traded as nyse wtw founded may 15 1963 ; 53 years ago 1963 05 15 queens new york u.s. headquarters 675 avenue of the americas 6th floor new york ny 10010 key people james r. chambers president & ceo products weight loss packaged foods exercise products revenue 1.724 billion 2013 1 operating income 460.757 million 2013 1 net income 204.725 million 2013 1 total assets 1.408 billion 2013 1 total equity 1.474 billion 2013 1 number of employees 25 000 as of 2013 update 1 website weightwatchers.com weightwatchers.co.uk weightwatchers.ca fr.weightwatchers.ca a former weight watchers location in newton highlands massachusetts weight watchers international is an american company that offers various products and services to assist weight loss and maintenance . founded in 1963 by queens new york homemaker jean nidetch it now update operates in about 30 countries around the world generally under names that are local translations of weight watchers . the core philosophy behind weight watchers programs is to use a science driven approach to help participants lose weight by forming helpful habits eating smarter getting more exercise and providing support . 3 4 at 12 months weight watchers is associated with 2.6 % more weight loss than those who were in a control group . 5 the term weight watcher in the same sense had circulated publicly for several years before the company was formed . 6 contents 1 effectiveness 2 approach 3 weight loss plans 3.1 united states 3.1.1 old plans 3.2 uk 3.3 ireland and australia 4 products 5 spokespersons 6 corporate information 6.1 history 6.2 governance 7 formulas 8 see also 9 references 10 external links effectiveness edit a 2015 systematic review found that at 12 months weight watchers was associated with 2.6 % more weight loss than those who were in a control group . 5 there is a lack of evidence beyond this period of time . 5 weight watchers claims that members who both use weight watchers web based etools and attend meetings lose half again as much weight as those who only attend meetings citing an unspecified 12 week study comparing people who were instructed to attend weight watchers meetings and use etools to people who were instructed to attend weight watchers meetings alone . 7 approach edit weight watchers core approach is to assist members in losing weight through eating more healthily and getting more exercise . 3 weight watchers primary diet plan has no directly comparable requirements and no food is off limits . participants lose weight by creating a calorie deficit . 4 weight watchers is generally compatible with other diet approaches and or food intake restrictions provided participants use the weight watchers framework to measure and limit the quantity of food consumed while using the other diet plan to dictate the range of acceptable food choices . citation needed there are two primary ways individuals can work with weight watchers via in person meetings and an online only program . 3 both programs use the same basic materials and computations . 4 for in person meetings weight watchers encourages members to select a goal weight that results in a body mass index generally accepted as healthy 18 to 24.9 although a member may also establish a goal weight outside of that range after providing a doctor s note to that effect . in order to join weight watchers in the united states one must weigh at least 5 pounds 2.3 kg more than the minimum weight considered healthy by the company for their height . 8 once a member reaches his or hers goal weight they start a maintenance period . for the following six weeks the member gradually adjusts their food intake until the member no longer loses or gains weight . if at the end of six weigh ins during the maintenance period the member weighs in within 2 pounds 0.91 kg of their goal weight they becomes a lifetime member . weight watchers etools is a web based service for members that includes access to support materials and tracking tools . in some areas weight watchers meetings are operated by a locally franchised organization rather than by weight watchers international . 9 in most locations weight watchers holds meetings for members which in some cases may cause positive reinforcement for participants . 10 weight loss plans edit united states edit weight watcher slide ruler pointsplus is a plan offered in the united states started in november 2010 is called pointsplus . touted by weight watchers as incorporating a decade of science compared to the prior points based plans the focus remains on assisting members in creating a calorie deficit to lose weight using a reformulated calculation approach for computing target daily points e.g. approximately how many calories per day should be eaten and the costs pointsplus values of food . 11 as an alternative to the pointsplus plan participants can use the simply filling technique . 12 on the simply filling technique participants are intended to eat from a designated list of foods without the requirement to track . 12 categories of foods on the list include most fruits and vegetables whole grains non fat dairy and dairy substitutes lean proteins and a handful of other items . 12 for items that a person eats that are not on the list a weekly points allowance of pointsplus points is available to be used and the value of that item must be tracked . 12 because the plan does not require tracking participants must be mindful to e at portions that feel right for them . not so much that they feel too full and not too little that they still feel hungry . 12 on december 3 2012 weight watchers introduced additional aspects to the program . this was dubbed weight watchers 360 . additions included introducing more interactivity to meetings more focus on building healthful habits and fighting hedonic hunger the desire to seek out high sugar high fat foods that bring pleasure . the 360 plan also introduced the activelink physical activity monitor as an optional purchase item . 