Over the last week, several companies hosted their conferences, meetings and annual conventions with record attendance and great impact on local economies.

BusinessWire.com reported that Ambit Energy, No. 1 “Fastest Growing Private Company” on the prestigious Inc. 500 list for 2010 and national retail energy leader, held its 6th Annual Conference, “Ambition 2012: Take Charge.” More than 9,000 Independent Consultants representing 32 states from Alaska to New York filled both the Hilton Anatole and the American Airlines Center over a span of five days starting on August 29.

The article also stated that “This conference created an estimated $10,000,000 in economic impact for the City of Dallas in terms of lodging, transportation, food and entertainment. The company has also recently signed an agreement with the Dallas Convention and Visitors Bureau to host the annual event in Dallas for the next three years.”

Other notable events this past week included Vollara’s annual convention in Dallas; The Limu Company, which has been experiencing exponential growth hosted their largest group ever in New Orleans; and Mona Vie also electrified its field with marquee speakers like John Maxwell this past weekend.

For years, experts have agreed that meetings and conventions help spark direct sales businesses.  Conventions give distributors a chance to connect personally and business-wise, sharing best practices, tips and tools for success. Conventions also help companies further define themselves by launching new products, tools and bonuses.

Ambit used their event to announce new markets, major recognition and some very high profile giveaways:

• Pennsylvania Expansion to include Met Ed, Penelec, Penn Power and West Penn Power for Residential and Small Commercial coming in January 2013
• Illinois Expansion to include Southern Illinois, Ameren Electric, Residential and Small Commercial coming November 2012
• New Market – Chicago Gas – Peoples Gas and North Shore Gas Residential and Small Commercial coming September 2012
• New Market – California – California Gas, Pacific Gas and Electric Gas, Residential and Small Commercial coming September 2012
• Recognized three $5 million earners and twelve $1 million earners
• And multiple door prizes estimated at $100,000, which included: a new Harley Davidson motorcycle, a new Cadillac XTS, multiple iPads and more than $25,000 in cash awards.

To read the entire article about Ambit on BusinessWire.com, please visit: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20120906006682/en/Ambit-Energy-Hosts-9000-6th-Annual-Conference

The drop in August’s unemployment rate isn’t particularly good news for the economy—it’s driven mostly by nearly 400,000 people dropping out of the labor force, rather than more people finding jobs.

But those dropping out aren’t so much the discouraged 30-, 40- or 50-year-olds. In fact, the Labor Department said there was a modest decline in the overall number of discouraged job seekers.

The drop is because so many young adults—ages 16 to 24—are no longer looking for work.

There were 453,000 fewer young adults with jobs in August than in July. But despite that plunge, only 27,000 more young people were looking for new jobs. Most apparently stopped looking and left the labor force.

As a result, the percentage of young people who are counted in the labor force fell to its lowest level since 1955. And the unemployment rate for young adults rose to 16.8 percent from 16.4 percent in July.

We are seeing a slow increase in the number of young adults—especially in the 18-25 age group—who migrate towards direct selling opportunities. What we’ve found is that working for themselves provides a level of freedom that this generation is accustomed to, having grown up with technology and information just a click away. While buzz words like “work-from-home” and “network marketing” are not necessarily attractive to Gen Yers, “schedule flexibility,” “personal business scalability” and “creative social networking” are very attractive to this generation. Once direct selling companies embrace some of the key sought after attributes of the Gen Y crowd in their business strategy and representation, we will surely see an increase of this trend out of the job market into the personal business “work for myself” realm.

More on this topic can be found here.

 

Every year FORTUNE Magazine posts its annual list of movers and shakers, called the Top 100 Fastest-Growing Companies.

It’s easy to understand why companies like Apple and Cirrus Logic are leaders on this prestigious list. Looking down the list we found something great for the direct selling industry—recognition of Medifast as No. 46 on the list. Medifast is a manufacturer and provider of clinically proven, portion-controlled weight-loss products and programs and parent to Take Shape for Life. According to FORTUNE’s report, over a 3-year average Medifast realized 40 percent revenue growth, 59 percent profit growth and a 20 percent total return. For fiscal year 2011, revenue increased by 16 percent to $298.2 million over the previous year.

To qualify, a company—domestic or foreign—must be trading on a major U.S. stock exchange; report data in U.S. dollars; file quarterly reports with the SEC; have a minimum market capitalization of $250 million and a stock price of at least $5 on June 29, 2012; and have been trading continuously since June 30, 2009. Companies must have revenue and net income of at least $50 million and $10 million, respectively, for the four quarters ended on or before April 30, 2012; and have posted an annualized growth in revenue and earnings per share of at least 20 percent annually over the three years ended on or before April 30, 2012.

Companies that meet these criteria are ranked by revenue growth rate; EPS growth rate; and three-year annualized total return for the period ended June 29, 2012. (To compute the revenue and EPS growth rates, FORTUNE uses a trailing four quarters log linear least square regression fit.)

The overall rank is based on the sum of the three ranks. Once the 100 companies are identified, they are then re-ranked within the 100, using the three equally weighted variables. If there is a tie, the company with the larger four-quarter revenue receives the higher rank.

