Houston Instagram influencer Alexis Sharkey was 'mentor' at Monat — what some have called a pyramid scheme

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Social media influencer Alexis Sharkey, whose naked body was recently found off a road in Houston, has drawn nationwide attention following her death. 

As investigators intensify their hunt for answers about what happened, it was revealed that Sharkey was a 'mentor' at Monat, a company in which close friend Brittney Pember said Sharkey "worked her butt off" to become an executive director, according to KHOU 11.

So now the nation is wondering, what is Monat?

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The Florida-based company specializes in hair and skin care products, but many have labeled the company as a 'pyramid scheme.' However, the company has described itself as providing "ground-breaking opportunities through a novel Social Marketing approach to Direct Sales."

Sharkey's sister said she "hated" people labeling her an influencer and instead preferred to use the term "mentor" on her own Instagram page - a term that was tied to her work at Monat, as noted by Houston-based ABC affiliate KTRK.

Market Partners “share in the ‘down-line’ profits generated by their recruits. In this way, MONAT functions in a manner many would think of as a pyramid scheme.”

— 2018 class-action lawsuit

A 2019 report by the Guardian called Monat a Multi-Level Marketing scheme, noting that "structurally, MLMs are akin to pyramid schemes – once someone signs up under you, you become their 'upline' and take a portion of their earnings. If they sign up people beneath them, you also take a cut of those profits – a handful of people at the top get rich from thousands at the bottom."

At the time, Monat was recruiting “EU founders” to expand its operations overseas.

A 2018 class-action lawsuit filed by Monat customers stated that purchasers – known as Market Partners – who recruited additional Market Partners "share in the 'down-line' profits generated by their recruits. In this way, MONAT functions in a manner many would think of as a pyramid scheme."

The company told Fox News on Wednesday: "Alexis Sharkey was a warm, wonderful, and beloved, independent MONAT market partner. We are saddened by her tragic death and our thoughts are with her family and friends who loved her. Because this matter involves a police investigation, we are not going to say anything further. However, we fail to see the connection between the death of Ms. Sharkey and the MONAT business and believe that your attempt to make a connection is wrong.

Monat continued, "To be clear, we are a business approaching a billion dollars in sales with more than 2 million satisfied customers. We have more than 400,000 independent contractors who sell the extremely safe and effective premium hair care, skin care and wellness products throughout 5 markets worldwide by the direct selling channel. Furthermore, each year we spend hundreds of thousands of dollars – over a million now in total -- to conduct thousands of tests to ensure our products are safe and effective. We continue to engage third-party scientific testing laboratories to validate the safety and effectiveness of our products. In each case the findings are conclusive -- our products are safe and effective for their intended purpose."

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The company also faced complaints to the Better Business Bureau and USDA dating back to 2015 – just one year after the company was founded.

A complaint dated from Aug. 6 of this year said, "I started using Monat and experienced adverse affects." 

"This company is a scam. I trusted the company to provide a great product that many women around the US are selling but instead I was left with damaged hair and a painful experience. I just want my money back."

Monat noted in its response that the complaint was filed by someone who was enrolled as a Market Partner with MONAT Global.

"I was never told that is what I would be paying for," a complaint from a year earlier, dated Oct. 28, 2019, said. "I was told that the shampoo & conditioner is what I was being charged for, not a $19.99 membership fee. I was never informed about auto shipments, never signed up for any of it myself. It was a complete scam."

That same complaint alleged that the customer had been signed up for a VIP account without permission.

"Monat is a scam, caused terrible itching, painful pustules! DO NOT USE THIS PRODUCT!" a complaint from Dec. 8, 2017, said. "People have complained of losing their hair too. This is a disgraceful company, and it's sad to see them get people's hopes up. What a waste of time and money." 

In each case, customers demanded a full refund, with many wishing to see Monat punished for its practices. After the significant volume of complaints, three class-action lawsuits were filed, accusing the company of fraud and deception, according to KTNV.

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"An inherent design and/or manufacturing defect in Monat hair care products causes significant hair loss and scalp irritation to many consumers," one lawsuit alleges.

In September 2020, Monat signed an agreement with the Florida attorney general promising it would not conduct misleading sales and marketing practices, the South Florida Sun-Sentinal reported. The agreement also states that Monat will have to refund customers — in total, at least $82,782 reviewed in the investigation — alleging adverse effects from its products, according to the report.