Thank you for taking the time to stop by my corner of the internet! This website is to discuss the many facets of Thirty-One products, to make the products more accessible, share my rejoicing in how the Lord is using this vehicle to reach goals and share His love. I look forward to getting to know you, helping you become more efficient, functional, organized, and helping you attain your dreams!
Thirty-One Blessings,
Kelly 
The most common questions someone asks me when they consider being a Hostess are, “How do I have an in home party?” or “What’s involved?”. So here are the answers!
Another question I receive is “What does the party look like?” The answer, as simple or as complex as you want! I recommend something low key… With us being busy women, we just want some girl time! The best parties seem to be those that you and your girlfriends get time to celebrate, encourage, and reminisce one another and your friendships! So just put on a pot of coffee, maybe some chocolate, and I’ll chat for about five minutes. In those five minutes I will thank you for hosting this get together, share the story behind Thirty-One, my reasons for being a part of the company, and showcase a few items (including what you are super excited about), and possibly play a game or two! From there your friends can touch, feel, browse, try on, and ask questions. The rest of the night is all about you!
Thirty-One Blessings to You!
Kelly
Its unfortunate, but as we all know, everything good must come to an end! The old must move on for even better things to come and that’s what’s happening with our Thirty-One Favorites! We are excited to share with you our new catalog and to make room for the new items and prints, we have to say farewell to some of the old. Please take the time to stock up and share this list with other friends before its too late! These items disappear for good January 31, 2012!
Not with the XXL Utility Tote! My dear friend, June, showed me how she uses her XXL Utility Tote and told me it works perfect to keep her trunk organized and clutter free. The best part about it is that the open top of the tote allows her to access the smaller zipper totes and she can just take what she needs and go! June can’t afford to spend time digging around looking for things as she exemplifies a Proverbs 31 woman. She is a single mom to an active teenager, she loves the Lord, works full time, and has her own business. I love how Thirty-One’s products help so many people save time and energy to make us women more effective and efficient in all we do! This is a Hostess Exclusive item, so let me know if you would like to earn your XXL Utility Tote.
Thirty-One Blessings to You!
Kelly
I have to admit, I feel so blessed to be a part of such a humble and uplifting organization that strives for excellence and does not compromise but continues to bless all who come in contact with them. I’m so amazed at how Thirty-One Gifts and their Representatives have not only boosted local economy but I’m sure spread joy and love wherever they went, which is really what its all about! Please enjoy the video and article below from THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH and to hear how Thirty-One Gifts is impacting Columbus, Ohio and the rest of the country!
Direct-sales accessories company growing to biblical highs
About the 
company
THIRTY-ONE
Headquarters: 231 Commerce Blvd., Johnstown, Ohio
Employees: 1,500 employees and an independent sales force of nearly 40,000
Sales: Not available; company is private
What the name means: A reference to Proverbs 31 in the Bible, in praise of a good woman Sources: Dispatch research, company information
Thirty-One employees toss beach balls emblazoned with the Johnstown, Ohio-based company’s logo at its convention in Nationwide Arena.
Cindy Monroe might look like a business executive, but when she strode onto the stage at Nationwide Arena recently for her company’s national conference, she probably felt like a rock star.
The founder of fast-growing direct-sales business Thirty-One was greeted by more than 7,000 women who screamed as if Monroe were the second coming of Elvis.
Such a reception, Monroe believes, is only the beginning.
Next year, Monroe said, her central Ohio-based direct-sales company will hold its ninth annual national conference in Atlanta, where “we expect 25,000 to 30,000. Columbus doesn’t have enough hotels to support that. We want to keep the ladies together. It’s powerful to build that community and connect.”
So what has happened to Monroe and her company, whose independent sales representatives sell purses, totes and other accessories via the home-party plan, in just a few years?
Growth.
In 2003, Monroe and her husband, Scott, borrowed $10,000 to start their company and set up shop in the basement of the family’s home in Chattanooga, Tenn.
Monroe wasn’t a complete neophyte: She had worked for a direct-sales company after getting a marketing degree, and she did well. “I did have experience as a consultant, and I did win trips, and I did go to conferences.”
During one trip, she was at an Atlanta gift market, “seeing products I had never seen.” When she realized that the shops selling those products all closed at 6 p.m., something clicked.
As a working mother of two children, she didn’t have time to hit those exclusive boutiques during regular business hours.
Creating a direct-sales company that offered the same kind of fashionable accessories at home parties “seemed a natural fit, a way to get more products into more people’s hands,” she said.
The couple literally and figuratively did the heavy lifting to get their company off the ground.
“Scott laid out the catalog, and we packed the orders ourselves. My husband and I would monogram. The kids would sleep on air mattresses when we had to work all night during peak season.”& amp; amp; amp; lt; /p>
The company offers mostly purses, totes, backpacks and the like, with stationery and other accessories and decor items offered as well. Monograms are a popular feature. Prices listed in the catalog range from just a few dollars for stationery items to more than $100 for bigger, more elaborate totes. Most are somewhere in between.
Several versions of tote bags are the big sellers, including one called the Cindy, named after the founder.