Excluded are real estate investment trusts, limited liability companies, limited partnerships, business development companies, closed end investment firms, companies about to be acquired, and companies that lost money in the quarter ended on or before April 30, 2012. In addition, FORTUNE excludes companies that have announced intentions to restate previously reported financial data, if these errors appear to have a significant impact. Also, FORTUNE excludes companies that lost money in the quarter ended May 31 or June 30, if the loss represents a deterioration in business conditions. The data are provided by Zacks Investment Research. The data process was aided by information provided by S&P Capital IQ, Hoover’s; Thomson Reuters, and Morningstar Document Research.

Congratulations to our friends at Medifast!

See the entire list and details on each of the companies here.

Two of the world’s largest and most well-respected Direct Sales beauty product companies are investing in expansion in India.

Mary Kay India announced the opening of its new office in Ludhiana. The company said they wanted to establish a presence throughout the entire country over the next two years and plans to invest $20 million in the country over the next five years.

Avon India is planning to invest $8 million to build a second manufacturing plant in the country. The new plant will be built over the next three years and will be in addition to the plant the company has in Dehradun with an annual production capacity of 50 million units.

India is one of the fastest-growing economies in the world. Over the past decade, the gross domestic product (GDP) and per capita income has grown at an average annual rate of 7 percent and 5 percent, respectively. By 2015, with a projected GDP of $2.18 trillion, India is expected to be the 11th largest economy in terms of GDP based on the market exchange rate and the fourth largest in terms of purchasing power parity. In 2007, India was ranked the 12th largest consumer market in the world and it is expected to be the fifth largest consumer market by 2025 after the United States, Japan, China and the United Kingdom.

According to the Indian Direct Selling Association, the number of direct sellers in India has almost doubled between 2004 and 2009. In terms of the number of direct sellers, India ranked 11th among the top direct selling countries in 2009-2010.

For more about Direct Selling in India, click here.

 

Michael R. Ellison, CEO and Founder of TriVita Inc. announced today that final documents were executed to officially merge Amazon Herb Company (AHC) with TriVita, a 13-year-old international wellness company based in Scottsdale, Ariz. AHC was founded in 1990 by John Easterling to help the world recognize the health benefits of Amazon Rainforest botanicals, and now Easterling and his wife, four-time Grammy Award-winning singer and actress Olivia Newton-John, will continue to work directly with TriVita post-merger to advance the company’s wellness mission offering a full spectrum of quality natural health products and skincare formulas to consumers around the world.

“ ‘Amazon John’ and Olivia have a genuine passion for wellness and the sustainability of the rainforest. They will join TriVita’s mission of taking wellness to the world as we develop a worldwide community of wellness seekers,” says TriVita’s CEO and Founder Michael R. Ellison. “This merger will be the most advantageous way to promote TriVita’s mission, vision, values and goals.”

Having spent the last 22 years in the Amazon Rainforest and building AHC, Easterling was looking for the perfect company with which to ally. “I made a personal commitment to our leadership to find a dynamic partner that appreciates our Rainforest products and is genuinely sincere about our Rainforest mission,” he says. “Michael Ellison is a man of integrity and purpose whose vision is to help people experience wellness.” Moving forward, Easterling will create new product formulas for use in TriVita’s global media efforts. 

Newton-John is also eager to share her excitement about the merger. “John and Michael are two great visionaries who have dedicated their lives to making a real difference in the lives of others,” she says. “I am absolutely thrilled to see the synergy created by these two great companies.” Newton-John will also be featured alongside her husband in TriVita’s international multi-media advertising designed to expand the company’s global wellness mission by leveraging the power of media. “The power of media has obviously had a profound impact on my career,” she adds. “I have also experienced the power of Amazon Herb products developed by John to sustain my health and energy as I traveled worldwide. I believe joining with TriVita is going to give John and me the opportunity to share our story through both traditional and online media.”

Founded in 1999, TriVita is a member of the DSA and now distributes superior-quality wellness products to 14 countries worldwide with regional corporate offices in Sydney, Australia; Hong Kong and Vancouver, Canada. TriVita’s flagship product, Nopalea, is an anti-inflammatory wellness drink made from the fruit of the Nopal cactus found in the Sonoran Desert in the United States. TriVita expanded into 10 new countries in 2011 and was recognized this year as No. 70 on DSN’s Global 100 list of the top direct-selling companies in the world.

More information on TriVita can be found on their website at www.trivita.com.

The Direct Selling industry is growing in Poland. Recent reports showed an increase of 1.3 percent year over year in 2011 to €585.4m. Cosmetics and personal-care products accounted for 69 percent of the revenues of companies affiliated with the Direct Selling Association of Poland (PSSB). The year before this the category held 70 percent while a European Union average in 2010 stood at 38 percent. The second-largest value share in the Polish direct sales market was household appliances, which generated 13.4 percent of the overall direct retail sales in the country, marking a 3.4 percent increase year over year. OTC medicines and dietary supplements accounted for 11.6 percent of direct sales in Poland in 2011 and grew at 3.1 percent on a yearly basis. Approximately 870,000 individuals were involved in direct sales in Poland last year, of which 88 percent are women.

