2021 was a watershed year for direct selling.
Replay of 13TH Annual DSN Global Celebration
Although growth in 2021 did not keep pace with 2020’s record-breaking year, the channel did grow domestically. The easiest way to summarize 2021’s growth story is that it was a tale of two halves. The first half of the year enjoyed growth, but that growth slowed dramatically in the second half of the year. Yet there are positive signs on the horizon—and there is still so much to celebrate.
And celebrate we did at the 13th DSN Global Celebration, a live hybrid event, held in person on Tuesday, April 19, 2022. It was an exciting night full of recognition and camaraderie hosted by DSN Publisher & Chief Brand Officer Shelley Rojas and DSN Strategic Advisor Heather Chastain. Hundreds of people—representing more than 50 companies around the world—attended in person. And thousands more watched the event on our free livestream. Awards and honors were revealed in several categories, including the Best Places to Work, Customer-Centric Companies, Bravo Awards and the DSN Global 100 List.
The Best Places to Work Awards
For the past seven years, DSN has honored direct selling companies where voices are heard and a culture of teamwork thrives with the Best Places to Work Awards.
This year, companies that rose above the competition to earn the title of Best Places to Work in Direct Selling exuded a willingness to transparently communicate during uncertain times; scale flexibility for workers; dig deep to boost pay; and cast an inspiring vision for long-term success. It’s exciting to note that all seven companies have received this award multiple times—a true testament to their corporate cultures and commitment to positivity and inclusion.
Customer-Centric Recognition Program
Direct Selling News launched the Customer-Centric Recognition Program in mid 2020. Qualifying companies utilize business models that boast high customer-to-distributor ratios and prioritize customer sales.
Direct selling companies with a strong retail base of satisfied customers are experiencing impressive growth and deserve recognition for their efforts. With evolving consumer expectations and regulatory scrutiny, customer-centric equals success for everyone—distributors, companies and the channel as a whole.
There are two categories of recognition: Gold Status—companies achieving a five to one or more ratio; and Platinum Status—companies with a 10 to one or more ratio.
The current Platinum Status Customer-Centric companies are:
- ACN
- It Works!
- Le-Vel
- Nu Skin
- Prüvit
- Scentsy
- Usborne Books & More
The current Gold Status Customer-Centric companies are:
- MONAT
- Perfectly Posh
The Bravo Awards
Each year the Bravo Awards panel recognizes companies for outstanding achievement and excellence in areas of leadership and the highest percentage of revenue growth year-over-year. Specialty awards are also given to individuals and companies for their achievements in and service to the direct selling channel.
The Bravo Leadership Award is the only Bravo Award given to an individual, recognizing outstanding achievement and exceptional leadership of a direct selling executive.
This year’s recipient was David Holl, Chairman & CEO of Mary Kay. Under his leadership, the powerhouse cosmetics company has expanded into numerous new markets and successfully diversified its revenue across Mary Kay markets worldwide. The company has also made significant progress on key strategic initiatives including global rebranding and global standardization of core systems and processes. During Holl’s tenure as Chief Executive Officer, Mary Kay’s global revenue has more than doubled with markets around the world regularly setting sales and independent sales force records.
The prestigious Bravo Growth Award celebrates the domestic-based direct selling companies with the highest year-over-year revenue growth. This year, DSN recognized two winners in two separate categories: products and services.
OPTAVIA received the award in the product category. OPTAVIA is a market leader in U.S. weight management with a highly differentiated coach-centric model focused on consistently helping consumers achieve their health goals. The company grew almost $600 million in 2021, launching them into the billion-dollar club for the first time in their 20th year in business. OPTAVIA went from $935 million in 2020 to $1.52 billion in 2021 for a staggering 63 percent year-over-year growth.
