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POPSBig Bucks 101: Sell Diet Shakes to the Poor
More: Varela and Graciela Mier de Varela, are the No. 1 Herbalife distributors on the planet, with network sales topping $100 million. Their powder-pushing prowess helped make Mexico Herbalife's top market with $373.2 million in sales, besting the U.S. tally of $338.3 million. Like many Herbalife distributors, they ran out of friends and family to pitch to. Sales flattened. Strangers didn't like cold calls or the hard sell. Many couldn't afford to purchase an entire canister. Company guidelines forbid distributors from breaking up packages. To inaugurate a sales office in 2002, they hosted morning nutrition "chats" where people could sample the products on their way to work. As weeks passed, the same faces started appearing. Strangers became friends. People proved willing to pay a small fee for a single serving so they could hang around to talk. "Mexicans are very convivial," said 61-year-old Graciela, who has a degree in psychology. "People loved the social aspect."
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