My Sister Wife's Closet and Other Brown Family Business Ventures

[CofCinci]

A place for discussion of their business endeavors.

Is it My Sisterwife's Closet, My Sister Wife's Closet, or My Sister wives Closet?

Well, not even the Browns know because it's spelled 3 different ways within 2 inches of web page space.

http://imgur.com/nWhBX0M

Edited June 27, 2014 by CofCinci

[MMLEsq]

I would think it should be "My Sisterwife's Closet" (and not "My Sisterwives' Closet," unless they all share one closet; instead, the alternative could be "My Sisterwives' Closets") (and also not "Sister Wife" or "Sister Wives," which don't look right to me).  Whatever they've decided to go with, they should at least be consistent.  //pet peeve//   ...if, for no other reason, that they (probably) trademarked the name** and should consistently be using the name they trademarked.

 

**I mean, they must have done that, right?  I would think that would be the first thing they did.

Edited June 27, 2014 by MMLEsq

[camom]

MMLEsq, I think you give them too much credit.

[Featherhat]

I think it should have been just Sisterwives' Closet without "My" which is just awkward all strung together however they punctuate it. They could then just do some general pieces that their fans might be in the demographic for without selling stuff Kody supposedly designed for each wife personally.  Also they presumably can find out which is the age and income demo they are most watched in, they should do some market research on what kind of jewellery those women like and design some affordable pieces for them. I mean they might have done that, but the site sure doesn't look like it, it's so random.  

 

I can't get over charging someone $81.99 for a "sisterwife" ring. Oh, sorry, you're supposed to give it to your best friend/mother figure because she is a "Strong Woman".

 

http://mysisterwifescloset.com/?product=strength-engraved-ring

[MMLEsq]

MMLEsq, I think you give them too much credit.

I think we've probably thought more about the name of their business than they have. 

[DakotaJustice]

Let's not even get into the fact that there is a preexisting apparel/accessories business online going by www.mysisterscloset.com which was ripped off by Robyn obviously - just like the Be Values concept was ripped off from the LDS.

[MMLEsq]

Let's not even get into the fact that there is a preexisting apparel/accessories business online going by www.mysisterscloset.com which was ripped off by Robyn obviously - just like the Be Values concept was ripped off from the LDS.

Hmmm... that's actually a professional looking website they have there (talking about My Sister's Closet -- obviously).

 

I really need to start a business.  It's clearly not difficult....come up with an name, or just borrow someone else's and tweak it.  Throw together a website -- it shouldn't take that long if you skip the pesky proofreading step.  If the website goes down a lot, oh well.  Take orders and ship them out when you get around to it.  Bottom line:  it doesn't seem like you need to be a mental giant or anything. 

[wrestlesflamingos]

No one needs to be a genius to start a business.  You need to be able to fill out forms mostly correctly and have money or credit to acquire a product.  You'd have the same chance of success as the Browns.

[Toaster Strudel]

Except that they have a show that's a literal 1 hour infomercial.

[Featherhat]

Except that they have a show that's a literal 1 hour infomercial.

 

Which is why its so insanely stupid that the site crashes every week. Seriously, its their best advertising and one which probably won't be around too much longer. They should invest in a better site immediately as a top priority. If you are a professional as opposed to hobby business then its worth spending money getting the right site, especially if its your main ordering platform.

[SometimesBites]

I know you'll all be devastated, but the MSWC claddagh-ish pendant with the creepy hands is currently out of stock. (I was just over there doing my part to keep their "15 million" hits rolling.) So anyway, you'll have to spend your $85 somewhere else. I know, it's sad.

[Xena]

pendant with the creepy hands

 

 

heh.  We should pepper the MSWC Facebook page with 'when will the creepy-hands pendant be back in stock?' 

 

I really need to start a business.  It's clearly not difficult....come up with an name, or just borrow someone else's and tweak it.  Throw together a website

 

 

This.  I REALLY believe this is actually how they think.  That they can just sit down and come up with a business.  No research, no interviewing current business owners, no canvassing, things you would do WEEK 1, not even getting into what happens Week 2.  I have never even thought about seriously starting a business, but if I did, I know you can't just sit down and 'think' your way through it. 

