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Reliv International Reports Third-Quarter Financial Results for 2019

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Reliv International, Inc. (NASDAQ:RELV) recently reported net sales of $9.1 million for the third quarter of 2019.

The net sales compared with net sales of $8.3 million in the third quarter of 2018. Net sales in the U.S. increased by $344,000, which represented a 5.3 percent increase in net sales when compared to the prior-year quarter. Net sales in the U.S. were favorably impacted by the launch of the RLV line of hemp-extract products near the end of the second quarter of 2019.

Net sales in Reliv’s foreign markets increased by $468,000, or 25.5 percent, in the third quarter of 2019 compared with the prior-year quarter. Net sales in Asia and Mexico increased by 93.3 percent and 21.9 percent, respectively, offset by decreases in all other regions.

Net sales for the first nine months of 2019 were $26.9 million, which represents a 0.4 percent increase from the same period in 2018. Net sales in the U.S. decreased by 3.2 percent and net sales in Reliv’s foreign markets increased by 11.8 percent in the first nine months of 2019 compared with the same period last year.

As of September 30, 2019, Reliv had 34,000 active distributors and preferred customers – an increase of 11.3 percent from September 30, 2018 – of which 3,140 are Master Affiliate level and above.

“We are excited about the addition of the RLV line into the Reliv product family,” said Ryan A. Montgomery, chief executive officer. “Not only is it providing a spark in U.S. sales, it has created excitement in the entire Reliv business leading to a growth in new distributors and customers for all of the Reliv products. Additional products in the RLV line are in development for introduction within the next year.”

To read the full Reliv Q3 2019 financial report, click here.

Youngevity Q3 2019 Revenue Down 13%

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Youngevity International, Inc. reported revenue of $34 million for the three months ended September 30, 2019, down 13 percent from Q3 2018.

Direct selling revenue down nearly 12% for the quarter

“Although we have recently made great strides in producing revenue growth this year, the third quarter posed a number of challenges as we faced seasonally slower sales for the direct selling segment and our commercial coffee segment contributed to a seasonally slower quarter,” said Steve Wallach, chairman and CEO of Youngevity International. “Additionally, our commercial hemp segment was still operating on a pre-revenue basis for this quarter. We enter Q4 with the anticipation of sales growth contribution coming from our latest acquisition within the direct selling segment and with Khrysos Industries beginning to generate revenue which has us anticipating finishing 2019 year with double digit revenue growth.”

Revenue for the third quarter was $34,017,000 as compared to $39,082,000 for the three months ended September 30, 2018. The company derived approximately 89.0 percent of its revenue from its direct selling segment and approximately 10.5 percent of its revenue from its commercial coffee segment and approximately 0.5 percent from its commercial hemp segment.

Direct selling segment revenues decreased by $4,024,000 or 11.7 percent to $30,256,000 in the current quarter as compared to $34,280,000 for the quarter ended September 30, 2018. According to the company, the decrease was primarily attributable to a decrease in the number of ordering customers, partially offset by an increase in revenues from distributors due to an increase in the average order amount per distributor.

Revenues for the nine months ended September 30, 2019 increased 14.0 percent to $144,004,000 as compared to $126,331,000 for the same period last year. During the nine months, the company derived approximately 66.5 percent of its revenue from its direct selling sales and approximately 33.1 percent of its revenue from its commercial coffee sales and approximately 0.4 percent from its commercial hemp segment. Direct selling segment decreased by $10,637,000 or 10.0 percent to $95,800,000 as compared to $106,437,000 for the same period last year.

“We are not pleased with Q3’s performance; however, we are confident that we made the appropriate moves in Q3 pivoting our commercial hemp enterprise business model,” said Dave Briskie, president and CFO of Youngevity. “The decision to expand Khrysos Industries into an 82,000-square-foot, pharma grade, post processing facility has prolonged the period of time we will operate our commercial hemp enterprise on a pre-revenue basis, however, ultimately this decision is expected to accelerate our ability to compete, scale and grow profitable revenue as we close out 2019 and move into 2020.”

