Mobilizing Minds and Markets: Utah Direct Selling Coalition Leader Discusses Policy, Perception and Progress
Grant Baskerville is a seasoned government affairs consultant with over 20 years of experience spanning the public and private sectors across the United Kingdom, European Union, and the United States. His diverse portfolio includes work in industries such as energy, sport, and social policy. For the past five years, Baskerville has specialized in advising direct selling businesses on government affairs strategies. He currently serves as chair of the Utah Direct Selling Coalition, leading initiatives to promote best industry practices and advocate on behalf of member companies with key political stakeholders.
SSN: Can you share the origin story of the Utah Direct Selling Coalition and what you believe is its primary impact today?
Grant Baskerville: I have to give credit to a number of people for the Utah Direct Selling Coalition. Kirk Jowers, who’s the CEO of doTERRA and has an extensive political background with tremendous experience working across five presidential campaigns and 80-plus congressional campaigns, was one of the key instigators. Troy Keller, who’s a partner at Dorsey and Whitney, was another driving force.
Between the two of them, they socialized the idea that we have this great density of incredible direct selling companies based in both the Salt Lake Valley and Utah Valley. You literally drive down I-15, and on either side of the freeway, you’ll see great direct selling brands. Utah is unique in that within a very small catchment area, you’ve got this incredible density of companies like nowhere else in the U.S.
While Kirk and Troy provided the impetus, there was also an organic element to the Coalition where it just made really good sense. Originally, the idea was that we could do coordinated outreach and engagement as an industry with our own state-elected representatives here in Utah—our state house representatives, state senators, the governor, and a few other folks. Naturally and gradually, that expanded to our Utah congressional delegation where federal-level concerns and opportunities came to the fore. Finally, this evolved into the development of a comprehensive economic impact study conducted by the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute at the University of Utah in 2022.
SSN: Can you tell us about membership in the coalition and how you work with companies of different sizes?
GB: We have a good cohort of a dozen companies, but we’re always open to new members joining. We try to make the barriers to entry as low as possible. One of the really cool things about the coalition is that many smaller-scale companies or emerging direct selling businesses might have key functions like marketing and legal in place, but government affairs outreach, even at the state and federal level, is perhaps something that comes a little bit later. By being part of the coalition, they’re able to engage with state representatives and their Utah congressional delegation in a meaningful way.
2024 DC Flyout by Utah Direct Selling Coalition Board members, including (from left to right) Linda Jo Carron from Nature’s Sunshine, Calvin Jolley from 4Life, Jeff Holdsworth from Young Living, Troy Keller from Dorsey & Whitney, Grant Baskerville, chair of the Coalition, and Elise Walker Brown from USANA
SSN: What recommendations do you have for companies looking to get their field involved with state-level representatives and regulators as it concerns direct selling?
GB: The irony is that many direct selling companies would arguably prefer not to have to mobilize their distributors for this purpose. Many folks are selling direct selling products for some discretionary income while focusing on their families. Others are entrepreneurs who want to run their business, scale their business, and be very successful.
In a way, it’s almost a shame to detract from what should be their focus—sharing the product, engaging with people, and educating people on the products—when that’s their driving passion. Instead, we are having to say, “We’re so sorry, but this important issue has come up and we’d recommend you engage.”
The work that the DSA (Direct Selling Association) has done in preparation for any proposed rules on earnings claims actually making it to the Federal Register is really impressive. They’re making it as easy as possible for distributors to send a notification to the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) and let their members of Congress know that they are concerned. When you have that significant volume of responses, that chorus of voices can be incredibly powerful.
From a company perspective, each and every direct selling company should be engaging with and inviting their state house representative, state senator, and congressional representatives to come to their headquarters. Meet with their team, talk about their products, talk about R&D, share your story, and ideally introduce them to some incredible distributors as well. That outreach and education is so important because when there’s noise in the background about what the industry is or isn’t this can be a great clarifier. You get to meet people one-to-one, share your vision, share your story, and showcase your business’ success.
We conducted an economic impact study with the Gardner Policy Institute at the University of Utah, and we found out things we didn’t even know. The study highlighted $6.3 billion in international exports from direct selling companies in Utah alone. That was incredible—it blew us away. With that in mind, I’d encourage direct selling companies to start to calculate and quantify your impact. Track jobs created, the volume and value of contracts with in-state and U.S. vendors, capital investments in your headquarters, and the value and location of international exports. This is all hugely valuable information and insights to share with key stakeholders.
SSN: Are there particular misconceptions that legislators and regulators have about direct selling that you find yourself addressing?
GB: I think it’s a little bit of myth-busting around the actual model itself and sharing what a traditional trajectory looks like for someone interested in direct selling products—from becoming a wholesale customer to potentially building their own business.
What I’ve heard from many of our members in the Utah Direct Selling Coalition is that the first way people get introduced to their companies is that they love the products. They’re so impressed by them, how they meet wellness or other well-being needs, and they share them with family and friends. So in the first instance, people are introduced to the channel essentially as wholesale customers or discount buyers.
From there, some folks may choose to sell the products. This could be due to the flexibility and independence the channel offers. They often do it for some discretionary income to help with bills or other incidentals. Then you have the third category of folks who are entrepreneurs who really want to scale, build this as their full-time endeavor, and make something for themselves and their families.
Sharing that dynamic journey is really helpful in understanding and myth-busting how the channel operates, how people get introduced to direct selling products, and that fundamental point that people love the products.
SSN: From your vantage point, how does the modern relevance of direct selling contrast with outdated perceptions of the industry?
