Selling Mary Kay products may seem easy. After all, it’s a very well-known brand. You have probably even been approached in the past to buy and/or sell their products. But as with other MLM Companies, the devil is in the details. In this Mary Kay MLM review, we’ll take a look at the quality of Mary Kay Ash’s products and how to determine if this is the right move for you.

Mary Kay Mlm Review - Featured

What is Mary Kay?

Mary Kay is a privately held multi-level marketing (MLM) company based in Texas. It was founded in 1963 by Mary Kay Ash and is currently run by David Holl the company’s President and Chief Executive Officer. The company sells cosmetics, jewelry, and skin care products for men through direct sales. In 2018, it was the sixth largest direct selling company in the world with revenues of $3.25 billion.

There are over 3.5 million Mary Kay Beauty Consultants working in countries around the world, including Russia. 

Mary Kay is probably best known for the pink Cadillac that consultants can qualify for when they reach a certain rank. We’ll talk more about that in a moment. Let’s take a look at the products first.

Are Mary Kay Products Worth Their Price?

The Mary Kay product line is competitively priced compared to other similar products. For example, the image below shows Purifying Cleanser, $26; Nourishing Oil, $48; Exfoliating Powder, $34; and a Moisturizing Stick, $28.

Mary Kay Mlm Review

According to the catalog, the Mary Kay Naturally line is free of synthetic dyes, synthetic fragrances, phthalates and parabens. This is important for women with sensitive skin.

But are they worth the price? In this particular case? Maybe. Other similar products include Elizabeth Arden, Revlon and Avon. Revlon’s products are available over-the-counter at department stores and pharmacies.

The Mary Kay Business Opportunity

Once you sign up, you’ll get access to the consultant’s website, digital marketing tools and other business resources. You’ll also need to purchase a starter kit. The starter kit includes product samples, party samples, and literature.

How Much Does It Cost To Join Mary Kay?

Once you sign up and become an independent beauty consultant, you’ll get access to the consultant’s website, digital marketing tools and other business resources. You’ll also need to purchase a starter kit for $130. The starter kit includes product samples, party samples, and literature.

Can You Make Money With Mary Kay?

Beauty Consultants can make 50% gross profit on all products sold at full retail price. The other way to make money is through recruitment. Every time you refer someone, you are entitled to a portion of all sales made in your downline.

And here is the catch. To stay active, you must order at least $225 worth of products wholesale every three months. Mary Kay has a reputation for changing product formulas. This leads to the consultants having old, outdated products that are hard to sell because customers want the new and improved formulas. This puts a lot of pressure on the consultants.

It’s a losing bet because for every product order you get 50% commission. So you get $112.50 commission on a $225 order, but you may also be stuck with an outdated inventory that you can not sell. So there is a lot of pressure to sell these products.

What do you do with old, obsolete products? Well, some consultants have taken to selling their old inventory on Ebay or Amazon to try to recoup their losses. That’s officially forbidden, by the way.

Please note that Mary Kay doesn’t track products sold to clients. Only products sold to consultants are tracked. So there’s a lot of pressure from the upline to buy products.

Pros of Mary Kay MLM

Satisfaction Guaranteed: all products are guaranteed and can be replaced, exchanged or money refunded free of charge, even if the consultant is no longer active. 

Lots of Incentives: one of the biggest incentives is the Mary Kay Cadillac. Other incentives include a Mini Cooper, a Ford Mustang and a Chevrolet Malibu. These incentives are for top performers in selling products. 

Cash Incentives: For those who qualify for a car but would rather have cash, you can opt for cash ranging from $425 to $900 per month.

Cons of Mary Kay MLM

Must Buy a Starter Kit: The Starter Kit costs $130 and must be purchased in order to begin selling products. Unfortunately, this can be a hardship for some.

Misleading Product Information: some product information can be misleading. For example, the Mary Kay Timewise Repair Lifting Serum would have you believe that it can tighten sagging skin, as the name implies. However, if you read the fine print, you’ll find that it gives the appearance of tightening skin. It does not actually lift sagging skin.

Rewards Come At A Price: if you manage to qualify for a car, you will have to pay 85% of the insurance and other related costs yourself. Also, Mary Kay will only cover the car installments if you can continue to meet your sales quota.

Commission Requirements: To qualify for the 50% commission, you must make at least $450 in retail sales within a 3-month period.

Is The Mary Kay MLM A Scam or Pyramid Scheme?

Mary Kay is not a scam and is one of the more reputable MLMs out there. As is common with all MLMs, you have to buy a starter kit before you can get started. That makes sense, but it also means you are out of pocket before you sell anything.

Final Thoughts

The inventory issue should be a real concern for anyone looking to sell Mary Kay products. Remember, every time you place an order, your recruiter (upline) gets a piece of your pie without the inventory or burden of selling it.

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One Comment

  1. I have indeed seen an advertisement from a Mary Kay consultant posing next to the infamous pink Cadillac. But I have also seen warnings about joining them because of expenses that their distributors have to incur to stay active. To buy products that then become outdated, is just not fair to the distributors, and makes Mary Kay unethical to me. 

    You mention it is officially forbidden to sell old inventory on eBay or Amazon, but what can Mary Kay do if they do find distributors selling on these platforms?