安利董事长怎么看直销

安利于2012年超过雅芳，成为全球最大的直销公司，这得益于过去数年间，安利一直在稳步地拓展中国等关键市场；更专注于销售波动比美容产品小的营养产品；以及吸引并留住销售代表的能力（安利称销售代表为“安利事业合作伙伴”，现已达到300万人规模）。

中国是安利最大的市场。2013年，得益于中国市场良好的业绩表现，其销售额增长了4.4%，达到118亿美元（约合728.4亿元人民币）。而雅芳则因几年前的一起闹得沸沸扬扬的贿赂丑闻，业绩大幅下滑。（雅芳的业务几乎在各个关键市场都是步履维艰。）

作为一家私有企业，安利得以避免了其他一些直销公司因监管和投资者监督带来的麻烦。例如，今年年初，个人护理产品制造商美国如新集团（Nu Skin Enterprises）因夸大产品功效遭到中国监管当局罚款。营养品公司康宝莱（Herbalife）则深陷与亿万富翁维权投资者比尔•阿克曼的苦战之中；阿克曼声称康宝莱从事非法传销。

安利公司董事长史提夫•温安洛的父亲是安利联合创始人之一。在最近接受《财富》采访时，温安洛谈到了直销商业模式遭受的种种抨击、安利在中国的成功以及安利未来的国际扩张计划。安利总部位于密歇根州大急流城（Grand Rapids）。前不久曾担任过美国商会（U.S. Chamber of Commerce）主席的温安洛先生还就“美国制造”的价值及更多的制造业回归美国的前景发表了看法。

面对外界对直销模式的抨击，安利是怎样看待的？

“每个行业都会受到批评，但现在人们谈论的更多的是与钱有关的事情。一些人更看重如何把股价抬高或压低，而不是企业经营本身。”

“每天仍然有数千名销售代表加入安利，这也证明，很多人非常乐意去干这一行，而且也喜欢这种商业模式。”

安利已开始为一些营养品（营养品的销售占销售总额的45%，美容产品占25%，家居用品占24%）做临床试验。然而，安利并没有称这些营养品有药用功能，因此也就不用做临床试验，那么为什么要做呢？

“我们准备采用类似于医疗保健行业所采取的方式，来为很多营养品做临床试验，目的是证明产品的功效。之前没有人这样做过。”

中国是安利最大的市场。一些直销企业，特别是雅芳，在中国栽了大跟头。您认为安利什么地方做的好？

“在中国，不仅安利的雇员是中国人，企业形象也进行了本土化。我们从一开始就一直在使用这种做法，以确保当人们看安利的时候，即便他们知道这是家美国企业，也清楚它已经适应了中国市场。”

安利90%的销售额是在美国以外的市场取得的。还存在哪些有待开发的市场？

“在一些地区，特别是拉丁美洲，安利其实能做得更好。安利的业绩表现并没有达到我的预期。过去十年我们确实将重心放在了亚洲——现在亚洲仍然存在很多机会，但至少我们已经在那里站稳脚跟，但安利在拉丁美洲的基础可能没有像亚洲那样稳固。”（巴西是雅芳最大的市场，同时，对整个美容产品行业来说，巴西也是一个增长较快的市场。）

俄罗斯怎么样呢？俄罗斯的美容产品市场前景光明，但在西方国家公司的眼中并不是个稳定的市场。

“对于目前在俄罗斯和乌克兰做生意的任何人来说，境况总是有点不尽人意，也不是那么一帆风顺。对于在俄罗斯经商来说，这是一种常态。你必须接受这个现实。”

安利计划在美国新开4家工厂。为什么“美国制造”意义重大？

“我们愿意倾听顾客的意见。当谈到营养品时，他们希望是在美国生产的。”

“对于安利来说，密歇根州自然是首选之地。当然，我们也可以在美国其他地方建厂，但营养品生产并不是件容易的事情。而且，我们在密歇根已经有一些工厂了。”

