Andorra International Review: Pay to play supplements

Andorra International launched in late 2015 and operate in the nutritional supplement MLM niche. The company is based out of California in the US.

A page on the Andorra International website is titled “Message From the Chairman”, however it fails to identify who Andorra International’s Chairman is.

Rather the page is used to provide a generic marketing spiel for the company.

Despite the odd anonymous Chairman’s message, Andorra International do identify James Hu as their CEO.

It is unclear whether or not Hu (right) also serves as Chairman. And if not, whether the anonymous Chairman is higher up than Hu in Andorra International’s executive hierarchy.

As per Hu’s Andorra International executive bio;

Prior to Andorra, Mr. Hu was Senior Director of Legal Affairs for Focus Diagnostics (sold to Quest Diagnostics), Associate General Counsel and Business Development for Martek Biosciences Corp (sold to DSM), and Vice President of Corporate Development and General Counsel for OriGene Technologies.

From the sounds of it, Andorra International is Hu’s first MLM venture as an executive. There is a James Hu in Organo Gold however I don’t believe they are the same person.

Read on for a full review of the Andorra International MLM business opportunity.

The Andorra International Product Line

As mentioned previously, Andorra International operate in the nutritional supplement MLM niche.

On their website, Andorra International claim:

All of our products are made in the USA, at manufacturers who follow or exceed Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs) as set forth by the US Food and Drug Administration.

Each batch of product is tested before and after production to ensure its purity, quality and potency.

With safety and effectiveness as our top priorities, we guarantee what you find in the bottle matches precisely what is printed on the labels. Each and every bottle delivers the results you expect.

Products featured on the Andorra International website include:

• Resveratrol – “one of nature’s most powerful antioxidants”, retails at $41 for a bottle of 30 softgel capsules
• Nature C – “an essential nutrient for humans and certain other animal species”, no retail pricing provided
• Organic Vegan Protein’s Fusion – “a great-tasting, organic and plant-based high-protein drink mix”, retails at $75 for a 300g canister
• Circulation Plus – “addresses your three top cardiovascular factors all at the same time: blood pressure, cholesterol, and circulation”, retails at $58 for a bottle of 60 capsules
• Coq-Nol 100 – “an important vitamin-like substance required for the proper function of many organs and chemical reactions in the body”, retails at $58 for a bottle of 30 softgel capsules
• Caviar Omega – “the most potent Omega-3 phosphocholine and phospholipid product available on the market today”, retails at $129 for a bottle of 60 softgel capsules
• CholesteRight – “powerfully fights cholesterol”, retails at $49 for a bottle of 60 capsules
• Advanced Blood Sugar Control – “specially formulated to keep your blood sugar level in line”, no retail pricing provided
• OptiVision – an ” all natural eye care formula is designed to help maintain healthy vision and eyes”, retails at $41 for 60 capsules
• OPC Supreme – “contains 4 types natural’s most powerful antioxidants extract”, retails at $49 for 60 capsules
• Organic Reds Fusion – “a convenient, great-tasting way to get the important phytonutrients found in fruits”, retails at $82 for a 180g tub
• Collagen Calcium – a “proprietary collagen calcium blend”, retails at $39 for a bottle of 60 capsules
• Flexi Joint – “feel relief from joint pain in as few as 5 days”, retails at $43 for 60 capsules
• Men’s Complete – “formulated specifically for men and their vitamin needs”, retails at $49 for a bottle of 60 capsules
• Women’s Complete – “formulated specifically for women and their vitamin needs”, retails at $45.95 for a bottle of 60 capsules
• Advanced Lung Cleanse – “scientifically formulated and tested to shield your lung from air pollutants and smoking damages”, retails at $41 for a bottle of 60 capsules

The Andorra International Compensation Plan

The Andorra International compensation plan pays affiliates to sell Andorra International products to retail customers.

Residual commissions are paid out via unilevel and binary compensation structure, with additional performance-based bonuses also available.

Andorra International Affiliate Ranks

There are nine affiliate ranks in the Andorra International compensation plan.

Along with their respective qualification criteria, they are as follows:

• Affiliate – purchase at least $1400 worth of Andorra International products in a single order
• Senior Affiliate – purchase at least $2800 worth of Andorra International products in a single order or accumulate 1000 PV and generate at least 5000 PV worth of sales in a single month
• Ruby Director – earn between $300 and $999 in monthly binary commissions
• Emerald Director – earn between $1000 and $2499 in monthly binary commissions
• Diamond Director – earn between $2500 and $4999
• Blue Diamond Executive – earn between $5000 and $999 in monthly binary commissions and recruit at least 4 affiliates earning monthly binary commissions (three of which must be Emerald Director or higher)
• Black Diamond Executive – earn between $10,000 and $19,999 in monthly binary commissions and recruit at least 6 affiliates earning monthly binary commissions (three of which must be Diamond Director or higher)
• Crown Executive – earn between $20,000 and $29,999 in monthly binary commissions and recruit at least 8 affiliates earning monthly binary commissions (three of which must be Blue Diamond Executive or higher)
• Crown Ambassador Executive – earn over $30,000 in monthly binary commissions and recruit at least 12 affiliates earning monthly binary commissions (three of which must be Black Diamond Executive or higher)

PV stands for “product volume” and is a sales volume point-value assigned to each Andorra International product.

The Andorra International compensation plan states that 1 PV is equal to $1.40.

Retail Commissions

Andorra International affiliates are paid a retail commission on every retail product order.

Affiliates are paid a 15% retail commission, Senior Affiliate’s earn 20%.

