Direct selling in New Jersey
New Jersey is home to 9,548,215 people, according to the Census Vintage 2025 estimates, and to 1.1 million small businesses. This page covers the state's small business base, its September 2026 job numbers, its large corporate employers and Rutgers enrollment. It also explains how the Consumer Fraud Act treats pyramid sales schemes. It lists the one New Jersey head office in Plondo's directory.
Small firms employ 48.8 percent of the workforce
The SBA Office of Advocacy counts 1.1 million small businesses in New Jersey in its 2025 profile. Those firms employ 1.9 million people. That is 48.8 percent of the state's employees.
Put the other way, larger employers account for the rest, a bit more than half of New Jersey's workers. Many people a team leader meets here draw a paycheck from a large organization. For them, a direct selling business would sit beside a job, not replace it.
New businesses keep appearing. Between March 2023 and March 2024, 35,980 New Jersey establishments opened, according to the same SBA profile. A person who signs on as an independent representative joins that flow of new ventures. The state's rules on fraud and misrepresentation apply to each of them.
September 2026 brought 14,900 more payroll jobs
New Jersey payrolls grew by 14,900 jobs from August to September 2026, according to the state Department of Labor and Workforce Development. The seasonally adjusted total reached 4,377,400 nonfarm jobs. The BLS state report named New Jersey and South Carolina as the states with job gains that month.
The unemployment rate fell from August to September, to 4.2 percent. That figure is seasonally adjusted and preliminary. In the household survey, the civilian labor force was 4,928.4 thousand. Of those, 4,719.3 thousand were employed and 209.1 thousand were unemployed.
The two job counts measure different things. Payroll jobs count positions at employers. The household figures count people, and they include the self-employed. Independent sellers who report that work are counted as people, not as payroll positions.
Fifteen Fortune 500 head offices, unchanged from 2025
The New Jersey Business & Industry Association reports that 15 New Jersey companies made the 2026 Fortune 500. The list ranks the nation's largest companies by revenue. New Jersey's count is the same as in 2025.
Those head offices sit in a state where small firms hold 48.8 percent of employees. The two facts fit together. New Jersey has a deep layer of large corporate employers and a broad base of small ones.
Direct selling is a thinner layer here. Plondo's directory lists only one direct selling head office in the state, in Totowa.
Rutgers: 71,000+ students, 46,934 in New Brunswick
Rutgers University reported 71,000+ students in Fall 2025. Of those, 46,934 attend Rutgers in New Brunswick.
That makes New Brunswick a college town inside a state of 9,548,215 people. It holds a large, young population in one place. Any direct selling company that recruits on or near the campus is bound by the Consumer Fraud Act described below, including the ban on pyramid sales schemes.
Color Street and its Totowa address
Plondo's directory lists one direct selling company headquartered in New Jersey: Color Street, based in Totowa. Color Street sells nail care and cosmetics, including dry nail polish strips and hand and nail care products. The list below updates as companies are added.
Where New Jersey law meets pyramid selling
New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act[1]
The Act prohibits unconscionable commercial practices, deception, fraud and misrepresentation in the sale or advertisement of merchandise. New Jersey courts have held that it prohibits pyramid sales schemes. Violations can be pursued by the Attorney General or by private plaintiffs. This is general information, not legal advice.
This is general information, not legal advice.
New Jersey counts, as published
- State population, Census Vintage 2025
- 9,548,215[2]
- Small businesses in New Jersey (2025 profile)
- 1.1 million[3]
- Small business employees in New Jersey (2025 profile)
- 1.9 million[3]
- Share of New Jersey employees working at small businesses
- 48.8 percent[3]
- New Jersey establishments opened, March 2023 to March 2024
- 35,980[3]
- Civilian labor force, September 2026 (thousands, preliminary)
- 4,928.4[4]
- Employed persons, household survey, September 2026 (thousands, preliminary)
- 4,719.3[4]
- Unemployed persons, September 2026 (thousands, preliminary)
- 209.1[4]
- Unemployment rate, September 2026 (seasonally adjusted, preliminary)
- 4.2 percent[5]
- Nonfarm payroll jobs, September 2026 (seasonally adjusted, preliminary)
- 4,377,400[5]
- Over the month change in nonfarm payroll jobs, September 2026
- 14,900[6]
- New Jersey companies on the 2026 Fortune 500 list
- 15[7]
- Rutgers University students, Fall 2025
- 71,000+[8]
- Students at Rutgers in New Brunswick
- 46,934[8]
New Jersey leaders comparing companies quietly
Leaders in New Jersey, whether near Color Street's Totowa base or around Rutgers in New Brunswick, can ask Plondo to compare companies for them without telling their current upline. The placement service is free and confidential, and Plondo charges no placement fee. Plondo listens to how a team works, then introduces the leader only to companies that fit, and only with the leader's permission.
Apply confidentiallySoftware for a state of small firms and big employers
A New Jersey direct selling company recruits in a state where 1.9 million people work for small businesses and others hold corporate jobs. Its commission engine has to pay accurately on small, irregular orders. Its back office and replicated sites need to work after hours on a phone. AI employees can answer rep questions at night and log each answer for compliance review.
See Plondo direct selling softwareFrequently asked questions
Is multilevel marketing legal in New Jersey?
New Jersey courts have held that the Consumer Fraud Act, N.J.S.A. 56:8-1 et seq., prohibits pyramid sales schemes. A multilevel company is subject to the same fraud and misrepresentation rules as any other seller. This is general information, not legal advice.
Does New Jersey require multilevel companies to register?
We did not find a separate multilevel registration requirement in the sources we read. The Attorney General and the Division of Consumer Affairs enforce the Consumer Fraud Act. Private plaintiffs may also sue.
Which direct selling companies are headquartered in New Jersey?
Plondo's directory lists one: Color Street, based in Totowa. It sells dry nail polish strips and hand and nail care products.
What did New Jersey's job market look like in September 2026?
Payrolls rose by 14,900 to 4,377,400 nonfarm jobs, seasonally adjusted. The unemployment rate was 4.2 percent, down from August. Both figures are preliminary.
Does Plondo charge New Jersey leaders for placement?
No. The placement service is free and confidential, and there is no placement fee. Plondo makes an introduction only with the leader's permission.
Sources
- New Jersey Appellate Division, State v. Bey (1992), via Justia Open source
- U.S. Census Bureau, Vintage 2025 population estimates Open source
- SBA Office of Advocacy, 2025 Small Business Profile: New Jersey Open source
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, New Jersey economy at a glance Open source
- New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development, New Jersey Employment Report: September 2026 Open source
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, State Employment and Unemployment, September 2026 Open source
- New Jersey Business & Industry Association, 15 NJ Companies Make Fortune 500 List for 2026 Open source
- Rutgers University, Rutgers, By the Numbers Open source