Michelle Stonhill

I signed up and joined Michelle's 12 month Wealth Accelerator program in November 2018 with great excitement and determination and left in March of 2019 full of disappointment and let down - this was due to huge misrepresentation on her part.

What is offered on her website is a premium one to one coaching environment, with personalised strategies to kick start your business to the next level with a hefty price tag of £9000. However, what you get is an online video tutorial environment similar to that of YouTube which one could get for free. There are group calls, but given the number of women in the program there is never any time to ask a question and every woman is at a different stage in the program, these calls are not helpful.

There are 20+ other women who have left this program prematurely! That doesn't happen without reason.

When someone's message is also constantly changing and contradicting itself, one needs to ask why. When someone's marketing message is not one of positivity but rather moaning, again one should question. There is never smoke without fire...

The two positive reviews are *, Michelle's best friend, as well as her now social media manager... and *, another friend and PR manager. Both of these ladies are a part of Michelle's team and on her payroll.

Beware of fake reviews...

*Personal information redacted by admin

I have lost thousands of pounds to Michelle, £7750 to be exact, on a programme that is in my opinion, poor quality.

On her website she promises 1-2-1 bespoke coaching but in a whole year, you get 2 hours worth of 1-2-1 coaching time -- when paying £750 per month!

I found that the advice she gave is not always relevant, realistic or useable: her answer to making money overall seems just to be to charge extortionate amounts of money to one's clients per session, something I don't want to do. This didn't sit right.

In my opinion her marketing strategy does not yield consistent results. I noticed that women in the programme even after the majority of the year in the course were not really generating any sales or getting new clients. It only appears to have worked for the clients that she has used as testimonials from a long time ago and herself.

I sent a formal complaint and asked for evidence to back up 3 testimonials that she uses to promote the course, (testimonials that I signed up to the programme after reading) because once in the programme I realised these three women are people who are on her team; two earning money from her clients through in-programme sells and one who I believe is on her payroll and also happens to be her best friend of years. This set off alarm bells for me.

Instead of any care or respect for the fact that I am one of her high paying clients asking questions and having an issue with the quality of what she is offering, asking for validity, she thew me out of the mentorship group immediately - a course I paid up front for, without a remaining refund that I had asked for.

The contract I signed with Michelle states that claims of actual earnings can be verified and examples of actual results can be provided. Yet when I asked her to provide evidence for these testimonial I got nothing of the sort back and instead have received a letter from her legal team saying I will be pursued for defamation. I wrote in the questions below that in my experience I think this programme is a scam, meaning, I feel the value of the course is exaggerated, I feel it is misrepresented and I have experienced terrible customer care. I feel the value of the course is exaggerated, I feel it was misrepresented to me and I have experienced terrible customer care. I don't believe I received £8000 worth at all and I wish I had invested my money in a university masters instead, or on a coach with integrity, proof of concept and real results.
I tried to delete the answers below after receiving a scary message from her lawyer saying they will make a hefty claim against me for defamation and damages (to no avail as Sitejabber won't return my messages and I couldn't delete them like I could this review), but after speaking with my own lawyer I know I am simply sharing my own experience and we have freedom of speech to share an honest review without fear of even greater financial loss. I am only sharing what I believe to be true, in my experience and opinion of this programme after being in it for 8 months. Others are welcome to make up their own minds although I strongly suggest you spend your money elsewhere.

Also, my experience is not an isolated incident. I am speaking with many women who have had similar experiences in this programme and who feel the same. They also feel scared to come forward from fear of being pursued. That speaks volumes no matter how it is framed positively on social media by her, "behind every successful woman is a pack of haters, fact!" well that is not the kind of success that I want.

In the end I am left with the feeling that Michelle never cared about me as her client and I regret the day I paid any money to her. She is a first class narcissist and manipulator.

My final statements that sums up how I feel about this course and Michelle as a coach: "All that glitters is not gold" and "the Emperor isn't wearing any clothes." Stay well away!