Alex Grapov Named Kannaway Chief Sales Officer

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Medical Marijuana, Inc. recently announced that its subsidiary Kannaway has promoted International Vice President Alex Grapov to chief sales officer of the company.

“Alex has been instrumental to our international sales and operational growth for the past two years and we believe that this new role is the most natural and well-deserved next step for him to take with our company,” said Kannaway CEO Blake Schroeder. “Not only is he a strong leader but he is also a strategic communicator who has formed important relationships for the company with key regulatory bodies throughout the world.”

Grapov was hired by Kannaway in 2017 and has since grown the company’s operations throughout Europe significantly. He has over 10 years of experience in international business development and expansion and previously served as managing director for European Operations and senior director of European Sales at two billion-dollar companies, driving annual sales exceeding $100 million.

“Working for Kannaway has been one of the most rewarding professional experiences in my career,” said Grapov. “My team is my family and we’ve achieved many incredible milestones together during the past two years. The transition to this new role will give me more bandwidth to increase my impact and oversee the day-to-day sales functions within the company.”

Nike’s Ditching of Amazon Fuels Direct to Consumer Movement

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Nike’s decision to stop selling merchandise to Amazon is just the “tip of the iceberg” of brands opting to go directly to consumers, internet entrepreneur Tim Armstrong told CNBC on Friday.

“The direct-to-consumer movement will be the replacement for the retail issues and commerce issues that are going on because of the platforms,” said Armstrong, founder of the dtx company, which aims to disrupt online shopping.

“If they have the option to go direct, they are going to go direct,” said Armstrong, former CEO of AOL and ex-Google ad chief. Brands are often fearful that by partnering with Amazon they will lose control over how they’re represented on the site.

On Wednesday, Nike confirmed to CNBC that a pilot program, launched in 2017, to sell a limited product assortment to Amazon, in exchange for stricter policing of the Nike brand on the platform, will end. Nike said it’s shifting focus to its direct-to-consumer business, which brings in about 30 percent of annual sales. In its last fiscal year, Nike’s direct-to-consumer sales totaled $11.8 billion.

Direct-to-consumer is “another megatrend starting,” said Armstrong, whose company invests in brands that sell directly to consumers.

Armstrong appeared on “Squawk Box” to announce an online shopping event called DTC Friday, which according to the press release, “celebrates and empowers the DTC movement by connecting shoppers with direct-to-consumer brands and with their favorite charities.” Shoppers on Nov. 15 will get $5 to donate to whatever charity they choose for each purchase from a DTC Friday brand, through a partnership with online charity aggregator Givz.

When announcing the dtx company earlier this year, Armstrong said he sees the economy transforming away from a “one-way, wholesale distributor relationship,” thanks to technology around social media and payments, in particular.

Armstrong’s optimism toward the growing industry echoes sentiments from analysts, who said this week that they believe other retailers will follow suit after Nike’s announcement.

“The move shows us that strong brands realize that traffic driven to their own site (e.g. NIKE.com) is self-sustaining, more profitable, and actually brand enhancing, while traffic and incremental revenue from Amazon.com is less profitable but also less brand enhancing,” according to Jefferies analyst Randy Konik.

Amazon was not immediately available for comment.

TuppSoho: Tupperware’s First Ever Brand Store

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Tupperware, one of the most iconic brands in the world, has unsealed its first pop-up location in its nearly 75-year history just in time for the holidays.

TuppSoho, a limited-time store now open at 227 Mulberry Street in New York City through December 22, will offer an immersive experience where guests can purchase iconic Tupperware products.

Designed to engage and excite all generations of Tupperware fans, visitors can view solutions for prepping, cooking, entertaining and organizing; learn about product designs that serve to reduce waste on the environment; and be a part of interactive food and product demonstrations from the Tupperware culinary team.