Companies operating on the market employed about 1,497 people, and 96 percent of the revenues came from person to person sales. Companies on the direct sales market include Amway, Avon Cosmetics, Forever Living Products, Herbalife, Mary Kay Cosmetics and Oriflame. Poland is the fifth-largest direct sales market in Europe after France (€3.7bn), Germany (€2.7bn), Italy (€2.4bn), and Great Britain (€1.4bn).

Jusuru Independent Representatives on a manufacturing tour at Jusuru’s headquarters in Anaheim, Calif.

---

Click here to order the Direct Selling News issue in which this article appeared.

---

Company Profile Founded: January 2010 Headquarters: Anaheim, Calif. Founder: Asma Ishaq, President Products: Joint and Skin Health Nutraceuticals

Asma Ishaq describes her job as “helping wonderful people to see the wonder in themselves.”

Asma Ishaq

As the President of Jusuru International, she has instilled this conviction into every aspect of her company. Not only can it be seen in how Jusuru’s revolutionary products work within the human body, but it is evidenced in the way that Ishaq has built the company.

“We have a slogan at Jusuru: ‘Begin from within.’ That guides everything we do,” says Ishaq. “Our patented science starts at the root to help your body, joints and skin heal. It takes time but it will create some permanent and long-term benefits. Same goes for our distributors; we tell them to start within themselves if they want to see their team and sales grow. Both concepts are intentionally similar—success starts within you. My job is just to bring out the best in people.”

The word jusuru means “to live” and was inspired by Ishaq’s belief that her company’s purpose is to encourage people to live their best possible life.

A Product That Works from the Inside Out

Most skin health products work from the outside in, such as ointments and creams designed to smooth the skin and eliminate wrinkles. But Jusuru’s multi-patented BioCell Collagen takes the opposite approach—a liquid form distributed in a package that looks more like a bottle of wine than the medicinal package you’d expect from a dietary supplement.

“We have several human subject, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trials showing that BioCell Collagen improves joint health significantly, and reduces wrinkles from the inside out,” says Ishaq, who comes from a family of entrepreneurs who had previously achieved remarkable success in the nutritional supplements industry.

Jusuru was launched out of the science behind BioCell Collagen, which was discovered, patented, researched and licensed as a novel dietary ingredient. According to David Ciemny, Vice President of Business Development for Jusuru, “if you’ve been to a GNC, Vitamin Shoppe or Whole Foods, you’ve probably experienced the credibility behind our product.”

Before launching Jusuru, Ishaq had spent the prior decade with BioCell Technology in marketing this multi-patented ingredient, which included serving other direct selling companies. As she witnessed several of her friends’ companies prosper over the years, she realized that direct sales could be a powerful mechanism for rapidly and profitably distributing a product such as BioCell Collagen.

---

Jusuru was launched out of the science behind BioCell Collagen, which was discovered, patented, researched and licensed as a novel dietary ingredient.

---

“Particularly with a product that is proven to be so effective, people naturally have something to share with others. I am passionate about empowering people with personal development and education, which is inherent in direct sales,” Ishaq says.

In addition to possessing scientific studies providing the impact of their products, Frost & Sullivan awarded BioCell Collagen® as the best product in joint and bone health. The company also earned recognition from the Nutricosmetics Summit as the exemplary U.S. brand. According to Ishaq, “We are drawing the connection between ingestible nutritional supplements and effects on beauty, and pioneering this emerging category.”

All of this emphasis on proven results is no accident. Ishaq says that scientific validation is very close to her heart, and explains that “it’s very important [for a company like ours] to support our claims, to provide a product that is indeed effective, and to offer something that is worth every penny that someone is spending.” She believes that this differentiates them from their competition.

“I think differently,” Ishaq says. “We arrived at a scientific breakthrough, and thereafter, chose this distribution model because we believe in it. It was our product that drove that decision, not the other way around.”

---

Jusuru corporate headquarters in Anaheim, Calif.

Jusuru President Asma Ishaq in Haiti contributing donations as part of Jusuru’s Giving Back Program shortly after the 2010 earthquake.

---

A Company Built from the Bottom Up

Despite the natural fit, Jusuru was not originally envisioned as a direct selling company. In fact, its signature product was originally marketed as an ingredient in other companies’ products.

“I spent a decade communicating the benefits of this ingredient to the nation’s largest nutritional brands and educating their sales teams and marketing departments about the science, clinical data and efficacy of our product,” Ishaq says. “We received an overwhelming number of requests from potential clients about developing this particular ingredient to work in a liquid application. After years of R&D, we finally discovered the possibility in 2007.”

That was when she felt the calling to reach for her own dream.

“This company aligned all of my passions and interests into what I had always envisioned as my life’s course.” —Asma Ishaq, President

“I wanted to have the exclusive opportunity to market it in a finished product,” Ishaq says. “I stepped back from my other roles with the other companies, and we started Jusuru International. This company aligned all of my passions and interests into what I had always envisioned as my life’s course.”

