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Over 31 Million Americans Engaged in Early Stage Entrepreneurial Activity

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Over 31 Million Americans Engaged in Early Stage Entrepreneurial Activity

The United States exhibits among the highest rates of early stage entrepreneurial activity in the developed world (15.6%).

In addition, a great majority of entrepreneurs in the United States were motivated by opportunity in 2018. These are among the findings of the 2018/2019 U.S. Global Entrepreneurship Monitor Report, produced by Babson College.

“Entrepreneurship can fill employment gaps in the economy and enable people to pursue the career they desire,” said GEM U.S. Team Leader and Babson College Professor Julian Lange. “It is therefore imperative to equip people with the ability to pursue entrepreneurial opportunities and start businesses when they need or choose to do so.”

Key Findings:

  • Since 2015, there has been a steady rise in the rate of both men’s and women’s entrepreneurship in the United States. The year 2018 marked an all-time high with early stage entrepreneurial activity rates of 17.7% for men and 13.6% for women, with the gender gap between men and women narrowing to 4.1%.
  • GEM data indicated that a great majority of entrepreneurs were motivated by opportunity in 2018. In 2018, the perception of opportunities reached a new high, with 74% of men perceiving opportunities and 66% of women.
  • In light of GEM’s finding that 63% of Americans believe entrepreneurship is a good career choice and the low unemployment rate during this time, starting a business was viewed as a good choice rather than a necessity.
  • Entrepreneurial intentions are a precursor to entrepreneurial actions, and GEM data for 2018 demonstrates that the gender gap in entrepreneurial intentions is narrowing. The difference between women’s and men’s intentions was only 1%, which is the smallest gap since 2002.
  • Trends over the past years suggest that entrepreneurs in the United States are increasingly exploiting technological advances—away from traditional wholesale/retail toward entrepreneurial opportunities with potentially lower costs and greater upside in the knowledge and service spaces.
  • Entrepreneurship can provide career options for people of all ethnicities, ages, gender, and other characteristics. The 2018/2019 U.S. GEM Report found that African/African Americans start businesses at a higher rate than the White/Caucasian and Hispanic/Latino ethnicities, and entrepreneurial activity was found to be strong across the entire age spectrum of the 18-74 adult population.

To view the full report, click here.

What Brands Can Expect from Generation Alpha

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In a new report, Generation Alpha—children born after 2010—identified all people being treated fairly no matter what they look like as one of the top issues they care about in today’s world.

In fact, across the board, the report revealed Generation Alpha cares more about all issues than their Millennial and Baby Boomer parents did when they were kids, or even than they do now.

These are the key findings from research commissioned by Hotwire, a global communications agency, in part three of an ongoing global investigation into Generation Alpha. This latest report focuses on Generation Alpha as the most diverse generation yet, talking directly to the kids to see if this increased diversity impacts their views. Comparing this to their Millennial parents and Baby Boomer grandparents, the report forecasts what this could mean for the future in terms of jobs, roles at home, as well as what Generation Alpha will expect from brands.

Hotwire’s findings on how Generation Alpha views the world and the issues they care most about come as the 2020 U.S. Census is expected to show that the nation is now the most racially and ethnically diverse it has ever been. Projections reveal that across the U.S. there will be no one group that holds over 50 percent of the population by 2045, and Generation Alpha is leading this change.

Hotwire’s research into Generation Alpha’s upbringing in a diverse world has led them to be a much more varied group. Their myriad views are being driven by Generation Alpha having more choice than ever before—from ice cream flavors to future occupations. But, this increased choice actually seems to be breaking down differences with Generation Alpha no longer conforming to clear lines between demographic groups of gender, ethnicity or religion.

In particular, Millennials and Baby Boomers are far more likely than Generation Alpha to group into different viewpoints across gender. For example, just two-thirds (66%) of Millennial and Baby Boomer men say that it’s very important for boys and girls to be treated fairly, compared to over 80 percent of their female counterparts. Among Generation Alpha though, the difference between genders is much smaller—79 percent for Generation Alpha boys to 86 percent for girls. Such gender balance can also be seen in how “Dad” is appearing as what kids want to be when they grow up among Generation Alpha, compared to zero responses for this from Millennial and Baby Boomers.

