Farmasi Reviews – Cosmetic MLM New to the US
Farmasi cosmetics has caused quite the stir in the MLM space. Not only have they dedicated time and effort to providing a quality product, but a lot of Farmasi reviews from distributors are also claiming its unlike other MLM companies.
Is that true?
In this article from IBuyIReview, you’ll learn everything about how Farmasi works, down to their compensation plan, product quality, and whether it’s a legitimate offering.
But before we get started, it’s important to note that in no way am I affiliated with Farmasi or their distributors. You aren’t going to get a fluff piece about how they’re the greatest company on earth, you’re getting a real, honest opinion based on what I find out about the company.
Table of Contents
What Is Farmasi?
Farmasi is an MLM company focused on selling cosmetic and beauty products primarily targeting women. With everything cosmetic from lipstick to beauty regimen sets, the company has even branched into selling coffee under a nutrition section. Like many cosmetics MLMs before them, they’ve even branched into home care products and have a small “For Men” section.
Since they operate with an MLM structure, they openly accept “distributors” or “independent business owners” into their structure, as the company depends on these contractors to move as many products as possible. (1) From the outside, this opportunity looks like a great deal with a lot of potential profit in the pipeline.
The long line of Farmasi products isn’t sold in stores because it operates as a “direct sales company”, meaning independent distributors are responsible for making sales for the company however they choose. Many distributors choose to work through their personal network of friends and family, others might choose to host cosmetic parties or go door-to-door in attempts to sell the products.
Who Founded Farmasi?
Farmasi was founded by a Turkish doctor, Dr. Cevdet Tuna in 2003.
There is branding all over the Farmasi site of the new face of “Dr.C.Tuna”, which indicates that he is attempting to make his name somewhat synonymous with the success of the brand.
He named the brand Farmasi as a derivative of the word Pharmaceutical, referring to his products’ near-medical look. According to the Farmasi site, Tuna served as a lieutenant physician in Istanbul early in his life, and in the 50s, he established on of the first pharmaceutical factories in Turkey.
This pharmaceutical factory began Tuna’s aspirations to turn his company into something more widely distributed, but it wasn’t until the early 2000s that he turned his sights onto his newest company, Farmasi.
How Much Does It Cost to Join Farmasi?
If you’re familiar with MLMs at all, then you might be surprised at the low cost to join. Farmasi is advertised as one of the lowest-cost MLM companies to get started, allowing you to join the company for a small payment of \$19.99.
The company calls these distributors “Beauty Influencers” which gives you a stronger impression of freedom and success than what other companies tend to call their distributors. It’s clever marketing on their part and does the job well. A primary selling point that the company uses to promote its beauty influencer program is product savings when you purchase items for yourself.
This payment is a one-time fee and the company doesn’t charge you any additional monthly subscription to retain your membership or anything else as an enrollment fee. Based on a lack of hurdles to get started as a salesperson with the company, it truly makes you think about their goals.
Unlike some MLM companies that make a majority of their money from distributors who sign up for the opportunity to sell for the company, Farmasi genuinely seems to want more people to join so that they purchase materials and attempt to sell the product.
Like many MLMs, however, Farmasi does require that you purchase an additional “starter kit” upon joining. This kit includes a sampling of their best selling products and several promotional materials to hand out to potential customers.
While the monetary cost is lower than many other MLMs, the fact remains that it is still an MLM and there is little money to be made in the space when you factor in your time. The amount of legwork that goes into selling the products and building your downline will eventually push your hourly rate below minimum wage unless you’re one of the lucky few (less than 1% according to a report by the FTC!) who truly makes it big.
Are There Any Hidden Costs?
No, there is no hidden monetary cost to joining Farmasi as a distributor. There are no sales quotas you have to hit to stay active, either, which is another point in the company's favor. Once you're in and you've paid the enrollment fee and have purchased a starter pack, you will always be able to access the distributor backend and make sales for the company.
With any MLM, however, there is always the aforementioned hidden cost of time and legwork.
