Quick Facts
Biography
Kenneth E. Brailsford is an American entrepreneur, investor and philanthropist. He is known as a pioneer in the nutritional supplement and network marketing industry and considered the “Father of Herbal Encapsulation”.
Brailsford was the first to commercially introduce herbs in capsule form when he co-founded Nature’s Sunshine in 1972. He later went on to found two more network marketing companies—Enrich International in 1985 and Zija International in 2006, both of which are still in operation.
Early Life and Education
Brailsford was born in 1944 in Niagara Falls, New York, to Robert Earl and Freeda Webster Brailsford. He served in the US Army for two years after graduating from Brigham Young University with a degree in economics in 1969.
Career
Brailsford co-founded Nature’s Sunshine in 1972 and served as President of the company from 1972-1979. After leaving Nature’s Sunshine, he went to work as a stockbroker for a short time, but then reemerged in the herbal industry once his non-compete agreement with Nature’s Sunshine had expired. Brailsford then went on to help launch Nature’s Labs Inc., later renamed Enrich International. He worked there from 1985-1997 and retired in 1997.
In 2004, his interest in pharmacology led him to the Moringa oleifera plant—a superfood prized for its high levels of vitamins, minerals, vital proteins, antioxidants and omega oils. In 2006, he founded Zija International to bring the benefits of Moringa to market. Brailsford has over 35 years in the Direct Sales industry.
Brailsford owns a private equity firm, KEB Enterprises L.P., that manages other business investments.
Awards
Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year (1994)
UVU Outstanding Alumni Award (2015)
Utah’s #1 Fastest-Growing Company Zija International (2014)
Personal Life
Ken married his college sweetheart, Linda Hughes Brailsford, and they are the parents of six children, twenty-four grandchildren, and seven great grandchildren. He and his wife currently live in Park City, Utah.
Brailsford is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, sometimes nicknamed the Mormon or LDS Church. Among other assignments, Brailsford has served as a bishop, stake clerk, counselor in a stake presidency, and from 2005 to 2008 as president of the church’s Columbus South Carolina mission.