从美国商会主席的角度出发，您认为制造业会大规模回归美国吗？

“随着生产率的提高，制造业的工作岗位却更少了。所有工厂的生产力较以往都有大幅提升。至于制造业是否会回归美国，我难以给出答案——但我认为人们会尽一切努力提高效率。”（财富中文网）

译者：崔向前

审稿：李翔

Amway surpassed Avon Products AVP 3.47% in 2012 to become the world’s largest direct-selling company, thanks to a steady, drama-free international expansion over the years into key markets like China, a bigger focus on nutrition products, which are less prone to sales fluctuations than beauty products, and the ability to attract and keep sales representatives (whom Amway calls ABOs, for ‘Amway Business Owners,’ and who now number 3 million.)

In 2013, its sales rose 4.4% to $11.8 billion, helped by growth in China, its biggest market, and one where Avon’s business has collapsed since a big bribery scandal hit that company a few years ago. (Avon’s business is struggling in almost every key market.)

As a privately owned company, Amway has been spared the drama that has slammed some of its other direct-selling peers that faced regulatory and investor scrutiny: personal care products maker Nu Skin EnterprisesNUS -3.63% was fined earlier this year by Chinese authorities over its product claims, while nutrition company Herbalife HLF -0.10% is in the throes of a battle with activist billionaire investor Bill Ackman, who claims it is operating an illegal pyramid scheme.

Amway Chairman Steve Van Andel, the son of one of the company co-founders, recently spoke with Fortune about criticisms of the direct-selling business model, its China success, and the next step in Grand Rapids, Michigan-based Amway’s international expansion. Van Andel, who recently served as the Chairman of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, also addressed the value of “Made in the U.S.A.” and the prospects of more manufacturing coming back to the U.S.

What is Amway’s take on some of the attacks on the direct-selling model?

“Every industry has its critics, but a lot of the talk that happens today is more of a financial thing. Somebody’s looking more at how to drive a stock price up or down, than it really has to do with the business itself.”

“We continue to have thousands and thousands more (sales representatives) come on every day, so there are a lot people who really like the business and the business model for the industry.”

You have begun to do clinical trials on some of your nutrition products (which make up 45% of sales compared to 25% for beauty and 24% for home goods)—in the absence of medical claims, you are not required to, so why do it?

“We’re even starting to do clinicals on a lot of our nutrition products in much the same way that the healthcare industry does clinical trials—to show efficacy, and it’s something that no one’s ever really done before.”

China is your biggest market. Some other direct sellers, notably Avon, have stumbled badly—what did Amway do right?

“Not only are the employees Chinese, but the face of the business is Chinese too. We always took the approach from the beginning that we need to make to（此处原文可能有笔误）sure that when people look at our business, even though they know it’s a U.S. business, they know it’s been adapted to China.”

You get 90% of your sales abroad—what are some of the still untapped markets for Amway?

“There are a couple of areas where we could do better—particularly in Latin America. We’re not doing as well as I think we should do. Our focus in the last decade has really been Asia—there continues to be a lot of opportunity in Asia, but at least we are now well grounded there, whereas we may be not as well grounded in Latin America.” (Brazil is now Avon’s largest market and a fast growing one for beauty products in general.)

How about Russia, a notably promising beauty market but a turbulent place for Western companies?

“Anybody that’s in Russia or Ukraine right now, it’s always a little bit tenuous—and it’s a little bumpy—that’s part of doing business there, You have to accept that.”

Amway is opening four new U.S. manufacturing facilities- why is ‘Made in the USA’ important?

“We listen to our customers, and when it comes to nutrition products, they like nutrition products that are made in the U.S.”

“For us, Michigan is just a natural place to go. Sure we can look at different places in the U.S., but nutrition is not an easy thing to manufacture—and we’ve already got some based there.”

Put on your U.S. Chamber of Commerce hat for a minute—can U.S. manufacturing come back in a big way?

“They’ve lost more manufacturing jobs by becoming more productive. Everybody’s way more productive now in the facilities they have. I’m not sure that that will ever come back- I think people are going to try to be as efficient as they can.”