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</form>Text Content
* Welcome
* For New Mary Kay Consultants
* FAQ – Frequently Asked Questions
* Mary Kay Truths
* About Pink Truth
* Site Guidelines and Rules
* Privacy Policy
* Contact Pink Truth
* Mary Kay Facts
* Top 10 Reasons to NOT Do Mary Kay
* The Mary Kay Pyramid
* Information for Mary Kay DIQs
* Mary Kay Destroying Women
* What is Multi-Level Marketing?
* 99% Lose Money in MLM
* Not Taught at Harvard
* Returning Inventory
* FAQ About Quitting Mary Kay
* Returning Your Starter Kit
* Product Date Codes
* Mary Kay Documents
* Mary Kay Consultant Agreement
* Mary Kay Sales Director Agreement
* Mary Kay National Sales Director Agreement
* NSD Compensation Chart
* Mary Kay’s Official Stance on Pink Truth
* Business Opportunity Rule
* Mary Kay NSD Emeritus Guide
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* Discussion Board
* Search
Search for: Search
Pink Truth
Facts, opinions, and the real story behind Mary Kay Cosmetics.
Skip to content
* Welcome
* For New Mary Kay Consultants
* FAQ – Frequently Asked Questions
* Mary Kay Truths
* About Pink Truth
* Site Guidelines and Rules
* Privacy Policy
* Contact Pink Truth
* Mary Kay Facts
* Top 10 Reasons to NOT Do Mary Kay
* The Mary Kay Pyramid
* Information for Mary Kay DIQs
* Mary Kay Destroying Women
* What is Multi-Level Marketing?
* 99% Lose Money in MLM
* Not Taught at Harvard
* Returning Inventory
* FAQ About Quitting Mary Kay
* Returning Your Starter Kit
* Product Date Codes
* Mary Kay Documents
* Mary Kay Consultant Agreement
* Mary Kay Sales Director Agreement
* Mary Kay National Sales Director Agreement
* NSD Compensation Chart
* Mary Kay’s Official Stance on Pink Truth
* Business Opportunity Rule
* Mary Kay NSD Emeritus Guide
* Applause Magazine (US)
* Applause Magazine (Canada)
* Discussion Board
* Search
Search for: Search
Business Basics
WHY MARY KAY IS A PYRAMID
June 19, 2018 May 14, 2018
In an effort to try and prove why Mary Kay Cosmetics isn’t a pyramid and isn’t
like those other bad companies, the author of this document may have
inadvertently done the opposite.
The Mary Kay legal department offered this document back in the early days of
Pink Truth (then called “Mary Kay Sucks”) to help you understand why Mary Kay
isn’t a pyramid scheme. But the questions this document suggests you ask should
really be asked of Mary Kay! The truthful answers would be really revealing! It
also makes several assertions about the Mary Kay opportunity that seem to fly in
the face of reality. (Ex. You can’t buy your way up… Oh yes you can!)
This is a noble effort at proving why Mary Kay is better than other companies,
but I wonder if you’ll agree with my opinion that it actually does a whole lot
to prove that Mary Kay is, indeed a pyramid and a business scam.
—————
Why Mary Kay Is Not a Pyramid or Multi-Level Marketing Plan
If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, Mary Kay has many “admirers.”
Over the years, Mary Kay has attracted the attention of many new direct selling
companies, some of whom attempt short cuts or attempt to duplicate elements of
our program. They may not have the resources to develop a quality product line
that can sustain a broad consumer base, they open with a big recruiting
promotion with dubious claims, reach a peak quickly and end up battered by
regulatory investigations or in bankruptcy. Many lack the retail product sales
to support their commission structures, which eventually causes collapse. The
following comments are intended to help you sort fact from fiction, it shares
our facts, and it will help you as you are asked questions about your business.
“If It Sounds Too Good To Be True, It Probably Is!”
“Once in a lifetime opportunity!” Ground floor, window of opportunity. A
legitimate business should be as good next year as it is this year. Your company
has a 40 year growth record, stability, and financial security.
“Make up to 25% Commissions!” This pales in comparison to a Consultant and a
Director’s earnings. Ask them how many levels of recruits must one have to earn
that commission percentage.
“Make $40,000 monthly in your spare time!” Maybe a lottery ticket, but rarely at
the beginning of a business. Look at how many people are earning that kind of
money, how many recruits would one need to earn that amount, what can a beginner
expect in the first year or two?
“You don’t have to sell anything! Just recruit.” Legitimate companies base their
businesses on actual product sales to consumers. Pyramid schemes pay a “bounty”
for signing up new recruits. The pool of new recruits eventually dries up.
Retail sales are key to supporting the commissions and incentives. Often, women
are left to package the products and men are the ones to recruit. Also, they
will give their organization a different name from the parent company or will
not clearly invite you to listen to XYZ’s company presentation, for fear that it
is a “turn-off.” We are proud of and always say who we are and what we do.
“Revolutionary New Products!” Words such as “leading edge and natural” can be
inviting, but few ingredients can be 100% natural or new. Does the company
manufacture its own products under its own control or does it rely on outside
contracts? Can all claims be substantiated? Is there a 100% satisfaction
guarantee?