Our second Bravo U.S. Growth Award winner in the services category was eXp Realty. eXp is one of the fastest growing global cloud-based companies in the world. eXp surpassed 80,000 independent agents worldwide in Q1 of this year. The company continues to grow at an exponential rate. In fact, eXp grew an astounding $2 billion from 2020 to 2021, more than doubling its revenue to $3.8 billion.
The Bravo International Growth Award honors the international company with the highest revenue growth year-over-year. This year, the award went to PM-International, a leading global health, fitness and beauty brand. Their growth in recent years has been nothing short of extraordinary. In fact, they increased $600 million from $1.11 billion in sales in 2019 to a phenomenal $1.71 billion in 2020. And in 2021, they did it again—increasing more than $671 million year-over-year, earning them back-to-back Bravo International Growth Awards with a total of $2.38 billion in revenue.
The Bravo Global Good Award honors companies that take a proactive approach to environmental, philanthropic and social responsibility issues. This year’s recipient was Natura &Co. The company has an impressive list of initiatives and accomplishments, including commitments to being Net Zero; goals in gender diversity within management levels; and a commitment to sustainability. They are also the largest B-Corporation in the world.
Finally, DSN announced a new award this year, the Bravo Impact Award, which honors the achievements of well-rounded companies that take a holistic, measured and incremental approach to growth, innovation and operational integrity and excellence. Honorees positively impact their customers, distributors, staff, communities and the channel as a whole—and they are helping to shift the public perception of direct selling. Two companies were given the award in this, its inaugural year.
Plexus was chosen for this honor for its remarkable consistency, sustainability and unwavering commitment to giving back to their community. A significant part of that commitment is their Nourish One cause marketing campaign and program. To date Nourish One has donated the equivalent of almost 31 million meals to children and families.
The second Bravo Impact Award was given to Scout & Cellar. Launched in 2017, Scout and Cellar is dedicated to offering a more natural, altogether-better wine experience—from soil to sip. From day one, Scout & Cellar has been on a mission to showcase just how incredible wine can be in its most authentic form, making it free of toxic pesticides, artificial processing aids, artificial ingredients and added sugar. For Scout & Cellar, it’s as simple as the golden rule—as fundamental as embracing the power of doing the right thing.
The Global 100 List
The most eagerly anticipated announcement at each year’s Global Celebration is undoubtedly the DSN Global 100 List. This list determines the top direct selling companies in the world for 2021. Inclusion on the Global 100 has become a point of much-deserved pride.
The List offers a unique perspective on the global impact of the industry by recognizing companies’ revenue achievements. Recognition for each of these companies is the culmination of months of research and the cooperation of many individuals around the world.
This year’s DSN Global 100 List acknowledges 58 companies achieving more than $100 million in revenue for 2021. Thirteen of the top 25 grew by $100 million or more from 2020 to 2021. Full coverage of the list, as well as analysis on important and emerging trends can be found starting on page 52.
You’ll notice that there are several private companies not represented on the list who declined to participate, yet who would have surpassed the minimum qualification of $100 million in annual revenue. These companies chose not to report their financial data for 2020, and we respect their decision.
Oh, What a Night!
The DSN Global Celebration is the industry awards event of the year—a night designed to celebrate, inspire and motivate! If you missed the broadcast, you can catch it on replay at DSNG100.com for a limited time. Gathering together in person after two years of virtual-only conferences created an incredibly positive sense of community and energy within the room—the magic of those moments is definitely must-see viewing for supporters of the channel.
From the 58 thriving companies on the Global 100 List to the seven Bravo Award winners to the nine certified Customer-Centric companies and the seven Best Places to Work honorees, DSN recognized the best of the best of the channel we all love and believe in.
Congratulations to the winners and thank you to the hundreds in the room and thousands of viewers worldwide. And a sincere thank you to all our Member Companies and Supplier Sponsors for helping DSN provide this night of celebration. And thank you once again to the wonderful Global Celebration hosts, Shelley Rojas and Heather Chastain.
From the June 2022 issue of Direct Selling News magazine.
