Founded in 1978, Forever Living must be doing something right. Why do I say that? Well, most MLM’s don’t seem to survive long, they crash and burn in a couple of years. With headquarters based in the USA, this family owned and run business manufactures and markets health and personal care products with aloe and bee-derived ingredients.
The health and personal care niches are popular amongst MLM’s, it’s a clever strategy to market products which are consumable (i.e. people will purchase them over and over). Nice job Forever Living. But wait, what about the business opportunity? Is it legit? Stay with me as I delve into more detail about both the products and the business opportunity …
Table of Contents
Forever Living Review …
Forever Living’s slogan is “Plant To Products To You”, as you may gather, they position themselves as a company who works hand in hand with nature to provide health and beauty products which are natural and good for us humans. This positioning ensures that their consumers know from the outset that they are concerned with the health and wellness of the people who purchase their products. They go on to assure us by saying that they take pride in doings things differently and even own their own plantation, manufacturing facilities, R&D (research & development), QC (quality control) and distribution channels too.
A quick glance at some imagery on their website reveals the company mission. They are focused on keeping things “natural”, investing in the future and family too. Speaking of which, it’s interesting to note that this is still a family owned company.
The FOREVER LIVING Review
Welcome and thank you for visiting my site to have a look at the Forever Living Review.
I focus the reviews I write primarily on business opportunities, the majority of us are interested in how we can make more money, whether it is from a side gig or a full time business. The purpose of the reviews is to share and guide you to an opportunity that will take you to where you are looking to go.
Let’s get into it.
Here is what Wikipedia have to say about Forever Living
“Forever Living Products International, Inc. is an American privately held multi-level marketing company based in Scottsdale, Arizona, which manufactures and markets aloe vera-based drinks and bee-derived cosmetics, dietary supplements, and personal care products. The company was founded in 1978 by CEO Rex Maughan. Wikipedia”
Forever Living is an international company with extensive reach into 160 countries around the globe. Where will you find Forever Living? Here is an abbreviated list:
- Africa
- Asia
- Australia
- Europe
- North America
- South America
If you are keen to see more, you are welcome to have a look at their International Sponsoring Directory. Like I said, their reach is substantial.
So, Forever Living have certainly not been snoozing on the job for the last forty plus years. They have made great inroads to building their own infrastructure (owning everything from the land to the manufacturing plants, research laboratories and distribution) and managed to extend their business all the way around the world. That is very impressive for a family owned business, I am sure you will agree?
Overview: Forever Living At A Glance:
| NAME: | Forever Living Products International Inc. |
| WEBSITE: | foreverliving.com |
| PRICE: | Between $88 & $253 to become a FBO |
| FOUNDED: | 1978 |
| FOUNDED BY: | Rex Maughan |
| CEO: | Rex Maughan (still a family owned business) |
| OVERALL RANK: | Business Opportunity: 4/10 Products: 8/10 |
Forever Living Products Reviews
So, part of this review is to take a look at the products themselves. I personally have not used Forever Living Products, this is a good and potentially a bad thing. Having not used them, you can be sure that I will share objective information with you, I am not biased for or against the product in any way, shape or form.
My impression of Forever Living Products so far is that they are great products made from natural ingredients (I love, love, love that!). Let’s see what other people have to say.
According to Trust Pilot.com, Forever Living Products rates a three and a have average out of five stars. To be fair to Forever Living, I see that they have changed their packaging to Tetrapak which has not been so well-received. In addition to that, there are also low ratings based on questions like: “Pls what products can I use for big butts and slim waist. Thanks” I kid you not!
You are welcome to click through to Trust Pilot via the image below and have a look for yourself. That did give me a giggle!
There are also reviews which are extremely good, people really singing the praises of Forever Living Products. That is awesome to see. From my perspective though, I try to take these reviews with a pinch of salt at times, after all, it could very well be the sales distributors placing the reviews online to boost their own sales. (Yeah, you can call me a skeptic, I don’t mind)
What Products Do Forever Living Sell?
