In an effort coordinated by the Granite Education Foundation, 4Life volunteers assembled meal kits that will provide food to students in a local school district who might otherwise not have enough to eat over the weekend while they are not in school. 

“My family and I loved participating in this service project,” said Jeremy Wardle, Vice President of Global Markets. “We love serving local families and children, and by so doing, we become closer as a family.” 

The post 4Life Hosts Day of Service in Honor of 9/11  first appeared on Direct Selling News.

Beyond having in common the ability to adapt and be nimble, these companies are all driven by products in demand by consumers and readily accessible via robust e-commerce platforms. And these companies, much like direct selling legacy company Tupperware Brands—who experienced a resurgence thanks to more people needing to store leftovers during the pandemic, marked quadrupled profits of $34.4 million in the most recent quarter and saw stock prices soar from $1 in March to $28.80 per share in late October—want to ride this wave of sales through 2021.

Here, they lay out how they intend to do that using the insight of hindsight. They detail what worked this year, what challenged them, and how they coped with the unpredictability 2020 consistently threw. They share what sustained them in strife and offer up advice to those feeling the strain today. And lastly, they look forward through a pragmatic and transformative lens on a 2021 that will ultimately be what direct selling companies make it.

NEW U LIFE

FOUNDED / 2017

HEADQUARTERS / Pleasant Hill, California

TOP EXECUTIVE / Alexy Goldstein, Founder and CEO

PRODUCTS / Health and Wellness

New U Life generated $60 million in sales by the end of its launch year in 2018, thanks to its unicorn product, SomaDerm. They parlayed its popularity and sales—once exclusively offered through a single retail storefront in California—into a whole-health movement of nearly 400,000 distributors in under three years.

“In the last 12 calendar months, we’ve sold 2.5 million bottles of SomaDerm, not including the sales of all our other products. We’re not even three years old yet, and we’re only in three markets,” Vice President of Marketing Jeremy Wardle says.

All the company’s offerings focus on whole-body wellness, including a new cognitive health supplement drink which launched in October. “We are a product-driven company that empowers the business opportunity because of how good our products are,” stated Wardle.

Despite growing pains and operational snags due to COVID-19 and the Pandemic, New U Life more than doubled its size in 2020 and successfully supported their sales field. The company is poised to open and expand international markets in Malaysia and Singapore in early 2021, with Korea, Japan, and Thailand expected to follow.

VP of Marketing, Jeremy Wardle and Pat Berry, VP of International on 2020

What worked for your company? Were you somehow better prepared? Were there standout successes?

Jeremy Wardle: What has helped us to grow is that we’ve stayed true to our message of who we are. We are in the business of changing people’s lives. We’ve helped people create a new life through pioneering products.

We ultimately leveraged technology and a face-to-face platform with Zoom to the field and Microsoft Teams to the corporate family.

We also gave back with donations to the Red Cross to support people affected by fires and scholarships to students who were customers or distributors.

We enhanced communication. We’re not perfect with it, but we’ve learned how to mitigate and eliminate silos in bureaucracy in this Pandemic.

One of the things I’m learning is that every possible touchpoint matters. Every little email, every little text message, every little Instagram—every touchpoint matters right now.”

We also realize that we’ve grown a lot because people are looking for contingency plans, or they see this as a way to control success in their lives.

Were you more adaptive or flexible in 2020?

Pat Berry: We weren’t in the beginning, and then we were compelled to. That was a challenge. It’s still a challenge, but it’s taught us new skills and how to stretch and grow.

We really dig our roots deep in growing our careers and getting away from traditionalism. We say we are American, but we are global citizens, and I love my Chinese teams even though we’ve never met.

I’ve gotten emotional over their successes and their challenges when they have to shut down the Hong Kong office for two weeks because the law says if one person gets sick in a high-rise, they shut the whole building down.

We either make excuses, or we deal with the situation and figure out how we’re going to be the solution to the challenge. That’s what we have done.

What obstacles did you face in 2020?

Jeremy Wardle: Money in and money out. We’ve had to be creative. In our first year, the biggest challenge was credit cards, but now we are getting merchants accepting us all over the world. The next challenge is getting product registered in different countries, so we’ve brought in world-class legal. The challenge in having a unicorn product is making sure that we are meeting every legal requirement.

Then there’s compliance. I don’t look at just the claims being made. It’s the material we are producing to support the field, but it’s also complying with border crossing, regulatory in the market—legal compliance. Then you have the finance side working on the money in and money out, which is just as much compliance as legal. We’ve got a really good global team.

