Amway

Amway is an American company specializing in the use of multi-level marketing to sell health, beauty, and home care products. The company was founded in 1959 by Jay Van Andel and Richard DeVos and is based in Ada, Michigan.Amway and its sister companies under Alticor reported sales of $9.5 billion in 2015. It conducts business through a number of affiliated companies in more than a hundred countries and territories. Amway was ranked No. 29 among the largest privately held companies in the United States by Forbes in 2015 based on revenue, and No. 1 among multi-level marketing companies by Direct Selling News in 2016.Amway has been investigated in various countries and by institutions such as the Federal Trade Commission for alleged pyramid scheme practices.HistoryFoundingJay Van Andel and Richard DeVos had been friends since school days and business partners in various endeavors, including a hamburger stand, an air charter service, and a sailing business. In 1949, they were introduced to the Nutrilite Products Corporation by Van Andel's second cousin Neil Maaskant. DeVos and Van Andel signed up to become distributors for Nutrilite food supplements in August. They sold their first box the next day for $19.50, but lost interest for the next two weeks. They traveled to Chicago to attend a Nutrilite seminar soon after, at the urging of Maaskant, who had become their sponsor. They watched promotional filmstrips and listened to talks by company representatives and successful distributors, then they decided to pursue the Nutrilite business. They sold their second box of supplements on their return trip to Michigan, and rapidly proceeded to develop the business further.