Defenders of Mary Kay Speak Out!
March 4, 2007 by Sean Kelly
Filed under Business
Defenders of Mary Kay have vociferously defended the cosmetics company that seems to be taking a lot of heat on the Internet of late. Most of them contend that the problem is not Mary Kay, per se, but with the overzealous consultants who try to “fulfill all their needs” through the sales program.
MK RULES says
MK is not a cult! The problems arise when ladies look to MK to fulfill all of their needs…financial, social, and spiritual. You are told you have unlimited earning potential, but not that you will be rich as can be with no work in no time. This is work, not a get rich quick scheme. As far as not being able to take the pressure to recruit, etc, each person is independent and can choose not to do so. If a person needs more confidence to voice this and do as she chooses, MK is not the business for her. You have to be able to make your own good business decisions.
Stacie says:
I have been a consultant for 3 yrs. I pursue MK mostly for the discount, I like Mk skin care products. I have attended monthly training/breakfasts. I do not go to the seminars b/c it is not in my budget and I get no pressure to do so. My director has never pressured me into purchases. She encourages me to succeed, but many employers do the same. I enjoy being a beauty consultant and I do not think I have ever even asked someone if they would like to become one. As far as my NSD, I do admire her, and I admire Mary Kay Ash, but they are not the only successful women I admire. As far as MK being a MLM, I am not sure if it is. You do NOT have to recruit people to make money. If I have 1 twenty dollar sale in amonth, I simply dont make money. If I have a two thousand dollar sale, I do. Granted, if you become a director you have the potential to earn more, but only if that is what you want. MK is a closely knit “family”, but I dont think it is a cult.
MLMK says:
Mary Kay is simply sales…straight up. Yes you can spend time recruiting and that is a nice benefit to the business. But the distributors I’ve met that were successful were able to sell the product well….
Rachel says:
I feel bad for the people that have had a negative experience with Mary Kay. I will assure you that a cult is not an accurate depiction of what Mary Kay is all about, nor is it that way in all cases.
I have had nothing but positive experiences with Mary Kay. I have met a fantastic group of women that I highly respect. I’ve never felt pressured or “preyed upon” as some would say. I have only received encouragement and praise.
I became a Mary Kay consultant first and foremost for the discount and to meet new people. I have shared my personal experiences with others and have gained some new team members as a result, but I also did not pressure anyone, or portray the company as a get rich easy business. To make money, it does require work.
For me, much of Mary Kay is job/hobby satisfaction. Being able to help give a woman self confidence through makeup is a gift, that I enjoy giving.
I will continue with Mary Kay. I love what I do. To me, there is no Mary Kay cult. To those that believe there is, I only wish you the best, and hope that you have a better experience in the future.
Paul says:
…Is sales in general a cult? I know a lot of very proud salespeople. I’m a salesman. What makes MK different is that their consultants encourage other people to become consultants. I don’t consider that to be bad, since there are no sales from consultant to consultant.
God: A lot of MK consultants and directors IMO over-do the “God has blessed my business”. I never heard MK Ash make some of the statements that these people make. Is being a God-fearing person wrong? IMO, only when a person tries to force it on another, or uses it to determine whether a person is “good” or “bad”. I know a lot of aetheists/agnostics who are very moral people (maybe I don’t associate with the immoral ones), and I’ve never given a dime to a TV preacher.
DO YOU HAVE EXPERIENCE WITH MARY KAY COSMETICS OR SIMILAR OPPORTUNITIES? LEAVE A COMMENT AND SHARE YOUR PERSPECTIVE.
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After being very high up in Mary Kay, and seing how manipulated the women are, and how we were taught to motivate them, and how little sales results they have, I think it is undeniable that Mary Kay is a financial cult that preys on the insecurities and weaknesses in women. They capitalize on the need women have to be appreciated. This is what they sell. Recognition for orders–regardless what you actually sell to a consumer, and pressure to reach the next level, regardless if you earned it. It is by far the most twisted business environment I have every been a part of..and I was considered very “successful” having won 6 cars in 8 years.
In Mary Kay you are programmed to say that business is going great. Truth is, you can’t make any money just selling the product after you pay for everything it takes to do one single class. So you think if you become a director, THEN you will start making money- and sadly your expenses as a director FAR outweigh your income, and your only “paycheck” comes from begging people to order over and over and over again. And it all amounts to be less than minimum wage if you are really good at begging.
My recruiter was very bossy always trying to guilt me into buying more product, going to every meeting, spending all my time on MK. When I first joined MK, I’d had my first real vacation scheduled in years. I went to a friend’s wedding out of state. So I missed a meeting. The following week I had an important medical procedure scheduled, one which left me unable to drive that night, so I missed the second meeting, and when something came up important on the night of the next meeting, she really got upset, telling me “3 meetings you’re dead”. She tried to guilt me into taking out a bank loan to buy a lot of inventory – I didn’t, but she tried to make me feel bad. Meanwhile, she wouldn’t answer most of my questions, just never emailing me back. It was all one-sided. Once when I only had enough money to pay my electric bill, she told me that I had my priorities mixed up because I didn’t buy more inventory instead of paying my bill. I’ve since looked up the definition of cult, and read up on cults, and almost everything I experienced in MK, is cult-like. My recruiter didn’t want me to be on the Internet, she didn’t want me to think for myself, she didn’t want me to ask questions, she never wanted me to say or ask anything at all negative. I always felt like I was being kept in the dark. I can’t live that way.
For the record, qualifying for a car (earning the use of it) does not necessarily make you successful. Mainting it because you have a working/selling unit without co-op payments would be more appropriate a description.
We have Grand Prix directors earning more than Cadillac directors because the work they are doing is supporting the level they are.
My Director was funny too. One year in November there was a big MK weekend coming up. I couldn’t get that Friday off so I decided to go after work. My director was miffed because I had to go to my other “job”. Heck, that other “job” was paying for the inventory I was buying to make her look good. My inventory paid for her son’s spring break in Cancun, her maid and her venitian plaster in her living room.
Hmmm, not too many people here defending MK. Speaks VOLUMES, doesn’t it? :-)