Let’s have a look at their product range. According to their website their Best Sellers are in the following categories:
- Immune Health
- Drinks
- Bee Products
- Nutritional
- Weight Management
- Skin Care
- Personal Care
- Household
- Essential Oils
- Accessories
They have a clever marketing strategy with their Immune Health positioning. Using Bee Propolis, Forever Living markets tablets which, I gather, aid allergic individuals to build up an immunity to bee stings. Please don’t quote me on this, I am certainly no scientist, but I have heard of people building up their immunity this way. As you can see below, they also market Aloe Vera products under the Immune Health Banner together with Forever Supergreens.
The products are probably great to not only build up our immunity whilst we are healthy, but also assist our bodies when we are immuno compromised by things like illness and chemotherapy in the case of cancer patients. Again, please do your own research on this, I am sharing what my understanding is of the product range. Please be sure of what you are putting into your body.
Forever Living Immune Health
Forever Living Drinks
I suspect these are the new Tetrapak containers that some people are complaining about. For me, if it means moving away from plastic to a product which is more ecofriendly, then Forever Living have definitely taken the best route possible. If not, and it is just a cost saving exercise, well then, my feelings may just change on this one.
Forever Living Bee Products
It What a pleasure to see Forever Living;s commitment to bees and their role in nature! This company also manufacturers Forever Bee Polin and Bee Propolis tablets, that is, in addition to the honey.
Forever Living Nutritional Products
This seems to be where Forever Living really shines with their product range. The Forever Living Nutritional product range include products which improve our health from vitamins to minerals to products that assist with our metabolism, our mobility, energy, vitality and much more. Great range!
Forever Living Weight Management
Weight management products are a very big money spinner, the world over. Which is why so many MLM’s promote products in this niche. The Forever Living range includes everything you need from shakes to low calorie treats, thermal burners and so on.
Forever Living Combo Paks
Convenient for both the sales distributors to promote and the consumers to purchase, Forever Living has put combo paks together which encompass their entire range. Nice and convenient.
Forever Living Skincare
Taking advantage (in the best way) of all the benefits of Aloe, Forever Living have put together a skin care range from cleansers to moisturizers, masks, treatments and more. Incidentally, if you are ever in the sea and get stung by a blue bottle or jelly fish, Aloe gel really will be your best friend – it’s amazing at relieving the burn.
Forever Living Personal Care
This range includes everything from hand wash gels to tooth brightening toothpaste (which I have seen some great reports on), shampoos, conditioner, sunscreen, even veterinary gel! Perfumes, deodorants, massage lotions, mascara. Wow, this range is extensive!
Forever Living Household
Manufactured to be gentle on the environment but also effective, Forever Living has produced a small range of products to assist with hand sanitizing and keeping your home squeaky clean.
Forever Living Essential Oils
I have noticed that Essential Oils are also being promoted by Mannatech, together with the diffusers – must be something the MLM industry has caught onto. The Forever Living Essential Oils range includes Carrier Oil, Lavender, Peppermint, At Ease, Defense, Soothe plus they have combo packs available.
Forever Living Accessories
Now this range has surprised me, have a look and see what you think: lip brushes, Aloe Genie Baby, Rise Against Hunger Baby (I love this because it’s a socially beneficial thing to sell!), spray bottles, shakers, mascara wands, tweezers, foam applicators, elastic hair bands …
It’s almost like a “General File”. A bit of everything, I can see an obvious fit with the spray bottles and shakers, but this range just seems a bit haphazard to me. It’s not biggie and certainly not an inditement on the company.
Forever Living Business Opportunity
In the process of reviewing the Forever Living Business Opportunity, I found a video giving a great overview of the company and the business opportunity. Take a look.
The way Forever Living positions their business opportunity is to offer the following benefits:
- Be your own boss
- Huge earning potential
- Travel the world (this can be done with the Forever incentive plan)
- Tools and training
- Discounts on products
- Global family (more than 160 countries)
Two Ways To Join Forever Living
There are two ways to join the Forever Family, one is to become a FBO (Forever Business Owner) and the other is to become a Preferred Customer
As an FBO, you have the opportunity to build a business and generate an income stream. As a Preferred Customer, you get 5% off the retail price, with potential to get up to 30% off the price.
This looks to me like Forever Living are competing with their own FBO’s.