 

Look, I've been there.  I was a warlord and had to change all of my operating procedures in order to become a warrior princess.  But it took RESEARCH, PLANNING, and HARD WORK to get there.  It didn't happen overnight people.  But the Brown's are allergic to all three of those things.  The fall will be spectacular.

Edited June 28, 2014 by Xena

[Toaster Strudel]

  The fall will be spectacular.

Wake me up when that happens, I'll start watching again instead of just reading the forum.

[BradandJanet]

This is a link to Stan Watkin's company, Ecasi Consulting:  http://www.ecasiconsulting.com/.

 

What I gather from skimming the site is that Ecasi doesn't fund businesses but helps find lenders who will. It's possible that TLC was the "lender," I imagine. Ecasi consults start ups on managing and growing the business. The "Our Solutions" section on the home page, "nine easy steps to success," is priceless when applied to the Browns, who appear not to have applied a single one to MSWC. 

[Curious5]

To be serious - starting and running a business is hard and you do have to be consistent.  What we are seeing on SW is a joke and an insult to the taxpayer who has been subsidizing their lifestyle over the years.  I can't believe that their website is so bad.  We should just go over to the Facebook site and start to dump on them for their horrible jewelry.

 

Maybe I heard wrong but it sounded like the teenagers  were wanting the money so they could go to college, etc.  I would have thought the money would have strict spending restraints but this is s SHOW.

 

I have never seen a grown woman sit there clapping her hands like a little girl and chirping "We get the money!"  Christine was an embarrassment for any grown woman.

[MMLEsq]

**I mean, they must have done that, right?  I would think that would be the first thing they did.

I've answered my own question:  there's no registered trademark.  I did every search I could think of in the U.S. Patent and Trademark search engine.  "My Sister's Closet" came up.  I also found "Sister Wives" (which appears to have been registered by TLC:  SISTER WIVES - Goods and Services IC 041. US 100 101 107. G & S: Entertainment and educational services in the nature of television and multimedia program series featuring subjects of general human interest distributed via various platforms across multiple forms of transmission media; providing entertainment information to others via a global computer network. FIRST USE: 20100926. FIRST USE IN COMMERCE: 20100926).  But I couldn't find anything for the Browns' business.  Yet, their website has this:  "All trademarks, service marks and trade names of www.MySisterwifesCloset.com used in the site are trademarks or registered trademarks of www.MySisterwifesCloset.com."  I'm guessing that's boilerplate that's included in every site that their website designer creates.

 

Oh, and since I was on their website, I decided to check out some of the jewelry.  They also have Claddagh-ish earrings for sale...in stock!  And only $19.99.  The charms are made of pewter, "bathed" in nickel and then plated in rhodium.  The hooks are made of surgical stainless steel.  And, they guarantee satisfaction.  

[BradandJanet]

Oh, and since I was on their website, I decided to check out some of the jewelry.  They also have Claddagh-ish earrings for sale...in stock!  And only $19.99.  The charms are made of pewter, "bathed" in nickel and then plated in rhodium.  The hooks are made of surgical stainless steel.  And, they guarantee satisfaction.  

 

Buying the stuff on that website is difficult enough. Can you imagine trying to return something?

[4leafclover]

Well, you gotta admit it may have been a moot point to trademark that name---I mean, if anyone else uses it, it could only help--not harm--their business!  (As I typed this, I started thinking about what kind of businesses would use this silly name--maybe an adult bookstore?  A transvestite's escort service? Meh, even those couldn't hurt the Brown's business!)

[Absolom]

Ecasi doesn't exactly have an impressive client list.  Since he was supposed to help the Browns with their pitch he doesn't seem to have been of a lot of help.  Friend indeed.  A production assistant convinced him to do it for the air time? 

[BradandJanet]

Ecasi doesn't exactly have an impressive client list.  Since he was supposed to help the Browns with their pitch he doesn't seem to have been of a lot of help.  Friend indeed.  A production assistant convinced him to do it for the air time? 

 

So true about the company's client list.