The study also revealed Generation Alpha already holds strong opinions on some of the biggest issues facing the world today. When asked what they attribute most importance to, Generation Alpha identifies “keeping children safe at school” (97%), “making sure everyone has enough food to eat” (97%), that “boys and girls are treated fairly” (94%) and “taking care of the environment” (95%). Despite their youth, this reveals Generation Alpha’s opinions are already as strongly formed as those of Millennials and Baby Boomers in later life, foreshadowing that as those in Generation Alpha come of age, their opinions will be even more strongly formed than the generations that came before them.

“Generation Alpha brings with it a strong set of opinions about the world we live in today. For brands to build relationships with this group, they’ll need to embrace diversity and recognize it will take much more than a ‘one size fits all’ approach,” said Laura Macdonald, executive vice president and head of Consumer North America at Hotwire. “Starting to adapt now and getting really granular in defining who your Generation Alpha audience is and what opinions they hold—while at the same time recognizing you might isolate other people in the process who don’t hold the same worldviews—will be crucial to future proofing yourself for the new wave of consumers to come.”

“Today’s brands need to take Generation Alpha seriously,” said Barret Roberts, vice president and head of Industry CPG at Pandora. “Understanding who they are and what they respond to will put companies ahead of the curve not only for the future, but also in the impact that Generation Alpha is already having on their families. Being able to connect correctly with the consumer of the future, will turn these customers into brand advocates. And that’s just the start. Generation Alpha has grown up with all-pervasive technology and so expects more from brands in how they utilize this to engage in two-way conversation with them.”

To read the full report of Understanding Generation Alpha: The Most Diverse Generation Yet, please click here.

Historic Bill Aims to Regulate Cosmetics, Personal Care Products

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For the first time in decades, the House of Representatives is shining a light on making cosmetics safer.

Last Wednesday, the Subcommittee on Health of the Committee on Energy and Commerce held a hearing entitled “Building Consumer Confidence by Empowering FDA to Improve Cosmetic Safety.”

The hearing focused on legislation being introduced to help protect cosmetics users, including the Safe Cosmetics and Personal Care Products Act of 2019 and the Cosmetic Safety Enhancement Act of 2019.

“Consumers today assume that the cosmetic products they purchase are safe and appropriately regulated, but unfortunately that isn’t always the case,” Rep. Frank Pallone Jr., D-N.J., the chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, said in his opening statement. “The truth is that Congress has not updated FDA’s authority to regulate the multi-billion-dollar cosmetic industry in over 80 years.”

  1. Isabelle Chaudry, a senior policy manager of the National Women’s Health Network, explained in her testimony the issue at hand.

“There are several critical issues and loopholes in federal cosmetic regulation that allow manufacturers to use dangerous ingredients in their products and evade full disclosure of the chemicals contained in those products, and then sell those products to the American public, all of which puts consumers health at risk,” Chaudry said.

She highlighted the importance of understanding the safety of ingredients in cosmetics to the overall health of users, as they can significantly impact their long-term health and potentially create a risk for infertility in women and girls.

On average, women use 12 products a day containing a total of 168 unique ingredients, while men use six products daily with 85 unique ingredients, according to an Environmental Working Group. However, almost none are tested for safety.

In 2011, the National Toxicology Program at the Department of Health and Human Services declared formaldehyde a known human carcinogen that has been found to cause cancer of the lymphatic system, head, nose and neck, as demonstrated by animal and human studies. Yet, nearly one-fifth of cosmetic products contain this potentially harmful ingredient in product formulations, according to the Food and Drug Administration.

Additionally, other risky ingredients such as phthalates and parabens, were banned from hand soaps by the FDA in 2016 because of their potential to be linked to cancer, impaired reproductive ability and compromised neurodevelopment in children, according to a 2017 Scientific American article. But they are still often found in cosmetics such as makeup, hair and moisturizers, according to the same report.

Chaudry also shed light on how women of color are disproportionately affected by environmental chemical exposures.

“Black women and women of color are particularly at risk because the cosmetic and personal care products marketed and sold to them often contain the most harmful ingredients,” she said.

According to the Environmental Working Group Skin Deep Cosmetics Database, a free online resource for finding less-hazardous alternatives to personal care products, an analysis of ingredients in 1,177 beauty and personal care products marketed to black women found about one in 12 was ranked as “highly hazardous.”