Having a background in the nutritional and manufacturing industries, Jusuru is able to leverage their strategic relationships. This not only provides Jusuru with exclusive access to its multi-patented products and scientific research, but it also supports Jusuru with manufacturing, product development and formulating capabilities. Ishaq describes this advantage as positioning Jusuru as a “pioneer in the nutritional industry, beyond the direct sales industry.”

She describes Jusuru International as a “values-driven” company that “inspires people who are thirsty for an ethical company that lives up to its word, so that they can do what they do best—sell our product and change the health of their customers.”

The company’s distributors—which it refers to as iReps, for Independent Representatives—can join for a low annual fee. Thereafter, Jusuru charges a smaller annual renewal fee to maintain a wholesale partnership, through which they can purchase Jusuru Life Blend™ at wholesale and sell at retail price, yielding a 30 percent retail profit. Bulk pricing is also available for up to a 40 percent profit. The company does not require iReps to register for an autoship to earn income.

---

David Ciemny, VP of Business Development, speaking at Jusuru’s annual convention, Rise To Enterprise.

Jusuru’s flagship nutraceutical, Jusuru Life Blend.

Jusuru Life Blend bottles on the manufacturing line at Jusuru’s corporate headquarters.

---

A Marketing Program Based on Serving

Jusuru has experienced significant growth since it launched, which Ishaq credits to a combination of their unique products and the servant-leadership model they employ within the company.

“I learned and fell in love with this concept when I saw it happening before my eyes with mentorship from Mike Hannigan and Sean Marx,” she says. Ishaq had previously worked with Hannigan and Marx at Give Something Back, a company that sells office supplies online and donates around 75 percent of its net earnings to charity—compared to the 1.1 percent national average for corporate giving.

Describing how this model guides her leadership at Jusuru, Ishaq says, “I report to our management, the management reports to their teams, and their teams report to our customers and iReps. We have a very unique culture.”

Jusuru’s iReps come from a wide range of backgrounds. They share a bond of wanting to look and feel younger, to be active and enjoy a high quality of life. The field distribution is about 60 percent women and 40 percent men, but they come from every variety of professional and educational background. According to Ishaq, “We have everyone from business owners to retirees to students, as well as lawyers, doctors and engineers—all of whom find the time to work their business and share their Jusuru story.”

With such a diverse field, she greatly emphasizes the value of listening to iReps’ input. She explains that Jusuru’s corporate responsibility is to provide the field with the tools and training that works for them, not just for the corporate team. Within the past two years Jusuru has tweaked its messaging, its website, its technology and even its new product introductions in response to input from the field.

“I say this in the office all the time: Our role is to serve our field. That’s it,” Ishaq says. “Our weekly webinars allow us to verbally discuss our week’s news and company updates, and includes an iRep Feature segment interviewing an iRep. We also send out our Success Weekly newsletter, which surveys have indicated is our highest-rated tool.

“We know that our business grows sharply when everyone is engaged in more activity. Activity equals results.” —Asma Ishaq

“We know that our business grows sharply when everyone is engaged in more activity,” Ishaq continues. “Activity equals results. The more in-homes, conference calls, three-ways and guest speaking opportunities we have, the better it is for our business. Similarly, events drive business. Whether over the phone, a webinar or in person, they accelerate business growth. Our company puts on an annual event, incentive trip and a regional event. We also support many local events in each region and an open house event at our corporate office each month.”

Among all of the tools in Jusuru’s training cabinet, Ishaq believes that their brief, engaging videos are among their most important. Social media also has an increasing relevance for engaging their field, more so than as a sales tool.

“Videos facilitate the duplication process. They’re an invaluable tool so long as they deliver the message that the field wants. Social media is important, but not as a source of new business. We use social media to keep our field abreast of updates and announcements, but most important, to develop a bond and, overall, a community. Our Jusuru Pet Blend Facebook page is a perfect example of animal lovers coming together to admire just what we love: our pets. It inspires and strengthens a bond. We do not use social media to recruit or solicit any business.”

Ishaq is very direct in the rationale for this strategy: “This is a relationship marketing business, not an Internet marketing business.”

A Focus on Giving

Ishaq would much rather talk about how much she is giving away than how much she and Jusuru are earning. In an industry that has occasionally been known to attract people looking for a get-rich-quick opportunity, her perspective brings a refreshing change of pace.

“We are a socially responsible business that is focused on improving its community, customers, employees and all stakeholders alike. That is my why for starting this business. I wanted to start a business where people came first and a portion of the proceeds was contributed to noble causes. At Jusuru, there are no challenges in carrying out this mission; I have support from the management team, my family, our customers, our iReps and our employees. If anything, we have more work in this regard ahead. To help others is at the core of our mission.”

Ishaq says that she began Jusuru as a vehicle both to create wealth and to give back. This philanthropic spirit not only leads the company to provide donations to the local drug rehabilitation center as well as to international relief efforts in Haiti, but it also guides their efforts to empower, motivate and educate their iReps on a daily basis. As Ishaq explains:

“Giving hard-working people an opportunity to achieve financial success is one thing, but we work to challenge them to find something deep inside themselves that can show them that they can do anything they put their minds toward. It’s been a pleasant challenge and a rewarding way of life.”

