Real estate agents rush to sell cosmetics

Ziarul Financiar 21.04.2009
The decline of the real estate market has prompted many sales agents in this sector to seek work in direct selling. Such is the case of Oriflame, which sells its products exclusively on a person-to-person basis, through a 2,500-strong network of collaborators. "A lot of people came to us from the real estate sector. Agents who used to sell houses up until now, and who were used to a certain standard of living, but who now have bank debts, are forced to sell, and they come to us to test the waters," said Monica Tatoiu, Managing Director of Oriflame Romania. On the other hand, Tatoiu says people who, in real estate, received commissions of up to 5,000 euros per deal, now would have to sell 1,000 lipsticks in order to reach this sum, that is why the number of those keeping their job over a longer time is very small, although the number of people interested is larger than the average number of the last four years. "Not everybody can sell. The most reliable people are those who are married, have children and credits taken out with banks. Young people come to us, stay for a while, and then go away, leaving matters unresolved," Tatoiu says.