Chopra-Endorsed MLM Runs Into Trouble

Wallet Pop:

Back in May of 2008, Zrii was one of the most hyped-up multi-level marketing launches in history. The amalaki juice bears the endorsement of bestselling author and wellness expert Deepak Chopra, but the company is now in the midst of some serious drama.

The Salt Lake Tribune reports that the company terminated its seven top distributors after they were unsuccessful in an effort to oust the company’s CEO William F. Farley. In a letter to Mr. Farley, the distributors wrote urging Farley to “immediately remove yourself as the CEO of Zrii.” “Your behavior both in your person and professional life, neither represents the ideals and principles of our team nor our brand. To continue our association with you would not only represent a severe compromise in principle but would also put every IE’s [independent executive’s] family at great risk.”

Mr. Farley then terminated the distributors by email. 35 top employees have also left the company amid suggestions that Mr. Farley was inappropriately using the company as a personal piggybank while bogging it down with unnecessary debt. In a statement, the former executives wrote that “Farley was formerly the chief executive of Fruit of the Loom. According to a Wikipedia entry on that company, he was forced out in late 1999, after having piloted the company into massive debt and unproductive business ventures, including structuring the company into an off-shore entity in the Cayman Islands to avoid taxes.”

Logo from Zrii

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