13 old plans edit jean nidetch the founder of weight watchers wrote a book in the early 1970s called the memoir of a successful loser the story of weight watchers which documented the original weight watchers plan . that original plan was supplanted shortly after the book with materials bearing a 1972 73 copyright weight watchers r program handbook for ladies . 14 this plan was similar to the original plan . by 1989 the plan had switched to an exchange based diet . 15 the document s subtitle and copyright dates make determining the exact date difficult the quick success r program with the subtitle new for 1989 has a copyright date of 1987 1988 . 15 by 1997 the first points based program was introduced . on april 15 2005 a sputtering low carbohydrate fad and the end of a licensing deal with weight watchers international inc. had carved a big chunk out of coolbrands international inc. s bottom line . 16 on december 20 2005 coolbrands international inc. said it intended to wield the power of three big name licensed brands to help it recover from the loss of weight watchers from its product lineup . 17 uk edit the original points plan was developed in the uk by the weight watchers program development team headed by sarah watson and marian way who took out the first patent for a calculator to embody the algorithm based on the summation of calories 70 and saturated fat 4 with the sum rounded to the nearest half the patent was filed on 1 11 95 18 in the uk during november 2010 the points plan had been replaced with propoints . this is similar to the points plan only the calculation now takes protein carbohydrates all fat and fiber into consideration . the following main changes were made from the points to propoints plan change the formula so the majority of foods now cost more propoints than points daily propoint allowances were increased however you are no longer allowed to carry your daily propoints over to the next day most fruit and vegetables are now zero propoints all participants also have a weekly propoints allowance of 49 propoints which they can choose to use as they see fit throughout the week . in december 2015 a new scheme was introduced using smartpoints . 19 ireland and australia edit in ireland there has recently been a new plan launched called propoints plan.traditional weight loss plans are based on the calories on a food label . but the new propoints system incorporates the latest science that shows there is a more accurate way to assess the impact a food has on weight loss . propoints values are calculated using 4 macronutrients fat fibre protein and carbohydrate . there is also a new weekly propoints allowance and zero propoints values fruit and veg . 20 21 in australia weight watchers also offers free trials for propoints online program to attract customers . 22 products edit in addition to weight watchers membership plans other products such as packaged foods exercise equipment and dvds food preparation and storage tools cookbooks etc. are available for purchase . in 2012 the company partnered with philips to create the activelink activity tracker . 23 24 spokespersons edit the current spokesperson for weight watchers is oprah winfrey an american media proprietor talk show host actress producer and philanthropist . prior spokespersons associated with the product were actresses lynn redgrave and jenny mccarthy duchess of york sarah ferguson 25 singer actress jessica simpson and grammy academy award winner singer actress jennifer hudson . 26 27 corporate information edit history edit from 1978 until 1999 weight watchers was owned by the h. j. heinz company which continues to produce packaged foods bearing the weight watchers brand . in october 2015 oprah winfrey purchased a 10 % stake in weight watchers . on september 12 2016 announced that its chief executive james chambers would resign at the end of september after three years on the job . 28 governance edit the current update members of the board of directors of weight watchers are philippe amouyal john bard raymond debbane marsha evans jonas fajgenbaum linda huett sacha lainovic steven m. altschuler and christopher sobecki . on october 19 2015 oprah winfrey announced her place on the board of weight watchers international . 29 formulas edit weight watchers has not provided official confirmation of the points or pointsplus formulas and has aggressively sent cease and desist letters to websites and a number of third party tools that claimed to provide points or pointsplus calculations . 30 see also edit american dietetic association references edit a b c d e f weight watchers international inc. form 10 k securities and exchange commission february 26 2014 reuters february 26 2014 . weight watchers shares soar after oprah investment . bnn . business news network bell media . retrieved january 24 2016 . she will become the second largest shareholder after investment firm invus public equities advisors llc which owned a 51.5 percent stake as of june 30 . a b c helping people lose weight for 45 years . retrieved 2010 12 29 . a b c david kirchhoff our new program the next level archived from the original on december 2 2010 retrieved 2010 12 29 a b c gudzune ka ; doshi rs ; mehta ak ; chaudhry zw ; jacobs dk ; vakil rm ; lee cj ; bleich sn ; clark jm 7 april 2015 . efficacy of commercial weight loss programs an updated systematic review . . annals of internal medicine . 162 7 501 12 . doi 10.7326 m14 2238 . pmid 25844997 . menu from stouffer s restaurant probably chicago dated november 7 1959 weight watcher s luncheon ... 1.20 . . retrieved 2012 01 14 . etools the internet companion .