MALS2023 Day Two: Maintaining JR’s Vision
The momentum of Leadership School Day One carried over into Day Two. President & COO of Market America Marc Ashley kicked off the morning with explosive energy, announcing incredible opportunities demonstrating our dear Founder JR’s dream for hard-working UnFranchise® Owners (UFOs) to be rewarded: more BV, IBV, and Cashback — more income! “For 30 years we’ve shown you how to achieve freedom,” Marc said. The speakers the rest of the day leaned into this idea and how much success we can have when we keep to our “Why.”
That’s exactly what the next speakers represented. 54D’s creator and founder Rodrigo Garduño announced a partnership with Market America going live this month. He expressed how touched he was by JR’s vision to change people’s lives, which is the same reason he started his fitness company — to revive people’s health and empower them to be their best selves. Next, Josh Fox introduced the employee retention tax credit program with Bottom Line Concepts. This credit gives tremendous aid to businesses, and UFOs can get cash for the referral! In helping others, we help ourselves. These philosophies and partnerships embody everything JR valued for this company.
Once SHOP.COM President & COO Steve Ashley took to the stage, he wasted no time telling us all the new amazing SHOP offers like SHOP LIVE replay and multi-presenters, digital catalogs with language adjustability, gift cards and coupons, and more. Looking forward to these improvements, he said, “It’s not about the past 30 years, it’s about the next 60.”
After Steve, Business guru and Shark Tank phenomenon Daymond John took the stage in a one-on-one talk with Market America | SHOP.COM Vice President Andrew Weissman. Daymond stressed the significance of investing in your time and education and setting goals. “JR envisioned a world of bringing power to people, giving them a service,” Daymond said. That’s how we’ve blossomed under inspiring leadership that empowers us.
Vice President of Sales Jim Winkler and Director of Field Development in Canada Andrew Chee jumped off this theme. “As UnFranchise Owners, one thing I want you to know is how much JR wanted you to succeed,” Winkler said. Who better to show us examples than the UnFranchise Owners we admire most? Dr. Tamara Weistein, Aleksandra Cummings, Lisa Guizhi Wang, Julie Landsiedel, Gary Brecka, and Petrina Cheng stole the show in their presentations. But it was Dr. Tamara who summed it all up when she said, “You need to be a product of these products because what we use is what we’re sharing with other people. That’s where we get the stories to share with other people. It’s really the stories that sell.”
One of the most rousing stories that blew the audience away and moved many of us to tears was Professional Coordinator Deborah Anderson’s sharing of being diagnosed with cancer and emerging victorious, meanwhile using her interactions with healthcare workers to expand her business and sell Health & Nutrition products. “Keep your foot on the pedal,” JR told her, “and don’t let off the gas.” It carried her through. “I won. This is my life. This is my ‘Why.’ This is my legacy,” Anderson said.
The second half of the day was no less impactful. Dr. Deedra Mason and Dr. Lien Nguyen led several surprising demonstrations that displayed the superiority of Market America–exclusive products over other nutritional competitors. Then, Executive Coordinator Ana Vidal and Executive Supervising Coordinator Pam Torgerson spoke on in-person events making connections and appealing to an individual’s needs.
Dritan Hodo and Flushadelphia never disappoint. Two of Dritan’s long-time team members Kevin Duong and Brett Portelli interacted with the audience throughout their segment on the culture of accountability and the characteristics of a leader.
But no Market America event day would be complete without a lesson from JR. So, when Andrew Weissman brought us videos of JR’s magic moments, we got to relive some of our favorite JR presentations that showed essential components of the UnFranchise Business.
Following the iconic JR replays, a tribute video recognized those in the UnFranchise family who have passed. After 30 years in the business, we are grateful to each person for joining us on this journey and never forget those who are with us to the end. They are listed below in loving memory:
Tony Bowling
Holly Howroyd
Pam Bowling
Susan Thomas
Rick Hannon
Cany Tsang
Stacy Tung
Arlene Lowy
Dennis Franks
JR Ridinger
Weissman and Winkler concluded the whirlwind day by announcing those who have moved up UnFranchise levels since #MAIC2022. As names were called out and people flooded the stage, the magnitude of the moment was felt by all those who have dedicated their time to the UnFranchise Business. We can’t wait to see what the final day of #MALS2023 holds!
