For 6yrs I was mentored by Kris Deichler from Lighthouse International Group (also known as LIG) and so have a good idea on the business model and their approaches to marketing. The below is a summary of their business model and approach from what I experienced.
Marketing Approach
In 2013 I came across a business networking event on the website MeetUp.com and so joined the group. I was soon contacted by the groups host Kris Deichler who suggested we meet 121 to speak about my goals. At the meeting he offered his 121 mentoring sessions at £50 per hour.
It turned out no business networking events were hosted off the back of the MeetUp group but because I was open having a coach/mentor at the time the approach didn’t really bother me. Although I will confess it is a little sneaky to operate a bait and switch approach.
Based on some of the comments on Reddit (group discussion here >) the main marketing approach appears to be connecting with people via MeetUp.com, networking app Shapr, LinkedIn with either join a business networking group or participate in “research”. Reddit user: composingmusic (here >) shared his experience by posting this comment…
Enrolment
Those who are interested in working with Kris Deichler / Lighthouse International Group will either pay the £50 per hour fee for 121 mentoring/coaching/counselling sessions or join one of their current projects. These have come and gone over the years often with much hype at the launch but over the 6yrs that I was involved all projects that I was aware of got shelved soon after they were launched. One former Lighthouse mentee/client speaks of his multi-year journey with LIG here >
Bread Crumbs
Based on my experience, a number of friends (one in particular who had a brother involved many years before either of us) the Lighthouse agenda is not just to provide a mentor/mentee relationship. Subtle bread crumbs are dropped over the months and years encouraging mentees time and again to “step up” and “get more involved” with the Lighthouse business. I was basically advised years later that I had incurred a moral debt to the turn of £15,000. More details here >
New Offerings
It can depend on what stage you are at, what programme is running at the time (again the story of one former mentees journey can be found here >) and perhaps how big your cheque book is but typically there is a low cost £10 – £20 a week personal development programmes via Zoom and sometimes there is an active face to face get together but is more expensive.
The most expensive programmes (always referred to as an “investment” and “opportunities”) cost between £5,000 to £25,000. Regardless of what you purchase there will be no paperwork (details >) and no VAT receipt. How the LIG business is able to avoid paying HMRC the 20% VAT on it’s sales is one of the most mysterious questions that has yet to be answered. (details >).
In 2018 my friend and I were relentlessly pitched a £5,000 Zoom based discipline course that was assured to be comparable to an alchemy machine (way to turn ordinary material into gold) and on par with a University education however the selling of it did a good deal of damage. Details >
Franchisee / Associate Partnership
The most significant investment and the one causing the most amount of grief from at least handful of former Lighthouse International Group LLP “Associate Elect” and/or “Associate Partners” who say they either did not get value for the £25,000 they paid for this package and/or feel misled in what they received for a huge outlay. One unhappy Associate Partner’s story can be found here >
What those who take the jump receive for their twenty five grand is still unclear. Because no purchase from LIG comes with any invoice, receipt, contract and every transaction is done on “trust”. Besides being known within the LIG world under this job title and I guess having some business cards with this title on it and being entitled to join their inner circle of daily training, brainstorming and accountability sessions this appears to be the extent of what they receive.
The LLP partnership that individuals are encouraged to put £25,000 into has £0 assets. It does not own the Lighthouse International Group brand, website, domain name nor any business contracts of value i.e. a royalty / exclusivity agreements with individuals or companies they provide mentoring or seminar services too.
All assets are owned by a few lucky senior partners as their own personal property. From a financial point of view the Lighthouse International Group LLP is effectively worthless. For proof the LLP is not even worth £1 view their balance sheet here >
MLM Model
What is clear is that the individual does not receive any salary, shares in the business, does not be made an official “Partner” in the eyes of Companies House / HMRC nor does the individual receive any mentees and support with their marketing costs to attract them. They are on their own to make a living.
The monies they receive from mentees are also not all there’s to keep, like a franchise / multi-level marketing business model they are expected to kick up a % of each mentoring session to the tier above them. The same goes with any Lighthouse courses / programmes sold.
Value for Money?
Whist this “buy-in” has been around for 10yrs and there a number of individuals on the Reddit board who have stated they have been miss-sold / they did not consider it value for money and representatives for Lighthouse International Group strongly denied this they have yet to show an example of a single individual who has had a final return on their “investment“.
Kris who invested in 2011/12 and so some 10yrs later stated in his December 2021 article that he “lives like a student“.
“Investment” Pocketed
The LIG accounts also state that the LLP partnership has a £0.00 bank balance each year.
This confirms what some on Reddit have suspected (details >) that an individual who “invests” £25,000 into Lighthouse International Group LLP is not having their money kept in the partnership to grow the business instead 100% of it goes into the pockets of the individuals behind the LIG business.
If this were not the case then the LIG books would show it’s cash in the bank as an asset. Draining the LLP of cash and returning it’s value to £0 each time a sale is made also means that even if a mentee/client takes legal action against Lighthouse International Group LLP and secures victory they would have a court judgement against a business with £0 cash in the bank and £0 assets.
Daily Life
A Former “Associate Partner” gave insight as to what a day in the life was like for them here >. Another individual who says he has a good friend who is currently an “Associate Elect” at Lighthouse has outlined what he has been told daily life looks currently looks like for them here >
“Partner” Term
Whilst many mentors at Lighthouse call themselves an “Associate Partner” and head mentor Paul Waugh states that there are “50-60 partners” (video here >) this is actually a false statement of fact.
The government agency where LLP partnerships have to report their accounts, address of the business, list the full number of partners show LIG has declared just four partners (details >).
Individuals cannot go around using the term “Partner” in a limited liability partnership anymore then individuals involved with a Ltd company can go around calling themselves a “Directors” unless they are appointed one and it has been declared with the authorities and public via Companies House. Not doing so is not only misleading and deceptive it is also against the law.
End Goal
LIG’s goal is not to be a standard mentoring/coaching company but to build a “community” of like minded individuals where these individuals work collectively together for the benefit of all involved.
This is achieved not by employing people as staff or giving new members x % of the business but by encouraging those who attend an event or mentees to become mentors themselves and push out (on a commission only basis) Lighthouses’ current projects/seminars/coaching courses.
The mentor does not receive all of the monies from each session they provide as they kick a commission up the chain to the tier above. An individual makes money from the mentoring and package sales they provide and a passive % income from those in their downline they have introduced. This business structure is often referred to as MLM or a multi-level marketing.