Ia’Orana, Everyone,

I’m in an airplane flying back to Utah from Las Vegas with my partners, Kerry, Kim and Stephen, and our wives. Every month, we travel to Las Vegas to hold our board meetings so John can attend. There is something very wonderful about being with these amazing men and women. When we get together, our agenda is very full of discussions on every topic imaginable. We always spend some time reminiscing about our beginnings—experiences we remember that have become so dear to us. Some are funny, some are poignant. We talk about our employees who have become like family to us over the years. We have seen couples married, families begun, homes bought and careers launched with Tahitian Noni International. These very young, inexperienced people who began with us are now the key managers and leaders in our corporation. There is something amazing about this. I know that TNI has been the answer to many prayers, including our own.

We talk about Tahiti. We have had so many life changing experiences in Tahiti. I remember the first time I went to Tahiti with John; my eyes were as large as saucers. TAHITIAN NONI® Juice came to life for me during that trip—I knew it was the link to thousands of years of history, the link to an ancient and proud culture, and the answer to so many prayers there. I talked to the people of Tahiti who believe noni is their gift to the world. I met the leaders of the government, business community, farmers, and church groups, all of whom looked at Morinda/Tahitian Noni as a welcome partner. I felt welcomed into their community. I felt like their brother. I have been to Tahiti many times over the years and each time I feel a very, very deep sense of family. When we traveled there, John and I used to stay at the home of Edouard and Danielle, our partners in Tahiti, giving the experience an even more distinct feeling of family. It is hard to describe in words, but the feeling was rich and tangible. When we were greeted in Tahiti, there was a warmth that permeated our skin and made its way right into our hearts. Everywhere there was an electric sense of the enormity of our venture.

We talk about the purity of the beginnings of our company. We began purely, we did not follow someone else’s model or path. We forged our own. We didn’t build our business on the back of another company, we began afresh. Our distributor leaders shared our passion for noni and we grew and grew.

We talk about you, our leaders, friends, and partners. In fact, I have to admit, the bulk of our discussions center on our IPC leaders. Some of you have become so close to us, and we remember those who are ill and struggling, that we know of, and delight in knowing of the achievements of others.

All of these discussions center on our business. The weight of responsibility to make good, solid decisions is very heavy at times. Sometimes we get nostalgic and wish things today could be as simple as they were when we first started. For years, I knew every employee’s name. We worked side by side and there was a closeness because of that. Today, I hate to admit it, but there are so many of our employees at headquarters that I do not know personally. Interestingly, I have had the chance to meet with, work with, train and socialize with nearly every one of our staff in our global offices. The demands of our business have changed my life and changed the nature of those personal relationships. On my desk, I have a stack of photos that are precious to me. These are photos of our key managers and staff from each of our offices worldwide. In each photo I see smiling, beautiful women and handsome men, brimming with energy and passion for Tahitian Noni International. Some of these individuals have never been to our home office. Some of them have never been to a global event. They are in offices thousands of miles away from the center of our company, but the Tahitian Noni logo is the thing that links everyone together. I love these great people. 

In the beginning of our company, I had a personal relationship with all of our IPC leaders. I personally did the opportunity meetings, trainings, conference calls, and thousands of three-way calls. There was a connection that was beyond special. I had the opportunity to stay in the homes of some of our leaders as I traveled around holding meetings. I traveled with many in their family cars from meeting to meeting. During this time a bond was forged that became very important to me. I felt a connection with our distributor leaders that was stronger than steel.

Today, I spend more than 50% of my time away from our headquarters, most of that time out of the U.S. Just recently, I had the amazing opportunity of doing a 10-city tour of Japan in 10 days. This year I have attended and conducted meetings in 11 countries, visiting many of these countries on multiple occasions. In five days, I will be traveling to Hungary, Russia, Ukraine and New York City for a variety of events, trainings and special leadership meetings. Before a trip like this, I feel myself getting very excited and filled with anticipation. I’m frustrated that as much as I travel and as many meetings and events as I attend, the world is getting larger and larger, and I am getting older and older. After thousands of meetings in these 11 years, I have not lost one ounce of the joy of it, or the passion of it, or the sense of electricity about talking about our vision and future.

I want you to know that the first four founders of Morinda—Kerry, Kim, Stephen and John (I was the last to join as a founder)—are wonderful, amazing men. They are my mentors and my friends. Over the years we have had to tackle issues that have caused us literally to cry. Their strength is a source of inspiration to me and I hope to you as well. From time to time I hear silly rumors that the founders of Morinda have pulled back from the business. To me that statement is amazing. It is like saying we have pulled back from our families! Tahitian Noni International today is so different than Morinda of 1996, but one thing is exactly the same: Kerry Asay, Kim Asay, John Wadsworth, Stephen Story and Kelly Olsen. We five have never split, we have never fractured. We are together. We play together, we are friends, our wives are friends, and we consider each other’s children as our own.

There is one more thing I want you to know: Dr. Ralph Heinicke is still our close associate, friend and teacher. His zeal for noni is more solid today than at any other time. He is older too, but his mind is quick and clear. Dr. Heinicke is our inspiration. He is the one that explained to us for the first time the active mechanism in noni. It brought the benefits of noni to life for us.

Kerry and I talk a lot. He will wander into my office sometimes and sit down and look at me and simply ask me to tell him what is in my heart. Well, I’m usually in major stress about something (there’s no shortage of things to be stressed over in a company like ours), and Kerry gives me an opportunity to let it all out. Amazingly, these conversations always lead to one thing: gratitude. Above all the stress and frustration and daily challenges, my heart is filled with gratitude for Morinda, for Tahitian Noni International, for you, for my partners, for our managers and staff, for our partners in Tahiti, for the simple fact that I have been able to be part of this from day one and have a million priceless memories. I love this company. I love what it does for people and what it can do for more and more people.

I love the purity of it. I love the fact that we developed everything ourselves. I love that fact that we don’t buy our noni on the open market from a broker like every one of these new healthy juice companies that start up each day. I love the fact that we pick our own fruit. We process it ourselves. We do it all ourselves. This speaks to the quality of our company.

I love that in Taipei or Tokyo or Munich or London; in Sao Paulo or Mexico City or Jakarta or Seoul; in Hong Kong or Moscow or Kiev or Budapest; in New York, Dallas, Phoenix, Toronto and Atlanta; in Ho Chi Minh City, Singapore and Kuala Lumpur; in far away Shanghai and Beijing; in Papeete and Zurich and many more cities throughout the world, I can find an office proudly displaying the Tahitian Noni logo. I can find TAHITIAN NONI® Juice. I can find wonderful IPCs and staff who love our noni. I love that. I pray you do, too.

As your brains process the information about our business, please allow your hearts to fall in love with this amazing story. Find Your Place in Tahitian Noni International.

Best Wishes,

Kelly Olsen
President, Tahitian Noni International