As some of you know, England is one of my favorite places in the world. I was an English major and studied Shakespeare in Stratford-upon-Avon for a summer during college. I love the language (since I already speak it), the rich culture, and I'm learning to like the food. On Thursday, September 10, I visited Sunrider's new office in Soho for the very first time. They just had their grand opening in March, and the dust has finally settled down (mostly there's still some construction on the 4th and 5th floors). I was impressed with the historic brick building in this trendy business district. Our office is located right next to Paul McCartney's office and Bloomsbury's offices (the publishers of Harry Potter). I hear Paul McCartney sometimes walks by, but I haven't seen him...yet.
The European IBOs are very proud of their new office and visit often. They have beautiful display cases, a lovely entrance, and a flat screen TV playing Sunrider's Company Profile presentation. They will be adding a seating area and another display case. It's an excellent location, with people walking in just to see what Sunrider is about.
On Friday, I helped prepare for the Product Fair and meeting so there would be no glitches. Then on Saturday afternoon, the fun began! At 3pm, we started with the Product Fair. About 50 IBOs from the United Kingdom, Hungary, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and Germany participated in this fun event. I met several brand-new IBOs and new customers. I showed a new IBO how to do a skin care product demonstration, which she loved. I then introduced her to the immediate effects of Dr. Chen® Refining & Lifting Cream and Oi-Lin® Replenish Gel. She applied them to her eye area in preparation for a date she had later that evening. We also had stations for color cosmetics (probably the busiest area!), Fortune Delight®, VitaShake®, SunSmile® Fruit & Vegetable Rinse, and SunSmile® Herbal Toothpaste. Everyone did a great job explaining the product quality and value. 
After the Product Fair, we held an Opportunity Meeting. I started the meeting by showing the 8-minute video presentation from the Grand Convention (it will be on the training website). It set the tone for the meeting, establishing my parents' integrity and passion, and explained the Philosophy of Regeneration™. We used the Opportunity Meeting on the website with an IBO covering each section. I was impressed with the good people that we have in Sunrider. They are caring people who really want to help others, not just make a quick buck. Plus, they all have lovely accents!
I also had the privilege of announcing the location of the 2010 Leadership/Convention event for Europe and North America: a 12-day Mediterranean cruise to Italy, Greece, Turkey, and Egypt! I'm so excited about this. My father, the consummate world traveler, personally requested Cairo, Egypt since the Great Pyramids are the one place he has always wanted to visit. I also gave a short presentation on the upcoming marketing and Web tools. (Side note: We have so many projects that are so close to completion! I can't wait for everyone to see them. Look for a new SR Newsletter, a new product catalog, a new Shop Online, and a new Replicator site in the next 3 months!) This was also a good opportunity for me to get excellent feedback. It felt like a great partnership. No Sunrider event would be complete without lots and lots of food. After the meeting, 9 Hungarian IBOs, some of the Europe staff, and I went to Chinatown for a gut-busting Chinese dinner. Chinatown is within walking distance to the office (maybe that's a reason my parents chose the location?). Soho becomes a very different place at night. There were lots of people walking around, drinking outside the pubs and clubs. It has an active nightlife. We ended up at the same Chinese restaurant my parents went to for the office's grand opening. The food was delicious, and I practiced speaking Chinese. The waiter was from Malaysia, and he recognized Fortune Delight®. I think it was also the first time I ordered Chinese food for so large a group. I know if my dad had been there, we would have ended up with even MORE food!
I had a brilliant time, and I'm looking forward to seeing my new friends next year on the Mediterranean!
Wendy