The growth in the company has been staggering. From the basement launch in 2003 with two employees, the company grew to almost 700 independent sales consultants by 2007. Today, the company has more than 1,500 employees and an independent sales force of nearly 40,000.
Privately held, the company does not report annual sales. However, the growth has been big enough to warrant two Ohio facilities totaling more than 1 million square feet, with a third set to open in Springfield in mid-September.
The big growth in the sales force is fed chiefly by women looking for a way to earn cash without being away from the family.
For an initial $99 fee, a member of the home-based sales force receives a display kit featuring products such as monogrammed purses and tote bags. The sales agents earn commissions by hosting parties where guests buy the goods.
After hitting certain sales targets, sales agents can move up by enlisting others to sell merchandise. The sales agent then moves up to director, then senior director, executive director and finally to senior executive director.
Lori Benseler of New Albany, a senior executive director, had been “dabbling in other direct-sale businesses” when she heard about Thirty-One in fall 2006.
“I have a friend up in the Cleveland area who had shared a PDF version of the catalog with a whole group of people via email,” Benseler said. “Shortly before she sent it, I had decided I was done with direct sales forever.”
The Thirty-One catalog quickly changed her mind.
“I was a mom of a baby and preschooler,” Benseler said. “At the time, the products were really bright and appealed to the teacher/preschool mom group. And I thought, these are going to make fabulous gifts and are going to be great for my friends. I was excited to have something unique to offer.”
Sales agents such as Benseler not only make money but also find personal satisfaction in holding sales parties and enlisting other women for the company.
That is part of the appeal and strength of Thirty-One, as it has been with other direct-sales companies such as Avon, Amway and Longaberger, marketing author Roger Blackwell said.
Sales agents control their own hours and work at their own pace. Companies keep them motivated by holding big events, such as the Nationwide Arena convention, and by offering rewards — such as free vacations on cruise ships or at Disney World — for hitting sales goals.
“Part of the culture is to create true believers,” Blackwell said. “An important part of it is the culture. They can have a career and still be home when the children come home from school — and that’s a valid point.”
Another part of the culture is “biblical authority,” Blackwell said, and the very name of Thirty-One comes from the Bible. The company’s official materials say that Proverbs 31 “celebrates hard-working women who are compassionate, gracious and inspiring to their families and the people around them.”
Included in the biblical passage is this statement: “Give her the fruit of her hands and let her own works praise her in the gates.” The importance of biblical authority is important to Benseler, who said, “God is the focus of this company, and I have to think that’s the main reason for its success.”
Even so, Monroe said, “We don’t push our faith through the product; we don’t have preaching at our conference.”
The company might need some help from a higher power if it hopes to continue growing at its current exponential rate, Blackwell noted.
That’s because direct-sales businesses are structured in a way that compensates the sales force for not only the sales they personally generate but also the sales of others they recruit.
“The new customers come like picking low-hanging fruit on a tree,” Blackwell said. “It gets more difficult as the tree gets bigger to find more people who haven’t already bought the product.
“A few months or a few years later, it’s not so easy. As a consequence, more mature companies like Amway get most of their sales in other countries.”
Avon Products Inc., another well-known direct-sales company, “is doing very well in China,” he said.
Amy Hart, a senior executive director for Thirty-One who lives in Powell, said the structure hasn’t been a problem for her.
“I always tell people, you can’t really look at the total number of consultants. I was just talking to my husband about that. I probably have 12 members within a 5-mile radius, but I rarely run into competition.”
To gear up for the future, Monroe moved Thirty-One to Columbus from Chattanooga in 2008.
“We were looking for talent because the business was growing really fast,” she said. “With all the retail here, there was tons of talent, including some people who had been let go at Longaberger. We know people are our No. 1 asset, so we moved here just for the talent pool in Columbus.”
And the screaming hordes at Nationwide Arena were fun, too, Monroe admitted.
“I think, basically, we’re on a ride,” Monroe said. “What I saw was definitely not the end. I’m all the time looking at what’s next. I guess that’s my personality.
“It was a little surreal,” she said of the conference. “I got super excited. It was like, ‘Oh, my gosh, I can’t imagine what next year is going to be like.’ ”
tferan@dispatch.com
So I finished really strong on my end of first month! I had three parties during the month of August, which I was hoping for more, but the Lord really blessed those three to bring me up to $1461 in personal volume. This month was truly exciting in growing in the company and learning all it has to offer! I took full advantage of the Celebrate and Connect opportunities, listening to conference calls, grew some contacts at Girls Night Out in Applebee’s in Middleburg Heights, took advantage of the 15% off customer offer to grow my personal display inventory, and finished top among my sponsor’s new team!
I earned my Start Swell kit days earlier than my dead line! I have a two more parties to close by the end of the first half of the month as well. I totally see how the Lord is being faithful in His promise to provide for my efforts. Again, all I have to do is step out of the boat, trust Him, and be obedient. He ALWAYS takes care of the rest!
Thirty-One Blessings to You!