EDIT ADDED 10/02/2020
Once again I do not appreciate Michelle's "team" writing unnecessary comments. What I have said is backed up by evidence and is not defamatory. The glowing review I wrote was written within the first month or so of joining when I had not experienced the majority of the programme now understood what was actually going on. I do not give my permission for that to be used as it is not a reflection of how I actually feel about your service. There is a reason why Michelle asks her customers to write reviews within the first few weeks of joining when there is hype and excitement and not further down the line. How many clients that have actually seen the programme through "happily" are actually making money? How many clients are actually satisfied with what has been offered. Those are figures I would like to see. Michelle does not have a pack of haters, there is just a community of very disappointed customers trying to share the truth of their experience with a terrible service.

Firstly I would like to make clear because of the communication I have personally received which I perceive to be threatening, that this review is how I personally viewed my experience. I thought about not writing this review, but I feel it's important for others to know what I have experienced to prevent it from happening again. I know I feel extremely threatened and have received communications in what I believe is an attempt to try to silence me. This is just my side of the story and how I experienced it, but every story does of course have two sides, which no doubt will be posted as a comment below my review.

In my opinion, the program which I joined the Wealth Accelerator Mentorship was the biggest waste of money and a huge, huge mistake, I personally believe I could have found exactly the same information from reading a book or looking at websites online. I won't lie when I first found Michelle Stonhill, I was felt amazed by the life portrayed and what I perceived to be promises of helping women to rapidly achieve wealth. On our first discovery call I was drawn to what I felt was Michelle's excitement to help me achieve my goals and when I first started the program I too was excited to get going. I recall on the discovery call her telling me I could achieve success quickly and that she had helped women to achieve £10k months within 4 months of joining, who wouldn't want that! During the call I feel I made it clear I was struggling financially and didn't have the full money to participate in the program, I told her I would need to speak to my husband. She responded in a way which I felt was coercion by informing me there wasn't much space left in the next intake and that I would need to act fast if I wanted it. She arranged to call me back the next day to take the next steps. In hindsight I feel throughout this call I was made to feel inadequate if I didn't step up and almost as if I didn't do this I wouldn't be successful.

I then signed what I felt was a very badly written contract, which having looked through afterwards features no company registration details, registered address or contact details other than an email address, I feel in my mind had I not felt so brainwashed I would have seen alarm bells ringing at this point. I was then enrolled in the program to start in September 2019.

When I first joined I was disappointed to find that the bespoke 1-2-1 sessions were actually only two sessions lasting 1hr, what I perceived to be a significant time apart in the program. I felt for the amount of money spent that the level of 1-2-1 support was very poor and in no way bespoke. When we had the first 1-2-1 session I felt rushed and all I was offered were four different types of people I could work with to build my online business, I expected there to be more support and advice around strategy and the practicalities of taking this forward to build and develop my actual program and the strategy to actually turn this into a business. The 2nd 1-2-1 session wasn't to be until I was ready to actually launch my business, by which time all the groundwork would have been done using what I felt was a very substandard online program, featuring audio recordings and videos which I felt were very short in length and insufficient to build an actual business, some only a few minutes in length.

I was asked for a review very early into the program, literally when i'd hardly started. I personally feel this was because they wanted to obtain this from me before I realized what I had got myself into.

One of the reasons I was attracted to the program was seeing social media posts of women currently and previously in the program, posts which I perceive to be purporting them to be successful and having made money from the program. I quickly realized many of these women who I got to know personally before, during and after leaving the program were actually flat broke, with many being worse off than before they started (I have evidence). One of the testimonials used both on her website and throughout social media features a make-up artist who works at the Versace mansion, I have since learned this woman was successful in her own right and had all these contacts prior to working with Michelle. I have since also discovered that some of the other testimonials were not factually correct or were inaccurately represented, which make me feel like I wasn't fully informed when I made the decision to join her program because many of the details I read on her website, or saw on her social media had an influence on my decision.

As I moved through the program I felt unimpressed by the weekly group calls, which a couple of times featured women crying in despair because they had no money and didn't know what to do. There were a number of times people who asked questions during the call didn't get them answered because there were too many people on the call and only an hour allocated for each one. Each morning Michelle would go through the Facebook page and leave what I felt were very basic comments to peoples questions, not exactly bespoke or strategic support. When I messaged her directly on Facebook to ask questions, I was often told to either bring the question to a group call or to ask the girls in the group, well no offense I hadn't paid to ask their advice. I also started to notice a trend of relating difficulties to mindset or fear or living in scarcity and answering questions which I perceived to clearly need practical business input to go and speak to the mindset coach - let's not even go there!

