If you’re wondering what is Arbonne International, you've come to the right place. Let me guess, you were approached by an Arbonne Independent Consultant, and now you want to know if this is a worthwhile opportunity or waste of time.
In this in-depth Arbonne International review, we will talk about Arbonne International's history, products and if their income opportunity is right for you.
Arbonne International Review Summary:
Product Name: Arbonne International
Product Type: MLM
Price: $79 with a yearly renewal fee of $30
Best For: No one.
Rating: 40/100
Summary: Arbonne International is one of the more transparent multi-level marketing companies in the skin-care and cosmetic niche. They've got low entry fees and requirements, but low income potential too. Not worth the trouble, this one's a pass.
Recommended: NO. If you're looking into Arbonne International for the money making opportunity, even if you're dead set on promoting them, you should consider my top recommended training program instead. It's got 10 Free Classes to get started without any RISK.
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What is Arbonne International?
Arbonne International is a multi-level marketing company in the cosmetics and beauty niche. They offer a wide range of cosmetic products, as well as a rewards plan for people who want to make a bit of cash promoting the products.
Some reviewers say Arbonne is one of the most transparent multi-level marketing companies out there. Today we'll dig a little deeper to discover what Arbonne International is all about, and if you can actually make money working with this company.
Brief History:
In 1975, Arbonne International was founded by Petter Mørck and chemist Pierre Bottiglieri. Mørck then moved to America in 1980 to establish their headquarters in South Laguna. Since then, it has expanded to six countries; United States, Poland, Australia, Canada, United Kingdom, and Taiwan, making it one of the MLMs that has an international presence.
The company sales in 2004 reached $200 million and in 2005, has increased their number of consultants to roughly 612,000. Oddly enough, Arbonne lost more than 500,000 consultants between 2007 to 2009.
In January 2010, Natural Products Group LLC, the company who acquired Levlad Inc.-- Arbonne's parent company for $93 million in November 2004, filed for bankruptcy protection in order to reduce the companies growing debts.
Finally, in February 2018, Groupe Rocher acquired Arbonne International from Natural Products Group. This is a little unsettling, to be honest. After a brief success in 2004, a mass exodus took place which started in 2007.
What Actually Happened?
We’ll find out later.
But first, let’s talk about their products, because if you want to make money with Arbonne than you need to what you'll be selling!
Wait a Minute!
Promoting a MLM Company is NOT a good idea.
Arbonne International Products:
The company claims that their skincare products are unparalleled in quality and effectiveness. Of course, every company says the same about their products.
For example, in our recent reviews of Poofy Organics, Nu Skin and Younique, they have almost the exact same claims about their products.
Petter Mørck, along with a group of industry-leading biochemists, herbalists, and biologists, developed their products in Switzerland in 1975.
Their skincare products are claimed to be based on botanical principles and started circulating in the US in 1980 and now have gone global.
After the successful launch of their initial products, they have expanded their product line and now includes both inner and outer health and beauty products.
But do they really work?
Arbonne Products, at a Glance:
So what is it that you'll be promoting as a Arbonne distributor?
Arbonne has an extensive product catalog but there are only a handful of core products that make up most of the sales.
The following are some of the Arbonne product categories: skincare, bath & body, makeup, hair, anti-aging, and nutrition.
Another MLM that is almost identical is Monat, neither of the two are good opportunities!
One of the Arbonne's flag ship products is called RE9 Advanced. It's a starter set which contains several Arbonne products.
The package includes the following products:
- Smoothing Facial Cleanser
- Regenerating Toner
- Intensive Renewal Serum
- Corrective Eye Cream
- Night Repair Cream
- Day Cream
- And several small samples.
This set goes for $327, but you'll be able to buy it at a discount once you become a distributor. As far as MLM packages are concerned, this one is not too expensive, and from the looks of it, the products are not bad, either.
Other best sellers worth mentioning:
- Intensive Renewal Serum
- Corrective Eye Creme
- Restorative Day Creme
- Energy Fizz Sticks (Energy Bars)
- Daily Fiber Boost
- Vanilla Protein Shake
- Digestion Plus
Of course, there are many other sets and individual products you can choose to promote to earn some commissions. But this should give you an idea of what to expect from their products.
But wait.
Consumer Product Reviews:
Take a look at some customer reviews below.
As you can see, not of all of them are positive. Granted, it's pretty much impossible to receive perfect reviews, but it's also worth taking note of people's complaints.
Though there are a couple of good reviews out there, there is also an equal amount of bad reviews present and these reviews are disturbing.