Beautycounter founder and CEO Gregg Renfrew, who also testified at Wednesday’s hearing, spoke on behalf of her community of advocates.

“I am one person, but I represent the many who have been fighting hard for cosmetic reform,” she wrote in an Instagram caption. “It is time. Congress has the opportunity to act to help us fulfill our mission of getting safer products into the hands of everyone.”

Renfrew also pointed out in another post that the U.S. has not passed a major federal law governing the cosmetics industry since 1938.

“I knew this effort would require the education of our lawmakers by a movement of people committed to transparency and consumer safety,” she wrote. “By amplifying our collective voice over the past seven years through calls, texts, and meetings with representatives, it’s clear that we have been heard.”

(This article was originally posted on the Good Morning America website.)

Young Living Partners with French Grain Farm

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Young Living recently announced a new partnership with the Golden Einkorn Farm in Sault, located in the French region of Provence.

The Golden Einkorn Farm is Young Living’s newest partner and is the exclusive producer of the company’s popular ancient einkorn grain and other einkorn products.

This 600-acre, family-owned farm is run by longtime Young Living partner Jerome Reynard. Reynard and his family live on site and work the einkorn fields and run the milling facility, using a combination of high-tech grain sorting and old-fashioned stone milling. While the Golden Einkorn Farm is a new partner farm for Young Living, it has longstanding connections to the company as part of the same farming co-op as other Young Living farms in the region.

The Golden Einkorn Farm implements sustainable farming practices that help protect the land. The farm uses only rainwater irrigation on the naturally low-maintenance einkorn crops and fertilizes using organic matter such as manure, plant compost and leftover einkorn stems. The farm staff is also building a solar-powered warehouse, where they will store their tractors and other equipment. Anything remaining from the einkorn flour milling process is used as feed for animals or as additional natural compost fertilizer, ensuring efficiency and sustainability. This farm recycles whenever possible, with goals for zero waste.

“As Young Living moves into a new era defined by sustainability and environmental responsibility, we are thrilled to find an exemplary partner like the Golden Einkorn Farm,” said Lauren Walker, chief sourcing officer for Young Living. “We hope to set new industry standards of eco-friendliness in the wellness industry and continue to find sustainable partner farms like the Golden Einkorn Farm. This is a crucial part of that mission. We couldn’t be happier with the work that Jerome does to bring our members ancient einkorn grain in such an environmentally responsible way.”

Young Living hopes that the Golden Einkorn Farm will stand as an example of the sustainable, environmentally responsible farming practices that the company has adopted as standards for its corporate-owned and partner farms.

Plexus Expands Distribution in Calgary

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After a successful 2018 launch in Canada, Plexus Worldwide is expanding availability with a second 3PL Distribution Centre in Calgary.

This is an extension of the first global market Plexus entered, which was followed by Australia and in 2020 will be followed by Mexico.

Plexus selected Calgary for its’ second 3PL Distribution Centre (the first distribution Centre opened in Toronto in March 2018) as part of the next phase of the Canadian expansion. According to the company, this center will support the growing number of customers and Ambassadors in Western Canada.

“The past 18 months have seen our Canadian presence continue to grow and develop,” said Tarl Robinson, chief executive officer of Plexus Worldwide. “According to recent studies, Canadians view eating healthier and exercising more as their top priorities, and Plexus products are the perfect complement to a healthy and happy lifestyle.”

In addition to Plexus’ line of science-based health and wellness products, Plexus’ Nourish One® initiative will extend into Calgary to bring awareness to child hunger. For every serving sold of Plexus Lean™ in Canada, Plexus will make a monetary donation to Mary’s Meals, a global child hunger charity that feeds 1.4 million children a day in a place of education.

Plexus launched Nourish One in the U.S. in June 2018 with the program’s U.S. partner Feeding America® and with Mary’s Meals for Canada, Australia and soon, Mexico.

“Health and wellness continue to evolve in Canada but what remains consistent is the need for products that work,” said Darla Brown, general manager of Canada. “At Plexus, we have years of scientific research and clinical studies that have informed our product development. We are thrilled to bring this commitment to excellence to the Calgary market.”

Herbalife Nutrition Announces Four New Training Centers Throughout China

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Herbalife Nutrition recently announced the opening of its new training facility in Chengdu, China.