Michelle get's you to complete an accountability form each week on a Friday, on this form there is an area to raise any issues, you can actually mark the program out of ten. I never personally felt able to mark it any less than a ten, I felt if I was to do so I wouldn't be looked on favorably. I was actually told to only be positive in the group and not to bring negativity, I felt this actually prevented me from properly speaking up. After she had read the accountability forms somebody from the team contacted you to offer what I personally felt were pointless words of advice, things like "go you" "you got this" or you're on fire!". On one occasion I was under the impression I was having a conversation with Michelle, a this conversation was through her Facebook account, all of a sudden she popped up on her page in a live video, i'll never know who was actually messaging me on that day, but I wasn't receiving coaching advice from the person I'd paid!

The "tech" support was her husband and whilst I will say there were a couple of things he did indeed teach me, the vast majority of his website advice was geared to just one platform, I felt as a tech guy he should have an all-round knowledge of multiple platforms to be able to offer adequate advice. I felt the same thing applied when questioned about platforms for building sales funnels etc. The session he did around teachable featured outdated advice, this was bought to his attention. I felt for the money we were paying he should be aware of this and everything should be totally up to date.

I felt the social media/instagram coach was misleading, the coach who did the social media sessions in the group actually had no idea how to use instagram. On one occasion during a Facebook training session she had notes next to her to tell her how to do a simple task, I personally didn't understand why this was necessary for a social media & visibility strategist, surely it should be second nature?

The final straw for me came over the Fox TV debacle. I was personally contacted by Michelle with a message to say she had an exciting opportunity for me, I felt she insinuated this was a once in a lifetime opportunity and again I felt she insinuated this was for a small group of hand chosen women who she felt were ready. I felt she suggested that this opportunity had been offered to her exclusively and she said she didn't have to pay for airtime. She asked me not to share that she had approached me with anybody else in the group, I feel in an attempt to block us from realizing how many she had actually invited and she specifically said this opportunity wasn't for the entire group. I felt coerced into signing up for this opportunity because she said spaces were filling up, so I stupidly paid the deposit of £1500. The full amount was to be £3997. The following week she proceeded to actually advertise it as an opportunity to the entire coaching group, telling them to contact her if they were interested. She then created a Facebook group of those going and I was shocked to see a total of 30 women, so much for a select few! I felt completely misled by this opportunity. Less than two weeks later I learned much more about the whole Fox TV issue, I have now seen links of people who book this opportunity regularly for anybody approaching them for a fraction of the price, one of which is Instant Celebrity, who I believe Michelle is aquainted with. I felt very misled by the Fox TV situation, she states she was invited to appear on Fox TV herself and uses this as part of her marketing techniques, I believe this is not truthful and it was an opportunity she paid for. Part of the package we purchased for Fox TV was to include a training day where she would educate us on how to use our own interviews in our marketing strategy, I personally felt to use this kind of media in the same way would be dishonest and misleading to my future clients and I didn't want any part.

Following this I sought legal advice around requesting a refund of the deposit paid of £1,500. I was well aware under the Consumer Rights Act that I was entitled to a refund within 14 days of purchase. It then however came to light that she had worded the contract so it would appear I had purchased as a business, knowing full well i'm not yet registered as a business entity. I believe this was done to get around the cooling-off period and to avoid giving anybody a refund when requested, the same I feel applies to her standard contract. I feel this term is unfair under the Contract Terms Act. She also stated she couldn't refund because she had paid their money for the production slot (I have evidence), I feel misled here because she suggested she had received this airtime free and had been approached personally by Fox TV.

When I requested a refund I received what I perceived to be an intimidating email advising I needed to provide evidence of how I was misled for an "internal investigation" and that it was company policy when a complaint was made to book a call with Michelle Stonhill. I felt this was an intimidation tactic.

