(pronounced new skin) is an
American Direct Selling Company , that sells cosmetics, nutritional supplements, and technology services. It was founded by Nedra Dee Roney and
Blake M. Roney in
1984 and officially listed in the
NYSE in
1996 .
After 12 years of substantial growth, the company went public in 1996 when it listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Initially only the Nu Skin Asia Pacific company was listed, however, shortly afterwards all the remaining affiliates were sold to the new entity and the company was a fully-fledged public company.
Nu Skin Enterprises 2005 revenue reached approximately $1.2 billion in annual saleshttp://www.nuskinenterprises.com/en/library/pdf/sec-filings/2006/10KA_03-17-06.pdf in 44 international markets. The Nu Skin brand has a line of more than 100 skin treatment and other personal care products. In 2005, approximately 82 percent of revenues were generated from markets in Asia.
In 2005, through its Big Planet division, the company launched a new Internet-based service called
Photomax .
Nu Skin Enterprises also runs a non-profit humanitarian organization called the Nu Skin Force for Good Foundation. The foundation's stated mission is to "create a better world for children by improving human life, continuing indigenous cultures, and protecting fragile environments."http://www.forceforgood.org/
The company's average distributor earnings are available from the corporate website at www.nuskinenterprises.comhttp://www.nuskinenterprises.com
Truman Hunt, CEO of NSE, is the current Chair of the World Federation of Direct Selling Associations. This organization, an umbrella group for individual countries' organizations, oversees the direct selling industry globally.
On his website, one critic has alleged that Nu Skin Enterprises is a "recruiting
MLM " that "rewards recruitment more than actual sales of products", and has "a high loss rate." http://www.mlm-thetruth.com/NuSkin'sNaughtyNumbers.htm Other critics claim that more than half of the company's distributors quit within a single year http://www.falseprofits.com/MLM%20Lies.html.
On the legal front, in 1997 the company agreed to pay a $1.5 million civil penalty to settle Federal Trade Commission charges over fat-loss, muscle-maintenance and other unsubstantiated claims it made for supplements containing
Chromium Picolinate and
L-carnitine .http://www.ftc.gov/opa/1997/08/nuskin3.htm
The
Better Business Bureau , on the other hand, reports that the company has a "satisfactory record with the Bureau," signifying that the company "does not have an unusual volume of complaints, or any government actions involving its marketplace conduct."http://www.utah.bbb.org/commonreport.html?bid=84110111&language=1
