Joanna’s Joie de Vive!
Posted by sharon - 10/10/09 at 10:10 amJoanna Mulaku is one of the many agents from companies such as Vnatural, Tish Tash Toys, Vie at Home and The Body Shop at Home who have joined Party Plan Together. It acts as a place to meet other party planners and direct sellers, and it a great way to share ideas, get advice and find local events, fairs, fetes and baby shows. Click here to see our new events page.
Like many of us, Joanna is a mum who has found that party planning and direct sales offer the perfect solution to the problem of how to earn money when you want to work from home and be your own boss.
Based in London, Joanna is an Area Team manager for Vnatural with L’Occitane in West and South West London. This role has provided Joanna with a job that gives her the flexibility to work around her family, as well as providing the income that she needed.
Previously, Joanna had a successful career in restaurant management, where she was responsible for training, mentoring and motivation. However, just under five years ago, Joanna had her first child and decided that she wouldn’t return to the restaurant trade because of the long and unsocial hours that were required.
Joanna now has two children aged 4 years old and 18 months. When her eldest daughter was just over a year old, Joanna suffered health complications that meant she was unable to work. When she was well enough to return to work, Joanna became a recruitment consultant before leaving to have her youngest child. However, Joanna was determined that she didn’t want to go back to working in an office. Her plan was to work from home and start her own business, so she began selling end-of-line cosmetics and skincare on Ebay.
Joanna then started to look for something additional that she could do from home. She had previously worked for Oriflame for a short time, so knew a little about the direct sales business. Her first task was to find something she wanted to sell: Joanna looked at other party plan companies, but she was most attracted to the L’Occitane brand, which she had been using herself for the last five years. Like many direct sellers and party planners, Joanna believes that it is important to only represent brands that have strong ethical values, such as those that use recycled materials through to companies with a policy of not testing on animals. Joanna also found that because Vnatural is a fairly new and small organisation, working for them provides a real sense of being part of team at the start of an exciting journey.
Working for a party planning or direct selling company such as Vnatural is not just about what they can do for you. Self employed representatives such as Joanna bring life and work experience that can enhance a company’s skill base. In Joanna’s case, her previous experience made her an ideal candidate to be an area manager.
With a daughter in pre-school and her 18 month old son at home, Joanna’s working day is scheduled to fit around her family. Her husband works lots of evenings, leaving Joanna free in the day to meet and train Vnatural consultants from her area team.
Joanna says that the key to success in building your own team is exposure – whether that is online, in your community, attending networking events or selling at charity events. The main thing is to get out and spread the word about your product.
Online marketing has been successful for Joanna, and she recommends it for any party plan consultant. Joanna is now looking at how she can get some local or community magazine exposure through an article or interview. Local newspapers and magazines are often looking for pieces to include and a work at home mum making a success of her business is a good local story.
Joanna is a perfect example of how a busy mother-of-two can forge a career in the direct selling industry without compromising her home life. You can contact Joanna via our directory. Please mention you read about her on Party Plan Together !
If you’ve got a story to tell about how you too have become successful in direct selling, we’d love to hear from you. Please send us an email
Joanna’s Joie de Vive Article By Bridgette Barrett
