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DSA Reacts to Article About Decline of Direct Sales in USA

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The Direct Selling Association (DSA) has reacted to an article in The Columbus Dispatch about CVSL company Longaberger’s recent troubles, where an analyst was quoted as saying:

“In our view, the Internet offers a more efficient and lower-cost distribution channel than catalogs……Direct selling, while a great source of part-time income for many, is a slowly dying business model…”

Joseph Mariano, President of the DSA has written the following letter to The Dispatch.
 
The direct-selling channel in the United States is healthy and continues to grow, contrary to the view expressed in May 17 Dispatch article “Basket maker Longaberger Co. has its critics.”
The proof is in the numbers: Direct selling generated more than $32 billion in revenue in 2013, up from $31.6 billion in 2012 and $29.8 billion the previous year. Ohio realized just over $1

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DSA Appoints Steve Tew To Board

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The American Direct Selling Association has appointed 4Life President and CEO Steve Tew to its Board of Directors. The Board of Directors is a group of distinguished executives who share a three-year term to guide the efforts of the DSA.
The DSA works with Congress, numerous government agencies, and consumer protection organizations to lobby on behalf of its member companies, ensuring appropriate representation under the law.
Steve Tew ’s assignment, which will be announced at the DSA Annual Meeting in San Antonio, Texas, in June, came following a vote for new Officers and Directors that took place earlier this year.

“As a member of the Direct Selling Association’s Board of Directors, I am committed to addressing the issues that are significant to home-based business builders,” said Steve Tew.

Steve Tew also holds a seat on the World

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FTC Commissioner Praises Direct Sellers

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The direct-selling industry on Tuesday earned praise from a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) commissioner amid calls for greater regulation.
FTC Commissioner Maureen Ohlhausen praised the industry’s efforts to improve its self-regulation efforts during remarks at the National Press Club in Washington.

“I commend you for your partnership with [Council of Better Business Bureaus] that has increased awareness and understanding – and appreciation – of the importance that the direct selling industry places as an industry on ensuring it is an ethical and trustworthy marketplace,” she said.

The industry has come under fire from advocates who say more regulations are needed from FTC officials to protect consumers from pyramid schemes and faulty advertising.
But Ohlhausen said that sometimes self-regulation is “the only option for certain advertising practices where government intervention is limited by First Amendment concerns.”
Still, Ohlhausen

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DSAP: Understanding pyramid scams in the Philippines

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About 4 million Filipinos are in direct selling. They have dreamt of being entrepreneurs but do not have the capital. Some have found financial and personal freedom, while others have become victims of pyramiding scams.
The Direct Selling Association of the Philippines (DSAP) shares answers to frequently asked questions about pyramiding companies and those that are legitimate and with sustainable compensation plans.
Question: Using layman’s terms, what is pyramiding and what’s the main difference between legitimate multilevel marketing (MLM) and pyramiding?
Max VP for Asia Joey Sarmiento: Network marketing, or MLM, is a legitimate mode of business wherein products are sold via person-to-person selling instead of the traditional way of selling from a fixed retail location. The objective is to sell products to the end-consumers.
The difference between MLM and direct selling is in the commission

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DSAP: Understanding pyramid scams in the Philippines

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About 4 million Filipinos are in direct selling. They have dreamt of being entrepreneurs but do not have the capital. Some have found financial and personal freedom, while others have become victims of pyramiding scams.
The Direct Selling Association of the Philippines (DSAP) shares answers to frequently asked questions about pyramiding companies and those that are legitimate and with sustainable compensation plans.
Question: Using layman’s terms, what is pyramiding and what’s the main difference between legitimate multilevel marketing (MLM) and pyramiding?
Max VP for Asia Joey Sarmiento: Network marketing, or MLM, is a legitimate mode of business wherein products are sold via person-to-person selling instead of the traditional way of selling from a fixed retail location. The objective is to sell products to the end-consumers.
The difference between MLM and direct selling is in the commission

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“75% Of Irelands Direct Sellers Are Female.”

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BusinessAndLeadership.com reports: Figures released from the Direct Selling Association of Ireland (DSAI) have revealed that 75pc of the industry’s 20,000 direct sellers are now female, while 30pc are stay-at-home mums.
Contributing €50m a year to the Irish economy, direct selling is where goods are sold direct to consumers outside of a fixed shop. 

Lynda Mills, director general of the DSAI, said: “There is a new type of female entrepreneur emerging in Ireland – women who are selling products they love and building really strong businesses through direct selling. 
“We are seeing more and more women being attracted to direct selling because it can fit so easily around other commitments – whether it’s children, education or another job.” 

