Quitting Pampered Chef can be difficult for consultants who have invested significant time and effort into building their business. Pampered Chef requires consultants to buy an initial starter kit, which can run $200 or more, and consultants are encouraged to continue buying inventory and supplies. Walking away means losing any investment put into the business. However, quitting is still an option if Pampered Chef is no longer a good fit. Here are some things to consider when deciding whether to leave Pampered Chef and how to go about it.
Should you quit Pampered Chef?
Before quitting, take time to carefully evaluate the pros and cons of continuing as a consultant versus leaving. Some factors to weigh:
Income potential
What are you currently earning from Pampered Chef? Is it covering your costs and providing adequate income? Or are you losing money or just breaking even? Consider whether your earnings are likely to increase if you stay on. Pampered Chef promotes the opportunity to grow a business, but not everyone is able to do so. If your income is not at the level you need and want, finding a new opportunity may make sense.
Enjoyment
Do you still find joy in selling Pampered Chef products and interacting with customers? Or has it begun to feel like a chore? Think about whether you look forward to doing parties and presentations or if you’ve lost enthusiasm. It’s hard to be successful if you no longer have passion for the work.
Work-life balance
Direct sales require a substantial time investment. Are you able to balance your Pampered Chef business with your other life responsibilities and priorities? Do you end up feeling stretched too thin? Assess whether the time commitment is feasible long-term.
Career goals
Selling for Pampered Chef may have started as a side gig but evolved into wanting a larger income source. Or perhaps you intended for it to become a full-time career but are no longer seeing that as a viable path. Reflect on your current career aspirations and whether Pampered Chef still aligns or if it’s time to shift focus elsewhere.
Consider discussing your thoughts with supportive friends and family members who may provide helpful perspective. But ultimately, listen to your own instincts in determining if leaving Pampered Chef is the right decision for you.
How to resign from Pampered Chef
If after careful thought you decide it’s time to move on, here are some tips for professionally resigning:
Notify your team leader
Pampered Chef expects consultants to formally resign by contacting their team leader, either through email or phone. Explain that you’ve decided to end your consultant relationship effective immediately. Keep the conversation polite and positive.
Return starter kit and supplies
You’ll need to return any products, order forms, catalogs and other inventory or supplies purchased from Pampered Chef within 14 days. Pampered Chef will refund 90% of the value. So be sure to round everything up promptly.
Submit final orders
Process any outstanding customer orders and payments you may have and notify Pampered Chef of anything that still needs fulfilled. Customers should receive any items they ordered and paid for.
Let your team and customers know
Alert teammates you’ve worked closely with so they’re aware and can make any adjustments needed. Also notify customers who may have upcoming parties on the books that you will no longer be their consultant. Offer to connect them with someone new if you can.
Cancel automatic shipments
If you signed up for any auto-delivery or auto-replenish programs through Pampered Chef, be sure to promptly cancel any future orders so you aren’t charged.
Change online info
Update your social media profiles and websites to remove any Pampered Chef consultant references. Take down any consultant pages you created.
Return awards and prizes
If you received any awards, prizes, electronics or jewelery through incentive programs, these typically need to be returned as well when you resign.
What happens to your team when you resign?
Pampered Chef teams are built on each consultant recruiting and mentoring others beneath them. So when someone resigns, it impacts the larger team structure. Here are some potential effects:
Your team may dissolve
If you directly sponsored other team members beneath you, they may be rolled up into your sponsor’s more immediate team once you resign. Or Pampered Chef may dissolve your team entirely and move people to new groups. It depends on the circumstances.
Your team loses bonuses
Pampered Chef offers team bonuses based on group sales volumes. Your resignation means one less contributor toward your team’s monthly quota to earn bonuses. So your departure could mean missed rewards for those remaining.
Others may follow your lead
Seeing you resign may lead other consultants you recruited or mentored to re-evaluate their own commitment to Pampered Chef. Your decision could influence some on your team to also leave.
Leaders must fill the gap
Your sponsor and other leaders who mentored you will need to put in extra effort to continue supporting and driving results for the team after losing you. It creates more work for them.
So know that your choice to quit Pampered Chef has a ripple effect on others counting on you for team rewards and structure. Be empathetic in how you break the news to your leader and group members.
Alternatives to completely quitting Pampered Chef
If aspects of the business are still working but other parts are not, alternatives like the following could strike a better balance:
Cut back on time invested
Limit the hours per week you devote to Pampered Chef to free up more personal time. Do fewer parties and presentations and focus only on the most profitable activities. Say no to taking on any additional team members.
Go on inactive status
Pampered Chef allows consultants to temporarily go inactive or “on vacation” for up to 6 months if needing a break from the business. You can still purchase products at a discount but pause on other responsibilities.
Sell just to existing customers
Instead of actively promoting the business and seeking new leads, simply provide items to repeat customers when they request it. Enable your e-commerce site so they can order directly.
Find a buyer for your team
It may be possible to sell your consultant position and transfer your team to another leader interested in taking over. This avoids fully abandoning those you recruited.