Instead of working on someone else’s business and making sales for their company, you could be working on your own business, truly becoming your own boss in a digital age where the ability to work remotely is increasing every day.
About the Products: A Review of Farmasi Cosmetics
You’ve probably seen similar Farmasi reviews that go over the architecture of the company, but I haven’t seen many that address common questions about the company’s products, so I wanted to touch on these briefly.
First of all, since the Farmasi cosmetics are direct sale products, it can be difficult to get your hands on any unless you know someone from the distributor list, or if you purchase from their website. This can make it a lot more difficult to test the product before you make a decision about the company.
No matter the quality of the product, it is important to remember that the company is an MLM, and it’s going to be a tough product to sell in a saturated market like cosmetics, when other MLMs have dominated the space.
If you’re considering joining because of the quality of the product, I’d recommend first weighing your options. Sticking to a customer relationship with the company will be far better than getting involved as an independent contractor.
Is Farmasi Made in USA?
Dr. C. Tuna has been working in the field of pharmaceuticals, skincare products, and cosmetics for a little over 70 years since his experience as a lieutenant physician in the war.
The Farmasi direct-selling company providing cosmetics and household products has only been around since 2003, making it a young MLM by many standards.
The company, originally a Turkish pharmaceuticals operation, expanded its reach into the USA not too long ago in January of 2019. The company representatives seem proud of the expansion, and began manufacturing some products in the United States. Only about 400 – out of their line of over 2,000 products – are manufactured in the USA, however.
Is Farmasi Makeup Any Good?
Out of all the MLM cosmetic companies, Farmasi seems to be genuinely good quality, with a high focus on their cosmetics.
On the Farmasi website, they have a list of certificates, including some from the FDA and GMP proving that they follow the regulations set forth by both organizations.
If you search for anything about the quality of these products online, you’ll find glowing reviews about the cosmetics and household products. Of course, while many of these Farmasi reviews are from the company’s “beauty influencers” – read: people who are incentivized to give it a good review so they can sell more – there are a few statements sprinkled in here and there that don’t seem to have any connection other than a purchase that attest to the quality of the products.
Are Their Cosmetics Chemical Free?
No cosmetic is chemical free. Everything is made of chemicals, so it’s difficult to make a claim like that and stick to it with any truth. Still, Farmasi does seem to care about the quality of their products.
Many sources claim that the company’s skincare and cosmetic products are non-toxic and cruelty-free, following the United States’ Good Manufacturing Practices regulated by the FDA.
Fortunately, there is a statement right on the website about their policy regarding animal cruelty. According to this statement, no Farmasi entity – US or otherwise – conducts animal testing in the manufacture or quality control of their products.
How Long Do Farmasi Orders Take to Ship?
The Farmasi brand operates in multiple countries, which can make it difficult to give an overall statement about shipping times. For the US, products ship from their warehouse in Miami, FL.
Items that are in stock at the time of ordering typically ship from this warehouse within 2 business days after the order is received. Once the order ships, tracking information is sent to the email you used to sign in and place the order.
According to the US site’s shipping policy, all orders must have a valid US address, but they do ship to all 50 states including Puerto Rico.
Farmasi Compensation Plan
One point of confusion that is important to clear up is that even though a lot of MLM companies position you with a certain title ‘within’ the company, you are not an employee of the company. You are an independent contractor. (2) Not a beauty influencer, small business owner, or any other term – and independent contractors are regulated under their own tax bracket, so it’s important to figure in your end of year tax burden with any profit that you make.
By joining Farmasi as a ‘beauty influencer’ the company enables you to sell their products with a 50% commission on every product you sell. This type of compensation is incredible for an MLM company.
In addition to traditional physical product sales, you can also make commissions on online sales at a whopping 50% which is likely the reason why all of their reviews online are as astounding as they are.
In true MLM fashion, when your downline recruits make sales, you earn a portion of these sales as a “group commission.” Likewise, if they achieve a higher rank in the company because they’ve made enough consistent sales, you receive a bonus. The bonus depends on your own rank within the company, with a maximum of 25%.
How Much Can You Expect to Make With Farmasi?
