(1152) A novel way of doing business

One day long ago I went to listen to a Korean talk to oblige a friend of mine.

First I have to tell you a few things about my unique friend. She was a widow, age 72, who lived with her sister in a single storey house opposite a private hospital. She and her sister survived on $100 every month. Her electric, water and phone bill was paid by her son. Her daughter gives her one hundred dollars each month. Her sister was not quite right in her mind, having came out of the lunatic asylum a few years before I met the widow.

I still remember the talk, it was to tell about the efficacy of some stomach medicine. I have a very normal stomach, obviously I don't need a small bottle of liquid that was made up of 17 vegetables and fruits fermented underground for three years.  Each of the 330 ml bottle costs $375. But of course the Korean business man gives out a very nice looking colander to each participant. I think I still have the purple plastic colander in my kitchen somewhere. According to my friend the widow, the previous week a sack of 1 kg rice was dispensed to each guest.

My friend the widow has been following each talk for almost three years. Each month there was a talk promoting one item. Each of the item was highly priced. There is a money back guarantee if the purchaser is not happy with the product.

That particular talk, I stayed behind to see if any one would buy the item being promoted. There was a middle age lady who walked up and purchased three bottles. Apparently she bought the exact item two years ago, but from a different centre, and it took care of her life-long problem of indigestion and wind. This round she had been waiting for 18 months until this product came round again. One bottle was for her God daughter who lived in Pahang, the second bottle was for her daughter-in-law who lived next door to her, then the third bottle was for her uncle who lived in Johor.

My friend, the widow, bought a pillow that cost $2,000. The funny thing is that she was very pleased with her purchase. She said that the infra-red treated pillow made of some exotic material cured her 20 year long problem of neck and shoulder ache. With the magic pillow, she finally could get her uninterrupted 8 hour nightly sleep. It was like giving her a second stint of youth. She felt like she was in her 40s again.

I found it most interesting and informative.