The History of Direct Selling Part II

In case you missed it: History of Direct Selling Part I

The History of Direct Selling via the DSA:

In Greece, the caravan trade that connected the Greek world with Asia, prospered. Everyday articles, domestic tools, metal kitchenware and ordinary clothes were exchanged. Markets, in their fundamental stages, were meeting places for customers and direct sellers. Frequently, the direct seller used the market as one of his stopping points before continuing his village-to-village journey.

Anatolia, which is presently Turkey, was an area in which direct sellers, traveling by donkey, sold cloth to people he encountered along the way. The purchase price was generally higher than at trading centers because of the length of the haul and the hazards of the expedition.

The early direct seller seized all opportunities to trade his goods when traveling. Fairs connected with religious feasts brought him to the armies stationed in the fields. Swarms of salesmen procured for the troops all the goods they needed.

The direct seller’s activities were influenced, certainly, by the cultures from which they emerged. As early as 2000 B.C., the Code of Hammurabi, a monument of Babylonian law, protected the general welfare and integrity of the Babylonian direct seller, who was then referred to as the “peddler.” The Code stated that “the peddler shall swear the oath of God” if any enemy caused him trouble in the travels. It also said that the merchant who sells the goods must be aptly compensated. Trade by land, though hindered by poor roads, continued to grow after the birth of Christ.