I responded to this email requesting what I felt were perfectly legitimate questions which included confirmation of registered company address and company registration number as none were provided anywhere. I also advised I would be passing this issue onto my lawyer to progress further as I feel my money was taken based on incorrect information and would subsequently be reporting Michelle Stonhill to the police. I was very swiftly removed from the main program and received what I personally feel was a very threatening email featuring her solicitors details, demanding payment of the rest of the program fee, advising me I was attempting to defame Michelle Stonhill and enticing other clients to leave, I was purely telling the truth and have evidence to back everything up. I was advised if I continued to speak to anybody I would be pursed legally. I personally felt this was an attempt to keep me quiet. I was also advised that all previous lawsuits against the company had been settled in their favor, again I believe this was an attempt to frighten me into paying the full amount due and not speaking out.

Michelle frequently posts about a "small" group of women with a vendetta against her, what I have discovered since leaving this program and has shocked me is far beyond anything I ever expected. I suspect these "mean girls" are in no way mean and are actually just trying to leave their honest opinions. I believe we are all intelligent women who ask pertinent questions and were quickly shutdown when what I feel we started to discover was the truth. There are numerous negative reviews featured here and in other places, but I notice a theme with the positive reviews and I personally believe these are people who work with Michelle or have a close friendship.

I feel this situation will be portrayed in a way that makes out it's the fault of the people she was coaching, but there comes a time when you have to stop and reflect on why the same issues keep happening to the same person over and over again. If you're taking £8000 from someone to provide a service and those people ask questions you're uncomfortable with, provide criticism of your service or are unhappy with the service provided it's your responsibility as a business owner to deal with that situation and to make people who have asked questions or feel they were misled then feel threatened in any way is disgraceful behavior.

So no in my opinion do not invest in this program, I wouldn't work with this woman if you offered me a million pounds, which incidentally I don't believe she will make you!

Edit 10/02/20

As you can see Michelle Stonhill has responded to my review, luckily mine didn't get taken don't like most of the others leaving their negative reviews!

This same review has been posted on numerous review sites including this one and Trust Pilot, neither them or my solicitor have felt my comments are defamatory in any way as suggested by Michelle Stonhill, purely stating the facts as they are.

As stated in my review above this testimonial requested was very early in the program, odd to request a testimonial when someone hasn't actually accessed and used your program. It's like asking someone what the food is like in a restaurant before they've even tasted it!

I felt it was extremely hard in Michelle's program to raise negative feedback as she talks about everybody being "high-vibe" and not bringing negativity to the program, I didn't personally find her approachable at all. After the Fox debacle I discovered a very large number of women who had very similar concerns to myself, but had been silenced through emails and letters from her solicitor based in Manchester. I have copies of their emails and letters and can back this up 100%, I have their permission to share their names, would you like me to do that?

Michelle Stonhill, you no longer have permission to use my testimonial in public, so please remove it.

The first thing I want to make clear because of the threats of law suits to others who have written their reviews, this is how I viewed my experience. There is much more to my personal story, but no one has time to read a novel when they're looking for a review.

The second thing I want to say is that this is just my side of what I happened. Every story has more than one side; this is just mine.

In my opinion, this programme is not worth the investment.

I made what I consider to be one of the greatest mistakes of my life when I signed up for this programme.

As the face of the Michelle Stonhill company, I can't deny that I felt drawn to Michelle's apparent warmth towards women and, what I felt at the time, understanding of what it's like to be a woman building a business, but those feelings faded significantly and quickly.

I was invited onto a discovery call June 2018 after I'd been interacting with Michelle and/or her team for a couple of months on social media. I was delighted because I saw her as a person of influence and everyone wants to be liked, right? And we are constantly told to surround ourselves with people you want to be more like... Not always the best move, in my case.

On the call with her, I recall I was told about how she was taking women from 0-10k in a matter of months and how one of her clients, a makeup artist, was making it big in the Versace mansion as a result of working with her. I told her my intention which, at that time, was to work with women overcoming depression and ready to step up to the next level in their lives. She then went on to tell me about how she'd worked with someone who was earning a million dollars a year as a live in support for celebrities with addictions. She couldn't say who this was because of the nature of their business, but I knew who the makeup artist was. I have since learned that the MUA already had the contacts for this. I can't say about the other person because I have no idea who they are or even if they exist. I have also learned in subsequent months that some testimonials were not factually correct or accurately represented which means, at least in my mind, I wasn't able to make a fully informed decision because some of what I saw, read and heard had an influence on me.

