MONAT Global, a multinational direct seller of beauty products, announced that it is entering Spain’s market this year. Coming just seven years after its U.S. launch, and on the heels of a 2018-2019 expansion into the U.K., Ireland and Poland, MONAT confirmed the Spain launch would come in June with a series of virtual events and local roadshows to introduce the brand to partners. The e-commerce launch will follow in September
Melaleuca plans to open a new 508,000-square-foot distribution center in Kansas City, Missouri, for its health and wellness products. The company will invest $35.5 million in the new facility and create more than 200 new jobs. Strategic central placement within the U.S., along with manufacturing industry expertise and a welcoming business environment, was among the reasons for choosing Kansas City, according to the company. Melaleuca already has state-of-the-art distribution centers in Idaho and Tennessee. The company anticipates the new distribution center will speed up online delivery for customers throughout the Midwest as well as enable faster e-commerce shipping. The new Missouri facility is expected to be ready in early 2022.
Founded: 1973
Executive: Bob D’Loren
Location: Dresden, Ohio
Website: Longaberger.com
SSN: What motivated you to acquire Longaberger last year?
At Xcel brands, we were looking for something in the home sector to diversify our category offering and reach the consumer directly, and I saw the opportunity to acquire the company. I’ve always been excited about iconic brands. I like to say that icons live forever. Sometimes they just need a little bit of tender, loving care to get people reengaged with the brand. 
Tupperware will now leverage its network of direct sellers to launch exclusive brand stores, as well as make products available on e-commerce channels in India. The company began listing its products on e-commerce platforms such as Amazon and Flipkart through authorized sellers in August. This multi-channel approach comes as consumption of Tupperware products has shown a slow growth trajectory. Efforts also are being made to keep up with an evolving market that demands greater access to products. The company plans to open 30 outlets by the end of the year, with 13 stores already in various stages of completion. An additional 100 outlets are in the works to be finished by year-end. The franchise-run stores will launched in key cities, such as Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Pune. It had been previously reported that the Delhi High Court had issued a judgement preventing e-commerce platforms from selling products of direct selling companies without their authorization.
Facebook influences more buying decisions than any other social media platform, according to a new survey from business site The Manifest. In fact, Consumers are more likely to buy from a brand on Facebook (52 percent), than on Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter, YouTube, Snapchat, LinkedIn and Reddit combined (48 percent). This may be due to Facebook’s standing as the largest social network, according to some digital marketing experts, especially since the platform has been around for many years now. Still, social media offers connection, whether personal or business, and that creates trust with a brand and adds value. But it doesn’t stop there. Interaction is key, and customer service is invaluable when creating customer loyalty.
As a company, you can take the Likes at face value, but respond to those that leave reviews (31 percent), mention brands on their own profile (22 percent), direct message brands (20 percent) and tweet at brands (18 percent), because they could result in loyal customers.
When we began this adventure called Social Selling News last summer, I felt that the two strongest pressures on the direct selling channel were coming from regulatory scrutiny and from tech-enabled shopping choices, specifically e-commerce.
A year later, I still believe the impact of these two pressures to be of primary concern to traditional direct selling. The contents of this issue reflect that: Pennsylvania is close to becoming the 26th state to strengthen consumer laws (cover story, page 1), California is continuing to press for stronger rules around independent contractor status (Risk Roundup, page 20) and influencer marketing is a growing billion dollar industry (The Optics and Special Report, page 16).
These pressures, however, can also be interpreted as positive influences that can help the channel navigate itself into a healthy position for all stakeholders.
Michel Bayan presents an interesting idea in this month’s Voices from the Channel column (page 21): Can empathy help us understand opposing viewpoints? I think he is on the right track. Though we may thoroughly disagree with the conclusions that many who distrust our channel come to, we may be able to see opportunities to change for the better by standing in their shoes and looking objectively at their concerns.
It seems clear to me that adaptations must be made. Failing to change with the changing times has never worked out well for anybody in the selling world. Just ask Blockbuster. Or Yahoo.
Adapting to pressures, on the other hand, and using them as guideposts to make fruitful changes where necessary can be of great benefit.
On a more positive note, we are excited to announce the launch of our sister website, Social
Selling Stories (socialsellingstories.com). The article on page 12 explains in greater detail why we decided to create this website and how companies can participate.
Basically, it’s time we developed a way to share our good news and help improve our reputation at the same time. Take a look, and let me know if you’d like to be a part of the site.