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Avon  announced that they will partner with Dempsey Racing this year for the the 2009 Rolex 24 at Daytona. The partnership will be between Dempsey Racing and the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer. The No. 40 White Mazda RX-8, which will of course be driven by Patrick Dempsey will carry a pink trim on the black and white car.

Avon will also be giving one lucky person a chance to win a meeting with Dempsey at a future Grand Am event, just by registering for more info on the partnership on the Avon Walk website. www.avonwalk.org.

Team Dempsey, Dempsey Racing, will compete in the Gran Am Rolex Sports Car Series in the GT class. The event, presented by Crown Royal will take place in Dayton at the 47th running of America’s premier sports car race January 24-25.

Dempsey, who’s wife is a beauty consultant for Avon, has also developed his own fragrance for the global beauty company. Demspsey and his wife have been active participants in several charitable initiaves that Avon has sponsored. Dempsey is thrilled to not only be racing in the event, a sport he has a passion for, but also to be supporting Avon and Breast cancer research. “Real men can wear pink,” said Dempsey, who races in the Rolex Series when his busy shooting schedule for the popular television program, Grey’s Anatomy, allows. “All of us at Dempsey Racing are proud to partner with the Avon Foundation in its fight against breast cancer. By wearing pink on our suits and on our cars, we hope to raise awareness for this important cause and for an extraordinary series of events: the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer.”

“While two very different types of endurance events, the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer and sports car racing have the common tie of the mental and physical stamina required to achieve success,” Dempsey said. “With that juxtaposition in mind, a special contest for top fundraisers of the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer will be unveiled during The Rolex 24 at Daytona, January 24-25, 2009.”

You can find out more info on the walk as well as get the scoop on the Avon and Dempsey racing partnership at www.avonwalk.org. On the site you can register to walk, find out how to donate, get more info and even register for a chance to meet Dempsey, aka McDreamy himself at a future Grand Am race.

Popularity: 5% [?]

The Direct Selling Women’s Alliance, the DSWA, has just announced the dates of their annual DSWA Celebration. This year’s event will take place April 17th through the 19th at the Westin in Los Angeles, California.

The event will feature over 20 self made millionaires from some of the world’s leading direct selling companies. The speakers will share with attendees what it takes to succeed and how they themselves persevered to achieve their goals. The attendees will get business tips, learn new strategies and get some great motivational tips as well as learn how to grow their already existing businesses.

The 20 small business millionaires speaking at the conference include representatives from companies such as Avon, Mary Kay, Neways and Pre-Paid Legal, just to name a few. The 3 day event will give all in attendance the chance to learn, network and share experiences with colleges.

Some of the topics that will be covered by this year’s speakers include

• Best Booking Practices
• Approaching Coach Excellence
• Build it Big with Recruiting
• Creative Meetings People Want to Attend
• Build it Big with Internet Marketing

For more info on the event, or to register to attend you can visit, http://www.dswacelebration2009.com

Popularity: 6% [?]

Avon announced earlier this week that they have named V. Ann Hailey to join its Board. Along with her invitation to join the board, Ms. Hailey has also been tapped to serve on the company’s Audit Committee. Ms Haley will become the 11th member of the cosmetic company’s board of Directors.

Ms. Hailey, 57, is an experienced business woman with years of experience at the top of several large companies. Now retired, Ms. Haley previousley held several high level positions at Limited Brands, Inc, including Executive Vice President, CFO and President, Corporate Development. Prior to joining limited brands in 1997, Haley held management positions at The Pillsbury Company, RJR Nabisco and PepsiCo, Inc.

“We are very pleased that Ann Hailey has agreed to become a member of Avon’s Board of Directors,” said Andrea Jung, Avon’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “Her extensive financial expertise and corporate strategy experience at prominent consumer product brand-name companies will enable her to make significant contributions to Avon as we continue to grow our business on a global scale.”

Ms. Hailey holds an M.B.A. from the Harvard Business School and a B.A. in Business Administration from the University of Georgia.

Popularity: 27% [?]

The Direct Selling Association will be on hand this week to help the Today Show kick off their annual Toy Drive. The 15th Annual TODAY Show Holiday Toy Drive will be launched Monday November 24th at 8:30 AM. This will be the fifth year that the DSA has been a part of the annual drive.

The DSA will kick off the drive by presenting the direct selling industry’s donation live in Rockefeller Plaza. Thirty two direct selling companies have come together to donate products to the drive, the total donation coming in at over $9 million dollars in products. Seven of the DSA’s companies will be featured in spots on the TODAY show during the holiday season.

Items donated include books, clothing, toiletries and of course toys for children and families all across the United States. Over the past five years, DSA member companies have donated over $37 million dollars in cash, product and services to the Toy Drive.

This is a a brilliant move on the part of the DSA and the member companies that are a part of this. Given the economic times, network marketing companies are going to continue to thrive as more and more people seek additional forms of income.

The following direct selling companies donated products to this year’s Toy Drive:
4Life
Advocare
Amway
Arbonne
Avon Products, Inc
Blessings Unlimited
Butterfly Worldwide, LLC
Clever Container
Cookie Lee
Creative Memories
CUTCO
DeMarle at Home
DeTech
Essential Bodywear
Fifth Avenue Collection
The Happy Gardener
lia sophia
The Longaberger Company
Mary Kay Inc
National Companies
Nature’s Sunshine
Oxyfresh
The Pampered Chef
PartyLite Gifts
Purse Party, Inc
Shaklee Corporation
Signature HomeStyles
Southern Living at Home
The Southwestern Company
Stampin’ Up!
UDesign Jewelry
Vantel Pearls

Popularity: 13% [?]