MLM Legal & Statutory Compliance

The direct selling industry has long been plagued with more than a fair share of miscreants who have attempted to make the most out of its myriad business models to line their own pockets with money from innocent investors who have been fooled to part with their hard earned savings by the lure of immediate and adequate compensation usually in terms of money and often in the guise of a better, richer and posh lifestyle.

For an industry so often maligned even with the right procedures and laws firmly in place to follow, it seems a little surprising that more often than not companies by themselves just cannot get the ideal governance right. This is where there is a need for an authority on the subject.

A consultancy that will help you conceptualize, execute and even grow your business model under the ambit of all the possible legalities that are set to govern the direct selling industry.

Strategy India will help you identify the best model suited to your business, help you establish it correctly and within the entire regulatory framework and will help you tactically outperform your competition.

As it stands there is no other agency not just in India but across the globe that has and offers such in-depth and accurate information on the workings of the direct selling industry.

Direct selling is in fact a popular business practice not just in India but around the world. More than 20 such MLM direct selling operations come into the scanner of Strategy India every week with a possibility of even more numbers being launched and executed. The Indian direct selling market is of particular interest to international operators as well. It is reliably understood that at any given time there are more than a 100 international MLM based operators who are vying to establish a successful entry and then carry out progressive operations within the ambit of the country.

In a thriving environment like this, there are several corporates who are looking to expand but without driving in with too much investment while the others are looking to proverbially test the waters by being cautious in their approach. This is where Strategy India makes a difference not only by guiding client companies by running the mandatory limited legal checks and measures but also by helping the company sustain the course of the business.

Periodic and useful actionable data, a quarter by quarter marketing and sales strategy, digital and social media-based strategic input are just a part of the offering that Strategy India brings to your business.

The consultancy model however has often been questioned in an economy where either completely outsourcing functions or then keeping them in-house and under close control have been the featured methods of working. This is one of the key reasons why several companies especially in the direct selling model have come under fire and attracted punitive action from regulatory authorities like the FTC (Federal trade commission), ACCC (Australian Competition and Consumer Commission).

Pyramid schemes, Ponzi schemes, and front loading are often the traps that direct selling businesses tend to get sucked into either advertently or inadvertently. The unscrupulous will see it as a way of immediate gratification with little regard to the legalities. However, sometimes due to not having the strongest understanding of the industry, even the more conscious can be affected by these issues in a direct selling model.

Strategy India makes it’s a primary objective to ensure that the vision set forth by the management of the direct selling client company is communicated down the line clearly and without any sort of ambiguity whatsoever to the direct selling arm of the company. This sales force that engages the end consumer to purchase a product or service is the very fulcrum of any direct selling business and they have to be kept in the loop about company policy to ensure that the path they tread is straight and narrow but one of commitment, dedication, and most importantly absolute honesty.

Strategy India also ensures that the business model selected by the direct selling organization deploying the MLM compensation plans does not fall foul of the existing laws including the Prize Chit and Money Circulation (Banning) Act 1978, IPC 420, Prevention of Money laundering Act, Protection of the Interest of Depositors Act for various states including Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and the forthcoming “The Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Act”.

Advice on the Functional laws, Laws applicable on products and services and laws related to organization and revenue like Consumer Protection Act, Indian Contract Act, Legal Metrology Act, Sales of Goods Act, Food Safety and Standard Act,Drugs and Cosmetics Act, Legal Metrology Act, BIS Act along with Income-tax Act and The Companies Act form an integral part of the legal consulting.

One must also consider that while one template may have worked for a particular developed or underdeveloped country, it may not be as effective for a developing market like India. Strategy India helps tune the code of conduct, terms, and conditions along with the policies and procedures laid down by client companies in India to reduce chances of being embroiled in the challenges due to the doctrine of Vicarious Liability as a Respondeat Superior.

All of the above when coupled with sound consultation and advice on sustainability derived purely by in-depth market research drastically helps to reduce the chances of your MLM direct selling business of being labelled as a Ponzi scheme and also allows for sustainable and realistic growth based progressive development of the business model and the organization.

When all the pieces have been put into place, at the end of the day, a business should be able to develop a win-win situation for everyone who’s life it touches including the customer, the direct seller, the distribution partner or the franchise, the parent company and of course its investors/promoters.

Strategy India helps you partner your journey towards creating the perfect scenario for all who are a part of it.

“A Sentinel that helps safeguard business integrity”