Stories of success are always a treat to the ears; real ones yet more. As the adage goes, “Success is contagious when you surround yourself with people who refuse to let you down” and that is the aura network marketing upholds across centuries.
In network marketing, success comes with empowering fellow network marketers to skim their road to success. However, there have been numerous speculations about the industry in terms of its potential to generate a residual income. But, this is also one of the many reasons why most people join direct selling. The stories of successful persons in network marketing are a testament to the industry’s capacity to provide creative opportunities for individuals to develop their skills and establish their career. It proves as a great source of inspiration and courage for amateur network marketing entrepreneurs to follow.
Top successful persons in network marketing and their success stories
Success isn’t just about what you accomplish in your life. It’s about what you inspire others to do.
Yager group (Dexter Yager)
Estimated lifetime income: $460,000,000
Company: Amway
Referred to as the “Grandfather of network marketing” and “Father of modern MLM”, Dexter Yager has created a legacy of his own, still standing at the top of the network marketing industry after his demise in 2019. The network he built spans 40 countries with one million network marketers.
His accomplishments are revered by each network marketer even today. He has demonstrated what is considered impossible, possible. Hailing from Rome, Yager started his career as a beer salesman. From a brewery representative to an established network marketing representative, his growth journey was nothing short of an adventure ride. Yager got introduced to Amway in 1964 and from then on he literally breathed the brand.
“We build relationships, and people don’t normally quit on people who love them.’ I’m writing about things that made the difference in my life.” The excitement of creating new relationships kept him tied to the industry.
If you work just for money, you’ll reach a point where you may have enough and you’ll let up.
He was a man of empathy and wanted to help people understand that “a dream unrealized is a dream imprisoned by your greatest enemy: fear of failure!” In order to realize the same idea into reality, Dexter Yager introduced Dexter’s training systems. He also has one of the world’s most impactful personal development organizations in the world.
Igor Alberts & Andreea Cimbala
Estimated lifetime income: $160,000,000
Company: Success Factory
Igor Alberts hails from the Netherlands and Andreea Cimbala from Italy, together they make one of the most popular power couples in the network marketing industry.
Igor Alberts’ and Andreea Cimbala’s success in network marketing is a story of hard work, determination, and focus. The couple has sculpted their success with years of strategic planning and deep industry analysis. Now, they leverage their experience for the betterment of the direct selling community through mentorship and training programs.
Together they have created a solid financial foundation of more than $160 million. When asked about the achievement Andreea says,
When you start thinking positive, no matter the circ*mstances, you always win and progress in the direction of your dreams.
Andreea Cimbala is an optimistic personality who always has high hopes for the future and a huge determination to make it happen. The most beautiful thing about MLM, she says, is that everyone has a place in it or at least everyone can find or create it despite the differentiating factors. She also considers MLM as an industry that has the potential to bring people closer together to create a better world.
In most of her training sessions, Andreea underlines focus as an essential ingredient in building up a success story in network marketing.
“A focus of a falcon to detect the goal and not stopping until it becomes a reality” is the advice Andreea gives for the budding network marketers.
Igor dedicates their success in the MLM industry to staying updated by all means—technology, team, and targets.
We have the tools, we have the technology and we have the best people working in our team. We can do whatever we want with the future: we can build the biggest project, not only in network marketing but in business in general. There are no barriers, only challenges.
Nancy Dornan
Estimated lifetime income: $125,000,000
Company: Amway
Nancy Dornan, despite being an acclaimed entrepreneur, is a mentor, philanthropist, and speech therapist. Her multi-talented personality widened its scope when she entered the network marketing world.
Nancy Dornan together with her husband Jim Dornan started their MLM journey in 1971 with Amway. In 1997, they both became the Crown ambassadors of Amway—the highest achievement for ABOs. Progressing as successful ABOs, at one point in time, they realized the need for an internal support system to help fellow ABOs succeed in their network marketing career as well. This impartial thought gave way to the launch of “Network TwentyOne” which has been mentoring millions of network marketers the world over.
Even after Jim Dornan passed away, Nancy kept pace with her business and philanthropic efforts, side by side. Today, Network TwentyOne has over 40 offices worldwide and Nancy has the third position earner to her credit.
You can have what you want, if you decide that you want it, expect it and work for it!Nancy Dornan
Jeff Roberti
Estimated lifetime income: $105,000,000
Company: Juice Plus+
A broken waiter to a network marketing icon, Jeff Roberti’s life was nothing short of a roller coaster ride. In January 1987, at the age of 24, Jeff Roberti (originally Jeffrey Roberti) entered the network marketing space with Juice Plus+. He has been with Juice Plus+ for over 30 years.
In one of the interviews with Eric Worre, when asked about special circ*mstances that led him to his network marketing success he said that he placed a great deal on doing things at the right time.
