Reliv offers distributor incentives
This article was originally published in The Tan Sheet
Executive Summary
With first-quarter net sales down 15.9 percent to $23.8 million, the Chesterfield, Mo.-based firm is trying to spur distributor enrollment by offering sales kits at half price through August. Reliv International said the offer launched in January has produced moderate results with 8,400 distributors enrolled during the quarter, compared to 7,030 in the same period of 2008. Still, total distributors for the multilevel marketer of nutritional products declined 1.5 percent to 68,680 in the January-March period. Chief Financial Officer Steve Albright said during an April 30 earnings call that the recession and the corresponding decline in credit led to smaller initial orders from distributors. Albright added that higher ingredient and packaging costs "may remain a bit of a challenge for much of the year." Reliv's quarterly net income fell to $1 million from $1.5 million in the year-ago period