How did your company cope with the unpredictable nature of doing business in 2020?

Jeremy Wardle: The predictability of the future is to look at the areas where we succeeded during the pandemic and look at where we haven’t done well. We have done well in our SomaDerm sales, and we’ve done well in keeping our promises. We just held our .comvention—a virtual event. Talk about a course correction. We started out selling tickets, got 1,500 sold and felt it was going to be a dud. So we made it free and had 50,000 attendees by simply moving from a $40 fee to free. We had a world event in a venue and held live events in Taiwan and put them on the jumbo-tron with 5,000 people in a stadium watching it. We tackled it all.

What we do in Hong Kong that is successful, we keep doing that in Hong Kong. What we do in Taiwan that’s a success, we keep doing in Taiwan.

We’ve adapted by looking at different industries in the United States and just launched a sampling program here. We created an app that allows people to virtually share videos and share SomaDerm single samples where they can try it before they buy it. It creates a reciprocity and a model of duplication that is COVID business-worthy. We’ve got a pandemic proof business model because you can literally go into business completely virtually anywhere.

We need to make sure that our message transcends all borders and that it’s very consistent, but we make sure that when we do a promo, it’s market specific.

What is your plan to sustain the new business in 2021?

Jeremy Wardle: What’s better for all the distributors is best for us and to make sure that we are making decisions that are not ego-based, but are very spirit-based. Is it fair to all concerned? Will this build goodwill? Everybody has to make sure they are checking themselves and their egos at the door.

What sustains your company during times of strife? What advice would you offer to others?
Jeremy Wardle: Has the field bought in to the message? Your numbers are a reflection of what they have bought into. That can be a tough pill to swallow. We need to listen and pay attention to that and ask questions about why. Is the price too high? Is it the formula? We have to check our ego at the door, over communicate and sometimes admit things just don’t work.

If you’re just selling a skincare line or created a compensation plan before you created your product, it isn’t going to work. You’ve got to have purpose. If your mission and vision don’t align with your product strategy, and they don’t align with what the field is doing, take a step back. It doesn’t mean you have to reinvent the wheel. Just take a step back.

Any insights for 2021?

Jeremy Wardle: My hope is that there’s an element of belly-to-belly, face-to-face that begins again, but I do see 2021 as a hybrid, particularly in the U.S. I see it as a challenge and that economic turmoil is coming our way because of bailouts and things being shut down, but I trust in network marketing and direct sales. It’s always had a good edge against recession.

I see 2021 as a tough year, but I think we are all better prepared. Sunny days ahead, but I do see some clouds.

The post What We Make It Innovation and Transformation Beyond 2020 – New U Life first appeared on Direct Selling News.

ACCORDING TO 2018 statistics provided by the Direct Selling Association, wellness remains the largest product/service category with 33.8 percent of industry sales. So, it is no easy feat for a health and wellness company to distinguish itself in the wellness direct sales category—but New U Life has done just that!

Its flagship product, SomaDerm®, sold 2.5 million units in the previous 12 months reported by Vice President of Marketing Jeremy Wardle. The company describes SomaDerm as a “comprehensive solution to endogenously— meaning naturally—increase the body’s mechanisms for increasing growth hormone,” says Kenton Engel, Vice President of Compliance. In more basic terms, the nutraceuticals found in SomaDerm increase the body’s natural growth hormone production response—with one specific herb, Mucuna pruriens, known commonly as the velvet bean, shown in some independent evidence to increase natural production by up to 800 percent. While that may sound outlandish, thousands of New U Life distributors and customers in North America and the Asia Pacific are touting benefits including improved sleep, reduced fat, increased muscle and better joint and bone health.

You may have heard of HGH (Human Growth Hormone, sometimes referred to as GH or Growth Hormone). We reach our peak production of HGH around age 20. Around age 25, our supply begins to take a nosedive, at which point the aging process related to its deficiency begins. Increased fat storage,decreased muscle strength, lower skin elasticity and decreased energy levels are associated with diminishing HGH stores.

Some believe replenishing our HGH supplies can turn back the clock—delivering benefits including those described above. However, HGH traditionally has been available only through a prescribed injection. SomaDerm aims to increase consumers’ access to HGH via a gel that’s safe and painless to apply.