 

Stanley Watkins was the head "venture capital" guy in the episode and is CFO/VP of the company. Was the man listening to their pathetic pitches in somebody's living room part of Ecasi too? That would make sense in this little piece of fiction.

 

Ecasi is a one-year-old consulting business with a sales volume reported at $230,000, all of which they apparently handed over to the Browns. Ah, sure.

I can't get over charging someone $81.99 for a "sisterwife" ring. Oh, sorry, you're supposed to give it to your best friend/mother figure because she is a "Strong Woman".

 

http://mysisterwifescloset.com/?product=strength-engraved-ring

 

That ring says "sisterwife"! Agh. Who would give that to a best friend unless you're sleeping with her husband?

[ginger90]

I took a quick look at their facebook page. It looks like they do not respond on it at all.

[CofCinci]

I see Duck Dynasty branded crap everywhere. It makes me wonder what could the Browns sell that people would actually buy.

[DakotaJustice]

Buying the stuff on that website is difficult enough. Can you imagine trying to return something?

Easy enough. Write "return to sender" on the envelope and either throw in the mail or give back to the UPS or Fedex guy (make sure to track it). Send an email to MSWC advising them of the return and request a full refund. If you don't hear back or get a credit after a week or so, call your bank and dispute the transaction.

The return policy isn't properly disclosed. You're almost certain to get your money back.

[leighroda]

Omg I finally clicked one of the links above... The harmony charm looks like one of the kids drew it, the there is a roots of love contraption (I don't know what else to call it) that looks more like a picture from my anatomy book showing blood vessels or the avioli in the lungs.

I just don't understand why they are trying to cover their tracks with the brandingof the "sister wife" ring... Polygamy is such a small sect, in a relatively small region... I can't imagine there is much if a market for it... But I sure as hell am not going to give that ring to a friend and say we are "like sisterwives" without the husband sharing... Isn't that just a regular sister???

[momofsquid]

I just checked out the infamous website and came across that fashion-forward Sisterwives apron. Does anyone actually wear an apron in the kitchen? I think I might have worn one in home ec class back in the early '70s but even forty years ago it was an anachronism. Maybe it's a Mormon thing? I can imagine them more in an FLDS setting, worn over prairie dresses. I vaguely remember a discussion on the show where someone (was it Kody?) insisted that aprons were a must for the shop and I wondered how they could be so out of touch with the real world. I wonder if they have sold any.

[Chris Knight]

The website is atrocious. Bad grammar and spelling errors are a huge pet peeve of mine. They spell their own name 3 different ways on the home page ?!?! Agree about the aprons - I haven't seen one in decades.

[Rhondinella]

Well, I occasionally wear an apron while cooking or cleaning the kitchen so as not to get my shirt dirty, but then I'm messy, so maybe it's just me.  But, that said, I own 1.  Only one.  And I only have it basically because it was given to me as a gift.

[4leafclover]

Yes, I occasionally use an apron for the same reason but I only have the one and its the kind that covers the entire front.  As for marketing for other plygs, or Mormons for that matter, I remember when they had a showing in Utah for their jewelry and most of the Mormons who were interviewed didn't like the Browns or their jewelry.  I don't think they have a target group at all.

[Tink]

I just took a look at the website and there is a watch on the home page that says "genuine silver" for $26.99. To me, that would mean sterling silver, but obviously it is not. I think that is very misleading. What does genuine silver even mean to them? It's like saying genuine red.

Edited June 29, 2014 by Tink

[MarkySnark]

The funny thing is that KoDouche pooh-poohed Christine's (or was it Janelle's?) idea of selling T-shirts on the site because they are "frumpy." Yet aprons are fashion forward? Of course, KoDoucheNozzle thinks the surfer duuuuuude look is cool, so there ya go.

