Direct Selling and the EU

Is the EU's stance on Direct Selling softening? After previous concerns on legislation and where the European harmonization would take the Direct Selling industry, there are now some signs that give hope to the Direct Selling community that EU politicians might be realizing the value of what we have to offer.

According to Richard Berry, the Director of FEDSA (The European Federation of Direct Selling Associations), the European Commission now supports Direct Selling due to how the industry supports three major areas that are high on Brussel's priority list:

- Coping with worsening job security in EU
- Widening gender attention to female and older age
employment and self employment
-The need to improve the business skills of the EU
population and encourage entrepreneurial activity.

Which other industry could support this better? And add to this the wellness concerns of an aging population and you have one company that is perfectly positioned - Nikken.

A recent Socio Economic Impact Study conducted, in co-operation with FEDSA, in seven EU Member States, by the international market research organisation, Ipsos MORI involved interviews with 2800 direct sellers and the companies with which they worked.

Ipsos MORIs study reveals that over 83% of these direct sellers are women, 70% are aged over 35 years and 30% are 50 years old and more.

Richard Berry states:
"This age profile is higher than those in conventional employment in Europe - a fact that is now appreciated and welcomed by the European Commission. Another valuable research finding is that 70% of all the direct sellers interviewed, for whom direct selling represents their first experience of business, reported that it significantly improved their lives and personal development. This is crucially important in encouraging entrepreneurs."

The study follows new FEDSA research which shows that directselling is now a € 20 billion industry, offering opportunities to nine million independent direct sellers.