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My
Years as a Party Plan Rep!
by Peggy Ross
I
went to my 1st party plan party in the
late 60’s as a teenager (
about age 14, I think) with my mom and sister at
her soon to be mother in-laws house. It was for
jewelry and there was a tank we could pick a claim
or oyster shells from and the lady would open to see
the pearl inside. We could then buy it and she,
along with her husband had different settings we
could have it put into to choose from. But once I
found out they had puppies on the back porch the fun
of the shells in the tank was gone and so I was I,
off to the back porch!
My next party plan was a couple of years later
at my best friend’s sister home. She also happened
to be married to my brother so Pam, my best friend
and I were there front and center. Now you know
that’s where the chips and dip is right! It was a
fun party and we got to try things on and my mom
bought Pam and I each a light green baby doll with
matching bloomers. We were groovy to say the least
and as I sit here telling this I know I still have
that baby doll in my dresser drawer upstairs.
Then
around Thanksgiving 1976 while living in San Diego
in an apartment with other navy families I was
invited to a Christmas party. Wasn’t to sure about
it but went, I was pregnant and had my then 2 yr old
with me. I bought our 1st real Christmas
things that night. I bought a set of 2 Santa’s
that were also banks for my daughter and then next
year for my baby who would be here. Now in 2005 I
still have those Santa’s and put them out each
year and they are 2 of my favorite Christmas
decorations even today!
Over
the years I would, like so many of us did and still
do, go to different party plan parties. I like them
all and buy from most, but I have to say I fell in
love with House Of Lloyd’s Christmas Around The
World Party Plan as did many of my friends! Over the
next 11 years, from about 86 to‘97 I went to a
party every year. As the years went by so did the
amount of parties I was going to each year. We
figured out the 2 or 3 party booking gifts were
great so we booked off each other. I ended up in
1997 going to 9 parties and had 2 of my own making
it 11 parties that year. And yeppers I bought
something at 9 and got free, free, free stuff at my
2 parties. My circle of friends had some great gifts
that year from doing it. My 1 friend ended up with 2
rocking chairs for her grandkids from the booking
gifts!
Then
came 1998! We were in a car accident that year in
late March and with a hubby now on disability and
having 5 back surgeries I knew I no longer had the
money to go to the now 12 parties a season of 3
months, the money just wasn’t there as it was pre-
accident when he was working full time.
But
have no fear as it was not over for me yet!
But only
a new beginning that would be fun and gratifying to
say the least!
I
decided since after 12 years of going to the parties
as a guest or hostess that the next step was
becoming a consultant and be at all the parties and
make money doing it. I knew how the Hostess program
worked by then so I took the leap! Little did I know
I would over the next few years grow a bigger and
bigger Hostess base and the 2nd year I
made manager and had a down line.
I
knew how it felt to be a guest and how some
consultants would “try” to pressure the
Hostesses friends to book a party and I knew the
Hostess program well.
I
learned that for me and my family I could only do 2
parties a week, especially with a son in school and
evening parties often meant getting home after 10
pm. So I then decided to try the pizza party thing
and do 1st 2 then 3 Hostesses in 1
evening. I loved it and so did they!
My
goal was to earn enough money for a cash Christmas,
as we had always done it that way, around 1,000 to
1,200 per year And I did it my 1st year.
After that I would work from September to the week
after Thanksgiving every year doing enough
parties that I was making more and not only
paying cash for Christmas but also paying the car
insurance for the year! And a weekend away trip
during the summer too!
House Of Lloyd had a program
that for every $1,000 in regular priced sales the
reps got $100 worth of FMC - Free Merchandise
Credit. I still have an extra room which was to be
my office full of boxes of merchandise! Gifts for
years to come, but sadly they closed their doors a
couple of years after Mr. Lloyd passed away and the
new owners ended up closing it under sad conditions.
So
in my 5 plus years as a party plan rep and manager I
learned so much and made some
great
new friends!
I
learned from being a guest how to duck if the
pressure came for bookings, and as a
Hostess,
how to work to get sales, and as a rep it helped my
hostess coaching. I never at any party made the
guests feel that pressure. I loved games and found
that doing them at least for me meant more bookings
and bigger sales at parties.
Plus
I learned the regular monthly district meetings were
fun and the bi-annual national meetings which could
be a few states worth of people were a blast! I took
my husband and we would make a weekend of it. Once
we took our son and went to Mid Evil Times
restaurant in Orange Co. CA.
Being
a party plan rep can be a great experience and
income!
I
never got ribbons and awards from any regular job I
had worked and never given free merchandise. One year
everyone who hit a certain sales got a pretty black
watch and when we hit a certain amount we could take
a free training trip.
If
you like or love a certain party plan and your niche
is to be a rep/ consultant with them then go for it!
I loved my years as a rep- manager and it was my
niche at the time.
I
had a pin that said “When I worked it’s a
party!” And
it was!
I
never did find another company I liked
as much as that one and it was then I started
my websites promoting work at home moms especially
Party Plan Reps!
Peggy
Ross © 2005
Peggy lives is Southern CA, is married to her
husband Phil and a work at home mom of
3
and Mema to 1 grandson and has websites that promote
the work at home person.
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