Raised to believe a degree would guarantee success, older millennials instead inherited financial uncertainty, side hustles and social media. Here’s why that made us the perfect target for multi-level marketing.

If you were born between 1982 and 1990, there’s a good chance you remember being told that if you worked hard, got good grades and earned a university degree, success would naturally follow. Teachers and parents repeated the same message. ‘Go to university, get a good job, buy a house and build a comfortable life.’

That wasn’t how life turned out for the majority of millennials. By the time older millennials graduated from university the world had changed a lot. Secure graduate careers became harder to find, wages struggled to keep pace with the rising cost of living and buying a first home became increasingly out of reach for many people. Instead of climbing a predictable career ladder, many found themselves piecing together temporary jobs, part-time work or careers that looked very different from the ones they had imagined.

This gap between expectation and reality created the perfect environment for something else to flourish ‘hustle culture‘

Throughout the 2000s, and 2010s we were constantly encouraged to have a side hustle, build multiple income streams and become our own boss. Social media was new and filled with motivational quotes, luxury lifestyles and promises that anyone could achieve financial freedom with enough determination. Success was presented as a mindset rather than a set of circumstances.

That message resonated with many older millennials because we genuinely wanted to believe there was another route. We weren’t necessarily looking to become ultra rich. Many of us simply wanted enough money to stop worrying about bills, save for a home or enjoy a little more freedom.

This is exactly where many multi-level marketing (MLM) companies positioned themselves.

Rather than selling a business opportunity, they often sold hope and a lifestyle. They promised flexible working around children, extra income alongside a full-time job, financial independence and a supportive community of like-minded people. For a generation feeling left behind by the traditional career path, those promises sounded incredibly appealing.

Older millennials also occupy a unique place in history.

We grew up as children and half of our teenage years without smartphones, social media or constant internet access. Friendships happened naturally and advertising was easier to recognise and online influencers barely existed. Then, it seemed almost overnight, Facebook, Instagram and later TikTok transformed how we socialised, shopped and even found work.

MLMs adapted brilliantly to this new digital world. Recruitment no longer relied on approaching strangers in shopping centres or knocking on doors. Instead, it arrived through trusted friends, school acquaintances and family members on social media. The invitation came from someone we knew and trusted so it often felt less like a sales pitch and more like an exciting opportunity.

Many of us had never been taught how MLMs actually worked. Schools taught us maths, Shakespeare and geography but very few explained recruitment-based business models or the warning signs of high-pressure sales organisations. When we finally realised that success in network marketing often depended more on recruiting than retail sales, many had already invested significant time, money and emotional energy.

That’s one reason so many intelligent, educated people joined MLMs. It wasn’t because they lacked common sense. It was because the opportunity seemed to answer the exact problems our generation was facing. The rising living costs, uncertain careers and the feeling that we somehow hadn’t achieved what we’d been promised or were expected to by our parents.

Of course, not every older millennial joined an MLM and people from every generation have become involved. But for those born during the 1980s, the combination of economic uncertainty and the explosion of social media created a unique moment in history. MLMs didn’t create those struggles, they just simply became very good at marketing themselves as the solution. Plus millennials when they were younger perhaps saw their mum or aunts join Avon and having parties in their home and thought, this doesn’t look too hard.

It’s easier to see why so many people said yes to these ‘Business Opportunities‘ They weren’t buying into a business model, they were buying into the future and lifestyle they thought they were supposed to have.

Related to ‘Make Memories, Not Downlines- Confessions of an Ex MLM Introverted Millennial’ by Siân Alison Coming Soon 2026

Some parts of this post are also referenced in ‘Staying In is the New Going Out’ by Siân Alison Out Now

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