subject: Rodan and Fields Review: From Stanford to Bozeman, a Company Grows on the Quest for Youth [print this page] Rodan and Fields Review: From Stanford to Bozeman, a Company Grows on the Quest for Youth
Rodan and Fields was founded in 2002 by Dr. Katie Rodan and Dr. Kathy Fields, two dermatologists who were trained at Stanford University and found there were many treatments for common skin issues that were just not available on the US market. They achieved fame through the star product, Proactive made famous during late night infomercials. (Proactiv is a registered trademark of Guthy Renker). R+F does not distribute Proactiv and has no relationship with Guthy Renker. In March 2008, the company switched to a direct selling business model to bring "the dermatology office to the home".
The leaders determined from their experience that people suffering from various types of skin disorder were very self-conscious and generally unhappy. Rodan and Fields created a line of acne fighters that were available without a prescription (their first product offerings were prescription only).
The Rodan and Fields official website displays many categories of skin care products, such as the Anti-Age Night Recovery Cream, Multi-Function Eye Cream, and Night Renewing Serum, as well as a sunscreen, wash, and toner. These products can all be purchased separately, but there is also an Anti-Age Regimen which includes the toner, wash, and sunscreen in a set. Critics of Rodan and Fields claim the products don't really contain many proven wrinkle fighters. The R&F Anti-Age Regimen set contains toner, wash, and sunscreen, but can cost $160. Compared to other anti aging products, it is on the expensive side. This set also does not include lifting serum or cream. We recommend trying to find a sample of these products before spending that kind of money.
In terms of the business opportunity, the recruiting growth has been stellar. The company has publically stated that it has more than 1,000 independent consultants in the U.S. What makes this statistic impressive is the company only started using consultants in March 2008. Women that embrace building own business will prosper. Nothing beats the compensation plan of network marketing. While the product is different, the compensation plan is similar to Mary Kay and Avon. Their compensation plan is designed to compensate both Full-time and Part-time consultants in efforts of promoting the opportunity to earn residual income. There are four ways to get paid in the business:
1. Performance Bonuses
2. Consultant and Personal Team Commissions
3. Team Overrides
4. Retail Profits
However, some women may struggle with the selling part of the business. The aspect of delivering product to women scattered all over town can be burdensome, especially if the person is already busy with school age children. Furthermore, the policy and procedure manual goes through at length about the retail part of the business. There are policies for handling refunds, exchanges, cancellations, and out of stock issues. Any person considering becoming a consultant should consider if they want to handle the ordering, billing, and inventory duties of a small retailer. If that seems overwhelming, then a better business may be a network marketing model that pays commissions on people's telephone bills and internet service. There is no inventory in that model.
In conclusion, the company does a good job offering people a low priced business opportunity in a high growth industry. There are more than 20 consultants actively working the business in Bozeman, MT, and several have built teams of over 100 consultants across the country while living in Montana. The pros for the business is that the product is consumable and targeted towards the baby boomer generation that will spend anything to avoid the signs of aging. The company allows consultants to use the internet and social networking sites to promote the business and product line. A downside to the business opportunity is the extra burden of dealing with whole retail inventory, ordering, returns, and other details of operating a small retail business.