Now, when I signed in and looked at the opportunity to join Forever Living, I saw that it is free to join.
Then, I clicked on the “Join” tab and arrived at a page inviting me to Join With A Pak.
You are encouraged to “jump start your business” by purchasing one or more of the “Start Your Journey Paks”. Once you have done this or have a “2 case credit purchase within 2 consecutive months” you qualify to opt in to the Forever business!
This means, it is not free to join Forever Living – right?
There are 7 Join With A Pak Options
- Start Your Journey Combo Pak USD306.38 (2.000 CC)
- Forever Lite Ultra #24.85 (0.122 CC)
- A Touch of Forever Mini Combo Pak $203.30 USD (1.000 CC)
- C9 Nutritional Cleaning Program $98.28 USD (0.482 CC)
- A Touch of Forever Combo Pak $406.60 USD (2.000 CC)
- Vital5 $234.65 USD (1.200 CC)
- F15 Nutritional Weight Management Program $119.43 USD (0.586 CC)
I have also included the Case Credit numbers in brackets, and as you will see, you will need to either spend or sell a minimum of USD306.38 per month for 2 consecutive months to quality as an FBO.
The Good & The Bad
The Good:
Pro #1 Very well-established company (“Cash Rich and Debt Free” is how they promote themselves)
Pro #2 Family run company (I like that)
Pro #3 Extensive product range which is great for the Sales Distributors
Pro #4 The positive reviews given for Forever Living are very positive
Pro #5 International reach is substantial
Pro #6 Solid Social Responsibility Commitments (always a big deal for me)
Pro #7 30 Day Money Back Guarantee
The Bad:
Con #1 Not inexpensive to join
Con #2 Forever Living competes with their own FBO’s by offering Preferred Customer Joining Opportunities
Con #3 The compensation plan is not easily available
Con #4 As a distributor for Forever Living, you will really need to have an extremely large customer base to generate a great income
Who is Forever Living For?
Forever Living is tailored for individuals who have an interest in health and wellness. This product range is geared for that niche so would suit anyone who is in the business of personal training as an add-on on to what they do. For example, lady X goes to her personal trainer with weight challenges, said personal trainer can create an exercise program and then recommend the Forever Living products to aid with losing weight.
Forever Living could also be good for someone who already has an extensive network to sell to and recruit within.
Individuals who are looking to pay lower prices for their Forever Living products & maybe want to generate a bit of extra money with a side gig.
Forever Living Tools & Training
Forever Living offers training online and through their marketing materials. They also hold weekly meetings within the region and have larger workshops and meetings – which I suspect one would need to qualify by meeting sales targets to attend.
Forever Living Compensation Plan
The Forever Living Compensation Plan is not readily available on their own website, so I went scouting around to see what other reviewers have said. This is what I have managed to find from BestCompany.com:
- FBO’s purchase Forever Living products at wholesale price and then resell at retail price. the difference is the commission and can be as high as 48%
- Distributors receive 30% discount on products. In addition, they receive personal discounts of up to 18% when they sponsor new customers. There are all opportunities to earn leadership bonus which range between 2 and 6%.
- Recruitment Commissions are provided for too. Recruiting others as members carries earning potential between $800 to $2000 per month, after 4 months of building a downline and assisting them in building their businesses.
Just to recap, we established that it is not free to join Forever Living as an FBO. You have options to join but still have hurdles to clear in that to qualify 2 consecutive months of 2 Case Credits, that’s more than $600 USD in total. Then there are the above mentioned ways to generate an income with Forever Living as described by BestCompany.com
HERE IS THE KICKER! CAVEAT EMPTOR (BUYER BEWARE!)
This is a screen shot from Bestcompany.com, you are welcome to click on the image and have a look at their findings. You do not need to though, here it is below. They say the “Majority of Distributors Receive No Compensation”!
Overview: Forever Living At A Glance:
NAME: Forever Living Products International Inc.
