Forever Living Products
 | |
| Private | |
| Industry | Multi-level marketing |
| Founded | 1978 |
| Headquarters | Scottsdale, Arizona, USA |
Key people | Rex G. Maughan, Founder, Chairman of the Board and CEO |
| Revenue | $2.5 billion in 2010 |
Number of employees | 4,100 in 2006. |
| Website |
www |
Forever Living Products International, Inc. (FLPI) is a Scottsdale, Arizona-based multi-level marketing company that sells aloe vera-based drinks and bee-derived cosmetics, nutritional supplements, and personal care products. FLP was founded in 1978 by Rex Maughan, who also serves as the company's CEO.[1]
Business model
Forever Living was founded in 1978 in the US and has operated in the UK since 1993. The company's products are sold by multi-level marketing via online channels and through in-person presentations by the company's network of independent distributors.[2] According to the company's website, Forever Living is a "multi-billion dollar company with a presence in over 150 countries".[3]
A 2013 report in New Vision said that Forever Living had over 20,000 distributors in Uganda, of which 83 had reached a managerial level and begun to recoup expenses.[4] A 2003 report by the Manila Times discussed similarities between Forever Living's business model and pyramid schemes, noting analysts and former distributors who say that Forever Living participants are rewarded primarily for recruiting new members to the organization, rather than for selling products to genuine end-users.[5]
Products
FLPI's primary product is an aloe vera beverage. The company also markets various personal care, skincare, petcare and household products made from aloe, including lotions, creams, soaps, hair care products, deodorant, aftershave, lip balm, toothpaste, colognes and perfumes, laundry detergent, and a burn salve.
In 1983, FLPI launched its Forever Bee products—a dietary supplement line consisting of royal jelly, bee pollen, bee propolis, and pure honey. The company later expanded its product line to include dietary supplements consisting of aloe combined with vitamins, ginseng, minerals, fish oils, garlic, and other supplements.
In Uganda, although supplements are approved by the National Food and Drug Authority, the government has received complaints that patients and caretakers are being misled that such products can be used to treat diseases.[4]
Violations in Hungary
Claims made about FLPI products were found to be in violation of several laws in Hungary related to advertising, registration of nutritional products, and the use of cosmetics as medicinal agents. As a result, the company was fined 60 million HUF (approximately $280,000 USD).[6]
Copyright & Trademark Lawsuit and Logo Change
In 2007, author Richard Bach won a lawsuit against the company for copyright infringement and trademark infringement.[7] The lawsuit stated that for over 20 years Forever Living had used the character, storyline, and copyrighted excerpts from the novel Jonathan Livingston Seagull to promote its marketing plan. Forever Living was also accused of using images from the motion picture and novel as its corporate logo, and reproducing it on merchandise, jewelry, products, packaging, and promotional materials.[8][9] Shortly after, Forever Living changed its company logo from a seagull to an eagle.
References
- ↑ "The Largest Private Companies: #340 Forever Living Products Intl". forbes.com. 2006. Retrieved 2008-06-29.
- ↑ "Forever Living Products hopes to see sales up in H2". Ziarul Financiar. August 2006. Archived from the original on 2008-08-04. Retrieved 2008-06-29.
- ↑ "About Forever Living". www.foreverliving.com. Retrieved January 31, 2015.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Kagolo, Francis (17 February 2013). "Network marketing sucking billions out of Ugandans". New Vision. Retrieved 29 January 2015.
- ↑ Max de Leon (28 April 2003). "A very thin line between multilevel marketing and pyramid schemes". Retrieved 21 April 2014.
- ↑ "Hungarian Economic Competition Office fined FLP for 60 million HUF".
- ↑ Schwabach, Aaron (2011). Fanfiction and Copyright. Ashgate. pp. 39–40. ISBN 978-0-7546-7903-5.
- ↑ "Richard BACH, et al., Plaintiffs, v. FOREVER LIVING PRODUCTS U.S., INC., et al., Defendants.".
- ↑ http://www.lawupdates.com/summary/bach_v_forever_living_products_us_inc/