On April 8, we unveiled the 2015 Direct Selling News Global 100 list. We were privileged to have several hundred of you in attendance to celebrate with us at the Global 100 banquet in Dallas, and many thousands more followed along online or on social media.

Experience is an unusual word. When you hear it, odds are good that your first thought is of something positive: The trip will be the experience of a lifetime.

I’m thrilled to announce that a significant change is coming to Direct Selling News later this year: We’re moving into a fantastic new headquarters building!

Benjamin Franklin once said, “Energy and persistence conquer all things.” You will find echoes of that idea as you read this edition of Direct Selling News.

I’ve always enjoyed the sense of opportunity a new year brings. There’s just something about turning the first page of a new calendar that seems to add a spark of excitement to the planning process. The key, of course, is harnessing that energy and maintaining it throughout the year.

I’m writing this letter from my hotel room in marvelous Rio De Janeiro, home to the 2014 World Congress of the World Federation of Direct Selling Associations. The event has brought together approximately 400 people from companies based around the world, all united for one purpose: supporting the direct selling path of entrepreneurship and the opportunity it presents to people from all walks of life.