While choosing the company, he advises people to do a thorough research on the top network marketing companies and also to look for a great product or service they believe in or a marketing system that they believe in, that is also fair by all means. He also adds that young people entering direct selling must watch out for “pop and drop” companies. He asks them to check if the company’s interests are in line with their customers and distributors.
Key takeaways from Jeff’s life
- Do things at the right time at the right place.
- Be responsible for things you must do rather than expecting others to help.
- Invest in proven systems and proven people.
- Look for people who want to grow with you. Help them grow.
The number one tool to extend your network he says is to look at yourself, not your uplines or downlines.
Rolf Kipp
Estimated lifetime income: $100,000,000
Company: Forever Living Products
The goal should be a life from which you don't need a vacation.Rolf Kipp
Long story short, the 25-year-old network marketing success story of Rolf Kipp is a testimony to his hard work and determination. Born in Germany and starting his network marketing career with Forever Living Products, he considers “Forever” the philosophy of life. He has built a team of 2.2 million distributors, still standing with them in their twists and turns, and helping them develop and grow. From being a salesman in the sports industry to a top earner in network marketing, he considers consistency and stability, the two most important factors that determine success.
He further explains how he achieves this consistency in his business,
“I have a rhythm which means that every three months I start my business again from the beginning, that is, I forget everything I have built up until then and I get my initial enthusiasm back again.” He also advises distributors to be customers first and then practically show their customers the outcome of the products or services they are selling. That, he says, is very important in building trustful business relationships.
He advises young distributors to challenge themselves every day to get a little better at what they do.
Rolf Kipp’s Success Formula
Stability + Balance = Success
Rolf Kipp’s practical recommendations to build a network marketing success story
- Be consistent in all that you do.
- Start afresh every 3 months.
- Use the products before you serve.
- Challenge yourself every day.
- Create new connections.
- Share your experience and knowledge with your downlines.
- Set challenging goals and design a plan to achieve them—weekly, monthly, annual, and life goals.
Barry Chi and Holly Chen
Estimated lifetime income: $75,000,000
Company: Amway
Another power couple in Amway’s history, Barry Chi and Holly Chen, originally from Taiwan became the brand ambassadors of Amway in 1982. While only little is known about the couple's whereabouts, they have made remarkable achievements in their network marketing career.
They became Double Crown ambassadors of Amway and currently hold a large base of multicultural distributor networks across China and Chinese immigrant communities in the United States, France, Spain, and Russia.
The most powerful weapon is to move somebody emotionally. So if you send out a signal as love, you will receive the same signal back.Holly Chen
Holly Chen, initially a first-grade teacher, took it upon herself even when she entered the network marketing space, teaching and transforming the lives of fellow network marketers. Together with her husband, Barry Chi, she set up a motivational organization called “Plum Blossom” for welcoming, training, and motivating the early entrants successfully into the network marketing business. Today, Plum Blossom is one of the largest Amway Motivational Organizations.
A quick wrap on Barry Chi and Holly Chen’s network marketing story
- Joined Amway in November 1982.
- They achieved Diamond in 1996.
- Launched a motivational organization called Plum Blossom.
- Plum Blossom has 20 crown ambassadors and 2000 Diamonds.
- Their downline team expands across the markets of the United States, France, Spain, and Russia.
Ray Robbins
Estimated lifetime income: $71,000,000
Company: Mannatech
Ray Robbins started his sales career at the young age of six, selling donuts in and around his neighborhood. That was just the beginning and today he stands as mighty as a rock with over 40 years of sales experience and a net worth of $71,000,000.
Person of diverse talents, Ray Robbins, was duly conferred with the title of ‘Major’ for his expertise in flying helicopters in Vietnam. He also received the Chamber of Commerce “Entrepreneur of the Year” award.
In 1979, he joined his first network marketing company gaining expertise in the field for a new innovative venture. He co-founded Mannatech together with one of his besties in 1993. His passion for network marketing was contagiously turning the whole of his family including his children and grandchildren to be avid network marketers.
Not only does network marketing give you an unprecedented chance to be the CEO of your own company, it's structured in such a way that when one person does well, everyone does well. I challenge you to find any other industry where every single person delights in the success of the people around them.
Ray Robbins’ inspired many into becoming successful persons in network marketing and here goes a few tips he gives for emerging network marketers.
- Program yourself for success.
- Programming yourself for success.
- Understanding what it means to be the CEO of your own company.
- Finding the four aces that will accelerate your business.
- Working with the equation ”product value = more customers = more income”.
- Employing sales tactics that will work for you and your customers.
Ray Robbins traveled to places in order to train and support people to achieve success in the network marketing industry while ethically working on his principles. He is affectionately referred to as “the Road Warrior” and the “ultimate hugger”.
Highlights from Ray Robbins’ network marketing success story
- 7th lifetime top earner in the top 100 MLM earners list.
- Co-founded Mannatech and enrolled 22 people in his first year.
- Built a distributor base of over a million for Mannatech.
- Served five terms on Mannatech’s Board of Directors.