Transition to retail client status
If you want occasional access to Pampered Chef products for personal use at the discount, become a retail client instead of fully resigning. You can purchase items for yourself at a reduced cost but have no sales obligations.
Consider these middle ground options if you want to scale back without entirely shutting down your Pampered Chef business.
Pros of quitting Pampered Chef
While parting ways with Pampered Chef has its downsides, leaving also comes with a number of potential upsides:
More free time
You’ll gain back all the hours previously spent on Pampered Chef sales and administration. You can reallocate that time to family, friends, hobbies, rest or other priorities.
Less stress
The pressures of meeting sales quotas, booking parties, processing orders, managing a team and attending events will be lifted. You can let go of Pampered Chef-related stress.
Career change
Departing Pampered Chef frees you up to pursue a new career path you may be interested in. You can redirect your focus to other goals.
Financial savings
Without the need to purchase new products and pay fees to maintain consultant status, you’ll save money previously allocated to Pampered Chef expenses.
Focus on what makes you happy
You can leave behind any Pampered Chef activities you don’t truly enjoy and instead spend time on the people, places and pursuits that bring you happiness.
Less pressure from uplines
If you feel you constantly have to meet expectations from your Pampered Chef sponsors, quitting removes that pressure and opinions from your daily life.
More control over schedule
You’ll take back control of your personal calendar without having to block off times for Pampered Chef parties, events and meetings.
As you move forward after resigning, enjoy the benefits of reclaiming your time and focusing energy on the things most meaningful to you.
Cons of quitting Pampered Chef
Exiting Pampered Chef also comes with some downsides to prepare for:
Wasted investment
Money, time and effort you put into building a Pampered Chef business will be lost when you leave. Your investment does not carry over into other ventures.
Loss of income
Any earnings you had from Pampered Chef sales will cease once you resign. Be sure you have alternate income sources lined up before fully letting go.
Relationships fade
The regular contact you had with teammates and customers will likely fade after you depart unless you proactively maintain ties. Expect some friendships formed to wane.
Disappointing others
Your leader who believed in your potential and customers counting on you for products may feel let down. Be compassionate in how you break ties.
Overstock of products
If you have a significant inventory still on hand, you may struggle to sell remaining products after resigning, potentially eating into profits.
Burned bridges
Depending how you resign, you may damage relationships with Pampered Chef leaders to the point you cannot reverse your decision later if desired.
Losing perks
You’ll no longer receive the discounts, free products, trips and other perks available to active Pampered Chef consultants after quitting.
Be fully ready for these ramifications before submitting your resignation. Mentally prepare for the losses along with the benefits.
How to minimize losses when quitting Pampered Chef
To help reduce the sting of resigning from Pampered Chef, implement strategies like these:
Sell off inventory
Hold going out of business sales, offer inventory bundles at a discount online, or see if a local consignment shop will take products to unload as much as possible before resigning.
Return what you can
Any unused starter kits, demo kits, and current-year catalogs can be returned for credit within 14 days of resignation per Pampered Chef’s policy.
Save tax documents
Keep any tax forms related to your consultant earnings as documentation should questions later arise about prior year income.
Keep team in the loop
Share that you are considering resignation and the reasons why to give your team time to process and prepare for your departure.
Line up new opportunities
Having a new job, clients, or other income stream lined up will ease the financial hit of losing Pampered Chef commissions.
Transfer team members
See if your sponsor or another local leader would be willing to take on consultants you recruited so they have continued support after you leave.
Keep relationships intact
Proactively reach out to share your gratitude and say goodbye to teammates, clients and leaders you want to stay connected with outside of Pampered Chef.
Save online purchases
Make any personal final product orders you want to keep before resigning while you still receive the consultant discount.
Doing what you can to reduce your losses demonstrates professionalism and caring, leaving the door open for positive ties to continue in the future.
Can you return to Pampered Chef after quitting?
If life circumstances change again, it is possible to return to Pampered Chef even after resigning—with a few conditions:
– You must wait at least 6 months after resignation before re-applying to become a consultant again.
– You will start over from scratch and not retain any prior status or team members. Everything resets.
– Approval for returning is at the discretion of Pampered Chef corporate. Some long-tenured leaders who left large teams may not be allowed back.
– If you return, you cannot solicit anyone you previously sponsored to rejoin under you. They would need to stay with whomever they transferred to after you resigned.
So returning to the business is an option down the road but expect a clean slate and grace period before being allowed back. Carefully consider whether the opportunity still aligns with your goals before re-committing.
Conclusion
Quitting any direct sales business like Pampered Chef after investing significant personal resources is never easy. Take time to reflect carefully before making the decision so you can thoughtfully weigh the pros and cons for your situation. Handling the process professionally by communicting with your team, returning inventory and winding down outstanding customer orders can help smooth the transition on good terms. While exiting will require sacrifices, focusing your energy where you feel most fulfilled long-term makes letting go worthwhile.