“The opening of TuppSoho marks a monumental point in our brand’s longstanding history. We are giving access to our brand like never before,” said Asha Gupta, chief strategy and marketing officer of Tupperware Brands. “Tupperware has been an important part of how people interact with their kitchen and their food for decades. In fact, we are a cultural touchstone and we’re embracing that now by opening our doors for more people to experience the magic and depth of Tupperware.”

The launch of TuppSoho coincides with the unveiling of the new Tupperware.com, a redesigned site making it easier to shop products and connect with local Tupperware Independent Representatives.

LifeVantage Enters New Zealand Market

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As part of its continued global expansion, LifeVantage Corporation has formally commenced business in New Zealand.

Select LifeVantage products have been offered in New Zealand on a not-for-resale basis for approximately 18 months as part of the company’s Global Customer Program, helping pave the way for the company to now open for distributor enrollments as well.

“New Zealand has demonstrated steady growth since opening as a customer market,” said Courtland Pearson, LifeVantage senior vice president of Global Field Development, Asia Pacific. “We anticipate New Zealand achieving long-term, solid growth with a strong launch right out of the gate.”

New Zealand will initially offer Protandim® Nrf1 Synergizer, Protandim® Nrf2 Synergizer, ProBio probiotic supplement, TrueScience®Skin Care System, and TrueScience® Hair Care System.

A prelaunch event featuring LifeVantage Senior Vice President of Research & Development Dr. Brian Dixon occurred earlier this month in Auckland. A launch meeting was held in Auckland on Nov. 12 and a grand opening celebration for the New Zealand market will be held on April 23, 2020.

“As a health and wellness company, it’s always rewarding to see our products become more accessible throughout the world,” said LifeVantage CEO Darren Jensen, “but there’s an added level of energy and excitement when you open a market in a region of the world that puts such a high premium on health. We’re thrilled to now count the Kiwis among our biohacker community.” Both New Zealand and Australia are listed among the top 10 health conscious countries in the world and rank among the Top 20 in terms of both overall health and life expectancy.

With the addition of New Zealand, LifeVantage now serves 16 markets globally and four additional markets through its global customer and cross-border e-commerce programs.

Young Living Enters South Africa Market

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Young Living Essential Oils recently held a celebration in Johannesburg, South Africa, to mark the opening of the company’s new South Africa market, the first Young Living market on the African continent.

Nearly 1,300 registered guests attended the event, coming from every continent on the globe to take part in the festivities. Young Living marked the occasion with traditional South African drum music. Comedian Loyiso Gola and Bo from the musical group Denim delighted guests with special performances for the event.

Attendees also heard CEO Mary Young and President Jared Turner speak about the opening of the new market. During her remarks to the crowd, Young shared, “Caring about people and their well-being is the key to your success. If people know how much you care about them, they’ll listen to you and you can help them find success.”

“Everyone has a unique superpower that they can bring to bear in our mission to bring essential oils to every home on earth,” said Turner. “Your superpower is your unique story, which can uniquely impact people’s lives in a positive way.”

Young Living recorded 90 new members who signed up, and members purchased 123 new starter kits to help build their own small businesses. Young Living has increased its membership in South Africa from 128 to 2,000 active members in 2019 alone. Four members attained and were recognized for the Gold rank, a high honor within Young Living.

South African members hope that this is the beginning of a fruitful partnership in the land of Mzansi, and Young Living expects even greater growth now that the South Africa market is officially open.

Paralympic Gold Medalist David Brown Partners with AdvoCare

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AdvoCare International announced its partnership with world champion runner, David Brown.

Brown employs a strenuous training schedule and relies on a variety of AdvoCare products in his daily nutrition routine.

“David is a very successful, record-breaking runner and AdvoCare is delighted to have him as a partner,” stated Joshua Watts, AdvoCare director of Sponsorships. “We are proud to know that such an inspiring champion athlete uses our products to enhance his training routine.”

