Re:
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Your Letter Dated November 25, 2008 (the Supplemental Comment Letter) Regarding Herbalife
Ltd. (File No. 001-32381)s Form 10-K for the Fiscal Year Ended December 31, 2007 (2007 Form 10-K) and Response Letter dated November 6, 2008 |
1. | Management Discussion and Analysis, page 48 Results of Operations, page 53 |
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We read your response to our previous comment one stating that the primary driver of sales increases is the increased sales volume driven by the addition of new sales leaders and the retention of existing sales leaders. We note that you have some disclosure of volume points; however, your disclosure does not clearly discuss the increased volumes. Please clarify how the volume points explain your changes in net sales and quantify the increased volumes sold by the addition of new sales leaders and retention of existing sales leaders. | ||
Response: | ||
The Company notes the Staffs comment, and in response thereto, the Company notes that volume points are the Companys unit measure of product sales volume. The Company operates in a number of countries (65 countries as of December 31, 2007), each of which may have a different price point for the same product due to differing local economies. Additionally, foreign currencies fluctuate differently against the US dollar and other currencies thereby creating additional price distinctions for the same product in different countries. Because our distributor marketing plan is essentially a worldwide plan, we need to have a standard metric that measures a sales leaders achievement and growth within our marketing plan on a uniform basis across all the countries. To address this issue, the Company created the volume point measure. Volume points are the foundation of a distributors ascension within the Companys marketing plan. | ||
Each of our products is assigned a volume point value which is the same in each of the countries in which our distributors operate, thereby giving a consistent point of measure for sales volume independent of the effects of foreign currency fluctuations or the retail price points specific to each country, both of which impact overall net sales. As a result, the volume point measure, in the aggregate and for each region, is an indicator of sales volume trends and therefore management believes that volume points are the most accurate measure of sales volume, and ultimately, net sales. We discuss the foregoing concepts on pages 48 and 49 of the 2007 Form 10K under the heading Volume Points by Geographical Region. | ||
Changes in volume points can be driven by either an increase in total number of sales leaders or through a change in productivity of existing sales leaders. As discussed on Page 50 of the 2007 Form 10K, the average monthly purchases by each of the Companys sales leaders has remained relatively constant over time. Therefore, a change in volume points will generally indicate a roughly corresponding change in the total number of sales leaders (both retained and newly recruited combined) and vice-versa. |
By:
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/s/ Richard P. Goudis | |||
Chief Financial Officer | ||||
Herbalife Ltd. |