One of the world's most powerful engines of commerce is the direct selling industry. "Direct selling" refers to the massive ($117 billion annual sales) and highly efficient channel of commerce in which goods and services are offered by independent sales representatives directly to customers - usually to friends, family and neighbors -- without the use of stores.

Direct sellers offer virtually every kind of product, from personal care to health, beauty and wellness, from home furnishings to lifestyle, from telecommunications to jewelry. It thrives in literally every corner of the globe.

This personalized selling - which we like to call micro-enterprise - is especially potent in the Internet age. The connectivity of the Internet is a tool that makes relationship-based selling more attractive than ever.

From this powerful driver of commerce, the CVSL innovation was born.