The Beauty of Success

May 21, 2007 (WLS) -- It can be a lucrative business opportunity. It's changing lives and allowing people to set their own working hours and acquire some financial freedom. More than a million people have already signed up and the business is still growing.

Kim Kearns left Corporate America to raise her daughter and son, a decision she made with her husband, David, more than a dozen years ago.

"I use to get those Sunday night blues where I would get this pit in my stomach - 'Oh, tomorrow is Monday,' " said Kearns. "But I don't get that anymore. I'm excited about everyday."

She's excited because she spends time with her family, owns a beautiful home in Naperville and works part-time, making $270,000 a year selling Arbonne, a Swiss-formulated skin care line that includes make-up, nutrition and weight loss products and aromatherapy.

"I thought, Wow! This is going to go crazy here. I can see it. It is going to do well in Chicago," Kearns said.

And across the suburbs.

Women, many mothers, like Mary Beth Thornton of Cary, are selling Arbonne and changing the way they live.

"We were living paycheck to paycheck. My husband was working two jobs, seven days a week," said Thornton.

Now, Mary Beth is the breadwinner. She picks her hours and earns $57,000 a year.

"It's just phenomenal that I've been able to stay home and be with the kids," said Jim Thornton, Mary Beth Thornton's husband.

Arbonne is not sold in stores. It's word of mouth.

"An easy way to think about this is, 'I talk to two people, and those two people talk to two other people, and they talk to two people.' You can see the network grows very quickly," said marketing professor Puneet Manchanda, University of Chicago Graduate School of Business.

It's called network marketing. Arbonne consultants hold meetings to recruit more consultants and explain the business.

"Arbonne pays very well, but one thing I tell people is that there is a reason it's called net-WORK marketing," said Annette Davis.

You may think network marketing sounds like a pyramid scheme. It's not. The modern business model has been around since the 1940s, with companies selling jewelry, nutritional supplements and household cleaning products.

"These are absolutely legitimate companies. It's a legal way of marketing and distributing a product," said Manchanda.

With Arbonne, you make money two ways: you sell the products retail and keep the profits. And Arbonne pays you bonuses for the volume you sell and the volume of the consultants below you.

Donna Maggos is still climbing. It takes months, even, to build a team.

"There's no get-rich schemes in the world. There's not. It takes effort," said Maggos.

It is an effort graduate student Jessica Strattard understands.

"That could be a downside, if you're not self-motivated," said Jessica Strattard, Arbonne consultant.

Professor Manchanda says the success rate for network marketing is like any other business.

"The success rate is very small. The success rate in any business opportunity, any new product, is maybe 10-15 percent," Manchanda said.

In fact, most Arbonne consultants do not make money. Arbonne says it has 1.3 million consultants right now. In 2006, about 3.5 percent of them received bonus checks.

But the few who see Arbonne as a business opportunity know the beauty of success. Arbonne helps pay for their symbolic white Mercedes and much, much more.

"I love owning my life. I love the fact that I'm in charge of my destiny," said Kim Kearns.

"There are a lot of people who say TGIF, Thank God it's Friday. We say TGIF. Thank God I'm free," said David Kearns.

If you are interested in network marketing companies, Professor Manchanda says, be realistic. Make sure the products are something that can be used over and over. And the start-up costs should be low. Also, see if the company is a member of the direct selling association. The association sets ethical guidelines for these companies.

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