WEBSITE: foreverliving.com
PRICE: Between $88 & $253 to become a FBO
FOUNDED: 1978
FOUNDED BY: Rex Maughan
CEO: Rex Maughan (still a family owned business)
OVERALL RANK: Business Opportunity: 4/10
Products: 8/10
My Final Opinion of Forever Living
As with many of the MLM Reviews I have done, Forever Living products look amazing, but the compensation plan leaves much to be desired. The fact that the compensation plan is not easily accessible is a challenge in itself – transparency is important to me.
When it comes to offering a Business Opportunity, and I emphasize that with capitals intentionally, I do not believe that Forever Living is offering anything substantial. What a pity, because the ethos of the company is admirable and the products look like they are worth getting excited about.
I stand to be corrected but the only way I could believe that Forever Living offers a true business opportunity – one where the sky really is the limit for how much money you can make and also offers the opportunity for living life on your own terms with time freedom – is if I met people who were doing that right now.
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Look forward to seeing YOU on the inside!
Blessings!
PS I have written a number of MLM Reviews, here are the links, in case you are interested:
- What Is Longrich?
- Herbalife Business Opportunity Review
- Jeunesse Review
- Honey Fashion Accessories
- Avon Cosmetics
Hi Louise, Thank you for such a great review. Given all the positives with Forever Living, I was curious as to why the reward system so hard to access without developing a extra large customer base. And then to compete with their own Forever Business Owners seems well counter-productive. I would want someone to have my back on business matters and if you are competing that is highly unlikely. Very interesting article. I like the way you finished off with WA. regards Jen
Hi Jennifer
I appreciate your visit to my site – thank you. Yeah it’s strange that the information is so inaccessible, right?
Glad to see you were happy to see WA represented here, it is such a great business opportunity, I can’t help but share it with all who will take notice 🙂
Blessings always
Louise
The last thing I want to do is have to first attend a conference in a hotel where I’m briefed on the business side of any new venture. A page with a compensation plan should suffice. The fact that you had to look elsewhere in Forever Living’s case is not attractive. Thanks for this honest review Louise, and especially about the need to have your foot in the marketplace in order to generate income. Natural ingredients are great as we become more health-conscious.
We are Blessed.
Hi Mark
Yeah, in this day and age we should not need to attend any conferences to learn everything we need to know about a business opportunity.
We are blessed for sure.
Stay safe
Louise
Really informative content.
I didn’t know Forever Living owns its own plantation, manufacturing facilities, R&D (research & development), QC (quality control) and distribution channels, which makes it a lot more reliable. And I’m going to try some of its products and recommend them to my friends.
By the way, Wealthy Affiliate that you recommended, I also tried it. Wealthy Affiliate is like a wonderful platform, I have learned a lot there.
Thank you again, Louise.
Hiya
Thank you so much for taking the time to stop here and share your thoughts. Yeah, it’s pretty amazing how Forever Living have really covered their bases in owning everything to do with the business!
Awesome to hear you are happy with Wealthy Affiliate – I love it and truly hope others grab hold of the opportunity, especially in these challenging times.
Stay safe.
Blessings
Louise
Hello,
Very thorough review of Forever Living. I’m always a bit skeptical of of companies such as these and thankfully your article covers all bases.
I look forward to reading other reviews from you.
Sharon
Hi Sharon
Thank you so much. Great to have you over for a visit 🙂
Look forward to seeing you again.
Blessings
Louise
Very insightful review. I even looked at your tutor online page, too. Two things I have in common with your blog –1- I like using as natural as you can get – essential oils and I have been teaching Online for the past 7 years, so yes, I agree you can do both Online teaching and Online Entrepreneurship. (By the way, that page was beautiful)
I have never heard about Forever Living MLM, but I have researched others and I appreciate your extensive review, even the fine print –that’s what matter most. There is where the crunch is –the 1% that really makes the money –BFRC –Big Fat Reality Check. Thank You
Hi Marie Rose
Great to see you here, thank you for your visit.
Amazing how much we have in common, no matter where we live in the world. Online teachingis amazing – glad you enjoyed that article too, thank you 🙂
I must say, I had heard of Forever Living (it is marketed quite aggressively here in South Africa) but didn’t know too much about it. Yeah, the BFRC really does matter! I love that acronym 🙂
Stay safe
Blessings
Louise
The products sound awesome if they are good quality. For the business side of things I have tried couple of MLM products in the past but found it takes way to long to start making any kind of money. In my opinion it seems the ones on the top are the ones getting all the money while those struggling at the bottom are doing all the work. Thanks for the review.