Recruitment Commissions

Andorra International affiliates are paid to recruit new affiliates.

• recruitment of an Affiliate = $200 commission
• recruitment of a Senior Affiliate = $400 commission

Residual Commissions (unilevel)

Residual commissions in Andorra International are paid out down two levels of recruitment (unilevel).

Residual commissions are calculated as a percentage of sales volume generated by recruited affiliates, paid out down two levels of recruitment:

• level 1 (personally recruited affiliates) – 5%
• level 2 – 3%

Note that Affiliate ranked affiliates have monthly residual commission earnings capped at $600.

Residual Commissions (binary)

Referred to at the “Global Market Bonus”, Andorra International affiliates earn secondary residual commissions via a binary compensation structure.

A binary compensation structure places an affiliate at the top of a binary team, split into two sides (left and right):

The first level of the binary has two positions, with each subsequent level of the binary generated by splitting the previous level’s positions into another two positions each.

Positions in the binary are filled via affiliate recruitment, with a commission paid out as a percentage of the weaker side’s monthly sales volume.

How much of a percentage is paid out is determined by the total volume generated by the weaker binary side:

• less than 10,000 BV = 10%
• 10,000 to 199,999 BV = 15%
• 200,000 or more BV = 20%

BV stands for “Business Volume” and is PV generated by an affiliate’s recruited downline. It also has a value of 1 BV = $1.40.

Note that binary earnings are capped at $30,000 per binary position.

Crown Ambassador Executive ranked affiliates who maintain the Crown Ambassador Executive rank for two consecutive months, qualify for an additional binary position.

This position is placed on top of their existing binary position, effectively allowing them to double up on existing sales volume.

Matching Binary Commissions

Andorra International affiliates are paid a matching bonus on binary earnings of recruited affiliates.

To qualify for the matching bonus, an Andorra International affiliate must either

• recruit at least two affiliates and generate 4000 GV in sales volume  = annual qualification
• recruit at least four affiliates and generate 8000 GV in sales volume = one-time permanent qualification

How many levels of matching bonus they can earn on is determined by their Andorra International affiliate rank:

• Ruby Director – 10% on level 1 (personally recruited affiliates)
• Emerald Director – 10% on level 1 and 5% on level 2
• Diamond Director – 10% on levels 1 and 2
• Blue Diamond Executive – 10% on levels 1 and 2 and 5% on level 3
• Black Diamond Executive – 10% on levels 1 to 3 and 5% on level 4
• Crown Executive – 10% on levels 1 to 3 and 5% on levels 4 and 5
• Crown Ambassador Executive – 10% on levels 1 to 4 and 5% on levels 5 and 6

Fortune Club Bonus

The Fortune Club Bonus is made up of 1% of Andorra International’s annual company-wide sales volume.

To qualify for a one-time annual share in the Fortune Club Bonus, an Andorra affiliate can either

1. be one of the top 50 Andorra International affiliates earnings wise or
2. have at least four personally recruited affiliates who are Fortune Club Bonus qualified

To permanently qualify for a share in the Fortune Club Bonus, an Andorra International affiliate can either:

1. qualify as a Fortune Club Bonus member for five consecutive years or
2. have at least six personally recruited affiliates who are Fortune Club Bonus qualified

Travel Fund

The Travel Fund is a $100 bonus paid to Fortune Club qualified affiliates.

Joining Andorra International

Joining Andorra International requires a mandatory purchase of Andorra International products.

• joining as an affiliate requires a $1400 purchase
• joining as a Senior Affiliate requires a $2800 purchase

Affiliates need to purchase at least $1400 worth of product annually to remain commission qualified.

Senior Affiliate qualification is a one-time purchase.

The primary difference between joining as an Affiliate or Senior Affiliate is income potential through the Andorra International compensation plan.

Conclusion

Andorra International’s products seem well thought out, with a number of reference citations provided on each product page.

On the price side of things a comparison is going to depend on where you live, but you still definitely will want to check out what the non-MLM competition are offering and for how much.

If you don’t you can bet sooner or later one of your retail customers will, and that might lead to an awkward situation.

Unfortunately while their might be some merit to Andorra International’s products, the MLM opportunity as a whole is let down by its compensation plan.

There’s no getting around that forcing affiliates to purchase thousands of dollars when they sign up is pay to play.

$1400 or more worth of Andorra International products is obviously well above reasonable personal consumption levels, with affiliates only required to spend that much to push sales volume through the company.

Qualifying as a Senior Affiliate is doable as a promotion, but is otherwise attained by spending $2800.

What with Senior Affiliates earning more than Affiliates in the Andorra International compensation plan, it’s a clear example of pay to play.

Commission rates in MLM should always be based on an affiliate’s sales performance, as opposed to how much they paid when they signed up.

Typically mandatory product purchases are tied into ongoing monthly purchases, however in Andorra International this is absent.

This goes some way to curb chain-recruitment in general, but does little to discourage single-level chain-recruitment.

To some extent residuals on recruit are still paid out, with mandatory purchases by recruited affiliates generating binary and unilevel sales volume.

In what would be an extremely volatile business model, commissions in Andorra International would grind to a halt the second recruitment slows down.

If retail sales are being made however, then commissions are otherwise fairly paid out on that volume through the compensation plan.

As a prospective Andorra International affiliate, you’re going to want to check with your potential upline as to what their monthly retail order volume is. Then contrast that with how much volume they generated via affiliate recruitment.

My gut tells me more often than not you’re going to see more on the affiliate recruitment side of things, but legitimate affiliates focusing on retail may exist.

Approach with caution.