Hi,

Before selling my business and joining my husband in our current company, I owned a successful INDEPENDENT financial services company. I often had the opportunity to run into Primerica reps in my travels. Here in Canada, and from what I understand, they are the least respected of anyone in the financial services industry. Do not join them without talking to several ex-Primerica reps first!!!

The studies you will have to do and the licensing you will have to get will be the same whether you join Primerica or any more respected financial company. The key difference, aside from how much respect you'll get from others in the financial field, is who owns your customers and what you can do with them.

Interestingly enough Primerica will own all of your customers and they can be taken away from you and given to another rep (your recruiter?) at any time, and this, without your permission, nor will there be anything you can say about it.

Primerica will require you to work to generate a pre-set quantity of sales, regardless of whether or not you really want a full-time job or not; even though they'll tell you that you can work as much or as little as you like. You will be at the mercy of the company in the event that they decide they don't want you anymore. This can happen at any time in your career, but more often than not will occur at the end of your second year; just as you're starting to really make money. At which point, you will be required to start over again from scratch, with a new company, without a customer base, because you signed a non-comp with Primerica. (A contract I might add, which isn't worth the paper it is printed on.)

If you are seriously interested in owning a financial coaching business, you'd be wiser to seek entering the business as a respected independent than as a disrespected Primerica rep.

If you are in the US, I can introduce you to a respected financial coach with whom I network and she can tell you how to go about starting your business so that you do what you want, but it really is your own business and if you're Canadian, then I can easily give you recommendations for several companies who can do the same.

Either way, Primerica is not what anyone with long time in financial services, in any way, would call a respectable financial company, and from what I've seen, their reputation in the US is far worse than it is here in Canada. For what it's worth, they have more in common with Mary Kay and Amway than they do Goldman Sachs. Of course, it all depends on what you really want to do. Many people have a great career with Primerica, but only so long as they stay committed to the company and the company stays committed to them. The more you learn about investing, the less you will see that Primerica is a good opportunity, but as I said, it all depends on what you really want to do.

If you would like to ask more explicit questions, feel free to contact me off-list.

T

Tina Brooks, VP Marketing
Brooks Pepperfire Foods, Inc.
Makers of Peppermaster Hot Sauces
http://www.peppermaster.com

Eat more peppers!