During that same call, I made it clear several times (and I also made it clear in at least one message prior to the call) that I was not currently earning money, that I did not have access to credit cards or loans, and although I would have loved to work with her, I didn't think it was going to be possible.

Against my better judgement, I paid a deposit a few days later, but I felt like I was persuaded into a programme I had no business being in. I didn't even have a semi-established business, just an idea that I didn't actually stick with because my own mental health was not in a great space, but I wanted to believe what I was being told was possible.

After signing what I consider to be a poorly written contract that only appears to protect Michelle Stonhill, I beat myself up mentally for making a terrible decision that I knew would affect my family. I was due to start the programme in September 2018.

In August 2018, two months after I signed the agreement and BEFORE I was due to join the programme, I wrote to Michelle asking if I could defer to a later date or have another way out and explained my financial situation again. She told me that reading my message helped her realise exactly why I needed the programme. I took it as her way of saying that I was broke and this programme would help me not be broke. She said I could defer and within a strict deadline, but basically because I'd signed the agreement, she'd have to speak to her legal and support team because my payments would go out automatically on the agreed date of the 12th of September otherwise. It's important to note that I have evidence to back this up, since I am trying to protect myself from more legal threats. At this point, I was given an October or November start date to choose from and I chose November, feeling it might give me more time to get my first payment together, which would be £650 (this was the amount left to pay for my first month after paying my £150 deposit). I had a strong desire to avoid any legal issues and so I told her I still wanted to work with her, despite this not being true.

Where. Was. My. Cooling. Off. Period? If I wanted out, I should have only lost my £150 deposit.

I joined the programme in November and was so overwhelmed by my situation that I began to have an emotional breakdown but I stayed silent because I didn't tell anyone that I'd signed up for this programme and because I felt so ashamed.

That shame was exacerbated as I started to go through the programme and much of the mindset work was worded in such a way that if you aren't succeeding, it's your fault. If you default on payments, it's your fault. Blah. Blah. Blah. But more than that, I was so frustrated that most of what was in there wasn't relevant to me and what was relevant, I'd already learned from my previous mentor for a fraction of the price.

I tried to participate as much as I could because I'd convinced myself I was alone in my feeling and that it must be me. But I wasn't always able to attend calls or be present because I am my son's carer and a full-time university student who spends a lot of time travelling. This is something I was called out on but I can't magic time out of thin air.

By March/April time, I was in such financial hardship that I had to default on a payment and I felt suicidal because not only could I not afford to pay her, I couldn't pay my rent. Michelle was so nice about it that again I was convinced I was the problem. There must be something fundamentally wrong with me. I then defaulted a further two times because I had next to no money coming in.

I did make some money while in the programme but that was from following my own methods because I refused to follow the same guidelines Michelle uses to bring people into her programme.

I stayed in that programme for 10 months believing I was the sole problem, scoring it a sycophantic 10 out of 10 so I could keep the peace and hope they wouldn't set the debt collectors (whom I'd been threatened with multiple times, just by the sheer mention of them. I have the emails), until one day, I realised I wasn't alone and the many red flags I'd experienced weren't just my imagination.

Michelle posts a lot about having mean girls attacking her, but I suspect these mean girls' aren't actually mean and judging by the negative reviews I've read, they are simply grown women who questioned what they were getting and weren't happy. Just a guess. And today I was directed to a post she'd made - a live - where she talks about how to deal with clients who don't pay. I can't lie; I was triggered. It triggered the shame in me that I feel around my financial situation, about my debts and about how I didn't finish paying her.

In my opinion, a wealth coach for women should never make you feel ashamed about your financial situation. She commented back to someone who asked what to to if the client doesn't have the money to pay by saying something like it's not her problem.

