Mary kay ash who is

For nearly 10 years, Ash had been buying a skin softener from the daughter of a local hide tanner who had concocted the cream from tanning solutions. While her second husband dealt with the legal and financial matters, Ash recruited a sales force of nine of her friends.

But one month before the company was scheduled to open, disaster struck. Ash's husband died of a heart attack. Convinced that she could not succeed without her husband's help, Ash's lawyer and accountant urged her to abandon her plans.

But like most great entrepreneurs, Ash, who was then in her mids, ignored the advice of "the experts," and Mary Kay Cosmetics opened its doors September 13, From its inception, it was unique among direct-sales businesses. Instead of using high-pressure sales pitches, Ash instructed her salespeople whom she christened "consultants" to show women how they could use Mary Kay products to improve their appearance.

Once women saw the results, the products would sell themselves. It was a technique Ash claims no company had ever tried before. By that time, Mary Kay Cosmetics' sales force had grown to more than 3, consultants. Keenly aware that customers became suspicious when she touted her own wares, Ash gave up direct selling and concentrated on motivating her consultants.

She instilled her own infectious enthusiasm in her workers through a litany of maxims such as:. As a result, you can have, or be, anything you want. She also began rewarding her top beauty consultants with diamond jewelry, five-star vacations and, of course, the pink Cadillacs.

It was a powerful success strategy that made Mary Kay Ash a millionaire when she took the company public in But as the company grew, shareholders began to question the necessity of rewarding consultants with "those frivolous pink cars.

Although "the experts" warned against it, Ash rebuffed their advice once again and took the company private in Even though Ash's son Richard Rogers now runs the company as chairman of the board, it is unlikely that Ash will ever retire from business completely. Today she serves as chair emeritus and is a nearly constant presence at the corporate headquarters. By then, the Cadillacs shared the highways with a fleet of petal-pink wheelers that transported Mary Kay products from distribution centers in California, Georgia, Illinois, Texas and New Jersey.

On one of those visits, the founder unexpectedly announced a new uniform for drivers: pale pink jumpsuits with the Mary Kay logo stitched onto the back. Early on, Ash often hosted her sales directors at her lakeside Dallas home, opening every room in the house to them. Eventually the company bought a pink heart-shaped tub especially for sales director photo ops.

In the s, Mary Kay Inc. Back in the States, Ash spared no expense to build a posh pink mansion in the tony Dallas neighborhood of Old Preston Hollow. The 12,square-foot, classically styled pile featured six bedrooms, eight bathrooms, sweeping staircases, a library, three living rooms — one with a foot ceiling — and a courtyard pool surrounded by Corinthian columns and faux Greek statuary.

Ash filled the house with coral carpets, floor-to-ceiling curtains in salmon-colored silk, fuchsia furnishings and a master bath crowned with a rose-quartz toilet and a pink marble soaking tub. But the construction was rushed and the work was shoddy. So in July , The Foundation embraced a second mission: to prevent violence against women. Home causes give events blog. Hope is a gift that comes from the heart. Give Freely. Visit the Registration site. Visit the Donation Page Our Mission Eliminate Cancer Will you be the one in three women diagnosed with some form of cancer during your lifetime?

End Domestic Violence Home should be a safe haven. It followed with banning product testing on animals. These actions, among others, have earned Mary Kay Inc.

Click here for more information on the social responsibility programs at Mary Kay Inc. The new Mary Kay Building became the world headquarters in Situated on 34 acres, the floor, pink granite building includes nearly , square feet and is located in Addison, Texas, just north of Dallas.

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