A BRITISH court has ordered shutdown of a company which used Indian call centres in India to sell vitamins and healthcare supplements using “aggressive sales tactics”.
The UK's Insolvency Service said on Monday (10) that it had conducted confidential investigations after receiving complaints on the business modus operandi of Young Forever, reportedly owned by Mumbai-based entrepreneur Shadab Shaikh.
“Young Forever’s victims were the elderly and the vulnerable, and many more people will be protected from their aggressive sales tactics, thanks to the court's decision to wind up the company,” said Irshard Mohammed, Senior Investigator, Insolvency Service.
Investigators had discovered that the company pushed its products through cold-calling people. “Young Forever used call-centres based in India, and victims said that sales staff were persistent and would call repeatedly,” noted an Insolvency Service statement.
“Sales staff also falsely claimed that Young Forever was linked to government bodies, healthcare providers or the NHS,” it added.
The court was also told that Young Forever practised “improper” sales techniques, applied markups in excess of 1,000 per cent and failed to maintain adequate records.
Following the investigation, Young Forever Limited was wound up in the public interest last week in the High Court of Justice, London, before Judge Sebastian Prentis and an official receiver has been appointed to liquidate its assets.
Young Forever was incorporated in June 2018, with registered offices in Kensington, west London. The sole recorded director of the company is Shaikh, who has a Mumbai correspondence address listed on the Companies House records.
Apsana Begum
