other brides have had to go through).

(*tip here ladies: if you want to make the calls stop for anything like this, make up a crazy story and they won't be calling you back, my fiance can attest to this. He made this huge story to a creditor that continued to call him about reducing his credit by saying he was in the mafia and he had already said too much to the representative and oh sh*t the boss is walking over to him and he had to go. He didn't receive a call back after that =P).

staceyg04 · June 2012

@BallerinaGirl003: That is a hilarious comeback to give to a sales representative! I'll have to use something like that next time! Nice.

I personally went to two different cookware presentations, Bella Bridal and some other company called Royal Prestige, I think. Both were 90 min presentations and I didn't buy anything at either presentation because the pots and pans were too expensive for me as a college student. I wasn't in anyway pressured into buying anything and we received the vacation vouchers as promised. However, we decided to take a cruise instead, so unfortunately I cannot vouch toward the validity of the resort package. The cookware seemed nice, just too expensive for me.

For those worried about being harrassed during the presentation: you will not be harrassed. However, the representatives that kept calling and calling and calling my phone prior to the presentation, most definitely did. I do not appreciate such an excessive number of phone calls from sales representatives.

If you plan on flying somewhere for your honeymoon: go to the presentation. It doesn't hurt to listen to what they have to say. You'll get a free hotel voucher. If you're not flying to somewhere in the carribean for your honeymoon, don't go the meeting. It's that simple.

amypennell · June 2012

"I 80% SWEAR I didn't give these people my information. Pretty sure some other vendor sold my information to them."
--------------------------------------------------------------
I recieved a similar call and the woman on the other end told me I had "Won a package." How exciting, right? With my sales background, I know that some companies use the tactic of saying you "won a drawing" when they got your information and offer the same "package" to everyone.

So, I asked my friend on the other line just how I entered for this "drawing." She told me that websites like theknot.com give them our information. So, by you posting here I am thinking you 100% gave them your information ;-) News to me, too! I suppose the trade off for a wedding website and all these wonderful tools is TheKnot.com must make it's money somewhere, right?

What I am doing now is using my email address and once I am married I am deleting the account and switching to a new email address with my new name. It won't help with those who have your address but it will help with junk email later down the road!

After reading everyone's posts, I am not going to waste my time. I booked a group similar to this when I did sales in hospitality, and I remember 90% of their appointments didn't show up, and those who did were complaining about the prices and left with looks on their face as if they wasted their nights. "nuff said.

dereks1love · August 2012

I know that this is an old post and all of thos that have previously posted are probably no longer reading it, but I just wanted to put in my two cents on this for any future readers that googled the company because their fiance asked if it was a scam. I went to my local bridal fair on sunday 8/12/12. I put my name down for everything, why not I was having fun. I got home and later that afternoon I got a phone call from Bella Bridal Network and they gave me the whole spiel on the gifts and what I had to do... go to the 90 minute presentation for their cookware and would automatically get the free trip. I went online and did some digging. Yes at first it sounds to good to be true but as previously posted their website does inform that you have to pay for your travel there and home, and pay the gift taxes, the trip is all inclusive which means that everything once you check in is payed for until the time you check out. My fiance and I had decided before we left his driveway that we were not going to purchase anything. We went to the show and was thoroughly wowed. The guy was funny and they genuinely have a great product, completely made in the USA. He told us where all of the materials came from and where they were manufactured etc. We ended up buying but we were not pressured into any thing, it was a very laid back environment, and my Fiance was actually the one that wanted to get the product. We ended up ordering but did not have to put anything down or give credit card numbers or anything. they took our basic info and addresses so that they could send the product which is to arrive before the first bill and we would get a phone call from the company to ensure that the transaction was handled properly. There were several couples that left last night wihtout purchasing anything or promissing to purchase and they recieved their voucher for their vacation just like we did. This is NOT a scam. It is a legitimate company.

courtneymarie02323 · October 2012

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_ohio-cincinnati_scam-not?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:108Discussion:549817f8-4785-41ee-a12a-1fe13e9cd4fbPost:7f99fcdb-a788-4ca1-b1f1-a785c51941b4">Re: Scam or not?</a>:
[QUOTE]It's a scam... They won't let you leave till you buy some of their overpriced products. I had a friend who had to threaten to call the police because they wouldn't let her leave. She didn't get a trip.
Posted by etalkie[/QUOTE]

YOU DONT HAVE TO BUY ANYTHING!
You can very easily walk out without buying the cooking products. Your friend was lying because I just went to one of there shows. So stop spreading untrue s***!

Scam or not?

Re: Scam or not?

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