For Example:
To summarize, it looks like the main downsides to these products are the...
- Small sizes.
- Wrong expiration dates.
- And allergic reactions.
You should always be careful when using new skincare products, and if you have a negative reaction, immediately stop using the products and visit a doctor.
Complaints Posted on BBB:
This customer was struggling with refund orders, and while the customer support responded, but they didn't solve the issue.
Complaints ranging from returns not being processed and Arbonne giving them the run around when asking for a refund is a clear business malpractice.
Who does that when you clearly have a "Money Back Guarantee" badge on all your products? Besides that, there are also complaints about the quality of the product that customers purchased.
With all the bad reviews and clear business malpractice, maybe their compensation plan works. Let’s go ahead and see if you can make money with Arbonne.
Thanks to the Internet, I'm constantly getting at least 20 new leads per day without doing any cold calling, hard selling or recruiting.
I've already achieved financial independence after working 1 year in affiliate marketing by earning a 4-Figure Passive Income Online.
Arbonne Rewards Plan Requirements:
To become a consultant you need to pay the annual registration fee. Included in the fee is a welcome set which contains samples you can show to your friends. You don't have to buy a set for your own use to become a distributor, which is nice.
- Cost: $49
- 12 Months
- $20 Upgrade for Preferred Client
But before you jump on the plan, there are a couple things you need to know. For one, the entry free is not the only requirement.
Monthly Requirements:
You'll also need to meet a minimum of monthly sales or purchases to maintain an active status. The minimum is 150 QV (Volume). To reach this you either have to sell 150 QV worth of products or buy the difference. 150 QV comes to about $150 worth of products. So if you can't get anyone to buy from you, you'll have to buy $150 worth of products for yourself, to stay active.
Arbonne Rewards Plan:
Staying true to tradition, Arbonne rewards you every time you and your team make a sale. Yup--your team.
That means the fastest way for you to earn a higher income is to keep on recruiting and have them recruit as well.
So how exactly do you earn?
Commissions and Overrides:
There are a few ways you can make money promoting Arbonne:
1. Retail Profits:
As usual, members can make money purchasing at discounted prices and selling for a higher retail price. Members earn a profit of 15% of suggested retail price.
You will be able to purchase products at a discounted rate then re-sell it to Clients at SRP for a 35% commission and to Preferred Clients for a 15% commission.
2. Overrides:
Overrides are based on sales volume. The more volume you and your team make the more overrides you can earn. Essentially, it's the same as team bonuses, but with a different name.
You earn 6% every time your team members make a sale. The income you get out of these overrides depends on your rank in the Arbonne ladder. As you go up, more overrides become available to you, giving you more opportunity to earn.
The same goes for Arbonne bonuses and commissions. The more you rank up, the bigger it gets. Now, let’s talk about the higher ranks and the potential earnings that you can get from reaching that rank.
3. Mercedes Cash Bonus:
Naturally, a MLM compensation would not be complete without a car bonus. With this bonus (only at Vice President level) members have a chance to earn a free Mercedes car, if they meet the Volume requirements.
Arbonne Rankings:
There are a couple of ranks that an Independent Consultant can shoot for.
These are:
District Manager:
Area Manager:
Regional Vice-President:
National Vice-President:
These ranks, though few, will take you time to achieve. It will grant you added bonuses and commission increases, but it would require a lot of sales and recruiting to do.
Arbonne's Income Disclosure:
Sounds good. How much can you expect to earn?
Thankfully, Arbonne does have an income disclosure on their website that will give you an idea of what to expect. Let's take a look at some of the details.
Percent of members in each rank:
- National Vice President - 1%
- Area Manager - 2%
- District Manager - 7%
- Independent Consultants - 62%
Now, how much do they earn?
Fun fact: only 12% of all members received earnings.
In Arbonne's income disclaimer, they divided income into Bottom 50 and Top 50 to make it look like people are making a lot of cash. At the Independent Consultant level, the Bottom 50 average comes to a grand total of $17 for the whole year.
It's unclear how many people are in the Bottom average and how many people are in the top average, but I'll guess and say most of the people are in the bottom average. The top average is probably reserved for the owners and inner-circle.
Keep in mind, these numbers are not the net profits. It's just total gross income. Remember you have to move $150 worth of products every month to remain active? And this income disclosure is for annual earnings, not monthly.
So you can clearly see money is going out but not much is coming back.
I prefer affiliate marketing because it's such a better way to promote products online. Plus, anyone that's willing to work at it can see success with this business model.
