COLUMBUS, Ohio, July 26 /PRNewswire/ — More than 10,000 independent Longaberger Home Consultants from across the country descended on Columbus, Ohio, this week as The Longaberger Company held the Longaberger Bee(R), its annual national sales conference.
The event began Thursday, July 26, and continues through Friday, August 3. Among those addressing the Home Consultants at Nationwide Arena were Tami Longaberger, chief executive officer, and Jim Gimeson, the company’s newly named president. A 15-year veteran of the company, Gimeson most recently served as its chief operating officer and executive vice president.
“Tens of thousands of people have realized their own American dream through a successful Longaberger business,” Longaberger said. “Each year, The Bee gives us the opportunity to come together in the spirit of American family tradition upon which my father founded this company nearly 35 years ago.”
The three-day event offers Home Consultants the opportunity to learn about new products, gain business-building skills, recognize and celebrate Home Consultants’ achievements in sales and sponsoring, and hear motivating presentations from company leaders and sales field peers.
It also marked the first time that Gimeson addressed Home Consultants in his role as president.
“This is an incredible honor and opportunity for me,” Gimeson said. “I’ve realized my American dream.”
New products featured at this year’s Bee include Longaberger’s holiday product line as well as the next generation of Longaberger To Go baskets — leather-trimmed personal accessory tote baskets and backpack baskets woven from a strong and flexible combination of traditional maple wood and soft nylon webbing in a variety of colors. The Longaberger To Go line of products has been particularly popular among younger customers.
This year’s Bee comes at a time of renewed energy among the company’s sales field. Longaberger recently introduced a program allowing individuals to join the company as Home Consultants for only $49, and has welcomed 3,000 new Consultants since launching the program in May.
The Bee, held annually in Columbus, is touted by many Consultants as “the biggest party of the year” and draws attendees from as far away as Hawaii and Alaska. States represented at this year’s Bee include Alaska, Ark., Ala., Ariz., Calif., Colo., Conn., Del., Fla., Ga., Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Ill., Ind., Kan., Ky., La., Mass., Md., Maine, Mich., Minn., Miss., Mo., N.C., N.D., Neb., N.H., N.J., N.M., N.Y., Nev., Ohio, Okla., Ore., Pa., R.I., S.C., S.D., Tenn., Texas, Utah, Va., Vt., Wash., Wis. and the District of Columbia.
Founded in 1973, The Longaberger Company (http://www.longaberger.com/) is America’s premier maker of handcrafted baskets and offers a variety of other home and lifestyle products, including pottery and other tableware, wrought iron, fabric accessories, jewelry, handbags and specialty foods. There are approximately 45,000 independent Home Consultants located in all U.S. states who sell Longaberger products directly to customers.
Website: http://www.longaberger.com/
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