Mary Kay Celebrates 50 Years in Beauty

Far from its beginnings as a brand that started in a 500-square-foot storefront in Dallas with five beauty products displayed on a single metal shelf and with nine independent beauty consultants, Mary Kay celebrated its 50th anniversary on September 13. Founded in 1963, the company was called Beauty by Mary Kay, and now, Mary Kay Inc. has more than 200 products that are sold in 37 countries around the world by three million Mary Kay independent beauty consultants.

To celebrate in the U.S., Mary Kay held a pink Cadillac rally and caravan. More than 100 pink Cadillacs blanketed the Dallas Arts District in front of the AT&T Performing Arts Center before caravanning up the Dallas North Tollway via police escort to the Mary Kay global headquarters. Once there, the pink Cadillacs spelled out a commemorate message in tribute to the company’s golden anniversary.

The company noted its recent accomplishments:

• Adding 350,000 Mary Kay businesses by new independent sales force members around the world during the past year.
• Achieving the highest sales month in company history in March 2013.
• Launching its first global makeup artist team. The team consists of artists from the fashion capitals of the world who share their expertise on products, application techniques and trends.
• Hosting a Global Makeover Day and setting a company record for the most number of makeovers in a single day on March 8, 2013, for International Women’s Day. The Global Makeover Day was the kickoff event for the Global Makeover Contest.
• Setting a Guinness World Record for the largest makeup painting. The painting was done exclusively with Mary Kay products. The finished artwork measured 56.5 square meters, or 608 square feet.
• Donating nearly $5 million to organizations benefiting women and children around the world for the 50th anniversary year.
• Developing Mary Kay At Play, a global product line targeting Gen Y. The Mary Kay At Play collection focuses on the next generation of Mary Kay brand lovers.
• Exceeding the milestone of more than 800 issued and pending patents covering Mary Kay’s products, technologies and designs around the world.

“Our 50th anniversary has been a record-setting year for our company,” said David Holl, president and CEO for Mary Kay Inc. “Women of all backgrounds and ages continue to turn to Mary Kay for the products they love and trust as well as the unparalleled opportunity.”