Destinations may change, but exclusivity and inspiration remain powerful motivators, says Amway COO Asha Gupta.
Direct selling company Amway continues to lead the way in incentive travel with large-scale, high-impact trips that recognise and reward top-performing business owners (ABOs).
In 2024, around 10,000 Chinese ABOs gathered in Singapore for a leadership seminar, while Melbourne played host to 16,000 delegates from Amway China for its 30th Anniversary Leadership Seminar – the largest Amway incentive group ever to visit Australia. Later this year, Cairns will welcome 2,700 delegates from Korea, reinforcing Amway’s ongoing commitment to global, experience-driven recognition.
M&C Asia speaks with Asha Gupta, COO of Amway, to understand how the global direct selling giant’s incentive travel programme continues to evolve in scale, meaning, and impact.
The interview below has been edited for clarity.
How has Amway’s incentive travel strategy evolved in the last decade?
Incentive travel is an integral part of how we recognise and reward our Amway Business Owners (ABOs) globally. It’s remained very consistent in its spirit of giving really world-class experiences to our ABOs. We believe that the world is our oyster, and everyone should see the world and experience different cultures, and build themselves as part of personal development too.
When you see the world, you develop yourself as an individual. Some of these trips are open to families, and that gives the family an opportunity to travel. It's fortunate when people can travel, and we all know that everyone doesn't have that opportunity. Amway makes it an integral part of our offering to give that as a basis for our ABOs.
What continues to change and evolve is newer destinations, new experiences – it is becoming way more experiential. Destinations are important, but what is offered within the destinations are critically important.
We look to partner with agencies and tourism boards to provide unique experiences that can’t be found elsewhere. We continue to evolve on an annual, year-to-year basis, and every destination offers something unique. Going in with that expectation helps us build an itinerary and an agenda that makes it truly experiential.
Can you share how incentive travel contributes to ABO motivation and business performance?
Incentive travel is tightly woven into our value proposition that we offer to our ABOs. Alongside world-class products, training, and personal development opportunities, these trips are a powerful retention and motivation tool.
We see how incentive trips fuel passion and commitment. When ABOs know there are recurring, high-quality trips available, they stay engaged in the business longer. These trips also bring families along on the journey, which further strengthens support at home. Many ABOs tell us they never imagined their families could experience these destinations – now they’re doing it together, and that’s a powerful motivator.
With over 70% of our ABOs being women, the support from spouses and families becomes an even more critical factor in their success. We see it being a very positive influence on the families.
Which Asia markets have seen the most momentum recently?
Asia itself is a thriving business for us, and many of our businesses have been around for 30 to 50 years in the region. Our focus on health and wellbeing has only strengthened that momentum.
China is a standout, where the adoption of health and wellbeing became a necessity after Covid – that has been a tailwind for our business. Our China business greatly used that time to reset itself, supporting the healthcare agenda of the China government and educating people about health and wellbeing —eating well, sleeping better, staying active. And we do that through our ABO communities, who educate and guide consumers before selling any products.
People often succeed in their wellness journeys not alone, but within a community. Our China business is a great role model for many of our Asian countries to look at to build a health and wellbeing business through energising community.
What do you see incentive travel moving forward for Amway?
Amway incentive travel group sizes have historically been significant and continues to grow as Amway views reward and recognition an important part of the ABO experience. The choice of destination and format for each trip depends on a variety of factors but above all, each trip is aimed to inspire and motivate our ABOs to widen their horizons, grow the leader in them and believe in making the impossible possible, all of which will help them grow in their business and life as they serve their communities.