A 44-year-old former flight attendant has filed an online police complaint after losing nearly 400,000 Baht in a business venture with “The Icon” at the dealer level. She stated that there were problems with the “collagen” products but received no answers, prompting her to stop selling after about a year. Following her report, a team leader ordered members not to report any issues, claiming the business was legal and warning that anyone who filed a complaint would face repercussions.
On October 14, 2024, reports emerged from Surat Thani province detailing that over ten members of “The Icon” sales group had filed complaints with local police regarding their losses from being misled into joining the business.
One victim, named Monrudee (surname withheld), disclosed that she initially joined due to an online advertisement offering a marketing course for 98 Baht after leaving her job to take care of her family. She soon found herself entangled in “The Icon” and, influenced by credible figures promoting the business, ended up investing 25,000 Baht to become a supervisor member.
Monrudee further escalated her investment to 250,000 Baht to establish a new team, which involved extensive costs including purchasing client lists and advertisements. Despite her efforts, she was unable to recruit new team members and subsequently, the company required additional payments for unlocking team member potentials.
While becoming a supervisor, Monrudee received collagen products to sell, but was instructed by her team leader not to sell them externally, supposedly to ensure proper experience and quality feedback. However, after unsuccessful marketing attempts, she decided to resell the products but faced complaints regarding their quality, leading to her decision to quit after approximately one year in the business.
After her story became public, Monrudee revealed that members were cautioned against filing complaints by their team leader, reinforcing that there would be legal consequences for any such actions. Following the events of October 8, many team members found themselves removed from online communication groups, further complicating their ability to seek recourse.
Reports indicate that numerous training sessions had been held in Surat Thani with hundreds of members, and issues began surfacing between team members and their leaders.
Recently, on October 8, a trainer known as “Coach Deaw” took steps to remove at least ten team members from the group, intensifying the concerns among those involved.
This article was rewritten from a Thairath’s news article.
