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Technology Stocks : Dell Technologies Inc. -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: TechMkt who wrote (106387)	3/3/1999 6:07:00 AM
From: Mark Peterson CPA	Respond to of 176387

Tongue-in-cheek. DELL's Consumer Superstore Now Faces Some Stiff New Competition... March 2, 1999 Amway Takes Sales Into Cyberspace -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A.P. INDEXES: TOP STORIES \| NEWS \| SPORTS \| BUSINESS \| TECHNOLOGY \| ENTERTAINMENT -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Filed at 5:25 p.m. EST By The Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) -- Amway, the company made famous by its cheery salespeople who sell household goods to friends in their living rooms, is taking a giant step into the impersonal world of cyberspace. As if dealing with Compaq's alledged $2M per day in on-line sales was enough... Amway is expected to announce Wednesday that it will launch a new Internet site, Quixtar.com, in September. It's the latest move by direct sellers to broaden the way they pitch their products. And just wait until we offer computers... ''Going door-to-door, to people's homes, is more difficult today than ever before. More people just don't have time,'' said David Rush, who works at the retail consulting firm Kurt Salmon Associates in Atlanta. ''The Internet is a way to knock on someone's door or have them knock on your door when they have time.'' What a novel idea... Among other direct sellers, Avon has begun opening retail stores. Last month Tupperware announced it would offer its food storage products online by the end of 1999. Data storage could be next. Just go to www.tupperware.com ''The Internet is the way the marketplace is heading in the United States today,'' said David Van Andel, Amway's senior vice president. The rest of the world still likes to shop the old-fashioned way - just drive the SUV to the mall and look for a parking spot on the end where at least one of your doors won't get dinged... Amway's move online isn't a reach for the Ada, Mich.-based company. It has already solved one of the biggest challenges faced by Internet retailers -- it has an established distribution network in place. Just like Compaq, eh? The company also has a built-in promotional staff -- its army of three million eager sales representatives, who have already started touting the new Web site to their customers. Amway already operates an Amway.com site as a promotional vehicle. It decided against using its own name for the new site because it plans to sell thousands of goods and services from other companies. Uh-oh, looks like another DELL copycat strategy... Quixtar.com will also be filled with familiar Amway names, such as Nutrilite vitamins and SA8 laundry detergent. This new sales approach is a big change for Amway. Founded in 1959, the company has long prided itself on its network of representatives using face-to-face meetings -- whether at a neighbor's house or at the local coffee shop -- to woo business. Amway's salespeople are known for their almost evangelical spirit, but the company says they won't lose commissions to the Web site. Right, we're going to preserve our channel relationships... Salespeople will sign up their customers to become ''members'' of Quixtar.com, which will allow them to order goods online, some at discounted prices. The salespeople will get a commission from those orders. Salespeople will continue to encourage their customers to become Amway representatives themselves and will continue to get a percentage of the commissions earned by their recruits. The company also hopes the Web site will broaden its reach. Anyone, regardless if they are a member or not, can purchase goods on Quixtar.com. The profits from such sales will be randomly assigned to Amway representatives. That sounds like a good deal. Where do I sign up? How do I get to be an insider? Amway's move online comes as the company looks for new avenues of growth. Its representatives' pep rallies and motivation meetings haven't helped boost business in the last year, especially in financially strapped Asia. Yeah, Nutralite vitamins aren't selling. Any ideas if this will slow down the demand for computers? Amway's sales for the year ended in August 1998 fell 18 percent to $5.7 billion. About 70 percent of Amway's operations take place outside North America. Amway, which is privately held, doesn't disclose profits. Well, no wonder, they probably stuffed the channels the year before. Said one despondent Amway sales rep, "How are we going to get rid of all that soap stored in the garage?" -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Related Information From Hoover's Inc. Tupperware Corp