Raymond F. Martineau and CEO George Foerst launched NOCA Now to sell concentrated healthy beverages, but the company's compensation plan directly mirrors the Text Cash Network scheme, raising immediate concerns about its business model. The multi-level marketing startup positions its sugar-free cola and tea alternatives against traditional soft drinks. An examination of its operations reveals several financial red flags.
Martineau claims 42 years of experience in network marketing companies. However, specific evidence of his MLM background remains sparse. Foerst also lacks clear documentation of his network marketing experience. Both men have worked in various business sectors, but their qualifications for leading an MLM venture are not well-defined.
NOCA Now offers two products: NOCA Cola and NOCA Tea. Both are concentrated liquids sold in cases of twelve 2-ounce bottles, priced at $36 per case. The NOCA Cola contains acai berry, blueberries, garlic, ginger, grape seed oil, hoodia gordonii, iodine, kelp, lycium berry, magnesium, mangosteen, panax ginseng, pomegranate, vitamin A, B vitamins, vitamin C, vitamin D3, and zinc. The NOCA Tea lists identical ingredients but in a tea-flavored formula.
The company openly admits its compensation plan is only slightly modified from the Text Cash Network model. These minor adjustments include a Power Retail Bonus, Power Direct Bonus, and Power Team Bonus. The Power Retail Bonus represents the markup between wholesale and recommended retail prices.
The Power Direct Bonus activates when members recruit new distributors. It offers a 10% commission on the wholesale cost of products those recruits buy or sell. Additional commissions then drop to 2% across nine downline levels. A Power Match Bonus also exists, providing a 10% match on certain purchases, though the explanation for this bonus ends mid-sentence on NOCA Now's own website.
This structure emphasizes recruiting new members to earn commissions on their purchases, pushing downline expansion as the primary income source. The reliance on Text Cash Network's compensation model, which itself has faced scrutiny, suggests NOCA Now may be repackaging a recruitment scheme rather than genuinely building a beverage business.
Consumers and potential distributors face clear warning signs. The leadership's MLM credentials are vague. The compensation plan is copied from another company. The concentrate beverages carry aggressive pricing. Most notably, the focus on recruitment bonuses, rather than product sales, indicates the drinks serve as a secondary element to the core business of signing up new distributors.