Melaleuca is the designer, manufacturer, and distributor of over 400 health and wellness products and is the largest online shopping club in North America. Melaleuca’s 400 household goods include personal care products, home cleaning products, vitamins and supplements, healthy snack foods, medicines and treatments, cosmetics, baby care products, and essential oils.

The company was founded in 1985 by Frank VanderSloot Idaho Falls, Idaho. Now, nearly 40 years later, Melaleuca Global Headquarters is still in Idaho Falls. The company also has a call center in Rexburg, Idaho, and distribution centers in Kansas City, Missouri, and Knoxville, Tennessee.

Since 2017, Melaleuca has generated more than $2 billion in annual revenue. The company sells and delivers its products directly to its customers. Designing and manufacturing innovative products is a top priority for Melaleuca. The Wellness Company adheres to what it calls its product philosophy, which guides the research and development of its entire portfolio of consumable goods. This product philosophy ensures that Melaleuca’s products are healthy, safe, affordable, effective, and eco-friendly.

Unlike many other consumer goods companies, Melaleuca both manufactures and distributes its household goods. Through vertical integration, Melaleuca aims to oversee as much of its product development as possible. The company’s safe, natural formulations are manufactured in the United States. This sets Melaleuca apart from many other companies and demonstrates that Melaleuca is an American company that supports American manufacturing.

The Melaleuca Foundation is the charitable arm of Melaleuca, Inc. Founded in 2001 to help the forgotten families of the September 11 terrorist attacks, the foundation has been hard at work helping victims of natural disasters, feeding the hungry, and supporting education. The foundation is also the sole financial supporter of an orphanage in Ecuador.

After Hurricane Ian, the foundation sent Melaleuca products, generators, and other relief supplies to the affected families via Melaleuca’s company jet. When wildfires virtually destroyed the town of Lahaina, Hawaii, Melaleuca quickly got to work distributing products and supplies to the displaced families and individuals. Through his own meat-processing company, Frank VanderSloot donated tens of thousands of pounds of beef, feeding the victims for two months.

And when Hurricane Otis surprised weather forecasters by growing from a Category 1 to a Category 5 storm in 24 hours, Melaleuca immediately donated thousands of Melaleuca products to victims in Acapulco, Mexico, through the Mexican Red Cross.

In June 2022, the Idaho Business Review published a list of the 50 most influential business leaders in Idaho. Melaleuca Executive Chairman Frank VanderSloot was recognized as one of these influential individuals. The newspaper stated, “Frank VanderSloot has a keen eye for business and has demonstrated his dynamic leadership skills during his time as Melaleuca’s founder.”

The Idaho Business Review attributed The Wellness Company’s tremendous success to Frank’s leadership qualities, and it highlighted Frank’s engagement with the local community. For five consecutive years, Melaleuca ranked on Inc. magazine’s 500 fastest-growing privately held companies in the United States. Frank’s leadership skills were instrumental in this success. Frank has also made vast contributions to civic matters and has served on the board of directors for the US Chamber of Commerce for years.

Frank was ranked as the fifth most influential Idahoan, right after US Representative Mike Simpson, and he was the highest-ranked private citizen on the list.

Regarding the award, Frank said, “Although I have long admired this organization, I never anticipated receiving this award. I am honored to be a part of this great organization and to be affiliated with the great men and women whose stories are much more impressive than my own. I'm also very impressed with the scholars and with their accomplishments. I look forward to doing my part.”

On April 9, 2015, US Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas presented Frank VanderSloot with the award in the nation’s capital. This prestigious honor recognized Frank as a “distinguished American” whose work has contributed to free enterprise and has inspired people to achieve the American Dream. Since 1947, more than 750 Americans have received this distinguished award.

Recipients of the Horatio Alger Award are American leaders who have overcome significant adversity to prosper in their prospective fields. They are dedicated to things like higher education and philanthropy and charity.

Past recipients of this award include Ronald Reagan, Dwight Eisenhower, Herbert Hoover, Tom Brokaw, and former NFL coach Tom Landry. The Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans is a nonprofit organization that supports education and encourages young Americans to gain higher education. The association has provided young people with over $110 million in need-based college scholarships.

Jay Larsen, CEO of the Idaho Technology Council explained, “Frank has directed [Melaleuca’s] growth into an international company that generates more than 2 billion in annual revenue. It’s also the largest e-commerce company in Idaho.” He also cited the fact that Frank was named entrepreneur of the year by Ernst and Young, CNN, and USA Today. He called Frank “a consummate innovator, a resilient leader, a champion of the community.”

Melaleuca doesn’t engage in traditional advertising. Instead, Melaleuca relies on customers to share the company and its products with others. Melaleuca calls these customers Marketing Executives.

Marketing Executives don’t sell or distribute Melaleuca products; instead, these individuals refer others to the company and help them set up their online shopping accounts. When those customers purchase products from Melaleuca, the Marketing Executives receive a percentage of those sales as a thank-you from Melaleuca.

This business model allows Melaleuca to take dollars that would normally be used for advertising and invest them in the products themselves. It also means that many Melaleuca customers know a lot about the products and the company. They are sharing Melaleuca with others because they love Melaleuca products and because they believe in the company’s mission to enhance lives.

Notably, about 80% of Melaleuca customers don’t refer anybody. They’re happy just being customers because they know the products are healthy, affordable, safe, and eco-friendly. Referring others to the company is not required of any customer.