Heartbroken & need something new. maybe.

[MonicaH]

Hi Melissa!

I know what you mean about Beauty Society but those are the products I keep thinking about since I liked they way they made my face feel the best. I would buy those products! They might be hard to sell or they might not. Never know until you try! I am hoping to get enough of my customers hooked so I can keep my rep status and the discount. I do like the idea of the refills and it offers a way to get a discount and be environmentally friendly too. I just hope they tone down some of the girly/young marketing because it really puts some of my customers off.

I still haven't gotten my Lemongrass samples yet either. I hope they come today!

Shaklee is a great company and I use their cleaning products. Never tried their skin care! It is nice that you have so many great things to offer with Shaklee. You can pick and choose what you sell with them right? So just pick the things you like! I just never looked at them as a business before. If you sign up then let me know so I can start ordering from you!

I didn't care for L'Bri at all. But then it was hard for me to get past the smell.

I didn't care for most of Pink Papaya's scents either and their skin care line didn't impress me either. You will have to love what you sell otherwise it won't work. At least I know a few gals with PP that I can refer out to if I need to because there are some people who do love it.

[WooTini]

Monica....

I've been popping in and reading the posts here... kinda hoping you'd find something exciting out there that I haven't found yet.

I was drawn in to trying the Beauty Society thing last year because someone I really respect (as it relates to building large direct sales organizations) had gone over to them at the same time that I had totally committed to bailing permanently from Jafra.

We had problems - so we were outta there almost immediately. Our issues weren't related to the product, for the most part - the quality is acceptable, I absolutely loved the "trendiness" of their packaging ,and names of the products - well - very appealing. I thought it would be a fun line to work with.

It did irk me, though, big time (as an esthie), that the company doesn't have a toner product. I don't agree with some of their philosophies.

As for price points - I can sell that - the prices aren't a problem.

The company had crazy-long back order problems last year (like wait 2 months for a cleanser?) How are you supposed to sell skin care if the cleanser is missing? ugh... I digress.

The other downside was (for me) the commission structure. But then... I **do** sell alot of product personally - and I like getting at least 40% off - preferably 50%. I haven't looked into BS lately to see if they changed anything in the last year - but a gal had to sell a monster amount in a month to get 50% off. And even though all of the companies tout "no inventory"... it only makes sense for a personal sales producer to order smart so she can earn $3,000 on $6,000 worth of retail sales instead of $1,800. I digress.

Currently, I'm not doing any direct sales. I'm soooooooo burnt out of it all by being so disappointed in the way the companies (and uplines to some degree) I've been involved in don't respect the work that we (in the field) do for them.

Personally, as far as product for personal use, I think that Noevir has the very best quality. I was using Noevir before bailing from Jafra and while trying the BS thing. Hands down, no competition, Noevir's quality just can't be beat, IMO. I'm still using their product.

In December last year, I rented commercial space to do eyelash extensions, permanent makeup and tattoo removal. I'm renting 1,000 square feet of space in a strip mall - and I built a kitchen in it (really proud of my $10 cute little 18" built in dishwasher from Craigslist lol) , I bought a Vitamix blender for making frappacino-like drinks, smoothies & margaritas, I have commercial coffee maker, fridge, etc... it has a classroom space for eyelash extension classes (I teach other cosmetologists and esthies), and just last week I FINALLY bought 3 pub table sets and 2 matching sideboards to accommodate being able to do groups of up to 12 women for "Girls Night Out" or "Peel Party" or "Mini Facial" parties. My space, besides my own treatment room and office, is meant to entertain groups. If I move things around, I can accommodate seating for about 25.

So you can see that I'm not quite ready to give up on the fun and profits of doing groups of women. As an esthie, I just don't see the sense in selling facial services one-on-one - just not enough money per hour to make me happy.

Now... all of that said... I am not so sure I want to risk building another direct sales group. I might... I might not.

I"m watching your thread with interest... I hope you find something that makes you happy. I know how much you loved your company and it's just so hard to get turned inside out over things that are not within our control.

Wishing you well, Monica.... pop me a message if you ever wanna talk.

Sally

[Jolly]

You GO Wootini!'
Love it when a Direct Sales person opens her very own self created business. Even if it means diversity. I have had good income at different periods from teaching women to paint, and from selling perennials. A friend is making and selling quilts. Very expensive quilts. She has a waiting list! I am toying with the idea of a pumpkin patch next year. With Facebook it makes so many of these self created businesses marketable. And since I leave the country for warm weather during a large part of the winter.. I have no desire to go for a directorship type of position in any MLM. I must admit I have doubts about always chasing the dollar... therefore I will only undertake a project these days if I can use /give the money to worthy causes. Last winter I took my scrapbooking /cardmaking hobby with me and ended up donating quite a bit to an orphanage where children make cards to sell for outings. I like the interaction of sales, but I am now looking at giving back in my life.

[MonicaH]

Feel free to shoot me a message Sally! I would love to hear what you have to say about Beauty Society. Tell me about the toner thing and whatnot. I mainly like it for myself but not entirely on board with all their girly marketing. I hope I can convince my customers to just TRY it and hopefully they will love it. I think it will be fun but we shall see how it goes!