What the Terms Mean
Multilevel: A marketing plan with several tiers of participants through which
products and commissions pass. Only those at the top buy directly from the
company.
Participants “downline” purchase products from “upline” distributors. The
discount is determined by a person’s level in the organization.
Network Marketing. A recent term, may have been coined to counteract multilevel.
You “network sales through an organization of recruits rather than through
personal
efforts.
Pyramid. These are illegal. Large numbers of people at the bottom of the pyramid
pay money to a few at the top for the chance to advance to the top and profit
from payments of others who might join later.
Career Path. Some companies claim we are “saturated.” This year alone, almost 40
women became National Sales Directors. There is plenty of room at the top for
women who possess the commitment, drive and willingness to work. There are
rewards and recognition at every step of our career path, not just at the very
top.
Product Quality. We have been the Best Selling Brand in America for 9 years and
intend to remain so because of the generation of new young women beginning to
use our products and because of the millions of dollars invested in our
manufacturing and distribution centers. We manufacture almost every product
ourselves to assure the highest standards of quality. Product safety, customer
satisfaction, guarantees and programs are in place to insure customer loyalty
for years to come.
Review
Mary Kay’s business is selling products, not “business opportunities.” We are
not in business to recruit women to buy products from us, but to buy and sell
for herself. No “investment” is required, only the purchase of a showcase. No
sales force position may be “bought” by the payment of fees or the purchase of
large inventories.
Everyone begins the same way, as a Beauty Consultant and advances solely on the
strength of her recruiting and sales abilities.
There are no levels of wholesalers between the company and consumer. There is
only one wholesale sale from the company to the consultant and one retail sale
from the consultant to the customer. Everyone, regardless of her status in the
sales organization, purchases products directly from the company based on the
same discount schedule, for resale to the consumer.
Mary Kay guarantees in writing that any consultant who terminates her
relationship with the company may return any new and unused products purchased
within one full year prior to return and receive a 90% buy-back, unlike some
companies that either offer no buy-back or 30, 60, or 90 day offers.
All commissions are paid directly to consultants and directors. In many other
companies, checks are written back and forth from the distributors, and no
relationship is present between the main company and its distributors until a
certain size organization is gained.
The Mary Kay Legal Department can assist you with any concerns!
RELATED POSTS
* Mary Kay is Not a Business
* Mary Kay is NOT a Business Opportunity
* The Real Mission of the Direct Selling Association
* Why MLM Distributors Can’t Make Money Selling Products
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In Defense of Mary Kay Directors
Why You Must Go to Mary Kay Seminar in Dallas THIS YEAR. (And next year, and
next year…)
4 COMMENTS
1. pinkvictim
June 19, 2018 at 1:28 pm 8 months ago
Always the lies and omissions… always.
Reply
2. MLM Radar
June 19, 2018 at 4:12 pm 8 months ago
There’s just enough truth in that essay to make the uninformed think that
it’s all true. The problem is that the true parts are layered with a lot of
misleading statements and outright lies.
Here are three big lies:
1. MK has a broad (end user) customer base. Wrong. The consultant is the
real customer. MK has a broad consultant base, but most consultants have
just a few repeat customers.
2. Commissions are paid on retail sales (to end users). Wrong again. MK
doesn’t track retail customers. Never has, never will. MK pays commissions
on “wholesale” sales to consultants.
3. Multi-level means both commissions and products pass through several
levels. Wrong, wrong, wrong. Multi-level means commissions on purchases get
paid by the company to several levels, but nearly all multi-level marketers
buy products directly from the company.
There’s more… like the subtle display of misleading MK word definitions… but
I do have other things to do today.
Reply
3. GMB SUCCESS
June 20, 2018 at 9:24 am 8 months ago
MARA KAY IS NOT PYRAMYD SKEEM AT ALL IS DOULA MARKETING!!! ALL CONSULTANTS
MUST SELL SAIL SALE!!! GLORICE MY FAVORITE MBA ALWAY SAY I NEED 1200
HOLE-SAIL!!! INCREASE INCOME BY HOLDING BEAUTY FACIALS AND SATAN HANDS!!!!
Reply
4. MK Tried It
June 25, 2018 at 10:32 pm 8 months ago
I was approached once by a MK consultant. I already worked in the beauty
industry, and I really was not interested. She was insistent, so I agreed. I
met her for lunch, and I knew within that meeting that it was definitely a
pyramid scheme. She brought a catalogue of MK products, which I had never
seen. I worked in a luxury cosmetics environment, and was turned off by how
cheap the products were. Still, I wanted to be polite, and asked a few
questions about the products. She didn’t seem to know anything about makeup
or the products. She just keep talking about bringing other people on to
sell the makeup. I realized that it wasn’t about selling the makeup. It was
about getting people to sell the makeup. You just keep recruiting more
people under you. I knew that this was NOT a sustainable business model. You
can’t continuously recruit your clients to be employees and continue to grow
sales. I told her I would think about it. I left and I laughed and laughed.
I told my boyfriend and we laughed some more. I wondered how women listen to
this sales pitch and get taken in. It may not fit the definition of a
pyramid scheme- but it is absolutely a scam.
Reply
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