Brown competed on the 2012 and 2016 U.S. Paralympic track & field teams. He earned a gold medal in the 2016 Paralympic Games 100-meter race. Brown’s record makes him the world’s fastest, totally blind athlete and the only blind person to run 100 meters in under 11 seconds. Additionally, Brown has won several U.S. Paralympics Track and Field National Championships and Para Athletics World Championships.

“For both my health and my career, I must be very cautious about the products I use,” said Brown. “With AdvoCare products like Spark, AdvoCare Rehydrate and AdvoCare Catalyst, as well as their Informed-Choice testing program, I have found a partner that takes health and safety as seriously as I do.”

Brown is currently training to compete in the 2019 World Para Athletic Championships in Dubai and the 2020 Paralympic Games in Tokyo.

Natura &Co Revenue Up 7.2% in Q3 2019; Natura Up 8%

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Natura &Co posted another strong performance in the third quarter of 2019, with revenue growth in all three of its brands: Natura, The Body Shop and Aesop.

Natura &Co’s consolidated net revenue reached R$3.5 billion, up 7.2 percent on a reported basis and up 10.1 percent at constant currency. The Natura brand’s adjusted net revenue in Brazil was up 8.1 percent in Q3. Productivity per consultant rose for the 12th consecutive quarter. Natura’s digital platform now has 860,000 users in Brazil and online sales grew in double-digits. Latam also saw growth of 10.2 percent in adjusted net revenue in Brazilian Reals and a stronger 28.8 percent in constant currency.

The Body Shop’s net revenue was up 1.1 percent in Reals and 3.8 percent in constant currency in Q3. Aesop delivered another quarter of solid growth. Revenue increased 10.8 percent in Reals and 10.2 percent at constant currency.

“Natura &Co posted a remarkable sales performance in the third quarter, exceeding market expectations, with double-digit growth in constant currency,” said Roberto Marques, executive chairman of Natura &Co. “All our businesses and brands again contributed to growth despite a market that remains challenging in Brazil, where Natura continued to grow market share, and Hong Kong, which impacted The Body Shop and Aesop.”

According to the company, the quarter was also highlighted by Natura celebrating its 50th anniversary and entering a new country, Malaysia, leveraging The Body Shop’s market knowledge. The quarter also saw Natura &Co make new advances in sustainability: Natura’s Carbon Neutral Program, which totally offsets the company’s carbon emissions, received the 2019 United Nations Global Climate Action Award, the world’s most important recognition of initiatives to fight climate change, while The Body Shop joined Natura in becoming a B-Corporation.

Natura &Co has also taken major steps towards closing the transformational acquisition of Avon Products, Inc., with new milestones reached: Only a few days after CADE, Brazil’s anti-trust authority, approved the acquisition without restrictions, Natura and Avon’s shareholders both voted in favor of the transaction at extraordinary shareholders’ assemblies. The group remains on track to close the acquisition as planned in the first quarter of 2020, creating the world’s fourth-largest pure play beauty group and a leader in direct-to-consumer.

Avon Receives Shareholder Approval for Proposed Acquisition by Natura &Co

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Avon Products, Inc. announced that its shareholders approved the proposed acquisition of Avon by Natura &Co Holding S.A., a new holding company for Natura Cosméticos S.A.

More than 75 percent of Avon’s shares outstanding, on an as-converted basis, were voted in favor of the proposal to adopt the merger agreement.

“We are pleased that our shareholders have strongly supported Avon’s combination with Natura, and the move to start an exciting new chapter for Avon as part of the world’s fourth largest pure-play beauty company,” said Jan Zijderveld, CEO of Avon. “We will continue to work together with Natura to gain the remaining approvals required to close the transaction, while also independently executing our Open Up turnaround strategy, driving pricing and productivity improvements across our business, and restoring the relevance of our brand.”