Created as a venue for company leaders to train and educate customers and distributors on nutrition and healthy meal preparation, the facility is the first of four opening across China by the end of 2020. The centers will also feature a glimpse into Herbalife Nutrition’s history and evolution.

“These centers are another example of the many ways Herbalife Nutrition positively impacts the community through good nutrition and education,” said John DeSimone, co-president and chief strategic officer, Herbalife Nutrition. “They offer a state-of-the-art training facility through a truly immersive experience helping people learn more about the company’s past, present and how they can be a part of our future.”

Designed to hold up to 600 people, the 9,200-square-foot Chengdu Training Center is located at the architecturally distinct Xicun Lifestyle Center. The facility houses three meeting rooms as well as a “Super Shake Training Kitchen” where guests can sample and learn more about Herbalife Nutrition products. Taking center stage are the facilities’ audio-visual capabilities including a 7-foot by 25-foot arched LED screen in the kitchen, an 8-foot by 15-foot screen in the center meeting room and laser presentation projectors throughout.

In China, Herbalife Nutrition opened its first factory in 1998. Since then, the company has grown its presence and now has the Product Innovation Center in Shanghai, the first training center in Chengdu, the botanical ingredients center in Changsha and two production technology centers in Nanjing and Suzhou.

Mary Kay Foundation℠ Donates $25,000 to Denton County Friends of the Family

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The Mary Kay Foundation, a decades-long leader in the mission to eliminate domestic violence, recently donated $25,000 to Denton County Friends of the Family.

Friends of the Family is an organization that serves individuals and families seeking safety and recovery from experiencing domestic violence and sexual assault. Since 1980, it has been the sole provider of free, comprehensive services to victims of domestic violence and sexual assault in Denton County. The agency began with a staff of two—after many years of growth and development, Friends of the Family has a staff of 65 and over 600 volunteers. Friends of the Family victim services are designed to be comprehensive in response to all types of abuse that many victims of domestic violence and sexual assault endure.

“Through the Mary Kay Foundation, Mary Kay is committed to ending domestic violence,” said Melinda Foster Sellers, chief people officer with Mary Kay. “It’s personal for us as a company. We strive to educate the public on this epidemic and partner with advocates like the Denton County Friends of the Family to provide helpful tools and resources to the public.”

“We are humbled and grateful for The Mary Kay Foundation’s continued support of our organization,” said Toni Johnson-Simpson, executive director with Denton County Friends of the Family. “The funds provided will be used to secure services for victims of domestic violence and sexual assault who come to the agency seeking help. As experts in the field, this grant will better enable us to put our clients on the path of safety, hope, healing, justice and self-sufficiency.”

Over the course of more than two decades, The Mary Kay Foundation has awarded more than $78 million to women’s shelters and domestic violence service providers, as well as cancer research programs and related causes throughout the United States.

Beautycounter’s Gregg Renfrew Testifies in Landmark House Cosmetic Reform Hearing

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Beautycounter Founder and CEO Gregg Renfrew testifies as an expert witness in a congressional hearing on cosmetic reform.

Renfrew has tirelessly advocated for cosmetic reform in both Washington, D.C. and state capitols since Beautycounter launched in early 2013.

The House Energy and Commerce Committee, Subcommittee on Health held a hearing on cosmetic reform, Wednesday, December 4, 2019 entitled, “Building Consumer Confidence by Empowering FDA to Improve Cosmetic Safety.” This was a House subcommittee hearing led by Chairwoman Anna Eshoo and Ranking Member Michael Burgess to examine the important role the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) must play to protect consumers in the area of personal-care product safety.

“Today’s hearing marks a monumental day for consumers,” said Renfrew. “When I launched Beautycounter, my goal was to get safer products into the hands of everyone. After nearly seven years of advocating for better beauty laws in both Washington, D.C. and state capitols, Beautycounter is proud to share why cosmetic safety reform is so important for today’s consumer, the beauty industry, and future generations.”

This marks only the second time in the past 40 years that the House has held a hearing focused on personal-care product safety, and it represents bipartisan commitment to undertake cosmetic reform.