The amount you can expect to earn directly correlates with your ability to sell the product.
Unfortunately, chances are that if you are getting into the MLM space, you’re new to selling products like this. MLM companies tend to count on this lack of experience, targeting stay at home moms and other at-home residents who are looking for a quick way to make money online from home.
There’s no solid answer to this question, as it entirely depends on how you market the product, whether its by talking to a personal network or starting a sales funnel. Your ability to effectively market using these methods will directly impact your earning potential.
No numbers have been released by Farmasi that explicitly give their beauty influencers an expected income range to estimate their earnings with.
Is Farmasi a Pyramid Scheme?
No, Farmasi is not a pyramid scheme. The focus is on selling their physical products, and they happen to have a program to allow additional salespeople to join under the title of beauty influencer. These salespeople, however, appear to make little money during their time with the company. (3)
While Farmasi is not a pyramid scheme, it is an MLM company. This type of business is not an ideal model to get involved with if you are trying to create a sustainable and reliable income from home.
Is Farmasi a Trusted Brand with the BBB?
No, Farmasi does not seem to be a trusted brand with the BBB. They do have a listing on the site for their US company, but their rating is a 2.6 out of 5.
The Farmasi US LLC business is not BBB accredited. Upon reviewing the BBB complaints, many of them are from beauty influencers who were locked out of their account for not making the minimum commission value required within the 90-day window. To reactivate the account, the business requires you to purchase another starter package.
Should You Join Farmasi?
If you were to ask me, no, I don’t believe you should join Farmasi. Even though it sounds like a great product run with a genuine belief in its products, it’s not going to provide you with a sustainable income.
By joining their influencer program, you do gain access to discounts to their products, it might be worth the $19.99 if you’re an avid Farmasi consumer. Keep in mind that they do have a minimum product sales based on point value (PV) that you must retain in a 90-day window to keep your influencer account open.
Will You Make Your Money Back?
When you first join Farmasi, they pull you in with an enticing $19.99, but after purchasing all the products necessary to get started, that number can grow. Beyond the starter package, you’ll need to refill your inventory to continue making sales, and that means making purchases.
While many of these products look reasonably priced, they’re still inflated over typical retail prices because they compensate for the discount and 50% commission you earn. It’s a common marketing technique: price your product up so you can provide it at a discount.
As a ‘beauty influencer’ with Farmasi, it’s not unreasonable to expect to make that initial investment back, but when you account for the amount of legwork it takes to sell the products and the money you’ll continue investing to keep the sales coming in – not to mention the tax burden of being an independent contractor – the lucrative 50% commission rate starts to sound like a little bit worse of a deal.
My Opinion: Do I Recommend This Company?
No, I can’t recommend this company to anyone who is looking for a legitimate business model to help them create a sustainable, remote work lifestyle.
There’s so much to take into consideration when joining any MLM that the expenses almost always outweigh the benefits. There are better business models out there, and while many Farmasi reviews are correct in that there seems to be a genuine dedication to their product with this company, it doesn’t make them the right choice for your income stream.
Of course, while I can’t personally recommend them, this is my opinion. You are entitled to your own opinion and able to make your own choices. If you do some research on your own and decide you don’t agree with me, then that’s fine! But I would ask that you first keep an open mind and read over some reports from the FTC about MLM business models as well.
In the end, my blog will continue to be dedicated to helping people find the best legitimate business models online and providing my opinion on the companies I research to find that opportunity.
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References:
Forbes.com, 3 Reasons to Avoid Multilevel-Marketing Gigs, https://www.forbes.com/sites/nickclements/2018/10/18/3-reasons-to-avoid-multilevel-marketing-gigs/?sh=1d7576c1607a
Huffpost.com, Joining an MLM Does Not Make You a Small Business Owner, https://www.huffpost.com/entry/mlm-consultant-not-small-business-owner_l_5ff749c2c5b6fc79f46382d8
FTC.gov, Multi-Level Marketing Businesses and Pyramid Schemes, https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/multi-level-marketing-businesses-and-pyramid-schemes
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