A Vision Beyond the Company

With their patented and scientifically substantiated products, Ishaq believes that the company’s challenge has never been competition with its product. Rather, as she looks to the future, she sees Jusuru’s biggest challenge as avoiding hasty decisions.

The company is currently evaluating opportunities to launch into 10 countries and create nearly 20 more new products.

The company is currently evaluating opportunities to launch into 10 countries and create nearly 20 more new products. Jusuru’s management team is also focused on technology upgrades and additional clinical research. This growth can be particularly challenging to delay when it is being requested by iReps in the field.

“What I know is to go slow,” says Ishaq. “Have a strong foundation and expand when the timing is right. I have the responsibility of thousands of people’s livelihoods. All decisions are made to protect that.”

Ishaq confesses that she has learned quite a bit from her mistakes over the last several years, but she is grateful that she went through it. In fact, she embraces the uncertainty of the future along with the challenges it presents:

“The commonality between our company and the individual reps that sell our product is that we are not perfect. We will all make mistakes. It’s about how you bounce back from them that counts. And it’s also learning the lessons that come from those mistakes that matter. As we pursue international expansion and new product launches, we also look forward to taking our iReps along with us on this journey—they deserve it. With every milestone we achieve, it brings us closer to creating more wealth for our iReps, for our employees and for the causes in the world that are ever-deserving.”

PartyLite presented its 2012 donation to honored guest Dr. Susan Gapstur, Vice President of the ACS Epidemiology Research Program and principal investigator for the Cancer Prevention Study-2.

---

Click here to order the Direct Selling News issue in which this article appeared.

---

Company Profile Launched: 1973 Headquarters: Plymouth, Mass. Presidents: Worldwide, Robert B. Goergen, Jr.; North America, Michael Norris Products: Candles, candle accessories, fragrance

The gift of a candle over 100 years ago ignited a culture of charity that still permeates the PartyLite philosophy today.

Whether it’s at a conference, a marathon or a Ronald McDonald House, you can find PartyLite consultants and employees giving. They may be fundraising, but they also may be cleaning, cooking or holding bake sales in order to assist those in need of help in their time of illness. These seeds of generosity were planted early in the life of PartyLite through the foundation laid by the original founder, Mabel Baker, in the early 1900s on Cape Cod.

Baker’s original product was a bayberry candle she made for friends and family. The candle became popular among its recipients, inspiring Baker to create a business making the candles available to anyone for purchase. A woman-owned business was a rare entity in those days, but Baker persisted and when she died in 1965 at age 94, what had begun with a single bayberry candle had become a business worth $6 million.

The company has changed hands but has maintained the integrity and entrepreneurial spirit of its early founder.

In 1973 the current company name was created and the leaders of the business adopted the direct selling model as its mode of marketing. According to Director of Communication for PartyLite North America, Joyce Elven, PartyLite was acquired by its parent company, Blyth Inc., in 1990, and the Plymouth, Mass.-based company was given the boost it needed to reach its potential. For the last four years PartyLite has been listed in the DSN Global 100, and in 2011 was ranked No. 22 among the world’s top revenue-generating direct selling companies.

In 1997, PartyLite adopted the American Cancer Society as its charity of focus. “Lighting a candle has a lot of different meanings to people, including ambience and favorite fragrances,” says Michael Norris, President of PartyLite North America. “One of the special meanings for us is to shine a light on the needs of others.” He mentions that a majority of the employees and consultants working with PartyLite are women and some have been affected by breast cancer or know someone who has been affected by another form of cancer. “It’s easy for them to support the Society because it gives them a tangible way to combat the disease that has affected them personally.”

---

“Lighting a candle has a lot of different meanings to people, including ambience and favorite fragrances.”
—Michael Norris, President, PartyLite North America

---

This season, PartyLite is helping in the fight against cancer by donating a portion of proceeds from the sale of its pink GloLite by PartyLite® Jar Candle in a customer favorite, Strawberry Rhubarb fragrance. “You might say it’s the ‘fragrance of giving,’ ” says Norris, who expects the item to raise significant funds during Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October.

---

PartyLite North America President Michael Norris was among nearly 250 to participate in the Cancer Prevention Study-3 during the July conference.

PartyLite Consultants raised $4,400 for Making Strides Against Breast Cancer in a conference 5K event.

The bucket pass at its conference kicks off a new year of PartyLite giving to the American Cancer Society.

---

Walk, Run, Give

Shining a Light in the Community PartyLite has worked with the Department of Children and Families’ Family-to-Family Program in Plymouth, Mass., for the past 13 years. “PartyLite staff members have sponsored more than 600 children at Christmastime fulfilling their Christmas wishes,” says Joyce Elven, Director of Communication for PartyLite North America. “Gifts are purchased, wrapped and delivered with the hope that these children will have a happier holiday.” PartyLite employees also help out the Greater Plymouth Food Warehouse. “In the last year we have donated nearly 500 pounds of food,” Elven says. “A food drive is held to support children during the summer months when they are out of school and another food drive before the holidays.” PartyLite Canada Lights the Way for Children In Canada, PartyLite Consultants and customers raise funds to support the Children’s Miracle Network (CMN), which raises funds for research and life-saving equipment at 14 CMN hospitals across Canada. Donations stay in the community from which they come, ensuring that every dollar helps local kids. At the 2012 PartyLite Canada National Conference in Ottawa in August, Country Manager and Vice President of Sales Tracie Graham helped present a check to CMN for $74,599.80, taking the 15-year total giving to $3,675,294.20. “We are grateful for the dedication and commitment of so many of our Consultants in Canada who inspire even the newest among them to sign up for the auto-deduction programme to donate earnings to the important work of the Children’s Miracle Network,” Graham says.

