“Just because you do not take an interest in politics does not mean politics won’t take an interest in you.” Pericles made that statement in 430 B.C., but the Direct Selling Association is sending the same message today.

The release of Avon Products Inc. third quarter results Thursday before markets opened surpassed earnings expectations while missing revenue forecasts.

Founded in 2001, It Works! is one of world’s fastest-growing skincare and nutrition direct sales companies. Ranked at No. 290 on the Inc. 500 list for 2014, the company has enjoyed an impressive 1,565 percent growth rate over the past three years.

For a company based on the science of nutrition, Mannatech’s decision to help improve the health of malnourished children around the world through its charitable programs just made sense.

MonaVie is looking to grow its business in one of direct selling’s billion-dollar markets. Last week the nutrition brand officially launched operations in Italy, its 39th market worldwide.

Equal access to equal justice—it’s nearly unimaginable in many countries, and it’s what attracted new chief executive Jeff Bell to LegalShield.

Like the history of the universe, the story of direct selling reveals paradigm-shifting events and thresholds that have fundamentally changed the industry and helped to shape today’s direct seller.

Find out more about the DSN Global 100 companies, including an overview of the companies as well as products, number of markets and number of salespeople.

Hitting $1 billion in revenue is a milestone for any business, and the DSN Global 100 list boasts a number of companies that have broken through this barrier. What is it that makes them so successful?

FORTUNE recently named Avon CEO Sheri McCoy to its list of “The 50 Most Powerful Women in Business: Global Edition.” McCoy ranks No. 19, followed by Google SVP Susan Wojcicki at No. 20. GM’s Mary Barra, IBM’s Ginni Rometty and PepsiCo’s Indra Nooyi hold the top three spots on the list.

It’s January 2014, which means that here at DSN we begin our task of compiling the Global 100 list, based on revenue generated by our industry’s top companies during 2013. This will be our fifth year of researching and compiling this list. Your feedback has told us the Global 100 is inspiring, motivating and very helpful in educating the general public about our tremendous industry.