Avon has been delighting customers for over 100 years, and continues the tradition today with a comprehensive catalog of hundreds of items. With an easy ordering system, one-on-one attention and a brand name with decades of success supporting it, Avon is the go-to brand for cosmetics, skin care and fragrances for millions of women in 140 countries worldwide. Frequently updated sales brochures, order-enticing discounts and ongoing training for each representative ensures a consistent level of quality for buyers and opportunity for sellers. These traits play a large part in making the company a profitable force to be reckoned with in the direct sales industry.
Avon is a name with superstar status in the world of direct sales. Famous for an extensive line of bath and body care, numerous additions to the line through the years - fragrance, fashion, home goods and more - have made this company a truly enormous opportunity for driven entrepreneurs. With over 125 years of successful history behind the brand, Avon is a heavy hitter that delivers proven profits to its representatives. Avon sells its bath, body, home and beauty products through in-person representation, professional catalogs and sales brochures.
From Carriages to the Web
Mrs. Persis Foster Eames Albee has the distinction of being the very first “Avon lady,” having sold and delivered perfumes door-to-door in 1886 for the company that would later take the name Avon in 1928. She used a horse and buggy to display her product around town, a method that has thankfully been replaced by high-tech sales techniques like online advertising and emails today. While there’s a lot to be said for Mrs. Albee’s initial dedication, modern technology has allowed the newest generation of Avon representatives to sell more product to wider audiences than ever before. New Avon representatives have access to unprecedented support and guidance, both from their team leader and the company itself, and experience the strength of a brand that has dominated the direct sales makeup and skincare industry for over a century.
Lotions, Potions and Teamwork
The support system around the brand now features a robust network of representatives that recruit their own teams to sell Avon, in turn gaining a profit from multiple levels of sales. The flexible nature of the business and surprisingly low start-up cost mean that joining is a very enticing opportunity for newcomers to direct sales. In 2010 alone, Avon reported having 5.8 million representatives around the world, with nearly half a million in the United States alone. Generally, an Avon representative will elect to stay within a certain area, or territory, and sell to a handful of repeat customers to help build their business. This approach helps the sales model flourish and deliver success to newcomers and seasoned Avon professionals alike.
More Than Makeup
Never a company to lag behind the times, Avon is constantly adding to and improving its product line, building on the success of iconic brands like SkinSoSoft with new concepts like fashionable clothing and a jewelry collection. This progressive approach to catalog offerings allows the company’s reps to keep even longtime customers interested and engaged, leading to higher sales and more frequent orders. Avon carefully balances the need for new, exciting products with the loyal following of older brands, keeping names like Imari perfume in rotation to satisfy longtime clients. While the focus of the company continues to be skincare, body care and cosmetics, the fresh infusions of new niches give their reps plenty to talk up in sales efforts.
The oldest company still operating under the direct sales model for cosmetics, it’s little wonder this pretty product powerhouse is enthusiastically sold in over 140 countries around the world.
