“LuLaRich” is about leggings, lies, and the cult of multi-level marketing.
What started as stretchy pants turned into a billion-dollar empire — and a total dumpster fire.
Trailer for “LuLaRich”
Watch “LuLaRich”
You can stream “LuLaRich” on Amazon Prime Video here.
You can also check the latest streaming options on JustWatch.
Ratings:
- My Rating: 90/100
- IMDB Rating: 7.4/10
- Rotten Tomatoes Ratings: 89/100 (Users); 100/100 (Critics)
Director’s Note: Jenner Furst and Julia Willoughby Nason directed this 4-part docuseries. They’re also behind “Fyre Fraud” and “The Pharmacist” (which I rank 94/100!).
Release Date: September 10, 2021 (Amazon Prime Video)
My Review of “LuLaRich”
The Setup
“LuLaRich” tracks the rise and unraveling of LuLaRoe, a clothing company built on loud leggings and louder promises. At its peak, LuLaRoe had 90,000 sellers — mostly suburban moms lured in with dreams of financial freedom, sisterhood, and “unicorn prints.”
You Can’t Make This Sh*t Up
- Founders DeAnne and Mark Stidham have 14 kids — two of whom are married to each other.
- They paid Mario Lopez (yes, A.C. Slater) to take photos with 300 LuLaRoe sellers. The next Monday, 11,000 people applied to become sellers.
- In 2016, the top 0.01% of LuLaRoe retailers made $150,000 per month… while 70% made nothing.
- DeAnne allegedly pushed sellers to go to Tijuana for discounted gastric sleeve surgeries to “look better for the brand.”
- LuLaRoe spent $5 million to get Katy Perry to perform for their sellers at a company event.
More Highlights from the Doc
- Revenue jumped from $70 million in 2015 to $1.3 billion in 2016 — then cratered when people realized it was a house of cards.
- Some sellers were making $50K+ per month in product sales. Others ended up with garages full of moldy leggings they couldn’t return.
- Mark Stidham quoted the Book of Mormon during company events.
- One former seller breaks down how returns and buybacks were suddenly cut, stranding thousands of women with unsellable inventory.
- Interviews with ex-employees show how internal chaos, nepotism, and denialism ran the company into the ground.
- The doc includes a bizarre on-camera interview with the Stidhams — where they mostly gaslight and smirk their way through tough questions.
Lesser-Known Details from the Doc
- At its peak, LuLaRoe had a higher Google search volume than Nordstrom.
- The company’s compensation plan got so complex that even LuLaRoe’s own accountants had trouble explaining it.
- One former employee said the company would shred returned clothes and toss them into dumpsters — even when they were still wearable.
- LuLaRoe sellers were expected to post constantly on Facebook Lives — even during family emergencies — to keep up their ranks.
- When seller numbers started to tank, the Stidhams reportedly blamed “haters” and not the product quality or refund issues.
Wrap Up
“LuLaRich” is the best takedown of MLM culture I’ve seen — both hilarious and horrifying. If you ever wondered how pyramid schemes get so big, this one has answers (and A.C. Slater).
Thanks for reading!
Rob Kelly, Chief Maniac, Daily Doc