Tastefully Simple
October 31, 2026
ALEXANDRIA, Minnesota - October 31, 2026
Tastefully Simple will close its traditional direct sales channel at the end of the year, completing a two-year move away from the multilevel model the Minnesota food company was built on in 1995.
Founder and CEO Jill Blashack Strahan announced the decision on October 31 in a video posted to the company's official Facebook page. "Over a long time and period of debate, I've finally come to the conclusion that I need to meet the world where it is," she said. "As of January 1st, we will be ending our traditional direct sales channel."
After January 1, 2027, Tastefully Simple plans to focus on three channels: an affiliate-only selling program, wholesale operations and direct-to-consumer sales. The company's current sellers, known as TS Ambassadors, will become "Ambassador Affiliates" who earn what Strahan described as a special commission on sales made through a personalized shopping link. Ambassadors may also choose to become wholesalers. Under the timeline described in the announcement, the company's direct sales operations end on December 31, 2026.
The change finishes a restructuring that began in January 2025. At that time the company renamed its consultants TS Ambassadors and stopped allowing new sellers to sponsor or build teams, asking them instead to sell through shareable shopping links on social media or at in-person tasting events, while hosts kept earning rewards. A small group of longtime leaders, designated Diamond and Gold Ambassadors, was allowed to keep building first-line teams under that hybrid plan. Strahan said in late 2024 that the company had designed the model after months of deliberation and that it was meant to suit younger sellers looking for a flexible side income without leadership demands. The new plan removes the remaining team-building element.
Tastefully Simple already runs a separate affiliate marketing program on its website aimed at content creators, bloggers and coupon sites. That program is free to join, has no sales minimums and pays commission on purchases made through an affiliate's unique link within a 30-day referral window. The company's seasonings, dip mixes, bread mixes and sauces are also sold through large retailers including Walmart and Amazon.
The company has previously cut staff and streamlined operations at its Alexandria headquarters. It has not released sales figures or said how many ambassadors are affected by the change, and no further details on commission rates for Ambassador Affiliates had been published as of November 2.
Tastefully Simple was founded by Strahan in Alexandria, Minnesota, and sells easy-prep foods such as Bountiful Beer Bread Mix, Onion Onion seasoning and Bacon Bacon through home tasting parties and online. It joins a growing list of party-plan and direct sales companies that have dropped multilevel compensation in favor of affiliate or direct-to-consumer models.