Mark Pentecost is living proof that a coach will always be a coach, whether he’s on 
the court or leading an industry. His tenacious, “whole ’notha level” approach to leadership has already driven nearly 20 years of success at It Works!, the direct sales business he dreamed up with his wife Cindy in 2001. Today, with his entire family on his team, he’s ready to take on a new season with new products and new vision.
MARK AND CINDY PENTECOST WENT FROM managing their one-income family on a high school coach’s salary to achieving the highest rank of a well-known direct sales company in the mid-1990s. Experiencing this life-changing success inspired the couple to start their own direct sales company. The Pentecosts launched It Works! in 2001 with a one-of-a-kind body wrap that, to this day, has no competitors in the industry.
“We wanted (our company) to be a vehicle of hope for people,” says Mark. “To allow them the time with their family, the debt freedom, and the potential for more for their lives.”
“We wanted (our company) to be a vehicle of hope for people,” says Mark. “To allow them the time with their family, the debt freedom, and the potential for more for their lives.”
Over the last 19 years, It Works! has grown from a mostly self-funded venture to a global enterprise with over 100,000 team members across 24 countries. Have you tried that crazy wrap thing? provided a momentum that sustained the company for years, but today, the Pentecost family has a new game plan, designed around a younger than-ever group of savvy social sellers.
Today’s It Works! line is designed to help customers feel as incredible as they look, packed with products designed to achieve measurable results.
“We reinvented ourselves and are now not only known for our Skinny Wrap, but also our Skinny Brew, a fat-burning coffee,” explains Mark. “Both are results-driven products that are backed by science. The goal is to help our customers achieve results with natural ingredients, incredible flavor and a fun experience to use.”
“We believe you can have your cake and eat it too,” adds Pam Sowder, It Works! Chief Networking Officer who has been part of the company since its inception. “We’ve seen our product line expand over the decade, but we’ve stayed consistent in the belief that life’s about balance, and our products help customers achieve that.”
With Skinny Brew leading the product line, It Works! offers an extensive collection of nutrition, weight control and energy products, as well as a premier skincare line developed by Beverly Hills plastic surgeon, Dr. Paul Nassif.
“We’re offering essential products that people want, need and will continue buying no matter what the economy looks like,” says Mark. “Our goal is to help people sleep well all night and slay all day.”
THE NEXT GENERATION
While It Works! made its name in households across America through “Wrap Parties” where guests could see the Ultimate Body Applicator in person, Mark and his team could see the virtual tide turning.
“We saw the desire in the world for work-from-phone opportunities, even prior to the happenings of 2020,” he says. “We’ve gotten so young, and it’s fun! This younger generation of distributors builds almost solely on social media. They find their preferred platform that allows them to be authentic and genuine—then they take off sharing our products. We’ve come up with a great tool to train and build through social media. It’s a simple, proven concept we’ve brought mainstream to the market today.”
“To make social sharing even easier for this younger demographic of It Works! distributors, the company launched an innovative sampling system,” explains Kami Pentecost, Senior Vice President of Field Development. “It gives loyal customers a quick taste of our key products and provides distributors a simple way to earn cash.”
“Prior to the launch of Skinny Brew, we offered keto coffee,” says Kyler Pentecost, Vice President of Sales. “People would literally make their own sample bags, go to the Post Office and spend five to eight dollars on shipping. It was the most horrendous process—so much time and effort. By bringing on the sampling app, it was a very natural fit with who we are as a company. All you have to do is focus your time on that next relationship, that next connection and then you’re sending it through your app. So, it makes it super simple, super affordable and right in your pocket, which is what most millennials and Gen Z are doing.”
The sampling app is only one part of the company’s strategy to use digital solutions to get new distributors up and running quickly.
“Typically, new team members in the field feel like they have to wait for their Business Builder Kit to arrive on their doorstep,” says Mark. “We said, ‘No more!’ We had to get innovative. How can we get our team making money their first day in business? That’s when we introduced the digital Business Builder Kit and sampling program. Skinny Brew sample credits are applied to new team members’ accounts on day one. They can sell them and earn cash immediately—day one, you’re profitable.”
This new generation of social selling distributors is joined by a new generation of Pentecost leaders as well. Mark and Cindy’s children have all joined the business in recent years—Kyler is joined by his sisters Kindsey Pentecost, International President and Chief Marketing Officer and Kami Pentecost, Senior Vice President of Field Development. The younger Pentecosts are loving the company’s focus on empowering an increasingly younger field.
“I think younger generations are realizing, ‘I want my dreams now and I can achieve that,’” says Kindsey. “They see how network marketing is a career to get them those goals.”
“You’ve got a lot of millennials that are learning that they can work from home,” adds Mark. “They can be debt-free. I love seeing the next generation joining the business. It’s bringing in fresh ideas and pushing us out of the comfort zone. We continue to evolve together!”
A WINNING CULTURE GOES GLOBAL
Even though his days of coaching basketball in Michigan are long behind him, Mark’s approach to leading It Works! still has “coach” written all over it. But how do you translate that same team mentality to an international field? You model it.
“People told me that our culture wouldn’t play well internationally, but it very much does,” he shares. “One of our biggest countries is France. We would talk about how to stay humble and how we give our staff permission when someone’s getting a little too big of themselves to call that out. It’s kind of getting a yellow card in sports. You better check yourself. We also gave each other permission to have fun with that but be really intentional of who we want to be and how we want to model to all of our teams. It was exciting for me to see that our cultures could have a lot of fun and a lot of humor.”
It Works! is currently operating in 24 countries with distribution centers in Europe, Korea, Mexico, Hong Kong, Philippines, Australia, Canada and the U.S. Every customer worldwide has access to customer support in their unique language and time zone.
“We’ve put corporate field development leaders around the world to support global growth,” says Mike Potillo, It Works! Chief Sales Officer. “This allows us to unify our product offering while establishing a simple system that can adapt to the nuances of that market. Nearly 80 percent of our business is still in the U.S. Our international expansion has just begun, and we have big plans!”
BUILT TO LAST
This year has seen the release of new products, including Sleepy Tea, a relaxing bedtime blend of magnesium and 
melatonin, as well as new customer incentive programs that are already gaining traction.
But perhaps the most exciting announcement of the last few weeks is a new form of virtual connection for It Works! team members. As the global COVID-19 pandemic began to affect businesses worldwide, Mark and his team realized they needed something new. That is when they decided to develop new streaming platform called Impact TV. This new streaming tool will allow the It Works! team to share positive and inspirational content, created to impact distributors around the world.
“Impact TV is a place for our team to find media that motivates and inspires them,” shares Mark. “I believe we should reimagine our world to instill confidence in everyone that ‘you are made for more!’”
Mark and Cindy didn’t build their business with the immediate future in mind—their sights are always off in the distance. They could never have imagined a 34,000-square-foot waterfront headquarters or sunsets from their private island in the Gulf of Mexico, but they know that the best has yet to come.
“When people join our team, they have the security of an established business, but the opportunity of a new company. We are introducing new product lines, teaching how to gain huge success through social media and becoming a customer-generating machine. We have the best of both worlds.”
“We have the security of a 20-year-old company that has been through the ups and downs of growth,” says Mark. “We’ve seen a financial and economic crisis. We’ve learned how to work through a global pandemic, and we are still growing. When people join our team, they have the security of an established business, but the opportunity of a new company. We are introducing new product lines, teaching how to gain huge success through social media and becoming a customer-generating machine. We have the best of both worlds.”
