# Amway founder/Betsy's FIL Richard DeVos dead at 92 **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 6, 2018, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amway-founder-betsys-fil-richard-devos-dead-at-92/820893 "2018-09-06T17:24:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2018, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amway-founder-betsys-fil-richard-devos-dead-at-92/820893/1 "2018-09-06T17:24:44Z")
> **[Amway founder and Magic owner Richard DeVos dies at age 92](https://apnews.com/595e1b8824ed47a4b043bffff0ef4547)** > > DETROIT (AP) — Billionaire Richard DeVos, co-founder of direct-selling giant Amway, owner of the Orlando Magic and father-in-law of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, died Thursday. He was 92. Family spokesman Nick Wasmiller says DeVos died at his... I didn’t know that this was how her family made their fortune, or maybe I heard and didn’t care. Some news sources referred to him as a philanthropist, and I do know that they endowed a museum in Michigan. I guess they did something good. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2018, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amway-founder-betsys-fil-richard-devos-dead-at-92/820893/2 "2018-09-06T17:40:05Z")
The Devos money runs all through West Michigan. Schools, hospitals, hotels, politics, and a shit ton more. I would clarify that Amway is how her husband’s family made it’s money. Her family, the Princes, made their billions as suppliers in the auto industry. Her brother made his as a defense contractor. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2018, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amway-founder-betsys-fil-richard-devos-dead-at-92/820893/3 "2018-09-06T17:47:41Z")
The “her” is a typo. It’s her family as well, because she married into it. Yeah, Amway has decent products, but if you know someone who sells it, they can be a real PITA. ---
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2018, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amway-founder-betsys-fil-richard-devos-dead-at-92/820893/4 "2018-09-06T19:56:59Z")
They should bury him in a pyramid. ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2018, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amway-founder-betsys-fil-richard-devos-dead-at-92/820893/5 "2018-09-06T20:15:15Z")
Good riddance to an evangelical fundamentalist Christian mid-level marketing scamster who pushed an agenda of mandatory prayer and teaching creationism in public schools. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Kron](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kron/32/12444_2.png) [@Kron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kron)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2018, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amway-founder-betsys-fil-richard-devos-dead-at-92/820893/6 "2018-09-06T22:14:12Z")
> [@Hypno-Toad](#): > > They should bury him in a pyramid. **golf clap** ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2018, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amway-founder-betsys-fil-richard-devos-dead-at-92/820893/7 "2018-09-06T22:27:47Z")
I sold Amway for over ten years. The extra money helped feed my family. Got us through the early years when my career in programming paid very little. I remember many photos of the DeVos family in the magazine we received. I’ll always be thankful for the opportunity they provided. Sales is a lot of work and not something I ever want to do again. ---
**Author:** ![JuliaSqueezer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/82dd89/32.png) [@JuliaSqueezer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JuliaSqueezer)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2018, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amway-founder-betsys-fil-richard-devos-dead-at-92/820893/8 "2018-09-07T14:01:27Z")
Looks like everyone moves up a level in the Amway pyramid now! ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2018, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amway-founder-betsys-fil-richard-devos-dead-at-92/820893/9 "2018-09-07T16:32:53Z")
I guess he is no longer Diamond Direct? ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2018, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amway-founder-betsys-fil-richard-devos-dead-at-92/820893/10 "2018-09-07T20:47:07Z")
Being originally from West Michigan, I’m all too familiar with “Scamway”. For every person who makes a living at it, there are at least a dozen who just can’t climb the pyramid and end up selling overpriced shit to their families and friends and drop out not having made anything. It’s just a pyramid scheme. Screw the whole lot of them. Gerry Ford was a much better representative of the area than the DeVos crime gang. ---
**Author:** ![chela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chela/32/21582_2.png) [@chela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chela)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2018, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amway-founder-betsys-fil-richard-devos-dead-at-92/820893/11 "2018-09-08T15:30:57Z")
DeVos and Van Andel started Amway together. Despite living up the road from Amway HQ for decades I’ve never run into anyone selling their products. Don’t even know what they sell! But yes lots of philanthropy and infusions of creativity and dollars, okay. Ames are on lots of buildings, the Arena, hospitals, research institute, hotels. We also had Fred Meijer who started a grocery chain. More beloved I think than jay and Rick were. Fred started our world class sculpture garden. Ford has his museum, meh. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2018, 12:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amway-founder-betsys-fil-richard-devos-dead-at-92/820893/12 "2018-09-09T12:29:10Z")
they used to a lot of cleaning products like detergents and also vitamins. I think those are still some of their big sellers. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2018, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amway-founder-betsys-fil-richard-devos-dead-at-92/820893/13 "2018-09-09T15:44:11Z")
What I don’t understand is that stuff (laundry detergent, vitamins, etc) is widely available in retail stores today. So what’s the big advantage of buying stuff through them? ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2018, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amway-founder-betsys-fil-richard-devos-dead-at-92/820893/14 "2018-09-09T17:20:21Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > What I don’t understand is that stuff (laundry detergent, vitamins, etc) is widely available in retail stores today. So what’s the big advantage of buying stuff through them? Cleaning products were widely available back then, too. The salespeople had to convince suckers that their products were better than the supermarkets’, and that the products contained less filler, making the price comparable. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2018, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amway-founder-betsys-fil-richard-devos-dead-at-92/820893/15 "2018-09-09T17:35:35Z")
Cleaning product sales generate consistant repeat sales. I had customers that bought a box of SA8 laundry detergent every month. LOC was a very popular general purpose degreaser cleaner. Many customers went ahead and bought the fabric softener, dishwashing soap etc. Back then (early 80’s) there wasn’t a lot of choices for low phosphate, no perfumes laundry detergent. I haven’t been a dealer since the late 80’s. I’m not familiar with what Amway sells anymore. I never was a persuasive salesman. Here’s the product, do you want it? It was just a sideline business to pay the bills. I bought some LOC from Ebay a few years ago. I needed it to wash mildew off my vinyl siding. I still feel it’s a great concentrated cleaner. One cap full for a half gallon water ---
**Author:** ![chela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chela/32/21582_2.png) [@chela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chela)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2018, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amway-founder-betsys-fil-richard-devos-dead-at-92/820893/16 "2018-10-02T22:49:59Z")
Bumping because Amway came to my door! Some lady, who must be nice left a goodie bag which was actually a small bag holding two beauty samples, inside of a larger bag that also had pamphlets, a handout about energy drinks, their latest product catalog and a can of XS Energy drink., I never heard the bell, it was hanging on my knob. IT astounds me! I have her card, is she waiting on me to call and say thanks. the perfume roller ball i’ll take, bit it’s scratchy and scent is bland. I do not believe in energy drinks either. I’ll just pour it out. thanks Elaine! ---
**Author:** ![Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/channing_idaho_banks/32/250_2.png) [@Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Channing_Idaho_Banks)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2018, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amway-founder-betsys-fil-richard-devos-dead-at-92/820893/17 "2018-10-02T23:48:26Z")
> [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#): > > Good riddance to an evangelical fundamentalist Christian mid-level marketing scamster who pushed an agenda of mandatory prayer and teaching creationism in public schools. > > Stranger This was my first thought.