Hi Rick
Thank you for sharing your experience here too. I agree with what you have said as my MLM journey was the same.
Blessings always
Louise
I really enjoyed reading your review about Forever Living – many thanks indeed. I do know that for the larger workshops and meetings where you say you suspect one would need to qualify by meeting sales targets to attend – that that is not the case. FBO’s have to purchase a ticket to attend (and are encouraged to purchases tickets for family and friends too, with the intention of introducing them to the business).
Your review of their products is very thorough and the overall review of the company and it’s structure does make it sound a very good MLM to consider joining however you raise a very valid point when you say …… “the only way I could believe that Forever Living offers a true business opportunity one where the sky really is the limit for how much money you can make and also offers the opportunity for living life on your own terms with time freedom – is if I met people who were doing that right now” These are wise words and unless you see with your own eyes someone living the dream via this opportunity then it should be considered with caution.
Thanks for the review.
Hello there
Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge of how the FBO’s need to purchase tickets for the events, pay for an invite warm leads too – quite a clever strategy but my guess is that it could be very expensive too.
Yeah, I heard somewhere that “success leaves clues” and for me, that would be the best way to know that an opportunity is good – to see the clues from those who go before us.
Blessings always
Louise
I find this article very interesting. Forever Living seems to have many good products. These products are all natural. I like that. I’m into vitamins, skincare and cosmetics. I would be interested in trying them. I wouldn’t be interested in the company as a business opportunity. It seems too expensive and you need to build a large clientele to make money. Thanks this was very informative.
Hi Josephine
Glad you enjoyed this article. Forever Living certainly is an interesting company. We also agree that it’s not the best business opportunity around though.
Blessings always
Louise
this is a great and amazing article. i sincerely your effort creating time to write on such an informative article which has taught me a lot more than expected. i have literally tried couple of MLM products but i see it dosen’t pay real fast. but since been an online marketer i knew you don’t get rich quickly. thanks for sharing this information
My pleasure to share 🙂 Thank you for taking the time to read and comment here too.
Any “get rich scheme” opportunity makes me uneasy. My #1 Recommendation is still the Online Business route. We can create lives of freedom (financial, geographic and more) by working hard online.
Blessings always
Louise
Thanks for the review. It’s not something that would interest me personally as a way to make money at the moment, but I have been involved in something similar in my distant past, something called ‘Nutri-Health’. It was similar to this, but focused more on dietary pills. There was nothing wrong with product, but rather like your review, it fell down with it’s compensation scheme.
That is a common feature of most MLM schemes and until they bridge that gap between the products and the rewards for distributors, the scores will always be marked down by reviewers. It isn’t hard to reward your distributors, the operators just need to be fair.
I agree with your recommendation for those wanting to build a business from scratch. Wealthy Affiliate is a superb training platform to learn all about making money from home. I can second your vote for this as I used it to build my current websites.
Dave
Hi Dave
Great to see you here! Thanks for the visit.
Thank you also for your input, I recall Nutri-Health .. back in the day 🙂 Sad that MLM’s don’t make it more worthwhile for their distributors, I guess it becomes unprofitable for them with the amounts they pay out throughout the downlines. That is precisely the part of MLM that brings them under the FTC spotlight, bordering on pyramid schemes as closely as they can without falling foul of the law. It’s a fine line.
Awesome to hear that you are also enjoying all the amazing benefits of Wealthy Affiliate. How fortunate we are to have landed where we are!
Wishing you every success.
Blessings
Louise
‘
Louise,
Per usual you do a fantastic and thorough job of impartially reviewing online businesses… and you put them out on a regular basis…that’s impressive. I particularly like your thoughts on how Forever Living can be work for the right person with a network already in place when your overall assessment is that this is not a great opportunity… it demonstrates integrity.
Bob
Hi Bob
Thank you so much – you are very kind 🙂
I really appreciate your time and input Bob.
Blessings always
Louise