[SometimesBites]

I made a fairly unheard of trip over to the TLC website and decided to frustrate myself by looking at Robyn's so-called blog. Her most recent entry is over a year old, and in it, she thrills to her newfound love of being a working woman. She gushes:

 

“When I married Kody I continued to work to support myself and to help with the family’s needs but my kids were all in school by then so it turned out to be okay. When I got pregnant with my son, Solomon, I was so stressed out about the idea of having to leave my new baby while I worked. When he was born I was pleasantly surprised when my six-week maternity leave was up that I was excited to go back to work! […]

Please don’t misunderstand me. I LOVE my kids and I would love to be able to be home with them all the time, but I have also realized that I have a independent, working-woman side to myself separate from my home life and children -- and I like her!”

 

It's the typical Brown double-talk bullshit. First, she implies that she has to get up and "work" at something, sort of like when she was a helper at a care home. Is she referring to staging phony family scenarios and couch chats for TV? Drawing pictures of fine jewelry with freaky cartoon hands? Handling the earthshaking CFO duties of MSWC? That's the first load of half-rotted road apples she spews. It's a slap in the face to women who really DO have to leave their 6-week-old babies and go off to some grueling job, whether they want to or not. Screw you, Robyn. You return to washing bedpans for a while, then get back to us about the terrible demands of your current "job."

 

But it's the bizarre second assertion (in bold)  that makes me want to smack her. In a single sentence she (a) wishes she was ABLE to be home with her children all the time, but (b) enjoys being a "working woman." Well, WHICH IS IT? You love being a working woman? You want to stay home with the kids but can't? You don't have a choice here? Oh, wait...you DO have a choice?? You're making it up as you go along? You can't remember what you already wrote? Here's a tip, babe: go register for a freshman comp class with Meri. God knows you need it.

 

Hell, the very first sentence is utter crap! They are all absolute BULLSHITTERS. They seem genetically programmed to just run off at the mouth and spout whatever lies and half-truths they think the viewers will swallow.

Edited June 29, 2014 by NewBaku

[DakotaJustice]

Well, Sur la Table has a vast selection of aprons but they're way more attractive, creative and more fun than the horrible MSWC one.

[Kohola3]

hen he was born I was pleasantly surprised when my six-week maternity leave was up that I was excited to go back to work!

 

Six week maternity leave from where?  You stayed in one part of the McMansion for six weeks and on Sunday of the seventh week you crossed the threshold into another part and "poof" the leave was over and you went back to what?  Leaving the bills on the counter? Packing one piece of crappy joolry into a tiny box and sending it to someone idiotic enough to buy it?  Doesn't that leave you about 23 1/4 hours a day to be with your precious baby?

 

Working woman, my ass.  Other than crying and running your mouth you've never worked a day in your life.

 

You don't have a maternity leave if you don't have a job, you idiot

[momofsquid]

I stand corrected re the aprons: obviously they do still exist elsewhere. I admit I don't get out much, but the only aprons I've seen in the last few decades have been novelty items for barbecue parties. I still find it an odd choice for the website, and considerably more frumpy than a t-shirt. And re the frumpiness of the humble t-shirt, weren't they trying to sell the toasters vs sharks shirts on the other site? Weren't they frumpy over there? I bet if they came up with a clever design for a shirt they'd be able to unload a few of them to those desperate fans over on the FB page.

[MarkySnark]

Point is that The King wanted aprons, not T-shirts, to sell on the site. And what is there? Yet he can spew "emotional vomit" on everyone about never making a decision. It's like he doesn't realize these shows are on tape and don't disappear after being aired once. He probably thinks he's Ethan Hunt and the tape will self-destruct five seconds after viewing.

[BradandJanet]

How a bunch of weepy, whiney women who are under the thumb of a beady-eyed guy with bad hair can market a line of jewelry with a "strong women" theme is the height of irony. 

[Kohola3]

Good grief, now they are trying to hawk slabs of wood for $35 telling you to be nice.  Next thing you know there will be a "keep sweet" line of crap.  Could they be more cult oriented?

[AZChristian]

It would be awesome if someone were to copyright variations of their business name and then file suit against the Browns for infringement.

[Toaster Strudel]

It would be awesome if someone were to copyright variations of their business name and then file suit against the Browns for infringement.

 

You can't do that because they have the precedent.

 

Oh wait no

 

mysisterscloset has the precedent LOL

 

[JustAlison]

 

Does anyone actually wear an apron in the kitchen? 