In addition to donations from product sales, each year funds are raised through ongoing initiatives involving the entire PartyLite family of leaders, consultants and customers who get involved in their communities, according to Judi Rogozenski, Executive Assistant to the President and PartyLite liaison with the Society. One of those initiatives is the annual American Cancer Society Relay For Life. Rogozenski says that, since 2008, PartyLite has fielded more than 1,700 teams with more than 15,000 team members participating in community Relay For Life events. These efforts alone have raised more than $2.4 million to date.

The Relay For Life website describes the relays as more than just a walk or run. Due to the fact that cancer never sleeps, they are actually overnight events held in the springtime. Teams camp at the track and team members take turns walking or running the track around the clock at these family-friendly events. Cancer survivors lead the walk, and later in the event candles are lit to memorialize friends and relatives who lost their lives to the disease. PartyLite donates candles to nearly all of the Relays in which PartyLite teams participate.

---

“In 2010 and again in 2011, PartyLite had 90 teams and raised more than $40,000 for [American Cancer Society’s] Making Strides.”
—Judi Rogozenski, Executive Assistant to the President and PartyLite liaison with ACS

---

The PartyLite family also participates in the American Cancer Society Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walks held every fall throughout the United States. “In 2010 and again in 2011, PartyLite had 90 teams and raised more than $40,000 for Making Strides,” Rogozenski says. The teams consist of consultants, family members, customers and anybody who wants to participate. “The teams enjoy great success throughout the country because people have a tendency to support what they help create.”

Funds raised through these events help in many areas of the fight against breast cancer. The Society reports that the money is used to help people stay well through education on the importance of regular screenings, free email reminders to get those screenings and a Breast Cancer Update newsletter. They also help people get well by providing transportation to treatments, free lodging for those who must travel far for their treatments, cancer education classes and various emotional support programs.

One of the easiest ways PartyLite customers can support the Society is through the PartyLite Change the World™ program. “We invite hosts and customers at parties and online to round up the purchase price of their PartyLite order to the nearest dollar or up to $10,” Rogozenski says. “This change goes directly to the Society.”

Comfortable clothes play a role in fundraising efforts at the PartyLite home office in Plymouth. “About four or five times each year, employees are given the opportunity to dress casually for an entire week at the office for a small fee of $5,” Rogozenski says. “The funds raised during casual weeks are donated to the Society, along with profits made from bake sales and various other fundraising efforts.”

It All Adds Up

The heartfelt efforts of the consultants, leaders, employees and customers involved in the numerous methods of raising funds for the Society culminate in the presentation of a check to the Society at the annual PartyLite National Conference. “It’s an exciting part of our conference as we witness the fruits of our labors and learn how we are making a difference in the fight against cancer,” Elven says. “In 2012, our $556,508 donation took our 15-year total contribution to nearly $14 million.”

When Norris was asked why his company is committed to raising such large amounts of money for the fight against cancer, he says, “We’ve raised millions because millions are needed.”

And those efforts do not go unnoticed by the Society. PartyLite is included in an elite group of corporations that have national teams participating in both the Relay For Life and Making Strides Against Breast Cancer. The Society also awarded PartyLite its Corporate Impact Award for Philanthropy in recognition of donations of $1 million or more in a calendar year for six consecutive years.

In 2010 PartyLite was also awarded the Corporate Impact Award for Employee Engagement, honoring a company that demonstrates outstanding volunteerism in support of the Society’s mission.

---

“We’re grateful to be able to offer a vital support system that reflects the Society’s principles of working together and helping people prevent and manage all aspects of cancer.”
—Michael Norris

---

In addition, Norris is a member of the New England Chapter of the American Cancer Society CEOs Against Cancer®. “We’re grateful to be able to offer a vital support system that reflects the Society’s principles of working together and helping people prevent and manage all aspects of cancer,” Norris says. “I’m eager to help further those principles by sharing with and learning from other CEOs whose companies are equally committed.”

A Deeper Commitment

In an effort to further assist in the fight against cancer, this year Norris and others did more than give money. They made a 20–30-year commitment to be part of the Society’s Cancer Prevention Study-3 (CPS-3). Enrollment took place at the 2012 PartyLite National Convention in St. Louis in July. “Michael was one of the first ones to sign up,” Rogozenski says. “Our goal was to register 150 participants and we ended up with nearly 250!” The researcher for the previous study, CPS-2, which determined the link between smoking and cancer, delivered a speech at the conference and was impressed with the depth of the commitment and concern of the PartyLite family and others who pledged to become involved for several decades.

