FOREVER LIVING PRODUCTS INDIA, SHARING NATURE’S BEST SOURCES FOR HEALTH AND BEAUTY
Long before the trend of buying organic products came into existence; Forever Living Products (FLP) was incepted in 1978 by Rex Maughan when the visionary unveiled a revolutionary plan. It was a plan to offer consumable products that are proven to promote lasting wellness and health. Today, Forever is a multi-billion dollar company that manufactures and distributes hundreds of wellness and beauty care products in over 158 countries across the world.
In the past four decades, the network marketing company has offered millions of people who are interested in raising their lifestyle standards with the business opportunities and helped them in making a difference in their lifestyle in both financial and well-being terms.
Forever was founded on the principle of helping others look better and feel better. FLP India team has been personifying the core purposes of the brand in the two ways, by offering a powerful range of health and beauty products and by offering a fair and generous business opportunity. With their “plant to product to you” approach, they have been offering a robust and world-class range of high-quality products to their consumers manufactured internationally and are fully compliant under all Indian regulations.
They are one of the largest vertically integrated Aloe Vera companies, growing, manufacturing, and distributing the best quality Aloe vera products in the world. In India, this leading brand is supervised by an accomplished businesswoman, a wife, mother, daughter and daughter in law, Nikita Naterwalla, the Director and Chief Operating Officer at Forever Living Products India.
ABOUT THE COO’S JOURNEY
Describing a leader like Nikita Naterwalla as someone with the unstoppable spirit is only fair as she has grown from a 15 years old young girl who started a small business in handmade paper greetings, hand-painted cards, and stationery with a small staff of 2-3 employees to a dynamic businesswoman today. Through a journey full of various business enterprises which were executed and opportunities which were exploited, twenty years ago, Nikita started her new endeavour with Forever Living Products as an Operations Manager.
Striking a perfect balance between her work and personal life as she continues to play different roles in her life. From running her house with flair, paying attention to the details, to being a leader with an open door policy, transparency in operations, Nikita has successfully steered, operated and managed all the facets of the operations, legal, compliance and finance of the company for over 18 years.
When she joined the company was not even 6 months into operations, working out of a small 1000 sq ft office. From inception, She has been involved in various efforts including streamlining the operational processes, hiring new employees, grooming the team, setting up the imports and logistics departments, adding sales outlets across India, organizing events, creating informational guidelines for the company distributors and creating marketing material on their products and plan, Nikita has grown with FLP India as with the legal and compliance department and the finance department being added into her accountabilities, FLP India has now crossed the 500 crore turnover mark.
THE CLIENTELE
Being a network marketing company, the FLP India team deals with people from all walks of life, providing them with a successful business opportunity and offering them world-class, unique products made available only through their networking channels. What makes it unique from other contemporaries is offering the highest pay-outs in the direct selling industry. The Forever business owners are devoted to the company and loyal to the management as the brand conforms to all the laws, gracefully adapts with the changes of time and ensures transparency of information.
THE FLP TEAM
Spearheading the brand in the position of COO, Nikita is both a teacher and a student, as well as a mentor and a protégé. The expressive, family-oriented, relationship-focused, and interested in helping others leader has constant endeavour to be able to look squarely in the eye those that trust depends on her which drives her decisions and actions. She takes the trust and vulnerability of her team seriously as she has a team of 8 department heads with some who have partnered her in the 15 years of career, the experts in their fields report directly to her.
“The transparency and synergy during their weekly brainstorming sessions leave me with a sense of pride. Keeping the environment transparent, providing a macro as well as a micro vision goal and ensuring that there is seamless communication between the departments, hones the multitasking abilities and gets our employees to make quicker decisions. For the new employees, well, we strive to make it a place they want to work at, and have the same passion and vision of helping change the lives of millions.” proudly shared Nikita
CHALLENGES AND PILLARS OF STRENGTH
Nikita has overcome various personal and professional life challenges as her career grew from the pivot. As responsibilities grew, so did her constant battle with time. Professionally, the challenges were selling a relatively new concept of network marketing back in the early 2000s, building trust in the market then, and being taken seriously by male-dominant industry has always posed as an additional challenge. Nikita knew that she was there to stay and she did! She had conviction in the company, products, the opportunity FLP was offering and the faith and trust of so many people which helped enormously in making all challenges seem obscure.
In her journey, the supporting pillars for Nikita have been her family including her supportive and understanding husband, her parents and daughter who have been encouraging her endeavours despite the limited time. Nikita puts a massive premium on her team, all the leaders in the team and their synergistic approach in resolving challenges. Last but not the least, she credits her mentor, Navaz Ghaswala, who has been one of the most supportive and a huge guiding factor with all the decisions taken by her personally and professionally.
JOURNEY SO FAR
A journey of self-discovery, personal growth, and professional growth, the period since Nikita started her career has been a learning experience for her and shaped and defined who she is today. The entrepreneur in her has never allowed the old-style work beliefs where traditionally specific roles influence and defines her resolve. In an emerging society with strong and influential women breaking the stereotypes, like many young leaders, the hardest struggle for Nikita was to be taken seriously when she initiated.
“I remember a time early on in my career when I had to stand up on a stool to be heard in a room full of extremely opinionated men. I knew what I was doing and I was very good at it. And that kept me on course. Today, I have so much more learning, growth, and discovery ahead of me, in all aspects of my life. And I will eagerly embrace all the upcoming experiences.” shared Nikita
ACING IN DIFFERENT ROLES
Being a working mother, wife, daughter, daughter in law, sister, running her home and holding a position of responsibility in the company, means that one has to juggle all roles delicately, decisively and impartially, while giving attention to each role with equal importance. In this stressful routine, Nikita has found her way to make a perfect balance between her roles. As a decision-maker, she performs due diligence on a decision in any area, the goals for the outcome, the purpose of the decision and the overall good it will do, to her help fight ‘later’ demons of regret.
IMPARTING WISDOM
All good businesses should make money, but money should not be the only thing all good businesses should make, keeping the same in mind, Nikita believes that women have an edge with their value of empathy while making business decisions. With empathy, persistence, the ability to gain someone’s trust without not breaking it, and not allowing the dictates of society tell a woman what they can or cannot do being a woman, every woman can lead her way to success.
“Stay true to your core value system! Give yourself the gift of imperfection and self-acceptance. Embrace the journey knowing that you can and will succeed. In business one of the most important aspects is to embrace change because, at any given time, you will need to shift strategies due to circumstances beyond your control.” Nikita shared the wisdom she gained from her career.