 

I own many, and I love them. I suppose one could see it as a throwback to the old days of women in the kitchen and all that, but I don't. I see them as useful when I am cooking or cleaning, and also, they flatter my figure. 

 

That being said, I would never buy anything (even an apron!) from these fools. The idea that I would be supporting this ridiculous lifestyle financially is truly abhorrent.

[Mom24kids]

I love my aprons. They save my clothing when cooking and cleaning. I am a clutch but I make an awesome gravy for pasta!

[mbutterfly]

i didn't wear aprons for years until fairly recently I moved and became friends with a group of women who are really into gourmet cooking. Now I have a lovely selection of aprons. Wish I'd started wearing them sooner. 

 

ETA: I forgot to say I have no interest in SWC aprons. 

Edited August 21, 2014 by mbutterfly

[cassaundroll]

I would think it should be "My Sisterwife's Closet" (and not "My Sisterwives' Closet," unless they all share one closet; instead, the alternative could be "My Sisterwives' Closets") (and also not "Sister Wife" or "Sister Wives," which don't look right to me).  Whatever they've decided to go with, they should at least be consistent.  //pet peeve//   ...if, for no other reason, that they (probably) trademarked the name** and should consistently be using the name they trademarked.

 

**I mean, they must have done that, right?  I would think that would be the first thing they did.

Except that Robyn says "sisterwifes" instead of sisterwives (plural)...  But then, Robyn says a lot of things!

[cassaundroll]

I think it should have been just Sisterwives' Closet without "My" which is just awkward all strung together however they punctuate it. They could then just do some general pieces that their fans might be in the demographic for without selling stuff Kody supposedly designed for each wife personally.  Also they presumably can find out which is the age and income demo they are most watched in, they should do some market research on what kind of jewellery those women like and design some affordable pieces for them. I mean they might have done that, but the site sure doesn't look like it, it's so random.  

 

I can't get over charging someone $81.99 for a "sisterwife" ring. Oh, sorry, you're supposed to give it to your best friend/mother figure because she is a "Strong Woman".

 

http://mysisterwifescloset.com/?product=strength-engraved-ring

Man; that copywriter (Robyn) needs an editor BAD...  I mean, badly... 

 

At first I thought the ring read one thing "as is" and then another thing when reflected in a mirror and got excited at the cleverness, but I should've known better.  What is the point of photographing it on a reflective surface, then?  Although it makes an interesting pic.

Edited August 22, 2014 by cassaundroll

[cassaundroll]

I know you'll all be devastated, but the MSWC claddagh-ish pendant with the creepy hands is currently out of stock. (I was just over there doing my part to keep their "15 million" hits rolling.) So anyway, you'll have to spend your $85 somewhere else. I know, it's sad.

Why did "creepy hands" just make me think of Cody?

[toodles]

You have the chance to buy a genuine watch.  As opposed to........a fake watch?  Most of those watches are creepy  The bands look like snakes and look really uncomfortable to wear.

[BostonBlonde]

Which is why its so insanely stupid that the site crashes every week. Seriously, its their best advertising and one which probably won't be around too much longer. They should invest in a better site immediately as a top priority. If you are a professional as opposed to hobby business then its worth spending money getting the right site, especially if its your main ordering platform.

 

LOL The above post was written in June & I just tried to get on their crappy jewelry website (yes, I'm watching their shit show marathon) & it's still down.

 

Awesome business practices. I envision one of them sitting at a laptop, in their polygamy cul de sac, feverishly hitting every key trying to get the site restored.

 

They make me chuckle. 

[technorebel]

Has anyone here ever bought anything from them?  I confess that I bought their book.

[RealityCowgirl]

Heh. Just tried clicking on the link above to laugh at the hideousness - and got a database error. Can't get to the home page, either.

Must be overwhelmed by post-holiday orders. ;)

Or they "forgot" to pay their internet provider.

Edited January 4, 2015 by RealityCowgirl

[MaryMitch]

If they seriously think they are going to get any significant income from their jewelry "business", they are delusional. And even though I don't respect their intellect in any way, I don't think they're THAT dumb. The business is all for the television show.