Affiliate marketing success stories!
~ real people, real work
4 - 5 figures/month online!
Products, Recalls, and Lawsuits:
The company stated that their products are formulated at the Arbonne Institute of Research and Development (AIRD) in Switzerland and are produced in the United States.
But an article was published in 2006 by The Virginian-Pilot highlighted questions as to whether or not AIRD have their own facilities.
Arbonne voluntarily recalled some production lots of branded peanut butter cups in January 2009. This was due to the risk of possible Salmonella serotype Typhimurium contamination of peanut-based products consigned from a Georgia processing plant.
In September 2009, Arbonne voluntarily recalled a production lot of branded foaming sea salt scrub, due to the risk of contamination with the Pseudomonas aeruginosa organism.
Health Canada advised Arbonne in January 2013 to voluntarily recall one batch of branded facial moisturizer for men. Based on Arbonne’s testing, the batch contains the bacterium Aerococcus viridans.
Arbonne recalled multiple lots of branded liquid eye liner in June 2016. The products were said to contain unacceptable levels of bacteria: Staphylococcus saprophyticus, Staphylococcus xylosus, and Staphylococcus lentus.
In October 2017, the ACCC recalled one lot of branded body wash due to unacceptable levels of Staphylococcus cohnii bacterium.
The U.S District Attorney Court for the Southern District of Indiana ruled in November 2009 that Arbonne International LLC violated federal law by refusing to employ Lisa Wilson on the grounds of her disability. Arbonne paid a $30,000 settlement to Wilson.
They alleged that the company was an illegal pyramid scheme. The case was dismissed roughly a year later in March 2018.
Need help avoiding scams, read this post to learn how to spot an online scam.
Arbonne Pros:
Like in all things, there are positive sides. This applies to Arbonne as well.
1. Low Entry Fees:
Most MLM's have high fees to join. This is refreshing that Arbonne's kept this in check.
2. Positive Product Feedback:
We found mostly positive reviews about the products that Arbonne produces.
There are a good amount of authentic testaments that their products works. Some of the side effects that customers experience when using the product can easily be attributed to a personal allergies and individual skin reaction to these products. It does not in any way represent the overall effectivity of the products in my opinion.
3. Eco-Friendly Products:
Too few companies pay attention to creating environmentally friendly products. In 2012 Arbonne relaunched some of their products to be more environmentally friendly by slashing the materials they used by 50%. Most of their printed material is also based on soy-ink which is much better for the environment than regular ink.
Though Arbonne does get a couple things right, it still has a lot of issues.
The Cons with Arbonne:
Of course, there are cons.
1. Poor Customer Support:
Based on our research, most of the time Arbonne's customer support is not helpful. Refunds are rarely processed, or they take many months to produce results. Products can arrive in poor standard, etc. Plus, getting a response from Arbonne can be a hassle.
2. Expensive Products:
Once again, these products are rather expensive. For example, there's one facial mask that costs $60 - for one mask only - that's a lot of cash. Most people don't have the money to spend on these products. Considering you can find the same - if not better - products from other brands for a fraction of the price, it's not really worth spending so much money.
3. Consultants are Aggressive:
Most MLM companies have aggressive consultants, but it seems like Arbonne's consultants take it to a whole new level. Which some claim borderlines on harassment. You'll receive the same messages over and over, with promos and discounts, trying to get you to sign up under them by any means possible.
4. No Free Shipping:
Another complaint people have with this company is they don't offer free shipping which is strange for such a worldwide company. Surely they should have warehouses near you? For such an expensive product you would think the shipping is free. Not so. Expect to pay quite a bit for shipping fees.
5. Lawsuits:
When a company is charged with being a pyramid scheme and is involved in numerous lawsuits, that's probably a sign it should be avoided.
The lawsuits mentioned earlier are pretty big red-flags.
Is Arbonne International a Scam?
No, Arbonne International is not a scam. Though it falls in the same recruit-to-earn category as other MLM’s, they have an extensive line of products that Consultants can sell for a profit.
But for you to make decent money promoting Arbonne, you have to recruit people into your fold to get access to the bonuses.
And we all know how hard it is to convince someone to join an MLM company.
If you're tired of MLM's and shady programs, consider affiliate marketing to make money online, worked great for me.
Conclusion on Arbonne International:
Arbonne may offer decent products, but the fact still remains that your odds at achieving financial freedom by working with them are slim to none.
You can market their products and sell it for a profit, but for you to earn a significant amount of money, you need to recruit people.
