By: David Bland
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) continues its post-AMG Capital Management push to prepare other weapons for use against direct sellers in the absence of injunctive monetary relief via Section 13(b), which was stripped by the Supreme Court in Spring 2021.
Eleven months after announcing a new rulemaking group to reinvigorate and streamline its Section 18 powers, the FTC conducted a virtual open meeting to announce, accept public comments on, and vote on the publication of its Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR) Concerning Deceptive Earnings Claims in the Federal Register. The agenda for this meeting also included a vote on issuing orders to large pharmacy benefits managers (PBM) to study the competitive impact of its policies affecting independent or specialty pharmacies.
By: Jenna Lang Warford
What worked in 2020… no longer really works.
— Suzie Read, National Sales Director, Jordan Essentials
We have to bring the digital experience to a whole other level… So the question is, how do we elevate the experience?
— Garrett McGrath, CEO, The Happy Co.
Responding rather than initiating has been a common strategy for operating a business during the past two years, as many direct selling companies have chosen to “wait it out” and “play it safe” in a time with no relevant precedent. While innovations were often distributor-led, and hugely successful, it’s clear that 2022 requires different growth strategies as the pandemic shifts to the endemic.
By: David Bland
In the wake of the Omicron variant’s global surge, as COVID-19 case counts neared their peak of over 800,000 new cases per day across the U.S., the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) publicized a series of cease and desist demands it sent to 25 businesses over the past six months. Granted under the authority of the COVID-19 Consumer Protection Act, the list included four direct sellers targeted in November and December 2021.
By: Stephanie Ramirez
This is called the direct-selling business, not the direct-recruiting business. Companies are going to need to bring their leaders into the mix and explain that times are changing, so we’ve got to change and they’ve got to change or we’re going to be left behind.
— Mike Sheffield, Founder and CEO, The Sheffield Group
The unprecedented amount of scrutiny brought on by the FTC over the past year has many direct sellers scrambling to shore up policies as well as update and modernize their marketing practices and compensation plans.
The customer is king in this new era of direct selling, and while some legacy companies have remained steadfast with their current plans, new channel entrants are starting fresh out of the gate with unique hybrid models.
Whether it is incorporating affiliate programs or app-based retention tools programs into their model, embracing verified influencers, or constructing a business plan around corporate social responsibility, the direct sellers of the modern age are acutely aware of the importance of showing network marketing’s best face to both regulators and an often-critical public.
By: David Bland
Words matter, and the deliberate deletion of ‘legitimate business activity’ from the FTC’s draft Mission Statement is material and meaningful. This move is likely to trigger another hostile response, creating an unnecessary distraction of the Agency’s own making.
— John Villafranco, Partner, Kelley Drye & Warren LLP
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the nation’s most powerful corporate lobbying group and a long-time adversary of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), sent three letters to Commission Chairwoman Lina Khan on Nov. 19, objecting to recent actions by the Commission that the Chamber considers to be abuses of power.
In an incendiary accompanying statement, U.S. Chamber President and CEO Suzanne P. Clark said: “The FTC is waging a war against American businesses, so the U.S. Chamber is fighting back to protect free enterprise, American competitiveness, and economic growth.”
Rachel Kellogg has spent over a decade in the direct selling industry, starting as a consultant in the field and working her way up to leadership. She joined the channel unexpectedly but fell in love with the way it gave an equal opportunity to all. After a successful 10 years in the field with Mary Kay, Kellogg was ready to take what she had learned to join the executive team at Faberlic as an integral part of their recent U.S. launch as national sales director. Her mission is to infuse a culture of love, inclusivity, and growth from the ground up and take Faberlic to No. 1 in direct selling.
Founded: 1997
Location: Moscow, Russia
Website: www.faberlic.com