"Most multi-level companies are market-oriented," Chen says. "We are
product and manufacturing oriented. That is our strength. We have a quality
product and a commitment to quality, and we are in the right time. We are
in the right trend. People think about and talk about health now more than
any time in the past hundred or two hundred years. Twenty years ago, if
you look at the magazines, very few talked about health or the environment.
Now every newspaper and magazine talks about it all the time. Not just
about personal health, but how it keeps the environment healthy, everybody
healthy."
ow, following their tenth anniversary celebration, Sunrider International
has over 400,000 active distributors, and boasts annual sales of more than
$300 million. That figure might be considerably higher but for the fact that
in 1990 Chen set Sunrider on a course of complete restructuring. Chen's new
goal is to hit $1 billion a year in sales. He proposes to do that by turning
Sunrider into a company that will sell packaged snackfoods in direct
competition against giants like General Foods. Chen opens a small brown
plastic bag and shakes into his hands a mix of flash-dried vegetables. He
picks out a pea pod and hands it to us. Though it is completely dehydrated,
the pea pod is crunchy and retains its natural shape and color. It is good,
lighter and more wholesome-tasting than potato chips.
Since 1990 Sunrider has invested heavily to strengthen its manufacturing
capacity. It has built a 188,000-square-food plant and a
110,000-square-foot warehouse facility in the City of Industry. It has also
recently signed leases for two more buildings in the area, a
180,000-square-foot manufacturing plant and a 250,000-square-foot facility
to be completed in 1994.
Some of this capacity will be dedicated toward expanding its Sunbar line.
One of its more popular products, the crunchy Sunbar tastes like it is made
from rice crisps, honey and nuts, maybe a little less sweet and lighter than
similar products. Though Sunrider was built on the strength of its herbal
foods, Chen will be adding snack foods that aren't necessarily herbal.
[CONTINUED BELOW]
Because Sunrider has always sold its products as food, it has not had to deal
with the FDA. Even without the FDA's stringent testing and labeling
requirements on medical products, Chen says he would have no interest in
selling herbal medicine. "Curing a disease is very complicated," he says. "I
am more interested in keeping the body healthy."
Chen has placed Oi Lin in charge of day-to-day operatins. Jointly they own
100% of Sunrider. Chen pays himself a salary that is a tiny fraction of the
company's profits and reinvests the rest to building up the company. "I want
to see how much I can do," he says. "My philosophy isn't to make money
now, but to see how much I can make 10 or 20 years from now."
ore surprising and interesting than Sunrider's runaway success is
the incredible dedication and belief its products inspire in its distributors.
Many have even transcribed individual testimonials and made tapes of the
month to document the miraculous effects that Sunrider products have on a
variety of ailments. Everything from hair receovery to brain cancer
remission has been claimed in these testimonials. It is no wonder that they
are the subjects of controversy.
Sunrider International and Tei Fu Chen himself adamantly refuse to make
health claims related to the product. Chen is caereful to stress that Sunrider
produces and markets herbal foods, not cures, and Sunrider's philosophy is to
concetrate on the healthy body, not curing diseased ones. Sunrider
continually uses conferneces, conventions and seminars to educate its
distributors to avoid making medical claims. It even has a policy of
immediately dismissing any distributor found making such health claims.
PAGE 9
ow, following their tenth anniversary celebration, Sunrider International
has over 400,000 active distributors, and boasts annual sales of more than
$300 million. That figure might be considerably higher but for the fact that
in 1990 Chen set Sunrider on a course of complete restructuring. Chen's new
goal is to hit $1 billion a year in sales. He proposes to do that by turning
Sunrider into a company that will sell packaged snackfoods in direct
competition against giants like General Foods. Chen opens a small brown
plastic bag and shakes into his hands a mix of flash-dried vegetables. He
picks out a pea pod and hands it to us. Though it is completely dehydrated,
the pea pod is crunchy and retains its natural shape and color. It is good,
lighter and more wholesome-tasting than potato chips.
ore surprising and interesting than Sunrider's runaway success is
the incredible dedication and belief its products inspire in its distributors.
Many have even transcribed individual testimonials and made tapes of the
month to document the miraculous effects that Sunrider products have on a
variety of ailments. Everything from hair receovery to brain cancer
remission has been claimed in these testimonials. It is no wonder that they
are the subjects of controversy.