The figures released by the DSAI are based on its survey of its member companies including Amway, Forever Living and

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DSA President Joseph Mariano’s New York Times Letter To The Editor

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To the Editor:
Re “Riddle of the Pyramids,” by Joe Nocera (column, Jan. 10):
There is no riddle. Federal law and statutes in a majority of the states clearly define a pyramid as an operation that pays salespeople primarily for recruiting additional members into a network instead of selling products. The Federal Trade Commission further warns that pyramids may require members to buy large amounts of inventory, meaning you couldn’t consume it yourself, or unwanted items.
“Multilevel marketing” is not synonymous with pyramid scheme. The former is an accepted, lawful method of marketing consumer goods and services. The latter is an illegal business operation that should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
Hundreds of direct selling firms in the United States (sometimes referred to as multilevel marketers) that are members of the Direct Selling Association are progressive companies with sound business practices that provide opportunities to millions around the globe. These companies, including Herbalife, have committed themselves to the highest level of marketplace ethics and a rigorous self-regulatory code.
We should consider the consequences to the individuals who sell and consume their products — and the communities their parent companies serve — before placing scarlet letters upon their legitimate businesses.
JOSEPH N. MARIANO
President
Direct

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DSA Member Votre Vu Closes Down

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The following is an email from founder and CEO Harold Zimmerman to the Votre Vu Reps:
Dear Votre Vu Brand Ambassdors,
It is with an extremely heavy heart that I announce that Votre Vu will need to close our doors at the end of this year- 2014.
Even though the value of our products was validated repeatedly by prestigious beauty editors, celebrities, and business authorities, we simply did not gain enough consumer traction to keep our business in operation. 
Our sales have been in decline in the past 2 years, and the level of investments made to keep our operations running has reached its limit.  Trust me, we have looked every which way to keep this dream alive.  It has been my wholehearted focus for the past seven years – and I know all of you and our corporate staff also embraced the Votre Vu vision with the sincerest passion.    
I do not view this as a failure, nor should you. We dared to dream. We dared to create something truly unique, and we created quite a stir in doing so.  Our brand was given life by YOU, our beloved Brand Ambassadors.     \You invoked passion and excitement amongst our consumer base at

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Zurvita And Spurilla Approved By The DSA

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The Board of Directors of the Direct Selling Association recently approved the membership application of two direct selling companies. The companies are:

SAS SPURILLA, LLC
Zurvita

Each of these companies completed the minimum one-year pending period required for full membership in the association. During this time, the company’s marketing and business plan were reviewed to ensure compliance with all provisions of DSA’s Code of Ethics.
“The members of the Direct Selling Association pride themselves in their commitment to the highest standards in business ethics,” said DSA’s President Joseph Mariano. “By applying for membership in the association and going through a rigorous approval process, these companies are demonstrating that they take their ethical obligations to their field salesforce and to the ultimate customer seriously and are willing to make a public pledge to that effect.”
DSA’s Code of Ethics gives the direct selling industry one of the strongest self-regulatory codes in business today. All member companies are not only required to comply with the Code to be admitted to the association, but must also continue to uphold and promote the Code as a condition of continuing membership in the association. DSA’s Code is enforced by an independent code administrator who investigates and prescribes remedies in response

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DSA Endorses 13 Candidates In House And Senate For Support In Direct Selling

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Direct Selling Association (DSA) today announced that it has endorsed 13 congressional candidates in recognition of their commitment to direct selling and the entrepreneurialism and opportunity it creates for millions of Americans.
The endorsements, appearing in newspaper ads across the country, support the following incumbents:
U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.)
U.S. Rep. Tony Cardenas (D-Calif.)
U.S. Rep. Steven Horsford (D-Nev.)
U.S. Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-Texas)
U.S. Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.)
U.S. Rep. Reid Ribble (R-Wisc.)
U.S. Rep. Juan Vargas (D-Calif.)
U.S. Rep. Marc Veasey (D-Texas)
U.S. Rep. Tim Walberg (R-Mich.)
U.S. Rep. Ted Yoho (R-Fla.)
DSA is also supporting, with similar ads, U.S. Senate candidate Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) and congressional challengers Mia Love (R-Utah) and Alex Mooney (R-W.Va.). A representative ad from DSA’s national campaign is available here.

“We want elected officials to understand that economic opportunity comes in many shapes and sizes,” said Joseph Mariano, President of DSA. “The candidates we’re supporting this election cycle stand with direct sellers. That’s why we’re standing with them.”

Direct selling – which involves the sale of products and services person-to-person, through home parties or online through distributor websites – provides independent consultants personal flexibility, the opportunity to own their own businesses and the chance to achieve a variety of personal and professional goals. In 2013,

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