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From all of us at Direct Selling News Europe , we wish you all a very happy, healthy and prosperous new year.
I know how challenging 2009 will be for everyone, given the current economic climate, and we face the same situation here in Europe. But our industry is better placed than most to weather the storm. We have a long history of surviving strongly amid recessions, and we are used to maintaining a positive outlook combined with hard work and dedication.
In times like these, there will always be the need for additional earning opportunities, value for quality products and a general feel-good factor. As you know, all of the previously stated needs exist in abundance throughout our industry, so keeping focused and motivating our salesforces while controlling overhead will, I am sure, once again see us through this difficult time.
We have just completed our first full year of publishing Direct Selling News Europe and are pleased to say our distribution now reaches about 2,000 direct sales executives and suppliers across 43 European countries.
To date, our country-focus articles have spanned Western, Central and Eastern Europe, with profiles on Russia, the UK, Ireland, Poland, Turkey and Germany.
For years there seems to have been a huge communication gap in our industry across the widely spread countries around Europe, and I am pleased that Direct Selling News Europe appears to have filled that void, providing up-to-date coverage of news, companies, events and people in an independent and credible format.
This is particularly important at this stage of direct selling development in Europe. Western Europe is, of course, a very established marketplace, where local and global companies have operated successfully for almost 50 years. But the emerging markets in Central and Eastern Europe are fueling tremendous growth trends and providing previously deprived communities with much-needed financial independence.
With a population of 500 million, Europe boasts a direct selling industry with a turnover in excess of €20 billion through 10 million independent salespeople.
To date, the industry has shown a consistent growth average of around 6 percent annually. Even in the current economic climate, we believe this will continue due to the ever-increasing number of salespeople taking advantage of the new opportunities being offered in their emerging markets.
As we look forward to this new year, our intention will be to cover as many of those markets as possible, highlighting both the global company activities within them, as well as introducing you to many new, local direct selling companies.
In January, we focus on the Scandinavian countries of Sweden, Finland, Norway and Denmark, moving east in March to Hungary. It is our intention to remain as a bimonthly publication through 2009.
We had also hoped to host the first-ever pan-European conference in Prague in March. But we have been alerted to the revised conference-and-travel plans of many companies due to the economy at the early part of this year and have been asked if we would consider postponing the event.
Obviously, we have responded to this request and will postpone until 2010. We will keep you informed of the new arrangements in due course.
If you haven’t seen a copy of Direct Selling News Europe and would like to receive one on a regular basis, please contact Emily Reagan at , who will happily ensure that we get one to you. Direct selling executives in Europe can receive a free subscription, and U.S. executives desiring to stay abreast of the news in Europe can subscribe for only $50 a year. Should any of you wish to receive back issues of these editions, please also contact Emily Reagan, and she will be happy to supply them.
Also, if you are a supplier and would like to highlight your products or services to the decision makers in Europe, what better way to reach out to 43 countries than advertising in Direct Selling News Europe through 2009? For competitive rates and special introductory offers, please contact .
Finally, if there are any specific topics or details you may want to hear about in relation to Europe, please let us know, and I will be happy to address them in future letters.
Have a great year!!
Paul Southworth, Editor
Direct Selling News Europe
