My First Celebrity Interview!

I’ve had the pleasure of attending a number of direct selling company conventions and events, and judging by the reactions of distributors when company founders, presidents or CEOs take the stage, it’s obvious that many of these folks have achieved something like celebrity status—at least when it comes to their salesforce! However, I’m pretty sure that none of our direct selling company leaders ever starred in a hit TV show.

A few weeks ago, I interviewed Suzanne Somers for April’s Young Company Focus (which will hit your desk in the next couple weeks). Suzanne just launched a new direct selling company called, appropriately enough, SUZANNE. We had a very nice conversation and I sensed her genuine excitement when she talked about her new venture.

Suzanne spent the last fifteen years selling a line of products on the Home Shopping Network and she realized that her huge following of customers was a built in salesforce for a direct selling company. Last month, Suzanne made the rounds on a number of talk shows including Larry King Live and The Ellen DeGeneres Show. When she appeared on Ellen’s show, she not only told the audience that they should sign up as SUZANNE consultants, she tried to recruit Ellen!

It reminded me of an interview I once did with a direct selling company executive. She asked me how old I was and when I told her I was 43, she said, “Now, writing these little articles is fine for now, but you need to think about the future.” I told her that Direct Selling News keeps me pretty busy, and she suggested I sign up as a consultant anyway to get the product discount! The company in question is very successful, so it looks like Suzanne has the right idea!

Anyway, we wish Suzanne the best and look forward to hearing more about her new company.