Kelly
I think not! I had two weddings in the summer and two coming up in the next two months. I think it is becoming more popular to have weddings in the fall with all the beautiful color changes. What does that have to do with Thirty-One Gifts you might ask… SO MUCH! I was recently discussing with a good friend, while planning her party, about how she wanted to purchase a Picnic Thermal Tote and have it embroidered for the new couple, include a bottle or two of wine with an ice pack and possibly a cheese board. I received for my wedding TWO backpack wine holders, and can you guess how many times me and the hubby used them? You guessed it, NONE. Whereas this is great for anywhere…long car rides, ball games, hiking, tale-gating, day trips, picnics, the beach, the pool, you name it!
How does the price compare with other gifts, I’m sure is your next question… Well, I usually give or spend $50-100 depending on the couple, how close I am, etc. The Picnic Thermal Tote is regularly priced at $35, wine about $10-20 a bottle, a picnic cheese board between $5-15, and cooler pack $5. This brings us to a $55-$75 as a grand total!
Another suggestion that I might give you, is if there are kids involved in the wedding, why not give them family Zoo Pass to the local zoo or a museum pass instead of all the added things to put in the cooler a so that way the kids feel involved? These also make great Christmas gifts for friends and family as well!
Thirty-One Blessings to You!
Kelly
I have to admit, I was super nervous about my first party, and I’m sure I will be for many more! Having only one person present 30 minutes after the party was scheduled to start didn’t help either. I did however, have three orders placed already and met my $200 minimum party requirement. An hour later, two more ladies showed up and I felt a little more relieved! I want to tell you when this happens, DO NOT GET DISCOURAGED!!! It was an amazing blessing to have such an intimate gathering, and here are the top three reasons why:
1. Superb one on one time. This allows you the ability to suggest more products to make their lives more functional in a casual environment by earning your clients trust through sharing experiences. Whereas with larger parties, you could feel more rushed and overwhelmed, especially as a newer consultant.
2. You are able to assess which products best suit your clients. This gives you the opportunity to discuss the functionality of products, answer questions, and relate to your clients.
3. It is so much easier to share how Thirty-One works in your life, the goals you have set, and how Thirty-One is the vehicle to achieve those goals. Why you love Thirty-One Gifts so much and the history about the company so that they fall in love with it as well!
So how did all of this pay off? I ended the night with my three ladies from the party and three outside orders a little over $600 and one booking. Over night I had 2 other people order, and I then got one more order the next day. These additional 3 orders brought my party up to $800. I then purchased the Picnic Thermal Totes as gifts for the three people that booked parties within my first 45 days. This brought me a little over $900 in “actual” sales!!!!
What does that mean? That means I received $150 in free product, two hostess exclusive products with free embroidery, two half priced items, and one hostess special! I will also receive 1 half price item at each of the three parties I have coming up! On top of all that, I will be paid 25% of the “actual” sales! I’m also halfway to receiving my free Start Swell add on kit that is valued well over $300!
If there is one thing I have learned through this experience, NEVER LOOSE HOPE and DON’T UNDERESTIMATE potential! When God brings something into your life, all you have to do is get out of the boat and walk by faith, not sight. But most importantly, ALWAYS be thankful for how He has blessed you regardless of the outcome. I know that every party won’t be this successful, but there is ALWAYS SOMETHING to be thankful for!
Thirty-One Blessings to You!
Kelly
If you are like me, you dread grocery shopping… especially with a little one! Well today is a day that I am going to go battle the masses while attempting to save our family a few dollars by shopping at the usual three places to get the best bang for our buck. The bad part, its down pouring; the good part is that with my Thirty-One Gifts Market Thermal Tote, I don’t have to back track to our house or worry about how long I take and if things are going to spoil! I love that I have the freedom to get it all done without multiple trips or it take multiple days to grocery shop!
Because two out of the three stores, don’t supply shopping bags, my Large Utility totes, Expand-A-Tote Day Extender, and Storage Tote really come in handy! When I pack my bags, I do it in order of where I need to put the items. If things go in the basement pantry, I pack them in one bag; if they go in the refrigerator, they go in another bag; and if the go in shelves in the kitchen, another bag. The Storage Tote is perfect for canned goods because it has a reinforced bottom and holds just enough so that it isn’t too heavy to carry. The best part is I can keep all the bags in the car at all times because the Large Utility Totes and Storage Tote collapse, and I can fit the Expand-A-Tote Day Extender inside of the Market Thermal so they take up minimal room in the car! It’s great for spur of the moment unplanned grocery shopping!
I love that I can do my part in saving the environment by not wasting plastic bags, that they look cute instead of the boring shopping bags you can buy from the stores, and most importantly, they save me a ton of time unpacking so that I can focus on my real priority, my one year old son!
At the end of the day, I feel like a virtuous women because I saved money in my shopping, I saved money in gas with unnecessary trips, I spent quality time with my son, and I still have energy to give to the rest of my family!!!
Thirty-One Blessings to You!
Kelly
I just got my starter kit and I was like a little kid at Christmas with the Hot Pink Box in my living room. I couldn’t wait to tear into it! I have to say I am unbelievably overwhelmed about the amount of product, tools, and information you get for only $100. I think it is by far the best $100 I have ever spent! I will go over in detail all of the product that was in there in my next few posts. But, this picture is a little teaser for you!