Homeopathy, which when translated from its Greek origins, means “like disease,” is defined as “the practice of medicine that embraces a holistic, natural approach to the treatment of the sick.” Developed in Germany more than 200 years ago, homeopathy is based on two theories: first, that “like cures like,” or the idea that a substance that causes symptoms in a healthy person may be used in diluted form to treat those symptoms and the associated illnesses; and second, the “law of minimum dose,” or the theory that the more diluted the substance, the greater the potency.

THE AMERICAN DREAM

CEO and Founder Alexy Goldstein is “the quintessential definition of the American dream,” Wardle says. He immigrated to the United States as a teenager, graduated high school and was preparing for his freshman year at Fresno State University when he earned the keys to the family business: a small shop selling natural foods and nutritional supplements.

Goldstein went on to earn his bachelor’s degree in business, juggling his coursework with his responsibilities as a store owner. Inspired by the spirit of entrepreneurship, he began researching how to develop his own product line and reach more customers and went on to become both a Certified Homeopath and a Certified Herbalist.

Over the years, Goldstein spearheaded the development of multiple products including SomaDerm, which originally was created to assist athletes during recovery. For 16 years, SomaDerm attracted a loyal following of athletes. Still, it wasn’t until Goldstein discovered the direct selling channel in 2017—through a friendship with now-Master Distributor Joe Juliano—that the product gained unstoppable momentum. “It took off like wildfire,” Wardle says, adding that a significant factor behind SomaDerm’s success is the fact that it’s not a “me-too” product. It’s the only transdermal HGH product registered with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) available without a prescription. Wardle adds that a large number of hormone therapy doctors use the gel in their practices as a homeopathic way to support their patients.

RAPID GROWTH AND EXPANSION

SomaDerm’s growth in popularity has been rapid, but like any other success story, this one involves perseverance and sacrifice. Goldstein chose to fund New U Life by himself without any outside investment. Creating the infrastructure of his direct selling company—from building an independent sales force organically to establishing an electronic payment system—required patience and faith. Once the infrastructure was in place, however, the company’s real growth began. By the end of New U Life’s first year in business in 2018, the company had generated approximately $60 million in sales from SomaDerm alone. Headquartered in Pleasant Hill, California, with its largest office in Lehi, Utah, New U Life serves distributors and their customers throughout the United States, Canada, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and serves customers in China.

Goldstein maintains his original Pleasant Hill, California, Natural Life Foods shop along with additional locations throughout the state. Goldstein still works out of his flagship shop every day. He maintains multiple headquarters offices in Lehi, Utah; Pleasant Hill, California; and Taipei, Taiwan.

A PIONEERING MISSION

New U Life’s mission is to “pioneer new products that unify body and mind and connect you to a transformation that enriches life through opportunity,” while its philosophy is “to achieve whole body health through a balance of nature and science in products that inspire, innovate and connect.”

Within the New U Life corporate organization and out in the field, there’s undeniably a significant focus on SomaDerm. In fact, Alexy calls the gel “liquid gold,” and it’s the only product sold by distributors in its international markets. In the long term, however, the company has its sights set on what it calls “whole body health,” and to that end, it’s working on promoting its other product lines: FortressTM, a daily supplement designed for immunity support; and its Keto Line of products: KetoDay, KetoNight, KG4 and KetoGen4, created to enhance the body’s ability to remain metabolically engaged around the clock and reach peak levels of ketosis. A nootropic product focused on brain health is scheduled to be launched in the fall, most likely at the company’s online convention in late September.All New U Life products are manufactured in the United States, and each has been designed as a category creator.

Ultimately, Wardle says, “we want our other products to be independent and self-sustaining,” much like SomaDerm has. With that objective in mind, the company just wrapped up its New U Life Whole Body Challenge hosted by Certified Nutritionist and Keto expert Thomas Delauer, which awarded over $100,000 in cash prizes to entrants with the most inspirational health transformation stories. “We support our product lines standing on their own through initiatives like these,” Wardle adds.

The company doesn’t share the details of its research and development; “it’s highly proprietary—our trade secrets are ours,” Wardle says. “We’re not seeking patents. We’re 100 percent protecting our IP, and we have specific vendors just for us. It’s very lock and key.” However, what is public is New U Life’s Scientific Advisory Board, comprised of leaders in medicine and academia, who provide insight and direction to the company.

CORPORATE CULTURE AND INVALUABLE EXPERIENCE

New U Life maintains an employee base of around 130 who serve an independent sales force of 395,000. Like any family, this one has weathered growing pains and scaled its sharof hurdles.