In addition to supporting the American Cancer Society, the company and consultants are also extremely supportive of Ronald McDonald House Charities. “If there is a House in the city where we hold our annual convention, that is the House that receives our support for that year,” Elven explains. Over the years, seven of the conventions have taken place in St. Louis. “One of the Ronald McDonald Houses there has received so much financial support from us that they officially named one of their guest rooms the PartyLite Room.”

Throughout the country, Consultants volunteer at Ronald McDonald Houses in their own communities, embracing the opportunity to help where they can. They do whatever is needed, from washing dishes to cooking a meal to sitting with a sibling of a child in the hospital who might need someone to talk to.

Philanthropy is so important to the PartyLite family that one of the unique aspects of its annual conference is the passing of the bucket. “After we present a check with our donation to the American Cancer Society from the prior year, we actually pass buckets to kick off the new year of giving,” Elven says.

In 2011, PartyLite participated for the sixth year in the TODAY Show Children’s Holiday Toy and Gift Drive by donating more than $2 million in products, taking its giving total to $16 million.

Of course, a company with such generosity in its DNA would have a hard time letting the Christmas holidays slip by without notice. In fact, PartyLite donates to the TODAY Show Children’s Holiday Toy and Gift Drive providing gifts that children can give to their parents. In 2011 PartyLite participated for the sixth year by donating more than $2 million in products, taking its giving total to $16 million, according to Elven.

When asked what the future of PartyLite philanthropy looks like, Norris says, “PartyLite has a culture of generosity and commitment to others that is so clearly demonstrated by our field leaders and consultants. Going forward, we will continue to rely on individuals in each PartyLite region to spearhead community outreach. And, for the first time, this fall we will organize a nationwide ‘day of service’ during which consultants in Canada can volunteer to help out the Children’s Miracle Network, and U.S. consultants can volunteer at an American Cancer Society Hope Lodge. Truly, the heart of PartyLite never stops beating, and there is no limit to what can be accomplished for good.”

---

Click here to order the Direct Selling News issue in which this article appeared.

---

Company Profile Founded: 2004 Headquarters: Kenosha, Wis. Top Executive: Debra S. Waller, Founder, Chairman and CEO Products: Women’s coordinating sportswear and active wear

Debra S. Waller

Start small, work smart and embrace opportunities. That seemed to be Debra S. Waller’s philosophy when she founded Jockey Person to Person® in 2004. Today the mighty engine of direct selling has made the latest Jockey division the fastest-growing part of the company.

Waller is the third generation of her family to run Jockey International, but she wasn’t content with just continuing along her predecessors’ paths, according to Lia Keeping, Vice President of Sales for North America at Jockey Person to Person. One of the family traditions was for each company leader to make his or her own mark on the company. Waller’s grandfather was a financial genius who took a bankrupt Jockey predecessor company in the middle of the Great Depression and engineered a brilliant turnaround. While he was CEO, the Jockey brand was created, the men’s brief was invented, and the company achieved a global presence. When her mother took the helm, she introduced Jockey for Her, a full line of intimate apparel for women. When Waller reached her time at the top of Jockey, she completely embraced her family’s passion for innovation.

Lia Keeping

According to Keeping, as Waller considered what her own legacy might be, she remembered a short but significant branch of her own career path. She had been a Mary Kay consultant in college. That experience had shown her the power of the direct selling business model as well as the way it liberated women to create balance between their family and work life. And the fact that direct selling consultants have no glass ceiling was icing on the business model’s cake.

Jockey Person to Person was born. Its first products were Jockey traditions: women’s underwear and sleepwear, all marketed using the party plan by the company’s distributors, called Comfort Specialists®. But when it introduced active wear, customer response was immediate. They wanted more. Gradually the product mix included fewer intimate apparel items and more active wear.

Opportunity Doesn’t Knock. It Rings.

As Jockey Person to Person was gaining traction, a Canada-based direct seller specializing in fashion was losing theirs. When it closed its doors, direct selling veteran Keeping, who had been that company’s Canadian President, found herself unemployed. What concerned her at least as much as her own situation was her salesforce suddenly had no direct selling home. She did what she always counseled her distributors to do. She picked up the phone.

“I always told our salesforce that one phone call, one person, one recruit, can change your business and your life,” Keeping says. “Somehow I got Debra Waller’s phone number, and I called it. I actually got through to her personal assistant, who let me leave a voice mail message. I introduced myself, told her that I had a fantastic salesforce, and that we were looking for a home.”

Soon Michael Lapidus, President of Jockey’s Direct to Consumer Division, called her. They hadn’t been thinking of opening Canada just yet, he said, but “let’s talk.” Keeping became a Jockey Person to Person management contractor in July 2008, about a month after her first call. Her task: Open Jockey Person to Person in Canada. Keeping had helped her previous company expand internationally, and she certainly knew its distributors well, so she dove into the project. In October, the task was complete.

“It just shows what this company is made of,” she says. “They saw the opportunity, wanted to take advantage of it, and they wanted to help people. They moved mountains to prepare the back end of all those processes you never see.”

