Nature's Sunshine - Achievement in Management

Company: Nature's Sunshine
Company Description: Nature’s Sunshine Products (NATR), a leading natural health and wellness company, markets and distributes nutritional and personal care products in more than 40 countries. Nature’s Sunshine manufactures most of its products to set the standard for the highest quality, safety and efficacy on the market today. For additional information about the Company, www.naturessunshine.com .
Nomination Category: Management Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Achievement in Management - Health Products & Services

Nomination Title: Achievement in Management-Health Products & Services

Nature's Sunshine, headquartered in Lehi and with operations in Spanish Fork, is a 50-year-old, publicly traded company (Nasdaq:NATR) committed to helping their customers live a life of wellness and well-being; manufacturing over 600 different health and wellness products that include herbs, vitamins, minerals, essential oils, protein powders, and personal care products.

Nature’s Sunshine journey to relevancy started in March 2019 and was realized September 2020 with a new business model that focused on being multichannel. During our research phase, we knew we needed to educate ourselves in order to be competitive as a direct selling company, but we also wanted to create and provide new opportunities for people outside the direct selling channel to enjoy our products. As the biggest transformation in our 49-year history, this would be a heavy lift.

We partnered with experts to conduct extensive research on both our existing and potential customers and the market as a whole to help us define our new customer persona, fully understand how to be a direct seller and balance it with a true Direct-to-Consumer opportunity. All of our research led to a drastic change to our business model, including re-imaging the following areas:

-Unique Affiliate Model
-Subscription Purchasing Model
-Membership Benefit Model
-Social Media & eCommerce Presence
-Brand Improvement
-Real-time Payment
-Consumer-Driven Focus

Not only did we need to enhance our vision of what was possible, but because we have a such a dedicated existing field, we knew we would need to shepherd them through the transformation. Many of our leaders have been with the company 30+ years. We needed to train and educate them to succeed in the new plan, so they would be empowered to move forward with confidence through the change. We needed to be transparent, compassionate and caring. We had to demonstrate Servant Leadership and remember that EVERY Interaction mattered.

We began the journey with our leaders April 2020 by implementing fourteen communication touch points for our leaders to get information, attend trainings, obtain sales tools, participate in business planning sessions with team members, and get emails, direct mail pieces, texts, etc.

Our goal was to make sure that every leader had the opportunity to learn about the model and be ready for our launch on September 1, 2020. While many companies would conduct this transformation over years and in phases, we were driven to accomplish this in one phase. It was like unplugging a 50-year-old machine—moving from an old school typewriter to an iPad overnight!

The team worked tirelessly right up until launch date, September 1, 2020, and I don’t think any of us slept that night in anticipation of our new world and exciting future. The following weeks and months were filled with numerous update meetings. Our call center times quadrupled, as our customers experienced ups and downs with our new systems. BUT we made progress daily, our websites improved, call center times decreased, conversations became easier, and most of all, our leaders began championing the new model.

Our management team’s tireless work is already producing incredible results. In Q4 2020, Nature’s Sunshine had its best quarter in company history, posting $101.7 million in net sales for the first time in the company’s 50-year history. This was supported by dramatic increases in Subscription (31%) and Affiliate (238%+) orders—programs focused on customer acquisition and retention—in the last six months of 2020.

Other key indicators of success included:
-Number of Consultants increased
-Our Customer Base Increased
-Active Rates increased
-Training Attendance Increased
-Revenue Increased

As we move forward, we are analyzing the data and improving on the new model. We will constantly be innovating to create the opportunity for everyone to enjoy our business model supported by our incredible products for a healthy lifestyle. Nature’s Sunshine truly is A Force of Nature!

All of our research led to a drastic change to our business model, including re-imaging the following areas:

-Unique Affiliate Model
-Subscription Purchasing Model
-Membership Benefit Model
-Social Media & eCommerce Presence
-Brand Improvement
-Real-time Payment
-Consumer-Driven Focus