Business & Work

The latest figures from the Direct Selling Association (DSA), the trade body that represents the UK's major direct selling companies, have illustrated a 29% increase in the number of sellers in the older age group, who are actively seeking new opportunities to earn money as a result of the recession.

The direct selling market is worth £2bn annually to the UK economy and is the largest provider of part-time earning opportunities, with more than 400,000 people involved in the industry. The figures released indicate that 120,000 of those are now people aged above 50, compared with 93,000 in 2009/10.

A name to be trusted

Echoing these findings, global cosmetics giant Avon, who this year celebrated their 125th anniversary, have reported a rise in the number of over-50’s who are signing up to be Avon Representatives, or who have significantly grown their businesses in the last year.

What people are saying

Linda Gulliver, aged 60 from Motherwell, is an independent Avon Sales Leader. She started her Avon business in 2005 and initially ran it around a part-time job as a PA, but she soon realised that there was scope to turn it in to a full-time venture. Since giving up her part-time job, and focussing entirely on Avon, Linda has recruited over 700 Sales Leaders and Representatives to join her team, and her Avon business is now turning over more than £2million a year. Linda says: “The luxury of being my own boss was what initially attracted me to Avon, and now it’s great to have the security of a career that has no retirement age, as well as having the flexibility to spend more time with my husband Andy who also runs the business with me.”

Another point of view

Maggie Hooker, aged 65 from Watford, used to sell Avon back in the sixties when her children were little. Maggie then became a credit manager, but still remained a loyal Avon customer. Maggie was then involved in quite a serious accident in Singapore where she broke her leg. She had to take the rest of the year off and in this time she was made redundant. She took early retirement but soon found she had too much time on her hands! It was when her local Avon Rep moved away and she was horrified at the thought of not being able to get hold of her favourite Avon products, Maggie re-joined Avon as a Sales Leader seven years ago. Maggie saw this as a great opportunity to start up her own business and these days, she has over 100 of her own customers and 150 Representatives in her team. Maggie’s annual take has been enough to redecorate her home and pay for a holiday to South Africa. Maggie loves working for Avon as it represents a great way to connect with people and socialise at the same time - she has no plans to retire from Avon in the near future.

Find out more about the opportunities offered:

www.avon.uk.com