| Comment Number: | 522418-08876 |
| Received: | 7/13/2006 4:17:16 PM |
| Organization: | Herbalife |
| Commenter: | Julie Luptak |
| State: | IN |
| Subject: | Business Opportunity Rule |
| Title: | Notice of Proposed Rulemaking |
| CFR Citation: | 16 CFR Part 437 |
| No Attachments |
Comments:
Dear Sir or Madam: I am writing to express my concerns with the FTC's proposed Business Opportunity Rule - R511993. Since I began Herbalife 4 years ago it has allowed me to enjoy financial freedoms I would not have otherwise been able to achieve. I joined this business after needing to lose weight, safely and effectively. The products were so great I decided to join the business. Everyday I get to help someone change their life, everyday I get to talk to people whose lives will never be the same. By profession I am a tax accountant, to say that I work a lot of hours is an understatement. Herbalife will allow me to cut down to just 40 hours a week by next year and work on my own terms, if I choose to, the year after. I am able to work Herbalife around my everyday life. It gives me the freedom to travel and has impeccable training. I have met many wonderful friends over the years and it will give me the freedom of time. Time to spend with my family, friends, volunteering and more. Beginning your distributorship is so simple and easy a new distributor can literally hit the ground running with very little money in the beginning and if it’s done effectively, no money in the beginning. It is a business that anyone can do, not matter if they have had 4 years of college or never finished high school. This business has given many of those people around me hope when they did not have any. It transcends gender, age, color and educational backgrounds with ease; it is an opportunity for anyone. Having to obtain written disclosure from Herbalife on the last 10 distributors, living closest to them the new distributor and then to send that information back to Herbalife to be kept for 3 years would be a huge administrative and costly burden to the average distributor working to become a business owner and improve their lifestyle. Signing up a new distributor, but telling them they have to wait 7 days before they can not only sign, but even make payment defeats some of the purpose in network marketing. This does not enable the average person to join the opportunity at the smallest of cost. It forces the average person to put out more cash in the beginning, something Network Marketing is not about. There are many times, at least in my industry, that distributors will have their inventory sold before it even arrives, this is not possible with the proposed regulations. These are ordinary people wanting and extraordinary life. Network Marketing, in general, and Herbalife specifically enable people to live an extraordinary life that they would not be able to achieve otherwise I realize that there are a lot of false business’ out there and the need to protect people who fall into those traps. I do support the FTC goals of stopping consumers from fraudulent businesses and getting ripped off. That in and of itself hurts our business even more, but the proposed regulations just will not do that. It will hinder the average person like me from becoming something more and making more of their life. Sincerely, Julie E. Luptak