Once a year, Melaleuca’s headquarters transform from a typical workspace filled with cubicles and offices into a truly spook-tacular sight.
Melaleuca’s annual Halloween celebration—reserved solely for the children and grandchildren of Melaleuca employees— exemplifies the Melaleuca family culture.
It’s an event that both young and old look forward to and talk about all year.
For the kids, it’s a moment to dress up as their favorite princess or superhero, march through a multi-themed maze of magical lands, and quickly load up on candy. They can even enter a coloring contest. For parents, it’s an opportunity to take their kids trick-or-treating in a safe, worry-free, and climate-controlled environment. And for employees, it’s a chance to express their creative side, act young at heart, and welcome their precious little ones to the office.
“For Melaleuca, the Halloween celebration isn’t just a fun activity,” Director of Human Resources Mike Dunbar says. “It’s part of our culture, which is very family-oriented.”
Courtni Muir has been bringing her children to Melaleuca’s Halloween celebration for five years now. “It’s their favorite part of the Halloween season actually,” Muir says. “They love walking through all the different themed areas, seeing the decorations, and getting a lot of candy. And as a mom, I love not having to worry if my kids are safe or warm.”
Courtni’s husband, Brian, is a financial analyst at Melaleuca, and they love that their kids get to see dad at work. “We really appreciate Melaleuca hosting events that include our whole family,” Brian Muir says. “Inviting families into the workplace so children can see their parents’ place of employment is one reason Melaleuca is so special.”
As Halloween draws near, each department in the Melaleuca home office is responsible for picking their own theme, be it spooky or silly. Then they decorate and dress up (or down) accordingly. This year, the Executive Offices turned into a raucous crowd of tailgating sports fans, Marketing became a big-top circus show, International was a spook alley, and Regional Sales transformed into Peter Pan’s Neverland.
Even more impressive than the elaborate decorations and massive cauldrons of candy around every turn may be the efficiency of the whole operation. Human Resources has traffic flow down to an art, decorations are impressively put up and taken down in a single day, and employees continue to work behind the scenes to ensure Melaleuca maintains the high level of productivity, professionalism, and customer service it’s renowned for.
The Halloween celebration is just one of several family-oriented events Melaleuca puts on throughout the year to say thank you to its workforce. These events strengthen the Melaleuca family culture—and they’re a whole lot of fun.
Every summer, for example, CEO Frank VanderSloot welcomes thousands of employees and their families to his ranch for the Melaleuca family picnic. There they are treated to games, prizes, helicopter rides, and all the delicious food and treats they can eat. And in December, employees and their spouses get to leave the kids at home and enjoy an evening of entertainment—and more prizes—at Melaleuca’s annual Christmas party.
“Celebration is a big part of who we are at Melaleuca; we thrive on it,” Dunbar says. “And we always want our employees’ families to share in our celebration, because they’re a huge part of our success.”