In December Jockey Person to Person hired Keeping in her current position and also hired her husband, Greg, as Vice President and General Manager.

Once Canada was humming, Keeping tapped into some of her fashionista expertise: coordinating a few items of carefully designed clothing to create many outfits. The idea was a perfect fit for Jockey, and the company added coordinating sportswear—all designed by the Jockey Person to Person design team, and all offered exclusively by its Comfort Specialists. There the company found its niche. Women still want to look good in their clothes, so active wear is an important part of the lineup. But Comfort Specialists get excited about the great line of mix-and-match sportswear, including jeans. The product lineup lets customers glam up their casual wardrobe, taking them from smart casual at the office to workout wear to comfy wear at home. The bonus: They get to shop with their friends in a private, social environment and avoid the hassle of shopping malls.

Must-Have Support

Keeping says that the support of other people who run Jockey’s various divisions has also been key throughout the process, and top executives have stood solidly behind the young division.

“Between Debra and [Jockey International President and COO] Ed Emma, they understood that direct selling was different than mainstream corporate America.” —Lia Keeping, Vice President of Sales for North America, Jockey Person to Person

“Between Debra and [Jockey International President and Chief Operating Officer] Ed Emma, they understood that direct selling was different than mainstream corporate America,” Keeping explains. “They made sure that all executives within Jockey International were engaged with the Jockey Person to Person business.”

For example, Waller invited the leaders of Jockey’s various divisions to attend Jockey Person to Person conferences and incentive trips in the early days. It allowed the whole company to see, feel and embrace the differences between direct selling and mainstream business.

“Rather than trying to take a direct selling business and force it to fit the corporate mold, they understand the differences in direct selling,” Keeping says. “They came to understand that the salesforce is volunteers and also our frontline customers. They’ve allowed the division to grow and develop with a lot of autonomy. They trust us to do what is right, but on the other hand, they’re there to help and support. As an independent business unit at Jockey, we still have access to IT, manufacturing, and the distribution facilities of this global giant. It’s been a huge benefit in getting this business up and running.”

Comfort Specialists benefit from the company’s support, too, but the big door-opener is the Jockey brand.

“It’s a huge plus for us,” Keeping says. “Everyone knows the brand and everyone associates the brand with comfort, quality, value and integrity. That really opens a lot of doors for our Comfort Specialists. The biggest thing we have to explain is that it’s not an underwear party. When women find out that we offer sportswear, they’re very intrigued. And who would have thought that Jockey does jeans—stretch denim. But yes, we do, and they’re as comfortable as the undies you wear. When we launched them last year, they were hugely successful.”

Repeat Shopping Spree

Keeping says that the exclusive product line and its concept of coordinating pieces is the main attraction for Jockey Person to Person’s recruits and customers. And the clothing is designed so that customers can continuously add coordinating pieces to their wardrobe, season after season, without busting their budget.

Jockey Person to Person invests in the careers of its Comfort Specialists and keeps their budgets in mind as they design promotions. At its July convention it held a fashion show to introduce its fall line. At the same time it also introduced promotions that let distributors sell those new clothes at minimal cost, while rewarding retention and recruiting. New recruits can receive the company’s Smart Start Kit, which includes premium retail value products, for a fraction of the cost. To qualify for the reduced price, the new Comfort Specialist must achieve a certain sales minimum—reached through three average parties—by the end of their first full month. She can also purchase any 10 items for 50 percent off at the end of her first full month. Plus, in their first six months, Comfort Specialists receive an Accessories Pack for free when they recruit one or more new consultants who reach that sales minimum in their first full month.

In addition to promotions that keep their business affordable and motivating, new Comfort Specialists have access to the “little black dress” of direct selling—weekly training calls from top leaders. And a whole section of training is available in their online back office. Jockey Person to Person encourages Comfort Specialists to help their new recruits with their first couple of parties as they learn the ropes and begin to feel confident.

The parties are like “girls’ night out,” according to Keeping. Typically, Comfort Specialists set up a rack of samples, spend about 20 minutes talking about Jockey Person to Person, and then start showing the outfits. Early arrivals are invited to model outfits to demonstrate how garments mix and match. Guests can see every style in a Style Guide and decide which garments they’d like to try. Then the shopping spree begins. Everyone can “attack the rack,” try on clothes, and get their friends’ opinions on how they look.

“We have a high success rate with the Smart Start program,” Keeping reports. “Very few women wind up paying full price (which occurs if the newbie’s first parties don’t reach a minimum threshold in sales).”

Jockey Person to Person’s strong start is just the beginning. Its five-year plan calls for it to more than triple its existing revenues and to exceed 25,000 Comfort Specialists. Supporting that goal is its top initiative: to increase brand awareness. It has already appeared on TODAY, and in All You, Taste of Home Healthy Cooking and Woman’s World magazines, and in numerous local and regional publications.

“Everyone has heard of Jockey,” Keeping observes. “Few have heard of Jockey Person to Person. We’re starting to build brand awareness. Our mission is to make sure that people know that Jockey not only does underwear, but Jockey Person to Person does a great line of women’s sportswear.”