AP Reports: The Federal Trade Commission said Wednesday that Vemma Nutrition has been temporarily shut down for operating a pyramid scheme that promised college students riches if they sold its nutritional drinks, but most ended up losing money.
The consumer protection agency said that Vemma told recruits that they could make as much as $50,000 per week selling its nutritional beverage Vemma, energy drink Verge or protein shake Bod-e. An initial investment of $600 was paid for products and business tools and $150 in Vemma products had to be bought each month to receive bonuses. The FTC said Vemma provided little help on how to sell its products and instead rewarded them for recruiting more people.
Vemma earned $200 million a year in 2013 and 2014, according to the FTC.
A representative from Vemma, which is based in
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Could Herbalife Be Next? ValueWalk Speculates
by Tina Williams • • 0 Comments
ValueWalk reports: Herbalife Ltd. (NYSE:HLF) is one of Wall Street’s favorite controversies, and now it seems like there could be another problem on the company’s plate. Although it isn’t directly impacting Herbalife right now, it could at some point in the future, as the company has admitted to being under investigation by the Federal Trade Commission.
FTC moves against Vemma Nutrition
The FTC is now seeking an injunction against Vemma Nutrition, another multi-level marketing company which sells some products that are similar to those sold by Herbalife. Unfortunately for Herbalife, its business practices (some past and some present) seem to be in some ways similar to Vemma’s practices. ValueWalk contacted a pyramid scheme expert who found three areas of concern for Herbalife in the case filed against Vemma.
Court documents reviewed by ValueWalk (Hat tip to Quoth the Raven)
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Healthy Headie Lifestyle Cannabis Direct Sales Launches
by Ramya Chandrasekaran • • 0 Comments
Excerpted from an article in the International Business Times about the growth of the marijuana start-up scene in the USA.
Holly Alberti-Evans considers herself among Colorado’s marijuana business success stories. Healthy Headie Lifestyle, the in-home direct sales company for cannabis products she founded with her husband, Steve Evans, is growing, with a busy office in Boulder and an expanding team of independent distributors who demonstrate vaporizers to those Alberti-Evans calls the “canna-curious” in the privacy of their homes. (Hosts provide their own marijuana if they want to take the devices for a full test drive.) What’s more, Alberti-Evans is constantly fielding calls from those wanting to invest in the enterprise.
“We have had an overwhelming response,” says Alberti-Evans. “There is absolute excitement around our business model and everyone wants to participate.”
Rewind to two months ago,
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Total Life Changes President Armand Puyolt Delivers At Boot Camp Training
by Nicole Dunkley • • 0 Comments
TLC President Armand Puyolt attended an Opportunity Meeting on August 14, 2015 at the Winston-Salem Embassy Suite Hotel in North Carolina, hosted by TLC representative, Raychel Stokes Small. The conference room reached its capacity and Armand demonstrated how to close every new prospect with a quick 30-minute presentation.
Following the opportunity meeting, there was a meet and greet that continued near the midnight hour. Armand spent much time meeting new TLC family members, answering their questions and taking many photos. “Every new prospect signed up with TLC tonight. And each distributor here at TLC is part of the family; we must always give family time to ask questions or discuss their concerns as they begin a new chapter in their lives,” stated Armand Puyolt.
The Boot Camp Training started Saturday morning with enormous
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Talk Fusion Associate Sees The Future For Brazil And Beyond
by Nicole Dunkley • • 0 Comments
Double Diamond Associate Bruno Eckert has traveled and lived around the world, making friends in many countries throughout his journeys. When he joined Talk Fusion, he was able to draw on these international contacts from his Facebook, Instagram, and email to create a powerhouse international team. But his heart has always belonged to Brazil.
“While my focus has always been to build a global team, but I´m really positive about Brazil,” he said. “I know the Brazilian people very well and know that every Brazilian’s dream is to become his own boss and have his own business.”
Bruno had that dream himself, but was always held back by working for someone else. “I had a whole lot of problems with traditional businesses over the years. The social situation in Brazil is very hard for
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Jeunesse Featured On Inc. 5000 For 2nd Consecutive Year
by Tina Williams • • 0 Comments
For the second consecutive year, Jeunesse was featured on Inc. magazine’s Inc. 5000 list, an exclusive ranking of the nation’s fastest-growing private companies.
