Mannatech
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Mannatech headquarters in Coppell, Texas
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| Public | |
| Traded as | NASDAQ: MTEXam |
| Industry |
Dietary supplements, Personal care, Multi-level marketing |
| Founded | Coppell, Texas, US (November 4, 1993) |
| Founder | Samuel L. Caster |
| Headquarters | Coppell, Texas, US |
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Key people
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Alfredo Bala, CEO and President, J. Stanley Fredrick, Chairman of the Board |
| Revenue |
 US$ 180.304 million (2016)
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 US$ -698 thousand (2016)
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US$ -586 thousand (2016)
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| Total assets |
US$ 71,188 million (2016)
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| Total equity |
US$ 38.9 million (2016)
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Number of employees
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281 (Dec 2016) |
| Website | www |
Mannatech is a multinational multi-level marketing firm that sells dietary supplements and personal care products, with a history of false claims and lawsuits. It was founded in November 1993 by Samuel L. Caster and is headquartered in Coppell, Texas. The company's stock is traded on the NASDAQ exchange under the symbol MTEX. As of 2016, Mannatech employed 290 people and sold its products through some 222,000 independent sales associates.
Mannatech and its sales people made false claims of anti-disease benefits about its lead product called "Ambrotose" which contains sugars derived from plants. The company was profitable soon after its founding until about 2008, when it started losing money due to exposure of its business practices through a class action lawsuit based on the false health claims, a critical 20/20 news special, and a civil suit filed by the Attorney General of Texas.
Mannatech was founded by Samuel L. Caster in 1993, as Congress prepared to pass the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994, which made feasible the profitable marketing of a wider spectrum of dietary supplements. The company has had a Christian orientation since its founding; the name was intended to evoke manna, and it recruited people to sell its products through its multi-level marketing structure in church congregations.
Prior to founding Mannatech, Caster had founded and run Eagle Shield, which sold an insulation product that it claimed was based on new technology developed by NASA and that could reduce heating and cooling costs by up to 40%. In May 1988, the Attorney General of Texas concluded that the product's technology long predated NASA and did not reduce consumers' bills in the amounts advertised. Caster agreed to cease the misleading claims made about Eagle Shield.
Caster's second product, the "Electracat," was sold as a pest control device. The Electracat reportedly emitted pulsed vibrations that repelled rats, crickets, snakes, ticks, spiders, mosquitoes, and scorpions. However, in January 1991, the Attorney General of Texas investigated the product and found that the Electracat emitted no vibrations whatsoever. The Attorney General declared, "The device is a hoax, and stands on the same scientific footing as a perpetual motion machine." Caster was ordered to stop selling the Electracat and to reimburse the state $125,000 in investigative costs.
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Wikipedia