Melaleuca enjoying its best year ever with record growth

IDAHO FALLS — With a state-of-the-art building, record growth, new products and jobs, Melaleuca Inc. is enjoying its best year ever, and the CEO of one of Idaho’s largest companies says it will only get better.

“It seems like Melaleuca is being discovered all over the world,” Frank VanderSloot, 68, recently said in an interview with EastIdahoNews.com. “It’s exciting, and I don’t have any intention of slowing down. In fact, I’ve got as much energy as I’ve ever had.”

VanderSloot may need that energy as Melaleuca continues to boom.

The Idaho Falls-based company experienced a record-setting 2015 with annual sales revenues exceeding $1.3 billion. In addition, more than 1.2 million households across 18 countries buy Melaleuca products every month.

“I think more and more people are discovering our products,” VanderSloot said. “They want products that work, they want products that make them feel better and they want products that make them healthier.”

Health and wellness are key aspects of Melaleuca’s business, and customers around the world are taking note.

Earlier this year, a record number of customers attended the annual Melaleuca convention in China. During the convention, VanderSloot walked into a Meleleuca store and was surprised to see a mob of people hoping to meet him.

“We thought we could get into the store without anyone knowing who we were, and we found out that wasn’t the case,” VanderSloot said with a laugh.

His encounter with enthusiastic customers in China is a stark contrast to 30 years ago. when Melaleuca was a new business with just a handful of employees working in a small Idaho Falls building.

“I never imagined that Melelauca would be all of this,” VanderSloot said. “I want to pay tribute to Roger Ball, who originally started another company called Oil of Melaleuca. He invited me to come on board with him and Roger was a visionary. Because of his vision, I feel like I was able to build on it.”

VanderSloot said early on, he knew Melaleuca would be a success, but he had no idea it would become one of Idaho’s largest businesses. He credits hard work, his family and his employees who have supported him for the past three decades.

To thank his workers, VanderSloot surprised every employee with an unexpected bonus check in July.

“I’ve got a lot of good people, and they have worked hard,” VanderSloot said. “I’m really fortunate, and I have a really good team, and a lot of good things have happened to me and my team because of those things.”