GB: You cannot judge the industry, or any industry for that matter, based on things that arguably happened decades ago vs. what the industry is now. I saw Kirk Jowers speak at the Direct Selling Summit in Salt Lake City, and he made a very impassioned and eloquent case for the direct selling industry and its relevance here and now.
He focused on the loneliness epidemic and person-to-person contact and engagement, and just how important that is in the current era—even more so in the age of internet and social media. It was such an elegant way of positioning the industry: that it is now more relevant than ever, in terms of the products, the people, and the engagement that comes from it.
SSN: How does the Utah Direct Selling Coalition work with the national Direct Selling Association (DSA)?
GB: First off, the DSA does a tremendous job, and we have a great working relationship with Dave Grimaldi, the new CEO, and the broader team at DSA. They do phenomenal work at the national level on federal-level engagement with the House and the Senate. They engage with the FTC and other key agencies and play a really important role.
The role of the Utah Direct Selling Coalition is very much complementary to that—additive, not competitive in any way, shape, or form. Many members of the Utah Direct Selling Coalition are members of the DSA as well. It goes back to that point about the density of direct selling companies in Utah along the I-15 corridor. It’s a very unique case where we felt it was important that Utah’s voice is heard.
We’ve worked hard to build good working relationships with our Utah congressional delegation, and they want to hear from companies and industries based in their state. When we came together to develop the economic impact report, albeit focused on Utah, it had relevance to the entirety of the U.S. We were sharing with our members of the House of Representatives, U.S. Senators, and different federal agencies just how important this industry is to Utah. When there are regulations or laws that impede or unfairly target the industry, that’s not only bad for Utah, it’s bad for the entirety of the U.S.
That’s why we work in close collaboration with the DSA, share with them what we are doing in terms of government affairs outreach, and they’re very kind to update us and work closely with us as well.
Attendees of the March 15, 2022, Utah Direct Selling Coalition Dinner at Utah’s State Capitol
SSN: What current regulatory challenges do you see on the horizon for direct selling companies?
GB: I think unfortunately, particularly as it pertains to independent contracting, direct selling keeps being an unintended casualty of legislation, regulation, or action that’s happening at the state level. Look at California’s ABC law—they even created a carve-out provision for direct sellers and others to make it clear that they are independent contractors. But yet, again and again we are having the same conversation when it so clearly is the case that these folks are independent contractors and independent business owners.
I’m hopeful that something may happen at the federal level. Senator Mike Lee (R-Utah) has his 21st Century Worker Act, which creates a specific carve-out for direct selling and certain other industries like real estate agents and car salespeople, where these all would be protected forms of independent contracting.
Another element that would hopefully help as a message and signal to state-level politicians is a rollback on the Department of Labor’s six-part economic realities test, which essentially tries to capture as broad a group of people as possible into the net of being W-2 employees as opposed to independent contractors. It’s just a shame that when direct selling is not necessarily the target of this, it inadvertently seems to get caught up.
In terms of consumer protection, the Direct Selling Self-Regulatory Council (DSSRC) (administered by BBB National Programs) does an incredible job. They reach out to direct selling companies, notify them when instances of non-compliance come up, and work with them to resolve any issues. I’ve even heard of instances where companies have proactively addressed issues before the DSSRC have even notified them.
The DSSRC also has the teeth to reach out to state AGs (attorneys general) or the FTC when a company says they’re not willing to comply with the guidance issued. I believe about 27 or 28 cases have been referred by the DSSRC to the FTC and/or state AGs. They don’t shy away from it, and they are very robust. The industry takes compliance incredibly seriously.
SSN: With current economic uncertainties, particularly around tariffs and supply chains, how are Utah companies preparing?
GB: What I’ve seen and heard is that many companies have mobilized very quickly and assembled internal cross-departmental teams spanning legal, finance, regulatory, operations, and sourcing to put heads together. The escalation in tariffs, particularly between the U.S. and China, has been so fast that it’s difficult to get a sense of where things will go from day to day.
I get the sense that many companies are working to understand whether the current dynamic is a short- to medium-term development or if this is the new normal. Until that clarity starts to emerge, planning for the longer term is obviously a significant challenge.
I would encourage companies to leverage their trade associations, be it the DSA or others. Although the current administration has said it’s not considering exemptions, it’s a sensible move for direct selling companies and the industry to pull together all those import codes for products into the U.S. By showing the breadth of imports from the industry—whether through the DSA or other trade associations in the supplement or wellness space—and highlighting how important this is to the industry, we can see if there’s any potential for movement.
Many direct selling companies import raw ingredients, and the value of those imports are far more modest than the value of the exports, which are the finished goods. Utah-based direct selling companies export into the rest of the world—the Utah Direct Selling Coalition members alone account for $6.3 billion in international exports.
SSN: What advice would you give to direct selling companies in other states about forming similar coalitions?
GB: If anything, it’s more of a call to action. If you are not currently involved in Utah, you’re more than welcome—please join and please engage with us. If you are in other states and you don’t currently have a coalition and there is a cohort of direct selling companies there, seriously think about it.
Seriously think about working together, because this is a pre-competitive space. We share very common interests as it pertains to regulations and government affairs. Some of the companies you might be speaking to might be perceived as direct competitors, but not in this realm.
It benefits everyone to engage with your state representatives, your congressional delegation, your AG, and other important political stakeholders as a single voice to highlight the importance of our industry and the economic impact of our industry. The more we can build that patchwork to amplify our collective voice, the better. If more coalitions like the Utah Direct Selling Coalition come together in other states, the better it is for the entire industry.
We view ourselves as open source. If we can share the types of issues we are engaging on, both in-state and in Washington, D.C., consider us an open book. We would gladly share any and all information with partner organizations in New York, Florida, Texas, or elsewhere.