- Mannatech honored his experience with the “Giving Spirit Award” later renamed as “Ray Robbins, Giving Spirit Award”, now awarded every year to a Mannatech associate for their outstanding performance.
Holton Buggs
Estimated lifetime income: $68,000,000
Company: iBuumerang
Founder, Chairman, and CEO of iBuumerang, Holton Buggs, has been in the network marketing industry for over 30 years. Raised by a single mother, Holton Buggs did a wide variety of small jobs for survival, from selling popcorn to hair cutting. His first network marketing story wasn’t quite impressive, so he switched companies to establish his network marketing career. After completing his engineering degree, he considered MLM an exciting opportunity for establishing a career, and fate had it that he outshined his peers with his determination and will for success.
In life you don’t get what you want, you get what you picture.Holton Buggs
He joined Organo, a tea and coffee MLM, before he launched his own MLM company. A person with an immense entrepreneurial spirit, Holton Buggs, started iBuumerang in March 2019, with a customer-centric vision to change the industry. The propagated idea of the company itself is “To give back without expecting anything in return”.
With a chance comes a choice, ibüümerang is choosing to take every chance to change the industry.Holton Buggs
Holton Buggs’ network marketing story was rather a single-character story, with no mentor to coach or support. He drew his inspiration from the success stories of other network marketing legends. That made him decide one thing—to motivate and help fellow network marketers establish a successful career. Being an inquisitive person he learned everything he could from experiences around him.
Holton Buggs has a net worth of $68,000,000. Now he coaches and mentors network marketers all over the world to be successful in their network marketing career while also managing the success of his company, iBuumerang.
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Tim Foley
Estimated lifetime income: $65,000,000
Company: Amway
Tim Foley was well known for gaming his way to building his success story in the network marketing industry. An unsung hero of his times, Tim Foley, was an American footballer and former Miami Dolphins defensive back. In 1969 he received his all-American honors as a defensive back. He also served 15 years as a commentator for the TBS college football team.
With an interest in the fitness industry, he started a fitness business that went into a total collapse after which he joined Amway as an independent business owner. A humble beginning as it may seem, Tim built his network marketing success story as an Amway multi-millionaire celebrity with a pure will to work hard and succeed. Today, Tim Foley has a remarkable net worth of $65,000,000.
Tim Foley was a man of benevolence and goodwill. While he worked hard to build a successful business, he also took time to turn around and look at people in distress around him. Distance was never a barrier for him to reaching out to people in need.
The most important role models in people's lives, it seems, aren't superstars or household names. They're "everyday" people who quietly set examples for you—coaches, teachers, parents. People about whom you say to yourself, perhaps not even consciously, "I want to be like that”.Tim Foley
In 2011, Tim won the “Amway Hero Award for Generosity” for his humanitarian efforts with “Habitat for Humanity”, building houses in Guatemala. Tim leads by example, it’s not just about the money he spends, he has also invested his time and efforts in building these houses. He has led the whole of his team into being a part of this humanitarian act.
I believe if ‘The Guy In Charge’ lets you make some money, then you ought to do something valuable with it.Tim Foley
Ed Bestoso
Estimated lifetime income: $60,000,000
Company: Melaleuca
Ed Bestoso was running his family business, one of New England’s largest commercial window treatment applicators, since his early twenties. But the 80’s recession made the business collapse. He resorted to an MLM company only to his disappointment.
However, he did not let the disappointment take over. So with all his might, he decided to join network marketing, this time with a real company that aligned the “12 success factors” he had outlined. He and three of his friends ran research on 47 different companies to find the best one that fits their bill. Surprised by the number of companies that couldn’t measure up, Ed Bestoso continued his research until he found Melaleuca at #48, a choice that contributed to Ed's net worth of $60,000,000.
The exciting part is finding the person who circles ‘3' and digging in and getting them to dream. That's the exciting part for me—seeing the look on people's faces when they turn from skeptics to dreamers.Ed Bestoso
Ed joined Melaleuca in 1991, an era when the internet was still not a champion. He worked his way into his customers’ hearts through telephone calls, home parties, and one-on-ones. Ed Bestoso has his own unique way of welcoming newcomers to his team. First, he instills a sense of urgency to earn, to drive them on their way forward. He also stresses the need to have a self-contained ego and discipline in order to conquer success in the network marketing world.
No matter how much talent you have for the business you’re in or any endeavor in which you are involved, without self-discipline, the likelihood of success is in serious jeopardy.Ed Bestoso
Wrapping up,
Every other accusation the network marketing industry has faced until today, these real MLM success stories proves it wrong. Only that, with the right company and a great strategy every common man with a will to hard work can reap success in any industry.
Explore the low investment MLM ideas and the legal guide to roll into the network marketing industry, safe and quick.
Disclaimer: Earnings listed here are the estimated lifetime earnings. The company mentioned is the last company the earner is known to have been with and the income mentioned is the lifetime income they have earned in all the companies together in their network marketing career.
