MLMs and Moms

MLMs and Moms

This article relates to Mothers and Other Strangers

In the novel Mothers and Other Strangers, Sydney, an expectant mother without a successful career, is involved with a multi-level marketing company. She's recruited by her own mother, who found her way to the company while seeking meaning and community. The book's portrayal of how these companies work—and who they target—is in many ways true to real life.

Multi-level marketing firms (or MLMs) operate in the direct sales space. Sellers peddle leggings, makeup, diet pills, and other goods directly to buyers, often people in their own social networks. But there's another element to these companies. Recruitment is heavily incentivized, and often more profitable than selling the products themselves. Sellers generally get a percentage of sales made by those in their "downlines" and can get bonuses for reaching new "levels" in the company by having a certain number of recruits working under them.

MLMs bear many similarities to illegal pyramid schemes, but they are legal in the U.S. because a physical product is involved, rather than participants solely earning money by recruitment. Just because they're legal, however, doesn't mean they're profitable for their participants. With recurrent expenses like trainings and inventory and markets that are often saturated, it's no wonder the Consumer Awareness Institute found less than 1% of MLM sellers actually make a profit. The financial losses can sometimes be catastrophic as "uplines" urge their teams to spend more money. As the general public has grown more aware of their predatory practices, MLMs have gained a negative connotation, so many recruiters have rebranded their industry with euphemisms like "influencer marketing" or "direct selling."

The Direct Selling Association, an industry group made up of MLMs, estimated that 74% of their sellers are women. That's no coincidence. MLMs heavily target women, and especially moms. The picture they paint for mothers is an appealing one: imagine working on your own schedule, as little or as much as you want, and contributing to your household finances without sacrificing any time with your kids. This vision is especially appealing to financially struggling women who want to bring in money but can't afford childcare; even moms who work full time, however, might be attracted by the idea of achieving even more professional success. The advocacy organization Moms First says: "These MLMs know how to weaponize empowerment language against you. They know how to prey on our pride and aspirations of being one of the 'supermoms' who can have it all."

MLMs also prey on women who are lonely and seeking community. Higher-ups may love-bomb recruits, calling their teams "family" or "sisters," while pricey MLM conferences and trainings give women a chance to make new friends. They may be added to WhatsApp or Facebook groups with weekly, or even daily, motivational video calls. A former MLM seller named Lori told The Cut that during the lockdown phase of the COVID-19 pandemic, "people were buying not because they had the money to buy, but because they needed the connection with people."

But MLMs can also insidiously work to break down existing connections if they stand in the way of participation in the company. A woman named Jess told Cosmopolitan that her partner was skeptical of her joining an MLM. Recruiters told her he was unsupportive and wanted her to fail. Women are also pressured to recruit their own friends and family members into the company, which may strain these relationships if they resist, or if they join and experience financial losses.

Stopping MLMs from preying on vulnerable women means spreading awareness—but it can't stop there. Moms First says that making these groups less appealing requires systemic changes, like paid maternity leave and subsidized daycare. Only with strong societal support can mothers actually "have it all."

Photo courtesy of LinkedIn Sales Solutions

Filed under Society and Politics

This article relates to Mothers and Other Strangers. It first ran in the May 6, 2026 issue of BookBrowse Recommends.