Direct Selling

Texas Pulls Plug on Energy Direct Seller Griddy

Electric wholesaler succumbs to historic winter storms

By: David Bland

No choice but to power down.

—Michael Fallquist, CEO, Griddy

Griddy turned their customers into amature energy traders, because they were fully exposed to the market.

—Rob Snyder, Founder and General Partner, Kynect

Texas-based direct selling electricity provider Griddy was abruptly banned from the power market on Feb. 26, capping a chaotic two-week period for the 4-year-old energy retailer brought on by historic winter storms no one was prepared for.

The storms not only paralyzed the state of Texas but drew national attention to its deregulated power grid, as well as to the tenuous relationship between electricity retailers, consumers, and operators in the Lone Star State.

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April 1, 2021 0 comment

Cover Story Direct Selling Features

Positive Outlook for Public Companies

Tupperware, Herbalife, USANA, Primerica lead 2020 growth; LifeVantage stumbles

By: Dave Rauf

Tupperware

Tupperware’s turnaround story continues to evolve.

The maker of food storage containers, kitchen goods and beauty products reported its second consecutive quarter of year-over-year sales growth in the fourth quarter of 2020, according to recently released earnings.

Fourth-quarter revenue and profit were both up in the three-month reporting period. And company executives say they’re more confident that improving financials are a sign the direct selling giant is on the path to recovery after years of revenue declines and falling stock prices.

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April 1, 2021 0 comment

Direct Selling Features News

New Strategies Emerge from Months in Lockdown

Direct sellers rewarded with new insights after adjusting to challenges of pandemic

By: Claire Wilson

We are coming to learn that the
in-person aspect isn’t as important as we thought it was.

—Sean Eggert, CEO, Hanna Shea Executive Search

COVID-19 forced many changes to commerce over the past 12 months. With the rollout of vaccines and a gradual return to normal social interactions, business practices will begin to shift back as well.

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April 1, 2021 0 comment

Cover Story Direct Selling Features

Section 13(b) Proponents Target Direct Sellers During COVID-19 Congressional Hearing

Undeterred by expected Supreme Court loss, advocates push Congress to strengthen FTC

By: David Bland

Taking money away with civil remedies is not going to keep serious bad guys from doing what they do. The only solution there is cooperation with criminal enforcement authorities to take away their freedom.

—William Kovacic, Former Chair, Federal Trade Commission

Consumer advocates and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) proponents continue to have the ear of Congress in their push to bolster the full range of the FTC’s enforcement powers under the looming U.S. Supreme Court decision this summer—AMG Capital Management v. FTC—one that will determine the agency’s authority to obtain monetary awards under section 13(b) of the FTC Act.

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March 1, 2021 0 comment

Cover Story Direct Selling Features

A Pandemic-Era Shift Away from Brick and Mortar Powers Direct Sales E-Commerce Boom

Direct sellers rewarded with growth as they quickly adapt to the times

By: Dave Rauf

“The coronavirus has changed the industry, and those are changes we are going to see stick around even after the vaccine. Companies that have embraced these digital solutions will be better off for it.”

—McKinley Oswald, president of global sales, Verb Technologies

If you had asked direct selling consultant Andi Sherwood last spring whether direct sellers would truly flourish in a pandemic-induced, pure e-commerce environment, she would have had some doubts. This assumption proved to be a common one among execs in the channel, especially as COVID-19 spread across the globe and lockdowns forced people to shop online in record numbers.

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March 1, 2021 0 comment

Direct Selling Features News

LuLaRoe Settles DSA-Supported Lawsuit

Women’s clothing company will pay $4.75 million to resolve pyramid suit

By: SSN Staff

Every Washington retailer who lost money under LuLaRoe’s pyramid structure will receive restitution.

—Bob Ferguson, Attorney General, Washington State

California-based direct seller LuLaRoe has settled with Washington State Attorney General Bob Ferguson to end a consumer protection lawsuit filed by the AG in January 2019. Ferguson accused LuLaRoe of violating the Washington Antipyramid Promotional Scheme Act and the Consumer Protection Act.