Prime my Body | The newest “hemp hucksters” in town
We attended an affiliate recruitment meeting to review Prime my Body, and learn about the company and the products they are offering. The meeting took place on 4/18 at the Culver City Elks Club (Culver City, CA).
The latest CBD-hemp product, Prime my Body’s “nano-enhanced hemp oil” has hit the market, and as the company gears up for a national (and purportedly international) launch in June, they are recruiting affiliates to sell their product via multi-level marketing.
We’ve seen multi-level marketing in the CBD-hemp oil segment before, with (Medical Marijuana Inc.’s) Kannaway product line. There was a ton of backlash about Kannaway affiliates making wild, unscientific, claims about the medical benefits of their product, with promises of cures that ran the gamut of seizures through cancers. But the parent company was able to deny any wrongdoing, since affiliates were not actually employees, or making official statements on the company’s behalf.
Prime my Body: the Company
As far as the Prime my Body go-to-market strategy, it’s a typical MLM setup: affiliates pay a small fee to become members ($39), purchase Prime my Body products, and make money selling products and by recruiting their own network of affiliates. We have no way of knowing whether this approach will lead to success where others have failed, or will produce the same hype and medical misinformation we’ve seen before.
The meeting in Culver City was not meant to provide insight into the product in any way, it was only about the opportunity. But we can speak with authority and offer reviews about the company, and the misleading claims being made. Their pitch was for affiliates to get in on the “ground floor of a massive opportunity”, now. Lead Marketer, John Taylor, provided general company information and described the market potential: affiliates can tap into a massive growth market in cannabis and hemp that “will expand into a $72 billion-dollar annual market”. This not only overstated the size of the potential market, but bundled hemp into the marijuana industry: marijuana was a $7B-dollar market in 2016, and is estimated to grow to $53 billion (once all states come on-board and create marijuana industries). But Prime my Body’s product is CBD-hemp oil: HempBiz Journal estimated the total hemp market in 2016 at $688 million, with CBD consumer-products making up only part of it.
Mr. Taylor spoke of the company’s international expansion, and in a low, confidential tone, talked about a future IPO for Prime my Body, and how the highest-level affiliates will be provided stock in the company. He predicted Prime my Body’s revenue growth from $1 Billion to $3 Billion over the first 3 years in operation, and $1 Billion in annual revenue afterwards. (Restating the facts: the entire hemp industry, covering food, textiles, CBD, industrial applications, etc, sold less than $700 million last year.) We’ve reached out to Prime my Body Corporate to verify details, but Corporate has failed to return our calls or respond.
There was no question & answer period during the meeting. It was simply a rally session for believers, with a few token celebrities in attendance (such as Mariel Hemingway) who stood and waved, who may (or may not) be affiliates, and may (or may not) have been paid to attend the meeting to offer celebrity endorsement.
Prime my Body: the Science
Dr. Lori Cardellino provided a medical and scientific overview: she informed affiliates about the medical benefits of CBD, cited studies on Prime my Body’s “nano-enhanced hemp oil”, but advised affiliates they didn’t need to know anything about the science. All they needed to understand was the product offered “100% bioavailability of CBD” that made it the most effective CBD product, up to 10x more effective than any CBD product on the market today.
Unfortunately, there is no way to review or validate this claim scientifically. We also don’t know what’s in their oil: the so-called “certification” of the product they’ve posted online is not a legitimate lab test, but a sworn affidavit signed by Prime my Body’s COO. It states what may not be in the product, in terms of chemicals, residues, pesticides, but doesn’t show the cannabinoid or terpene profiles that genuine lab tests normally offer. (A serious warning here: their claims are not based on real lab tests, so it’s unknown what’s in their CBD oil.) As far as the good Doctor goes: Dr. Lori isn’t a doctor, but a dentist. A dentist’s insight into the medical efficacy or uses of CBD is hardly a credible endorsement.
Prime my Body’s MLM: Our Opinion
Prime my Body may (or may not) have a viable product, and the future will determine if their MLM strategy will be successful where others have failed. We didn’t like this sales pitch based on false market data, and the misleading combination of marijuana with hemp. We also didn’t like the lure and trap of how, for just $39, anyone could become part of “the biggest opportunity you’ll ever see in your lifetime”. It’s what makes this “opportunity” predatory, in our opinion. A pitch of limited risk and unlimited reward may resonate with far too many looking for genuine opportunities in the marijuana industry.
Our advice: buyer and affiliate, beware. Before responding to an offer, attending an event, or becoming an affiliate, make certain to investigate the product, the market, and who you’re getting into bed with.
If you’re looking for a better way to spend $39, donate it to Grow for Vets. If you’re looking for a genuine sales position, contact us, we’re hiring: [email protected].
(READER NOTE: This article is NOT intended to sell competing CBD products, and there are no ads on Marijuana Media’s website. We provide unbiased facts and company reviews for the benefit of readers.)
