New career starts at home

http://www.charlesprimas.com/
http://www.detroitbusinesstoday.net

December 13, 2009

New career starts at home

Many wooed by direct selling during slow economy

Monica Torline
The Desert Sun

http://www.mydesert.com/article/20091213/BUSINESS/912120350/-1/newsfront/New-career-starts-at-home

Dave Barton needed to find supplemental income and a reason to get out of the house — and all it took was one lousy vegetable chopper.

Wooed by a device that could quarter an onion without breaking the peel, Barton bought a “piece of junk” off a television infomercial a few months back.

It was truth in advertising all right: The blades were so dull, they couldn't cut through much of anything.

After hearing about the bad chopper, a friend suggested Barton try a similar tool sold through The Pampered Chef, a direct seller of kitchen gadgets since 1980.

“The difference between that and what I bought was night and day,” Barton said.

The 62-year-old Rancho Mirage man became a Pampered Chef consultant a little more than a month ago, with 10 parties under his belt already.

With conventional means of finding a job drying up, many American workers like Barton are turning toward direct selling to make some money in this recession.

“It's turned into a good opportunity for me,” he said. “It's paying my mortgage.”

The Direct Selling Association, celebrating its 100th anniversary next year, tracks employment and growth of the direct sales industry. While average employment growth rates slowed 0.5 percent during previous recession years, direct sales employment rates grew an average of 8.4 percent.

“We definitely look at direct selling as an alternative to people when they've been laid off,” said Amy Robinson, vice president of communications and media relations.

The number of direct sellers nationally started increasing toward the end of 2008, Robinson said.

While 2009 figures won't be available for a few months, she said the group is optimistic about the number of new consultants joining the industry — and the selling they will do as they get started.

“We expect an increase in sales figures as these additional salespeople build their businesses,” she said.

Will they buy?

But aren't most Americans cutting back on discretionary spending?

“If there's a reason to buy, they'll buy,” Barton said, noting that a lot of his customers are interested in the added value of three- and five-year guarantees offered on most of his products.

“Women are still interested in sprucing up their wardrobes,” Keron Gustafson of Indio said.

She bought a starter kit from lia sophia and began selling jewelry through at-home parties in July.

Bonni Davis, vice president of sales, said lia sophia consultants are reporting fewer people attending at-home parties but that the average spending per customer is up.

“Friends still get together during these times,” she said. “And this business is all about women helping women.”

Often, a woman will host a party as a favor to a girlfriend getting started selling a product, Davis said. The business expands from there.

Gustafson's initial investment of $149 bought a jewelry case, two display trays, 24 pieces of jewelry, order forms and catalogs.

The additional $500 to $1,000 she earns every month makes “a huge difference” for the household income, she said.

“In essence, I feel like I'm part of a franchise, but with a very low franchise fee,” she said.

Most people who get involved with direct sales have a specific goal in mind — a way to pay for a family vacation or a new car, said Robinson of the Direct Selling Association. The median income for a direct seller is $2,400 annually.

It can become a full-time job

But with flexible hours and little risk to get started, there's potential to turn the opportunity into a full-time career, she said.

Patti Levenda made the transition from selling at house parties to opening a showroom in Palm Desert called Simply Divine.

While she started it with the idea of creating a space for people to host direct sales parties, she also sells handbags and accessories there like the traditional retail model.

Call it customer service or a throwback to her days in direct sales, Levenda is holding workshops for women to show them how to work with accessories they already own. If they buy a new item or two to supplement what they already have, even better.

“Spending a dollar is more of a conscious choice right now,” she said.

Her advice to those looking to start a new career in direct sales: “Start small, and be creative with the marketing. Provide extraordinary customer service.”

Additional Facts What are direct sales?

Direct selling is the sale of a consumer product or service, person-to-person, away from a fixed retail location. In 2008, sales in the United States totaled about $30 billion, with more than 74 percent of the American public buying goods or services through direct selling.
The history of direct selling started in the earliest days of commerce, as traders would go to marketplace to barter for goods and services in person.
The introduction of the home party in the 1950s added a new dimension to the direct selling industry. Hostesses would invite friends into their homes, setting the stage for product demonstrations.
Today, direct selling still takes place in living rooms and kitchens around the country. But some parties are going online, with hosts sending out e-invitations to come buy wares.
The Direct Selling Association

Interested in these businesses?

For more information on the local businesses included in this article:
Dave Barton, Pampered Chef consultant, at (760) 799-2499.
Keron Gustafson, lia sophia consultant, at (760) 289-8133.
Patti Levenda, owner of Simply Divine, at (760) 799-4425.