Mary Kay

Founded in 1963, Mary Kay is a privately owned multi-level marketing cosmetics company headquartered in Addison, Texas. Mary Kay products are sold by independent beauty consultants registered with the company; in addition to selling products, beauty consultants sometimes look for new recruits to sell underneath them. The company's products are sold internationally in dozens of countries. Mary Kay was the sixth largest direct selling company in the world in 2018, based on its 2017 revenue of $3.25 billion.

The original Mary Kay product line.

Mary Kay was founded by Mary Kay Ash and her adult son, Richard R. Rogers, in September 1963. Ash's husband died a month prior to the scheduled opening, and Rogers subsequently quit his job to help his mother launch the company. Ash's other two children, Ben and Marylyn, were also involved in running the business. Mary Kay was first launched as a single store in Dallas, Texas, and achieved near immediate success. Within its first year of business, Mary Kay attracted over 850 people to be independent beauty consultants. By year three, Mary Kay reached over $1 million in sales.

Since its first year in business, Mary Kay has held annual seminars to celebrate the sales achievements of its beauty consultants and sales directors. Luxury prizes are awarded to the top-performing workers. Classes are held during the seminars as well, and consultants can network and learn from others.

Mary Kay follows a multi-level marketing sales model. The company has been criticized for predatory and misleading recruitment tactics. Mary Kay products are sold by the company's independent beauty consultants. To become a beauty consultant with Mary Kay, one must sign up with a current consultant, but Mary Kay is able to connect inquirers with consultants if they don't already know one. Beauty consultants begin by purchasing a Mary Kay Starter Kit or Mary Kay eStart. Mary Kay eStart provides the consultant with a personalized website and online store. The Mary Kay Starter Kit provides the website and online store plus a bundle of full-sized products and samples for customer demonstrations, among other supplies. Beauty consultants are not required to hold inventory or recruit new members. Mary Kay states that active beauty consultants can earn up to fifty percent profit on Mary Kay products sold at suggested retail prices.