Mary Kay Ash

Photo by LizaKoz [CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/ licenses/by-sa/4.0)]

COSMETICS MOGUL
Father had to stop working after contracting tuberculosis, leaving her mother working 14-hour days and 7-year-old Mary managing the household
Completed high school in three years instead of four and wanted to become a doctor, but couldn't afford college
Married at age 17 and had three kids
Became a successful salesperson for Stanley Home Products, working there for more than 25 years, but after a man she had trained to be her assistant was promoted ahead of her and given double her salary, she quit and started her own company, buying the formulas to a skin care line she and her friends used
Opened MARY KAY COSMETICS in 1963 in Dallas, with nine female employees -- sold almost $200,000 of products in the first year
Department stores invited her to sell her products at their counters, but she refused, choosing instead to give in-home consultations, since that was where women put on their makeup and were most comfortable asking potentially embarrassing questions
Set a maximum of six potential customers per consultation, rather than the traditional thirty, providing buyers with more privacy and making the gathering more convenient for the hostess
Called her sales team "beauty consultants," RESHAPING the presentation as a customized informational session rather than a sales pitch
Insisted that the consultants love their work, believing that was key to their success, and incentivized them with rewards, ranging from jewelry to the famous pink Cadillac, for achieving specific sales goals
Consultants set their own hours and weren't restricted by geographical territories
Founded the Mary Kay Ash Charitable Foundation, which focuses on ending both cancer and domestic violence

Bibliography: Pile, Robert B. Women Business Leaders. Minneapolis: The Oliver Press, Inc., 1995
Mary Kay Ash Charitable Foundation. https://www.marykayfoundation.org/

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Mary Kay Museum
Mary Kay Ash Charitable Foundation

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