Mary Kay Case
According to Euromonitor, “in 2014, beauty and personal care saw strong current value growth” (Euromonitor.com, 2016, para. 1) in Turkey. This growth comes from increased urbanization along with a workforce that likes to take care of itself physically, as well as new products coming into the market. Because of this growing force, “companies will continue to invest in new product launches, advertising, and promotions” (Euromonitor.com, 2016, para. 5). With Turkey’s cosmetics industry being much smaller than the rest of Western Europe, there is plenty of room for growth. Datamonitor Consumer states that “the value growth of the personal care market will reach a total of 21.31% between 2015 and 2019” (Stage-Datamonitorconsumer.com, 2016, para. 1). Although there was an economic crisis in 2008/2009 in the United Arab Emirates, with Dubai preparing for the Expo 2020, which will bring about hospitality jobs as well as real estate jobs with large investments, these new job opportunities will increase sales all over, including in the area of cosmetics and skincare, all of this according to Euromonitor. The big trend in the United Arab Emirates is colour cosmetics. The two leading companies were Procter & Gamble and Max Factor. These brands have made competition fierce due to their customer loyalty, especially during the economic crisis in 2009. The colour cosmetics stay dominated by international brands, which could be great news for Mary Kay and their superior cosmetic/skincare line. Estée Lauder Middle East is another company that has shown to be a leader in the cosmetics industry in UAE in 2014, “due to its broad product portfolio within the premium segment” (Euromonitor.com, 2016, para. 2).
Mary Kay’s incentives are based on a multi-level marketing program. According to the company’s website, a consultant can earn up to 50% on everything they sell. With cosmetics continuously growing in Turkey and the UAE, the business would develop vastly because the market has a need for cosmetics. On top of this, the company offers the availability of earning world-class trips around the world, and a “Career Car” or the cash compensation in lieu of the vehicle (Marykay.com, 2016). Mary Kay Ash started the business with selling door-to-door. However, with the rise in social media and online marketing, there are different ways that the consultants are taught to gain the competitive advantage over multinational companies. The traditional way of marketing is in person; this is direct marketing as Mary Kay is a direct sales company. Another way to stay competitive is by hosting events with a free gift as an incentive. Online marketing is the most growing trend in direct sales. Network marketing involves those who buy the product, refer the product to others, thus the company is spread through word of mouth.