CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The Better Business Bureau says a magazine sales business banned from operating in North Carolina has returned to the area.
After nearly a year without any complaints against Seedtime Publications, formerly Trinity Public Relations, the BBB received a complaint against the door-to-door magazine sales company in June.
A Charlotte woman, Amy Clark, told the BBB that two sales representatives tried to pressure her to give them $700 and asked her invasive personal questions. She says she bought a magazine subscription for $50 to get the sales representatives to leave.
According to the BBB, James and Lourdes Davis operate Seedtime Publications and between 2007 and 2009 they received 125 complaints about the company.
The company grabbed attention last year when a pregnant woman in Concord called police after a confrontation with a salesperson. The woman told police the salesperson was verbally abusive and threatened to hit her.
The Davis’ had been forbidden to operate a magazine sales business in North Carolina previously.
From 2005 to 2007, they ran a magazine sales business based in Charlotte called Trinity Public Relations. During that time, consumers filed 184 complaints with the Better Business Bureau regarding the company.
In 2007 the N.C. Attorney General secured a Consent Judgment against the Trinity Public Relations and the Davis', forbidding them to operate or participate in any magazine sales companies in North Carolina.
According to the BBB, James and Lourdes Davis then changed the name of their company to Seedtime Publications, LLC and rented a mailbox in South Carolina to use as their business address. The BBB says the couple continued to live in North Carolina while operating the business.
The Better Business Bureau says you can avoid being scammed by following a few guidelines.
- Do not allow strangers in your home
- Call 911 if you feel threatened by door-to-door salespeople
- Check out businesses with the BBB before making a purchase
- Requesting to see the seller’s ‘peddler’s license’
- Remember that you have three days to cancel purchases over $25 through the Federal Trade Commission’s Three-Day Cooling-Off Rule.
