Who Decides What?

I agree with Jen. I probably would said, “ah, that’s a bummer because I’ve already set the party and planned the cocktails.” Then if she backed out, it would have just been a regular ol’ party.

And as far as the philosophical question goes… I can understand to a certain extent why a company may not want alcohol served. It’s probably a liability issue with both people driving from said parties and maybe a safety or comfort issue for their salespeople.

HOWEVER, if you have based your business model on going into people’s homes, then you can not dictate what they do in the homes. As long as it’s not illegal of course.

So there you go. My two cents.

Here’s the thing, unless the company advertised that they were a dry company I’d be annoyed that I wasn’t informed sooner, and maybe find a different company and or consultant (if it was just her rule) that does something similar if you really wanted to serve wine or cocktails.

An organization I belonged to had once planned a fundraiser at the Magic Castle in L.A. Sold tickets and everything, but the organization had a policy of dry events only. Our leaders did not realize that rule applied to events held with outside companies, so we had to ask the business if we could please make it a dry event. We had to pay a penalty though and did not make as much money…but they were really good about it.

From the company’s standpoint I get that they do not want to be responsible for drunk drivers or people who may drink too much. A sad testament to society today and people’s inability to take responsibility for their own actions.

But in your own home, you should be able to serve alcohol if you so please. The whole thing rubs me the wrong way, I’d go w/ Jen and have a party, minus the sales pitch. I also am not a huge fan of those parties, but go to some, especially the naughty ones (cause let’s face it, those are fun) or ones where I like the products, like tupperware.

Sorry I won’t be home yet to enjoy…whatever you decide:)

Catherine, what an awesome idea! Honestly, I wish I had this capability when I was a Mom with young children growing up…just to connect and get feedback.

Ok, I know this shouldn’t really affect my decision, but is it possible you could share the name of the company with me?

I have been on the consultant side many times. I have sold Tupperware, Scrap in a Snap and Once Upon a Family. These particular companies have never had a rule to warrant what the hostess should serve.

Is it possible that the consultant is the one who has made this rule? Maybe it is not the company. What I would do is get on the internet and find out how to get a hold of someone at the corporate headquarters for this company. Call their customer service and ask them if this rule is valid. If the company says they have no such rule than I would give the consultant the benefit of the doubt. I would just ask her why she came up with the rule. I am sure there is a reason. For example, maybe she has held ‘parties’ in the past where alcohol was involved and something horrible happened? Maybe the ‘party’ ran too long or she found that the people didn’t order or pay attention to her presentation. This would mean that it wasn’t worth her time. She is doing this to make money, it is her job. Or it could be something as simple as her personal faith beliefs are coming into play. Honestly, you never know.

I don’t think you should cancel the party. I would just call customer service to verify the rule. If it is her own personal rule, ask her why and then make a note to ask the next consultant (if you have another party) at the get go if you can offer alcohol.

Personally, I don’t think a home based business should make rules about what you can serve unless what you are serving is against the law. This is coming from someone who does not drink alcohol. However, I respect those who do choose to drink.

Hope this helps, Catherine! Can’t wait to hear about the outcome. 😉