Photo: Amway President and Co-CEO Doug DeVos (third from left) joins Amway China leaders at the grand opening of the company’s Shanghai Experience Center.
Amway celebrated a milestone week in China, where President and Co-CEO Doug DeVos attended Amway Hong Kong’s 40th anniversary celebration and the opening of Amway’s first experience center in the country. Located in Shanghai, the center takes Amway Business Owners (ABOs) and customers beyond the traditional retail transaction through a high-tech, interactive experience.
Marking a relatively new approach for the company, Amway centers or plazas enable customers to sample products, view product demonstrations and learn more about Amway’s science and product development. China Daily reports the company’s plans to build a network of similar centers, with locations slated to open in Shenzhen later this year and in Beijing next year.
The experience center represents a big opportunity for Amway to tell its story in China, where regulations prohibit network marketing models. China ABOs can operate as representatives who earn commission solely on their own sales or as a government-authorized business, selling products through a traditional shop.
Amway has sprinkled its brick-and-mortar promotional centers across Europe and Russia. In September, Amway Turkey opened a second plaza in Ankara, the country’s second-largest city. The country’s first plaza, opened in Istanbul in July 2011, serves almost 10,000 visitors every month. The direct selling leader introduced the model to U.S. customers in 2013 with the launch of its Amway Business Center at CitiField.