I tried a sample from Noevir and it was some sort of scrub/mask thing? It was nice but I didn't love it. The smell bothered me and it felt heavy? Maybe it was for dry skin? Maybe it is unfair to judge by one sample but I picked it up at an event and decided to try it. I figured if they give you an item to sample then it is going to wow you and it just didn't do that for me. Plus, my Noevir friends haven't bugged me to try their products even though I told them to. Oh well.

I really would like to get into something completely different and see where that takes me too. I am doing a crazy thing I never thought I would do and that is joining two different companies. However, I only am doing the skin care thing again because I want that discount and I have the customer base I could potentially convert over. I just love the way that stuff makes my skin feel!

[Belladan]

I've been researching and researching like crazy. The three that I've narrowed it down too are L'Bri, Jordan Essentials, and Pink Papaya. I'm leaning toward L'Bri, so far I'm loving the products and they seem to help their consultants out quite a bit. Plus, they have some excellent hostess perks. The one thing I wasn't to happy with L'bri was their 20% commission, it was the lowest out of all the other ones. Jordan Essentials, I like a lot but they just do not have much to choose from when it comes to color options. Plus, when I go to their website it leads me to an error page a lot. Last but not least Pink Papaya, I didn't like the starter kit, they didn't seem to provide many cosmetic color options in it. So, that would be a lot of my money buying the cosmetic line just so I can have parities and allow people to try them. Plus, I didn't like what they did for the hostess, to me didn't seem like a good incentive. Also, i'm not quite sure what their commission is and their products are pricey. Would love feedback from all experienced consultants.

Melissa

[MonicaH]

Another Melissa!

Out of those three I would probably pick L'Bri. Nice products but they just weren't for me. They do seem very generous and supportive as a company and my Sensaria friends are really liking it. As for the 20% commission ... did you look at the whole comp plan? I haven't looked at it myself but it was a concern for me when I moved over to Private Quarters. I went from a 30% base commission to 20% but in reality I am making more now. The party averages are higher. The personal volume bonus is easier to reach and if I add just three people to my team then my base commission doubles. I already have two people on my team so I am almost there! Try to look at the whole picture of the comp plan.

Can I ask what you are using now? Are you a past Sensaria rep too?

I just know only one Sensaria rep who joined JE and then a short while later joined another company. I also only know of one Sensaria rep who went with PP. There are so many more of us with L'Bri, Votre Vu, Beauty Society and Lemongrass Spa.

[Belladan]

I haven't sold direct before. However, I do have a background in Chanel and Clinique. So, I have a love for skincare and cosmetics. What do you think about the L'Bel line. Thank you for replying to my post, that was very helpful and very very much appreciated.

Melissa M

[MonicaH]

Originally Posted by Belladan

I haven't sold direct before. However, I do have a background in Chanel and Clinique. So, I have a love for skincare and cosmetics. What do you think about the L'Bel line. Thank you for replying to my post, that was very helpful and very very much appreciated.

Melissa M!

I posted a lot of my thoughts about the different companies that I tried on my blog so feel free to read it. It may help or it may not. I am just one person and there are hundreds (thousands?) of cosmetic/skin care companies out there so what works for me might not work for you. Sensaria Product Tips Blog

I did use to be a Clinique girl many, many years ago but then was with Origins before I found Sensaria and started into the whole direct sales thing. I really didn't think I was going to SELL something but I loved those products so much! When Sensaria disappeared, it was hard for me to go back to those department store brands when I can support my friends now. I tried the L'Bri line for a short while but honestly I couldn't stand the smell. Some items were okay for me but I was really happy to give my 20lb box to a friend of mine when she decided to sign up with them. I don't think there is anything wrong with their products and some are actually quite nice but smell is a very important thing with me. I don't know how else to describe it other than "old lady". It is just what it reminded me of! Sorry to any L'Bri reps out there reading this!! Also, the products didn't feel very modern to me and the bottom line was they just didn't appeal to me.

However, if YOU like the products then that is what is important! My Sensaria friends have had great results with the product line and are really happy where they are. Pick a line that appeals to you and you would be proud to put your name behind. I never thought I would have picked Private Quarters but that is what called to me.

PS: Another thing to consider with the base 20% commission compared to other companies which you mentioned before ... hostess benefits. Often times you will get a lower base commission but the company is paying for hostess benefits, credit card processing, etc. There are many hidden costs that you have to consider.

[Belladan]

I know I keep asking you questions, so please forgive me. You just seem so nice and educated in this area. Can you tell me what you think of Lemongrass??

[udesignit]

Originally Posted by Belladan

I know I keep asking you questions, so please forgive me. You just seem so nice and educated in this area. Can you tell me what you think of Lemongrass??

Belladan,

I applaud you for doing your research. I do not have any feedback regarding Lemongrass. I would suggest to start a new thread since this thread has many posts and people may not read your post. You may get more feedback this way.

Stella