| Southwestern Company |
 |
| Type |
Private |
| Founded |
1855 |
| Founder |
Rev. J.R. Graves |
| Headquarters |
Nashville, TN, USA |
| Key people |
Dan Moore, President
Henry Bedford, SW-GA CEO
Spencer Hayes, Chairman of The Board |
| Industry |
Direct Sales |
| Slogan |
Building Character in Young People Since 1868 |
| Website |
www.southwestern.com |
Southwestern Company recruits college students to sell educational reference books and children's books
door-to-door. Students participating in the Southwestern program are independent contractors, not employees of the company, purchasing books at wholesale from the
company and selling them direct to private families at retail.
Student dealers typically live with a private host family in their sales area, sharing the cost of accommodations with two or
three other dealers. The "most successful" students, as defined by the company, work 72 or more hours per week throughout the
summer. According to the company, in 2006 the average first-time sales program participant made $7944 over a three-month
summer.
History
Southwestern is located in Nashville, TN. Originally named Southwestern because back in 1855, when the company started,
Nashville was in the Southwestern part of the US. The company was established in 1855 by Rev. J.R. Graves in Nashville,
TN.[1] In 1867, Graves moved the company to Memphis, TN. In
1868, after the Civil War had ended, Southwestern began its summer work program,[2] having university students market bibles directly to families. The head office returned to Nashville
in 1879. In 1969, Southwestern was sold to the Times-Mirror Company The Times-Mirror
Company was acquired by Tribune Company in 2000.[3]
In 1959, Spencer Hays, a young student at Texas Christian University, entered Southwestern's Summer Sales Program and would
come to play a pivotal role in its future. Hays would become President in 1973, passing on the reins to current President Jerry
Heffel in 1980. In 1982, Hays, Heffel and other Southwestern employees came together to purchase the company back from
Times-Mirror and formed Southwestern-Great American, Inc. Hays was named Executive Chairman of the Board, a position which he
continues to hold today, and Ralph Mosley was named Chairman and CEO.
In the 70s, Southwestern started to expand its operations, starting with Great American Opportunities (fundraising for
schools) in 1975 and then acquiring FRP, an award-winning cookbook publishing company, in 1978. In 1982, after gaining its
independence, SBR (International Headhunting) was formed, followed by Family Heritage (supplemental insurance) in 1989.
Since 1999, Southwestern-Great American has partnered with, acquired or establish 10 other companies around the world, for a
total of 16 companies within the corporate family. These companies' services range from non-profit fundraising to public speaking
to consulting to financial services to insurance and real estate. Since regaining independence in 1982, Southwestern-Great
American revenues have grown from $24 million to more than $280 million in wholesale sales.
In 2006, Ralph Mosley retired as CEO after nearly 25 years. He was succeeded by Henry Bedford.
In 2007, Jerry Heffel retired as President of the company. He was succeeded by Dan Moore.
Summer Work Program
Southwestern's summer work program, started in 1868, is the backbone of the Southwestern / Great American Corporation. In
1986, Southwestern ventured into the international market by opening up the Canadian division. Southwestern UK Ltd. was
established in 1994 in Bristol, England. Southwestern now works with approximately 3000 students from 400 campuses in 57
countries each year. Students who participate in the program represent colleges and universities from the United States, Canada,
Europe, South Africa, and South America.
Students participating in the Southwestern program are independent contractors, not employees, and as such run their own
businesses during the summer months. The money that they earn is solely determined by their sales revenue and their expenses
including the cost of goods sold. Southwestern Training School is provided, in Nashville or the UK, nominally free to student
dealers. However, the students are responsible for the cost of their transportation and accommodation (i.e. housing, food, etc.)
to and from training school.
Being independent contractors, the participants are not guaranteed any wages and are not given any health insurance. The
independent contractor model affords Southwestern two advantages. First Southwestern's financial risk is limited. Secondly, if
one of the students breaks the law or is put in danger while on the job, they are responsible for their own actions because
he/she is an independent contractor.
Typically, it is advertised that they should expect to work approximately 72 hours a week. Some students choose to work even
more than this. These numbers apply to time actually spent in the field and does not include time spent on bookkeeping, talking
to student managers or at sales meetings on Sunday.
Students entering the program may not be fully aware of the difficulties they would face, but attend a week long sales school
in an attempt to prepare them.
Some student salespeople are invited to return in subsequent years as student managers. Student managers recruit their own
teams during the school year and earn a percentage commission on the sales of their team.
Products
Southwestern markets family-orientated reference books and software. The lead products (The Volume Library and Student
Handbook) are educational reference books to help families with school work. Also in the product line are children's books (My
Fun With Words dictionary, Explore & Learn children's encyclopedia) and software (titles include Clifford Reading, Sponge Bob
Typing, math and science programs to help with different grade levels, College Prep including SAT and ACT practice). Customers
have an option of receiving annuals to go with their Volume Library or Student Handbooks, and also the option for a book every
other month.
Controversy
Controversy around the operations of the Southwestern company center around its recruiting practices and the financial risk to
students whose profits from sales do not substantially cover their expenses. During both the recruiting process and the actual
sales school, students are told that the position is an internship and there is potential for college credit. Because students
are independent contractors Southwestern expects students to fully finance their entire experience, even attendance to sales
school and weekly meetings. Foreign students in particular carry a major financial burden, as they must pay for their visas and
airfare themselves.
There has also been concern about the safety of participants- students find accommodation by knocking on doors and asking
around for rooms to stay in. There are no company procedures in place for vetting their prospective landlords or the safety of
the neighborhoods where they live much less any company recommendations from willing boarders. In the event the student is unable
to find accommodations, student managers in the organization that have worked previous summers come to help find a place for them
to stay.
It is uncommon for students to have run-ins with local law enforcement. Local permits are reviewed prior to the summer by the
company in order to legally sell products. Permit information is given to the student prior to working by research analysts.
Southwestern offers assistance in the event of permit issues. Students are encouraged to leave their mobile phones at home even
as they work in unfamiliar neighborhoods to focus on the task at hand, but it is not required.[4]
In the UK on the University of Durham's campus, the students' union had voted to ban Southwestern as a result of improper business actions.[5] According to a report from a Southwestern representative, this
ban had been lifted, but according to the referenced DSU Union Policy[6] it is still in force.[4]
The Guild of Students at the University of Birmingham passed a motion in May 2006 banning the company from its premises and
encouraging the University to do the same.[7]
Newspaper & Magazine Articles
Full Articles
Partial Articles (membership required for complete article)
WMTV News, April 2007
Affiliations
International Sites:
Southwestern is a member of
References
External links
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
