In this article I would like to clearly define one of the reasons why Power Plate are on our Blacklist. This will be a part of a series exposing Power Plates unethical policies, and how I believe it hurts our industry. Feel free to discuss these issues on our forum.
Where have all the Power Plates gone ...?
Would you buy a taxi off someone that needs to be replaced every few years and can not be fixed ?
Because that is essentially what Power Plate did to thousands of businesses around the world. If you don't believe me then go for a hunt to find some "Next Generation" machines.( The Chinese Made ones they sold between 2004 -- 2007. ) Power Plate marketed these machines directly at businesses as a core income, very similar to a car for a Taxi driver, AFTER reports of the first shipments breaking down in only a few weeks on busy studio floors. Their answer to the problem. Let them break and force people to buy new machines to keep their businesses going. Deliberately trapping people into an "upgrade or die" system.
Now tell me if I am wrong, but if you buy a cheap home vibration machine and it breaks then stiff luck. But when you make a substantial purchase for your business ( $18,000 each in my country ) then you would not expect to have to replace it every few years. They knew some people were taking out business loans of 3 years to pay for the machines, knowing there was no way the machines could last that long under normal business use. The machines would have no resale value.
Now if someone was selling you a car for $18,000 dollars you would automatically expect it to last a good decade and be reparable if it breaks. You would tell a salesperson where to go if suggested otherwise right? .
Power Plate bandied around the word "Commercial" like it was some sort of sales pitch, not caring if peoples livelihood was going to be effected or ruined. And yes it was deliberate.
HOW DO I KNOW FOR CERTAIN THIS IS WHAT HAPPENED AND IT WAS DELIBERATE ?
I was Power Plates Product Manager in 2003 - 2004 . I set up the worlds first commercial studio and reported the first breakages when the product changed from Dutch-Made to Chinese-Made.. They knew 100% at that point there was a massive quality problem with the machines. The plan was for me to set up hundreds of studios but when they refused to upgrade the equipment to true commercial standards, I walked out , as I did not sign up to rip people off.
So make no mistake, even though legally they covered themselves. It was a complete set up. They knew every business that was going to rely on their product was soon going to have to fork out another fortune to replace the machines.
Verdict: In business they can not be trusted to do the right thing by your company.