Well here's the thing, it is my belief that it becomes your problem when you are signing people up (me, in this instance. I can't speak for anyone else) to a programme you know they can't afford and to shirk all responsibility is, in my opinion, abhorrent.

The short version of this review is Not worth it, in my opinion.'

Edit (10/02/2020):

Michelle Stonhill has responded to my review - you can see this by clicking on my name, I believe.

Having posted this exact review to Trust Pilot first and having it reported for defamatory reasons by Michelle Stonhill, Trust Pilot asked me to change one line. I did so willingly and made the changes here, too.

Trust Pilot doesn't think my review is defamatory, so...

If my review, which was posted a couple of months ago is defamatory, then why have I not been approached by Michelle Stonhill's solicitor, or taken to court? Let's do it?

I have evidence for my claim, it's cool.

And as for my testimonial, which has been quoted in Michelle's response below, I did indeed write it. She asked many of us to write one. I was about 2-3 months in, had no frame of reference, and hadn't done the work because I was and still am a full-time student, a carer and a mother. I also wasn't as happy as I made it sound in that testimonial and can remember thinking how odd it was to ask me when I hadn't even completed the programme.

I'd also already been made aware of a legal team' (which, by the way, is one solicitor based out of I don't know, The Wirral or Manchester. Somewhere anyway) in the months before. I felt like I was the only one unhappy with the whole shebang. Turns out there is at least 37 of us and I'm happy to list names with their permission.

Michelle Stonhill, you no longer have permission to use my testimonial in public, so please remove it.

You could of course, refund my money, offer me a public apology and I will amend my review to say that you cooperated?

No?

Your loss.

And your move.

Edit AGAIN - 14/02/2020: Probably worth mentioning that I had done the appropriate amount of work leading up to that review. I just hadn't completed the course because I was a very busy person but the course is effectively a year long. I have piles of notebooks to prove the work I put in. So when I say, I hadn't done the work,' I meant I hadn't completed it past module 2 or 3 by that point. Cheers anyway. *thumbs up*

As a previous client of Michelle Stonhill, I find it difficult to put into words the gratitude that I have for this incredible woman. From the bottom of my heart, I am so thankful to have found her and for what she has helped me achieved.

I started working on my new business with Michelle in March of 2018, 30 weeks pregnant and willing to do whatever it took to not have to put my Son in childcare and get a job. All I've ever wanted is to be able to stay at home with him, and earn enough money to just cover our bills - even that would've been enough for me.

What has happened since then didn't seem possible when I started out. 6 months in, I've had my first 10k month, and I am consistently achieving things I could not have dreamed of. As well as that, for the first time in my life, I enjoy waking up in the mornings, stepping into my office and showing up for my Clients - something I could've never said in any job I've ever done.

The course was very comprehensive and as I chose the 121 shorter more intensive coaching option, I had a call with Michelle every week for 3 months. I worked through the 7 steps and attended group coaching where I could ask questions in addition to my sessions.

I'm able to be with my Son day in, day out. I'll NEVER have to miss any of his milestones. He has just turned 1, and has travelled with us to 4 different countries. Our financial future as a family is secure, and I get to be the Mummy that I always wanted to be - that to me is priceless.

Not only is Michelle an incredible Coach, she's the most genuine, kind-hearted, selfless person I know. The course was incredible value for money, nothing was over promised and I knew what I needed to do to be successful. The team were there every step of the way.

Michelle has been an amazing coach! I have been on her wealth accelerator programme for almost 12 months and the help and support has been incredible! I would highly recommend Michelle if your looking for a coach.

Wow! Where do I start? I have been in business for myself for 8 years but following some personal issues I found my business was very quickly heading for closure as I had just not got any strategy or clarity anymore.

I desperately researched business coaches as I needed help... I had a few calls with different coaches but just made an instant connection with Michelle. She is a realist! Told me she can not turn my business around over night, highlighted I needed to do the work and assured me she would be there every step of the way. She did not disappoint!

I have now finished Michelle's programme, I have a successful 6 figure business, my confidence is stronger than ever and I will never ever be able to show how much I appreciate this lady. In just month 3 working with Michelle, I had a £23,000 month!

Michelle and her programme will not disappoint and I'm eternally grateful!