“We’re learning every single day, but friction and traction only strengthen our bond. We can have open debates,” Wardle says.

His team is represented exclusively by people who worked previously at long-established companies. Being a part of a new organization and playing a role in product development from start to finish has provided them with an invaluable educational experience.

A FOCUS ON DISTRIBUTORS, DEVELOPMENT AND GROWTH

New U Life’s current focus is on global retention. A loyalty rewards program for distributors and customers is also under discussion. Additionally, Wardle adds, the company will continue to focus on ensuring that its compensation plan is as attractive as possible for potential distributors; “putting money in the wallets of our distributors as soon as possible is the quickest way to retain them.”

Compliance is another significant focus for New U Life—and it’s a timely one. “We have to be so careful not to make claims about immunity or virus defense. Our Compliance Department is world-class, and we’ve had excellent cooperation from our distributors,” says Vanessa Pierce, Vice President of Legal and New U Life’s General Counsel. The company’s Compliance and Legal teams, she adds, start with the “why.” It’s an educational process that’s collaborative and allows distributors to be independent.

THE PANDEMIC CHALLENGE

Like any other direct selling company, New U Life has had to grapple with the pandemic’s effects on its employees and distributors—namely, the immediate shift to remote work and determining how best to support and motivate both of these groups during an uncertain time. Wardle says the company has seen tremendous growth in its distributor base during the pandemic, which he believes is attributable in part to increased interest in entrepreneurship driven by the simple desire to diversify one’s portfolio and establish additional sources of income to weather times like these. On the corporate side, New U Life has welcomed new hires and onboarded them remotely.

“I’ve been surprised by our growth during this virus,” Wardle says. “To grow an organization this way has been a challenge, but it’s something we’ve learned we can do.” Pandemic or no pandemic, expansion continues for New U Life; additional markets in the Asia-Pacific region—Malaysia, Singapore, and Australia and New Zealand—are scheduled to open in 2020 and 2021.

U FUND PHILANTHROPY

New U Life doesn’t have a 501c3 yet, but the company hasn’t waited to start putting its money behind worthy causes. Each of its 15 executives has been presented with a sum of money to be given to the charity or charities of their choice. The endeavor has been dubbed the “U Fund.” Donations will be announced this month. The opportunity to handpick a worthy recipient is “one of the most fun ‘kid in the candy store’ things I’ve gotten to do in a long time,” Pierce says. “I can’t choose.”

In just three short years, and through sheer determination, Alexy Goldstein has turned a product with a loyal following into a direct selling powerhouse that’s only scratched the surface of its potential for success.

“It’s been an incredible ride. To have come from a single storefront to a whole-health movement of nearly 400,000 distributors and counting, and with expansion in markets throughout the world just three years into our direct selling journey, is nothing short of amazing,” says founder and CEO Alexy Goldstein.

“Our products are a big part of our success, but our leaders are what made it happen—and they’re continuing to make it happen even during this challenging time for so many companies. I have every confidence that our future is looking brighter than ever.”

The post New U Life: From Local Shop to Global Brand first appeared on Direct Selling News.

DeLauer will collaborate with the company to further develop its keto line, which embodies achievable health and wellness within a ketogenic lifestyle.

A successful health and fitness author as well as a business and health optimization coach, DeLauer reaches millions of people through his popular YouTube channel. His particular expertise is in the area of a ketogenic lifestyle. He is a personal trainer who has helped clients around the world reach their desired states of peak performance in life, and his collection of educational and instructional materials include easy-to-follow meal plans and scientific data on navigating the ketogenic diet.

“I’m honored to lock arms with New U Life in this exciting partnership to help change how the world looks at food and health forever,” said DeLauer. “Together, with my ten years of nutrition and ketogenic research and New U Life’s powerful ability to deliver a message, we can, and we will, change how people feel about themselves and consequently make the world a better place.”

New U Life will deploy DeLauer’s expertise and keto-specific educational content to further develop its unique keto product line.

“Being a pioneer in the ketogenic supplement market, we find it necessary to partner with the world’s most recognized educator in the ketogenic lifestyle,” said Jeremy Wardle, New U Life’s vice president of Marketing. “We are beyond excited about this unique partnership and expect a tremendous response both nationally and internationally.”

The post New U Life Partners with Keto Expert Thomas DeLauer first appeared on Direct Selling News.