On top of that, the various complaints that Arbonne receives from customers who purchased their products is not good.
In the end, it’s just not worth it.
A Much Better Alternative:
Instead of joining an MLM company and making your upline rich, why don’t you just focus your energy on building your own profitable online business.
It's not that hard to take your skills and create a simple online business that brings in consistent cash. I know because I did it myself and was surprised at how anyone can do it.
Click the button below to see how it works.
Hopefully, you now know what is Arbonne International and you make a well informed decision. Thanks for taking the time to read this Arbonne International review.
Feel free to comment below if you have any questions.
Everyone says its a different one, but the basic is the same. Whether it’s Arbonne or any other. But the ways of managing people and quality product or services make the difference.
I have sure been to many MLM business but Yes I have seen some real quality and growth on Arbonne
Thanks for your feedback Jason. Any MLM can be a great company, just as long as it has great products that help people and ethical marketing, training and support. Best of luck to you with Arbonne International.
If you want to learn to build targeted traffic to your own website, you should check out the training course at Wealthy Affiliate. They teach all white hat seo that helps one rank fast and bring in traffic that’s ready to buy what you have to sell.
Thanks,
Todd
My friend is an Arbonne consultant and she tried to persuade me in joining her business. Thanks to your review, I can firmly reject her offer, just by seeing the poor review from their customers. I don’t want to sell ‘bad skincares’ to my customers and recruit even more consultant to sell these kind of products. I hardly find myself tempted to join an MLM program because their products usually have low quality 🙁
Well stated Alblue, thanks for your feedback.
When I discovered Arbonne, I thought I have finally found the MLM company I I was going to give a try.
So I decided to check it out, and stumbled upon your review, but after reading this, I am having serious second thoughts.
What discourages me most is this negative reviews, especially learning that the products are literally half empty.
I mean, if I want to get into business, I should be able to recommend something tangible (in both quality and quantity) to people, not one that will end up causing problem for me.
The nice thing I see here is their low entry fee, which might not benefit me on the long run, because if I have to spend more money than I make on products, at the end of the day just to meet up with requirements, then I don’t think its worth it.
I think I might as well have a look at your own recommendation, sounds like something that will be worthwhile.
Cheers..
Good assessment Queen. When you enter WA I will be sending you some messages to help get you orientated. Remember to reach out to either me or the community whenever you have a question. You can also search within the search console on any page if you have a question or just want to research a topic. You’ll find that many times there’s training’s and tutorials already made.
See you on the inside!
Todd
Thanks for pointing out the truth about Arbonne. I actually had someone in my family work for them and she was really disappointed, despite doing a lot of work. She just couldn’t get the required number of sales per month at one point. People would buy the products at first, but they weren’t satisfied so they didn’t order again. That’s how she realized Arbonne’s products weren’t worth the money – nor was all her work. She was actually earning less than she was investing, so it was surely not worth the effort. It’s not my personal experience, but I would still not recommend Arbonne International.
Thank you Heather for sharing your friend’s story with us. Hopefully it’ll help many others here that are considering working with Arbonne International.
It’s a great story because it’s so accurate as to what happens to most everybody who joins an MLM expecting to make money. They spend more money on their products and can’t make enough sales to meet their bonuses and end up losing money.
After you’ve reviewed as many MLM products like I have, you find some commonalities that are just not too attractive. And that’s typically a lot of work for little money in a system that is just not designed to benefit people like your friend.
That’s why I like affiliate marketing so much better, it’s based on your own efforts and it’s an even playing field. Anybody can get started and it just takes a little hard work and effort. It also makes all the difference when you have the right training and support to help you along the way. Should you need any help, feel free to take our Free Affiliate Marketing Training course.
Best,
Todd
Hi Todd! I have been approached by an Arbonne Independent Consultant and my first impression was that there could be an opportunity promoting their products. I was surprised that the entry fees are low and also the fact that the company has been in business for quite a long time and it has also gone global.
But after reading your review I don’t feel very sure about joining them. Thanks for the information you put together in this post.
Thanks Henry for your feedback on our Arbonne International review. You’ve made the right choice. If you’re interested in making money online. I’d encourage you to try out our Affiliate Marketing Free Training Course.
It’s got 10 lessons to give you all the info you need as to how online business works, plus there’s no risk to check it out.