The list represents the most comprehensive look at the most important segment of the economy — America’s independent entrepreneurs.
“We are greatly honored to be recognized on the distinguished Inc. 5000 list for the second consecutive year, which is a tribute to the collective efforts of our entire Jeunesse family around the world,” said Jeunesse Chief Visionary Officer Scott Lewis.
“This recognition is a testament to the integrity, dedication and passion that permeate our culture. We thank all of our dedicated employees and more than 550,000 Distributors whose commitment to our cause represents the heart of Jeunesse.”
Since first making the Inc. 5000 in August 2014, Jeunesse, along with its global
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Damsel In Defense: Empowering Women With Safety & Success
by Ramya Chandrasekaran • • 0 Comments
Damsel in Defense, a direct selling company specializing in fashionable personal safety products for women was featured in Pennsylania newspaper The Intelligencer.
The half-dozen women gathered at Got Wine? in Bristol on Saturday weren’t there for the refreshments. They were there for empowerment. That empowerment came in colors like pink, teal and purple — and carried a 7.5-million volt punch.
In front of the group was Dana Ebel, a consultant with Damsel in Defense, a direct seller of personal safety products, such as pepper spray and stun guns, all geared toward women.
“There’s something for everyone,” said Ebel.
For Ebel, being involved in the organization has not only brought financial success, but her own sense of empowerment.
“They have a very powerful mission,” Ebel said.
Founded in 2011 by Bethany Hughes and Mindy Lin to “equip, empower
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Avon Has Breakthrough In Skincare Research
by Tina Williams • • 0 Comments
A team of research scientists from the Avon Skincare Institute (ASI) presented a new breakthrough in anti-aging skincare at this week’s Summer Conference of The American Academy of Dermatology (AAD), which represents the largest association of dermatologists in the country.
Dr. John Lyga, Director of Skin Bioscience and Dr. Uma Santhanam, Director of Cell Biology and Clinical Efficacy at ASI explained that their team has solved a key piece of the skin aging puzzle in their presentation of two posters, “Dynein is Necessary for Intracellular Transport of Both Nutrients and Autophagosomes in Human Dermal Fibroblasts” and “A role for Autophagy in Skin Aging.”
The ASI scientists began their research with a question: Why does skin develop lines and wrinkles and lose firmness as we age? The team first focused their research on a key
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SEC Warns Public About Forward Direct Selling Corp.
by Tina Williams • • 0 Comments
State-owned corporate regulator Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has issued a warning to the public about fraudulent investment schemes the SEC says are being undertaken by firm Forward Direct Selling Corp.
In an advisory, SEC said Forward Direct Selling Corp. is “inviting people to invest under the same scheme used by One Lightning Corp.,” which earlier was issued a cease-and-desist order from the commission.
“It has come to the attention of the commission that Forward Direct Selling Corp. is being operated by the same people behind One Lightning Corp,” SEC said, adding, “Using a different technology to make it appear that it is engaged in multilevel marketing, Forward Direct Selling Corp. is practically operating the same marketing program as One Lightning.”
SEC said that despite the change in corporate name, Forward Direct Selling’s marketing program
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LifeVantage Appoints New Chief Financial Officer
by Ramya Chandrasekaran • • 0 Comments
LifeVantage Corporation announced today that Mark Jaggi has been appointed Chief Financial Officer for the company effective August 24, 2015.
Mr. Jaggi is a highly experienced finance and operations executive, having spent the past 20 years in lead financial, operational, and strategic planning roles. Most recently, Mr. Jaggi served as Chief Financial Officer at TwinLab Consolidated Holdings, where he led and supported their debt and equity financing, as well as the financial and operational decision-making in all areas of the business.
Prior to TwinLab Consolidated Holdings, Mr. Jaggi served as Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer at Summit Industries, a manufacturer and marketer of pharmaceutical and non-regulated liquid and cream solutions. Prior to Summit Industries, Mr. Jaggi was Chief Financial Officer at O’Sullivan Industries, where he led the international financial processes including analysis, accounting