“It’s been over 80 years since Congress has passed comprehensive legislation that would protect consumers from harmful ingredients in personal-care and beauty products,” said Renfrew. “As the CEO of a manufacturer of products, I believe it’s our duty to use the safest ingredients possible. In today’s underregulated beauty market, however, doing so is extremely challenging. We applaud the leadership of Chairman Pallone, Ranking Member Walden and Representative Shimkus in taking steps to allow the FDA to review ingredients for safety before they make their way into beauty products.”

Despite rapid growth, the $90 billion beauty industry in the United States is largely unregulated, with the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetics Act of 1938 being the most recent major legislation governing the industry. Beautycounter supports legislation that allows the FDA to screen the ingredients of personal-care products for safety, require greater transparency and have the ability to recall products that are highly dangerous to consumers.

FDA Warns Companies for Illegally Selling Products Containing CBD

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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently issued warning letters to 15 companies for illegally selling products containing cannabidiol (CBD) in ways that violate the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act).

The FDA also published a revised Consumer Update detailing safety concerns about CBD products more broadly. Based on the lack of scientific information supporting the safety of CBD in food, the FDA is also indicating today that it cannot conclude that CBD is generally recognized as safe (GRAS) among qualified experts for its use in human or animal food.

The actions come as the FDA continues to explore potential pathways for various types of CBD products to be lawfully marketed. This includes ongoing work to obtain and evaluate information to address outstanding questions related to the safety of CBD products, while maintaining the agency’s rigorous public health standards. The FDA plans to provide an update on its progress regarding the agency’s approach to these products in the coming weeks.

Many unanswered questions and data gaps about CBD toxicity exist, and some of the available data raise serious concerns about potential harm from CBD. The revised Consumer Update outlines specific safety concerns related to CBD products, including potential liver injury, interactions with other drugs, drowsiness, diarrhea, and changes in mood. In addition, studies in animals have shown that CBD can interfere with the development and function of testes and sperm, decrease testosterone levels and impair sexual behavior in males. Questions also remain about cumulative use of CBD and about CBD’s impacts on vulnerable populations such as children and pregnant or breastfeeding women.

CBD is marketed in a variety of product types, such as oil drops, capsules, syrups, food products such as chocolate bars and teas, and topical lotions and creams. As outlined in the warning letters issued, these particular companies are using product webpages, online stores and social media to market CBD products in interstate commerce in ways that violate the FD&C Act, including marketing CBD products to treat diseases or for other therapeutic uses for humans and/or animals. Other violations include marketing CBD products as dietary supplements and adding CBD to human and animal foods.

The FDA has previously sent warning letters to other companies illegally selling CBD products in interstate commerce that claimed to prevent, diagnose, mitigate, treat or cure serious diseases, such as cancer, or otherwise violated the FD&C Act. Some of these products were in further violation because CBD was added to food, and some of the products were also marketed as dietary supplements despite products which contain CBD not meeting the definition of a dietary supplement.

Under the FD&C Act, any product intended to treat a disease or otherwise have a therapeutic or medical use, and any product (other than a food) that is intended to affect the structure or function of the body of humans or animals, is a drug. The FDA has not approved any CBD products other than one prescription human drug product to treat rare, severe forms of epilepsy. There is very limited information for other marketed CBD products, which likely differ in composition from the FDA-approved product and have not been evaluated for potential adverse effects on the body.

To read the full FDA announcement, click here.

What a Year It Has Been…

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The year 2019 will go down as one of the biggest sea change years in the history of our channel. Our cover story this month will cover the events that impacted our channel the most: pressure from regulatory bodies, continued competition from alternative income opportunities, a hot new ingredient makes its debut, and finally, customer expectations continue to get more difficult to keep up with Amazon and eCommerce.

In this issue, we have a lot of great content that will touch on the pertinent topics of the day. Guest author Brent Kugler says the recent FTC actions against AdvoCare and Neora underscore how critically important it is for companies in our channel to avoid becoming ensnared in an FTC investigation. He gives some tips to avoiding a CID (Civil Investigative Demand), a request from the FTC for information (similar to a subpoena) about various aspects of a company’s business operations.

Next, the personalized service that makes our channel appealing to some consumers may, when translated for an eCommerce-based audience, actually be hindering representatives’ ability to close a sale. We discuss some tips for improving the front-end user experience—and other best practices from our gig economy competitors.