Best,
Todd
Thank you for comparing MLM and affiliate marketing. I agree with you that there are so many cons in MLM, I wouldn’t join. You have mentioned many cons of Arbonne, I don’t even understand how they can sell their products. Having aggressive consultants shouldn’t be the correct way of finding customers. I also think that customer service should be great. How much time did it take you to achieve good profits with affiliate marketing?
Hi Agnes,
Thanks for your feedback on our my Arbonne International review. You are absolutely right. I like to think of affiliate marketing as getting a commission for a referral that you would give a friend.
As for me personally, I made my first dollar within 3 weeks of starting my affiliate website. After that I started seeing sales increase regularly as I continued to build out my site. Within six months I was making pretty consistent income online and it just grew from there.
Everyone is different and it depends on your niche and how much you’re willing to work at it. I get this type of question often and so I wrote this post to address your question.
Check out this post: How long does it take to make money online…
Hope that helps and thanks for your feedback.
I have been involved in a few MLMs and have yet to make a significant amount of money. The worst part is having to recruit people to join you and keep them involved.
Every single one claims to be different but if it involves having to pay to remain active and earn as well as recruit others to do the same, it’s an MLM.
Affiliate marketing is no pressure, just sharing information. I enjoy the community and ongoing training. Owning my business is a thing I take pride in and keeping it going is one of my daily goals.
Thank you for this review. I had never heard of Arbonne before, and now that I have read this, I know I will be staying away from them if I do.
Take care,
Gwendolyn J
You stated it perfectly Gwendolyn, every single MLM claims to be different. They also have their own expert panels and scientific research team. But you are right, affiliate marketing is a simple way to make money online. It’s based on performance and so the more effort you put in, the more money you make.
But you need to know what to do and when to do it. And for that I recommend Wealthy Affiliate. You can check them out for free and see all the tools, support and resources they offer new students.
And the fact that you’re creating your own business gives you so much more control about what products you select and the experience that you provide your customers.
For those that are looking for a real training environment to build your own online business, click here to see how it works.
Hi Todd
Another MLM- Unreal. They are everywhere and from my experiences with a few of them, I would advise people to stay away from them.
I am an Affiliate marketer, I own my own business online and I make a full time living without trying to recruit friends and family, with aggression and without having to spend around $150 per month on products that are not even high quality.
I learned from the best and built success online and people who are reading this, please click Todd’s link and get started in Affiliate Marketing
Thanks, Todd for helping people understand about “just another money taking opportunity:
Thanks Vicki, I appreciate your perspective and feedback on Arbonne International.
Great advice!
Dear Todd,
Thanks a lot for the thorough and helpful review post. I wanted to do some research on Arbonne International to know additional information and your review post provided me with detailed information which helped me in my decision making.
It’s nice to hear that, they are not a scam and they are in the market for a while. Also, the joining cost will be very expensive with many MLM companies but with Arbonne International the price is affordable but their products are expensive. I personally have some bad experiences with MLM companies and it’s really difficult to earn without a big team (The team must be active).
The history of the company you shared is very helpful. As you mentioned correctly many times when we are not able to achieve the monthly target to remain active we need to buy the products ourselves. That’s how many lose their money.
You have provided valid reasons, proofs and facts on why you are not recommending this company. I will go with your advice and thanks for saving people time and money.
Wishing you great success!
Paul
Thanks Paul for your feedback on my Arbonne International review, much appreciated. MLM’s are a pretty tough sale anymore and you right, most of the time it’s only the owners that make any money. At least in my experience and research of reviewing 100’s of mlm’s, it’s about 2% -3% make any money. All the rest lose.
Much success to you too Paul.
Cheers
Hi Todd,
This article shows why I’ve always stayed away from MLM programs. I was never a fan of having to recruit people in order to make a decent income. Although Arbonne may not be a scam, the reality is unless you’re super good at recruiting, you’re going to be facing an uphill battle.
The products don’t seem bad though. I’d like to find out if you can get the same products at a more cost effective price somewhere else.
Brian
Great points Brian, I’ve never been one to want to recruit people either. I guess that’s why I like the concept of affiliate marketing. I like the fact that you can produce content that continually brings in traffic 24/7.
That way all I have to do is focus on getting the top rankings and then I’ve got a consistent source of traffic coming into my website that ready to buy. You repeat the process by producing more articles and all the sudden you’ve got thousands of people visiting your website. It’s a pretty cool thing and the fact that you can then refer people through affiliate marketing relationships makes online business so much easier.
That being said, you can do the same thing with network marketing. You just need to learn how to Target traffic. If you need any help with that, feel free to get our free targeted traffic ebook.
Thanks for the feedback,
Todd