Mary Kay Ash

By Heather MacDonald

Early life•Mary Kay was born on May 12, 1918 in Harris County, TX.•Her full name in Mary Kathlyn Wagner. When she was only six years old, she had to look after her ill grandpa while her mother worked to provide for the family. Throughout her life, Mary’s mother was a huge influence for her and imparted her spirit on her by encouraging her with words like, “You can do it.”•Mary attended Reagan High School in Houston, graduating in 1934.

Business Experience

•She did some selling part-time, at Stanley Home Products. While she was there, she trained the man who ultimately took her position and promotion. She then transferred over to World Gifts and became a sales manager. After working there for 25 years, she called it quits and started writing a book.

Marriage

•In 1935 she married a man named Ben Rogers and had three children, Richard, Marilyn, and Ben. But then divorced in 1938.•In 1963 she married again but he died of a heart attack.•Two years after her second husband died she married again to a guy named Mel Ash. They lived for 15 years and then he died of cancer.

Mary Kay Cosmetics

•She started off with a $5,000 investment and she opened the store with her son Richard in September 13, 1963.•It got popular really fast and in one year they made $200,000 in profit. •When she passed away on November 22, 2001, she had over 800,000 representatives in 37 countries and annual sales of $2 billion at retail. She also had 1.7 million beauty consultants worldwide.

Quotes•“God first, Family second and Work third.”•“For every failure, there’s an alternative course of action. You just need to find it. When you come to a road block take a detour.”•“My goal is to live my life in such a way that when I die, someone can say, “she cared.”

Awards

•Horatio Alger award•Junior Achievement U.S. Business Hall of Fame in 1996•The Mary Kay Charitable Foundation helped prevent domestic violence and cancer•She was voted one of the “100 Best Companies to work for in America.”•And was on the cover of Fortune Magazine.

Mary Kay Ash Timeline:1918: Born in Hot Wells, Harris County, Texas.1934: Graduated from Reagan High School in Houston.1935: Married to Ben Rogers.1963: Started the company, Mary Kay Cosmetics.1976: Received the Hall of fame Award from Direct Selling Association.1979: She was interviewed for CBS's 60 Minutes.1980: Received the Golden Plate Award, American Academy of Achievement.1981: Her autobiography, “Mary Kay” was published.1984: She published her best-seller book, “Mary Kay on People Management”.1987: Retired from the company and became the chairman emeritus of the company.1996: Inducted into the Junior Achievement U.S. Business Hall of Fame, Founded the Mary Kay Ash Charitable Foundation.2001: Died on November 22.

Work Cited

•www.famous-women-andbeauty.com•www.wikipedia.com•www.biography.com

•My Mom – a Consultant

Pictures