Avon Products
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Avon Products, Inc. | |
 |
|
| Type | Public (NYSE: AVP) |
|---|---|
| Founded | New York, New York (1886) |
| Headquarters | New York, New York |
| Key people | Andrea Jung, Chairman & CEO; Susan Kropf, President & COO |
| Industry | Personal & Household Products |
| Products | Cosmetics, perfume, toys, clothing |
| Revenue |  $8.1 billion USD (2005) |
| Slogan | The Company for Women |
| Website | Avon Corporate Website |
Avon Products, Inc. NYSE: AVP is an American cosmetics, perfume and toy seller with markets in over 135 countries across the world and sales of $8.1 billion worldwide as of 2005.
Traditionally a direct marketing company, Avon's fastest growing markets today are in China and Russia. Currently, the company is headed up by Andrea Jung, the company's chairman and CEO, who was promoted to the position in 1999. Avon uses both door-to-door sales people ("Avon ladies," primarily) and catalogs to advertise their products, but in some markets (most notably China, who banned all door-to-door selling in the 1990s) Avon products are sold primarily in retail stores.
Some of Avon's product lines include Avon Color, Anew and Solutions, Skin-So-Soft and Naturals, as well as various perfumes, pieces of jewellery and clothing.
Although the company has always been more directed towards female customers, Avon's line of male products continues to expand, and their children's products (such as shampoos and toys) have also proved to be a good source of revenue. Two recent brand diversifications, "mark." (targeted to younger, college-aged women) and "M" (an Avon catalogue for men) have helped the company reach out into markets they traditionally have not serviced in the past. Mark. proved to be extremely successful in reaching a new generation of recruits, primarily ages 18-25, with a monthly "magalog" featuring award-winning products.
In addition to its corporate pursuits, the Avon corporation is also involved in philanthropic causes, primarily centered on women's empowerment and health issues.
Contents |
[edit] History
The company was founded in 1886 by then 28-year-old David H. McConnell as the California Perfume Company (CPC) in New York, New York in a 500 square foot manufacturing and shipping office at 126 Chambers Street. In 1897, McConnell built a small (3000 square foot) laboratory in Suffern, New York; by 1971 the lab would grow into the Avon Suffern Research and Development facility; by 2005 they opened a $100 million dollar 225,000 square foot R&D "glass curtain" facility to house its over 300 Research and Development Scientists on the original site in Suffern, NY. In 1906, the West Coast office in San Francisco was destroyed in the Great Earthquake of that year. Offices open in Luzerne, Pennsylvania and Davenport, Iowa.
In 1914 the first non-US office was opened in the Canadian province of Quebec. By 1918, five million units were sold in North America, and by 1928, sales reached $2 million. In October, 1939, the name was changed to Avon Products, Inc. The company was taken public in 1946. By 1954, sales reached $55 million, and the famous "Avon Calling" advertising campaign introduced. By 1979, sales reached $3 billion, with one million direct sales agents.
[edit] Corporate governance
Current members of the board of directors of Avon Products, Inc. are: Don Cornwell, Edward Fogarty, Stanley Gault, Fred Hassan, Andrea Jung, Susan Kropf, Maria Lagomasino, Ann Moore, Paul Pressler, Paula Stern, and Lawrence Weinbach.
[edit] In Fiction
Because of the familiar catchphrase for their sales representives -- "Avon Ladies," they have become a popular trademark and have been featured in a handful of fictious works.
- In the 1983 film, Strange Invaders, one of the aliens poses as an Avon Lady.
- In Amalgam Comics, the frequent "Avon calling" catchphrase is used by Dare The Terminator.
- Avon has been mentioned in the Tim Burton film, Edward Scissorhands, as well as the Animaniacs parody of this film, Skullhead Boneyhands with Mr. Skullhead.
[edit] External links
- Avon Store Online
- Avon Corporate website
- Avon Company timeline
- mark. the makeup you can buy and sell, a division of Avon
- Avon non-profit support
Categories: Wikipedia articles needing style editing | Companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange | Companies established in 1886 | Cosmetics companies of the United States | Fortune 1000 | S&P 500 | Retail companies of the United States | Companies based in New York City | Personal selling | Multi-level marketing
