September 17, 2018
This week’s article is a short compilation of questions that are frequently directed to those in the direct selling industry. These questions are asked either because of being less or misinformed or due purely to prejudices. I am sure many of you have come across some or all of these. Here are my usual answers […]
Read MoreSeptember 10, 2018
In 1975, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) accused Amway of operating as a pyramid scheme. Many people might think this case had lasted a few months at most but actually it took four years until 1979. As an introductory note, the Federal Trade Commission has the regulatory authority over direct selling businesses in the […]
Read MoreSeptember 3, 2018
Tupperware is definitely an iconic name in the global direct selling industry. For one thing, “Tupperware parties” have become synonymous with direct sellers’ product demonstrations made at homes. Secondly, Tupperware has become a generic name for plastic food containers. This week we will look into how this company was founded, how it has evolved and […]
Read MoreAugust 27, 2018
Jeffrey A. Babener, of Portland, Oregon, is the principal attorney in the law firm of Babener & Associates. For more than 30 years, he has advised leading U.S. and foreign companies in the direct selling industry, including many members of the U.S. Direct Selling Association. He has served as legal advisor to various major direct selling companies, […]
Read MoreAugust 20, 2018
This week’s featured article is from Daniel Murphy, Co-Founder and Managing Principal of Strategic Choice Partners. Dan has over 30 years of experience holding senior finance and operating roles at TJX, Pepsico, Panera Bread, Princess House and Immunotec. For the last 15 years Dan has served as both a CEO, CFO and COO for two party […]
Read MoreAugust 13, 2018
This article is a review of the first-half 2018 performances of seven major public direct selling companies from a revenue growth perspective. You will see there were both impressive and unsatisfactory performances in the second quarter. AVON Avon’s second quarter global revenue was down 3% from last year previous quarter ($1.352 b vs. $1.396 b). […]
Read MoreAugust 6, 2018
A well-designed compensation plan is vital for a direct selling company’s success. There is no doubt about it. The direct selling industry (at least in general) has learned this lesson so far. A compensation plan might seem like a complicated series of calculations and most of the blame in this should go to some of […]
Read MoreJuly 30, 2018
A Ponzi scheme is an investment fraud that involves the payment of purported returns to existing investors from funds contributed by new investors, as explained by the SEC. In other words, it is a scheme where the investors who join earlier are paid off with funds raised from new ones. In the legitimate world, individuals […]
Read MoreJuly 23, 2018
Jeffrey A. Babener, of Portland, Oregon, is the principal attorney in the law firm of Babener & Associates. For more than 30 years, he has advised leading U.S. and foreign companies in the direct selling industry, including many members of the U.S. Direct Selling Association. He has served as legal advisor to various major direct selling companies, […]
Read MoreJuly 16, 2018
This week’s article is from Brett Duncan, Co-Founder and Managing Principal of Strategic Choice Partners. Brett has worked in direct selling since 2002, holding titles that include Vice President of Global Marketing and Sr. Director of Online Solutions. He works directly with direct selling companies as a strategic facilitator and corporate consultant, specializing in leading marketing, […]
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