Companies seeking to reinvent themselves or their flagship product need to read our next feature Your Business in Focus that highlights the past few years of Medifast/OPTAVIA’s growth. They are a great example of how to clarify your message, focus on what sets you apart and shine the spotlight on your product hero.

I was honored to spend a little time with Amway CEO Milind Pant this past month, who will soon finish his first year at the helm of the direct selling giant. A lot of his time has been spent on what he calls his ‘Listen and Learn’ tour to all parts of the world. “I get immediately energized spending time with our young ABO entrepreneur leaders,” he says. “They are restless. They want to move fast. They want to take risks. We owe it to them to put our most creative, forward-thinking and bold ideas together to drive the future of Amway.” Go to page 72 to read more.

Although our channel is facing a headwind from multiple directions, we will weather this storm if we continue to innovate and stay customer-focused. In 2020, we will be talking more about how we can improve, innovate, and most importantly, have the courage to take action on making difficult decisions that will hopefully lead to a brighter future.

Avon Products, Inc. Reveals Winner of Women Startup Competition

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Genetika+ has won Avon’s Women Startup Competition 2019.

Genetika+, led by Talia Cohen Solal, has developed cutting edge technology to determine which drug to treat depression will be best suited to each patient, making treatment more effective, more quickly. The start-up from Jerusalem was crowned the winner during the final event in London, followed in second and third place by planA.earth and AMB-Technology.AI.

Sponsored by Avon Products Inc, Women Startup Competition (WSC) brought together the nine winners of the local semi-finals and the three top start-ups from the new-for-2019 online beauty accelerator program to pitch their start-up to the panel of judges.

The first ever winner of the beauty accelerator program was Jennifer Young, founder of Beauty Despite Cancer who has created specialist beauty products for cancer patients. Following the winner announcements all start-ups got the opportunity to meet with investors and Avon executives to help them grow their business.

The judging panel comprised investors, WSC CEO Alexandra Veidner, Mintel’s EMEA President Steve Charlton, Louise Scott, Avon’s Chief Scientific Officer and Millie Kendal MBE, founder of the British Beauty Council.

Louise Scott said: “We are really excited to partner with Women Startup Competition. There is a great deal of alignment in our missions—fostering entrepreneurialism among women and encouraging innovation that benefits society. I’m a scientist at heart, so I am passionate about new and exciting innovation. I’d like to congratulate all of the inspiring, courageous finalists.”

“The winners are us, the world, having these amazing women solving huge problems with the help of technology and R&D,” said Alexandra Veidner, CEO of Women Startup Competition, a not-for-profit organization set up to inspire, educate and unite female entrepreneurs. “Access to knowledge, experts, distribution channels, pricing and data is a huge help for start-ups at an early stage; on the other hand, engaging with innovative start-ups is a great route for big companies to achieve their own innovation goals.”

Other finalists were Grason, work.buzz, Viewst, UberPixel, Chatbotize, Etoshi, PiperWai and YA.BE.

Herbalife Nutrition Names Rhonda Vetere Chief Information Officer

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Herbalife Nutrition announced Rhonda Vetere has joined the company as executive vice president and chief information officer.

Vetere will have global responsibility, including information technology strategy and implementation. She brings more than 25 years of experience as a global technology executive in the health, financial, insurance and consumer packaged goods industries, as well as several telecommunications companies worldwide.

Most recently, Vetere was chief information officer at Santander Bank, where she helped transform their mobile, retail and online banking applications and infrastructure. Before that, she spent five years as the chief technology officer for Estee Lauder Companies, leading global infrastructure, applications, service delivery, operations, security, architecture and IT strategy.

“We are proud to welcome another accomplished global executive with tremendous experience to the team,” said Dave Pezzullo, chief operating officer at Herbalife Nutrition. “Rhonda’s expertise will greatly strengthen the company’s technology capabilities and guide the digital strategies that support our independent distributors’ businesses.”

Vetere has been recognized for a number of executive and technology awards, including the 2019 Top 50 Most Powerful Women in Technology from the National Diversity Council and shortlisted Top Woman of the Year, for Women in IT Awards Silicon Valley, most recently in 2019.

“I’m looking forward to sharing my experience and bringing my solutions in the technology space and increasing value for our distributors, customers and employees,” said Vetere. “I’m also thrilled to be a part of a brand that shares my commitment to living a healthy, active lifestyle.”