Direct Selling News Year in Review: Services Take the Lead as 2026 Consolidation Looms
Direct Selling News' annual review describes 2025 as a year of structural change for the network marketing and direct selling channel, with service-based businesses accounting for more than 60 percent of total U.S. channel volume. The outlet forecasts further consolidation in 2026, projecting that more than $1 billion worth of direct selling companies could change hands.
Services outpace products
The channel's centre of gravity shifted decisively in 2025, according to the annual round-up published by Direct Selling News. Service-based lines of business represented more than 60 percent of total volume in the U.S. direct selling channel, and over the past decade close to 70 percent of service-based companies recorded growth.
Product-based companies, by contrast, faced a tougher operating environment. The review points to slower category growth, intensifying competition from direct-to-consumer, marketplace and influencer-led brands, more price-sensitive consumers, and stricter regulatory scrutiny of product claims.
Within wellness, the longevity category — encompassing age management, hormone optimisation and peptide-based protocols — has drawn attention largely because of its market sizing: forecasts frequently cite figures above $70 billion.
Technology, social commerce and equity models
Ecommerce modernisation featured prominently in the year's assessment, with Shopify and BigCommerce singled out as platforms that have taken on a larger role in the channel. Both, however, were not purpose-built for the particularities of direct selling, such as replicated sites, commission structures and global payments.
Social commerce — short-form video, creator content, live streaming and in-app payment — is becoming increasingly central to how consumers discover and buy, a trend reinforced by AI-driven personalised recommendations.
Another structural development is the spread of equity participation, or ownership-stake compensation. The model appeared first in the real estate sector, then in financial services, and is now being examined by a number of product-based companies.
Consolidation and the 2026 outlook
Direct Selling News expects consolidation to accelerate, driven by narrowing margins, rising customer acquisition costs, investor pressure for predictable growth, and consumer expectations raised by Amazon and Walmart.
International expansion is identified as one of the strongest drivers of deal activity. An acquisition or merger can deliver faster access to licences, compliance systems and local leadership teams than building infrastructure market by market.
On that basis, the outlet projects that more than $1 billion worth of direct selling companies could change hands in 2026.
Demographics reshape the U.S. field
The review also highlights demographic shifts in the United States. The Latin American and Hispanic population has reached 64 million, representing 19 percent of the total population and 26 percent of children; by 2030 this group is expected to make up one-fifth of the workforce.
In the direct selling sector, 20 percent of the U.S. sales force identifies as Hispanic or Latin American. Digital adoption is high: 90 percent of U.S. Latin American and Hispanic entrepreneurs use digital channels to run their businesses, while Mexico ranks as the world's second fastest-growing ecommerce market.
Corporate footprints are moving accordingly. PM-International opened a new U.S. regional headquarters in Florida to serve rising demand in the region.
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