Under the merger agreement, based upon a fixed exchange ratio of, at the election of each holder, 0.300 Natura &Co American Depositary Shares or 0.600 Natura &Co shares for each share of Avon common stock, Natura Cosméticos’ shareholders will own approximately 76 percent of the combined company, while Avon common shareholders will own approximately 24 percent.

The closing of the transaction is anticipated to occur in early 2020, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals.

Herbalife to Join No Hunger Holidays Campaign

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As part of its recently announced Nutrition for Zero Hunger initiative, Herbalife Nutrition announced it will join the No Hunger Holidays campaign its nonprofit partner Feed the Children has launched.

The company will host a food drive from November 1-15, supporting both Feed the Children and A Place Called Home (APCH), and will also donate proceeds from its co-branded T-shirt sales to help families struggling to make ends meet this holiday season.

“The holidays are a great time to think about everyone in our community and the different ways we can give back,” said, Alan Hoffman, executive vice president, Corporate Affairs, and president of the Herbalife Nutrition Foundation. “We hope to bring as much awareness as possible to important issues like food insecurity and malnutrition, as education is imperative in making sure children are prepared with the resources they need to succeed.”

The company’s food drive will collect donations from its office and manufacturing facilities and approximately 2,600 employees across the United States to help Feed the Children reach its goal to bring food and daily essentials to thousands of American families during the holidays. The food donations will support both Feed the Children and the Herbalife Nutrition Foundation’s (HNF) long-time Casa Herbalife Program partner, APCH, located in Los Angeles.

“We believe that no child should go to bed hungry, especially during a time full of warmth, love and sharing,” said Travis Arnold, Feed the Children president and CEO. “But the reality is, millions of children in our own backyard face this hardship every day. Thanks to our generous partners such as Herbalife Nutrition, we are able to help these families rest a little easier knowing they don’t have to worry about where their next meal is coming from this holiday season.”

Additionally, the company will sell co-branded T-shirts, with their Nutrition for Zero Hunger slogan, on its apparel website, with the proceeds supporting Feed the Children’s hunger awareness initiatives through the end of the year. Herbalife Nutrition also plans to spread awareness across its social media channels by sharing impactful messaging as well as its planned volunteer activations throughout the holidays, using the designated #ShareYourGood during Feed the Children’s No Hunger Holidays campaign.

Avon Launches Avon Beauty Awards in Argentina, Chile

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Avon has challenged 60 beauty and lifestyle influencers in Argentina and Chile to take part in a contest that will engage thousands of social media users.

The winner of the chance will earn a once-in-a-lifetime trip to the renowned Avon Innovation Centre in New York.

The contest had two phases and several challenges that must be met to be selected for the trip to New York. The beauty influencers were invited to take part in a day of makeup workshops with the region’s leading makeup artists, learning tips and tricks and discovering Avon’s award-winning make-up collections.

After the workshops, the influencers were given goody bags containing Avon makeup products for them to experiment with. They are now participating in a makeup challenge that will engage their followers over the coming weeks. Each has been asked to create and share a minimum of two looks using at least five of the items in their goody bag, plus a step-by-step tutorial video detailing how they created their unique looks.

The awards have been established to open up the Avon brand to new audiences and embed Avon’s authority as a leading powerhouse in the beauty world.

Axel Gegenschatz, group vice president and general manager of the South Market Group said: “Avon is a social selling business with millions of beauty entrepreneurs all over the world. We aren’t bound to an expensive retail infrastructure and that means we can invest in our product innovation. By engaging these modern experts and encouraging them to share their creativity and experience of using Avon with their audience we hope to deliver significant value for the brand by building awareness but also credibility and authority as the quality of our products is demonstrated.”

Following the contest’s close in August, the winning influencers were hand-picked by a specialist jury that analyzed each post, communication and piece of content based on their follower engagement. The eight influencers who complete the challenges in the most stand-out fashion will be whisked away on a trip to New York for their tour of the global Avon Innovation Centre in Suffern in November.