Avon - Hello Tomorrow Campaign
Avon, the oldest cosmetics company in the United States and the world’s largest direct seller, received a much needed boost with Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Andrea Jung, at the helm (Creed and Laichas). Andrea became the company’s first female CEO in 1994, marking the beginning of a brand turnaround (“Avon Products, Inc.”). From its humble beginning to becoming the cosmetic giant that it is now, Avon has had a number of trials and bounce backs. It’s most recent success, the Hello Tomorrow global campaign was launched in response to lacking sales in 2005 (Elliott). The campaign goal was to restructure the company, reinvest in the brand as well as the sales representatives, all while spreading the word that Avon understands and empowers women all over the globe (Creed and Laichas, Elliott). Avon, originally named the California Perfume Company, was born in the 1880s, when David H. McConnell, a door-to-door book salesman, began to offer small bottles of perfume to the women who would allow him to come into their homes and talk about his books. It did not take him long to figure out that the women were more interested in the perfume than they were the books he was selling. Taking a leap of faith, Mr. McConnell stopped selling books completely to focus on the perfumes. Working from home in New York City, he brewed five different scents which he named the “Little Dot Perfume Set,” consisting of heliotrope, hyacinth, lily of the valley, violet, and white rose. He intended to sell the perfumes directly to customers utilizing all of the contacts he had made during his time as a traveling door-to-door salesman (“Avon Products, Inc.”).
The first Avon Lady he recruited was the wife of a U.S. senator, Mrs. P.F.E. Albee, of Winchester, New Hampshire. Mrs. Albee was able to recruit and train a sales team of one hundred within the first six months. That number continued to climb steady, to over five thousand after twelve years. The company, excited about the
The first Avon Lady he recruited was the wife of a U.S. senator, Mrs. P.F.E. Albee, of Winchester, New Hampshire. Mrs. Albee was able to recruit and train a sales team of one hundred within the first six months. That number continued to climb steady, to over five thousand after twelve years. The company, excited about the
Cited: “Avon Hello Tomorrow Fund.” Avon. 2006. 25 Aug. 2008 <http://shop.avon.com/HelloTomorrowFund/>. “Avon Products, Inc.” International Directory of Company Histories. Vol. 46. Farmington Hills: St. James Press, 2002. N. pag. Business and Company Resource Center. Gale. Andover Coll. Lib. 25 Aug. 2008 <http://infotrac.galegroup.com/itweb/?db=BCRC>. Avon Products, Inc. SWOT Analysis. Company Profile. New York: Datamonitor, 2007. Business Source Premier. EBSCO. Andover Coll. Lib. 25 Aug. 2008 <http://search.ebscohost.com/>. Avon Products, Inc. SWOT Analysis. Company Profile. New York : Datamonitor, 2008. Business Source Premier. EBSCO. Andover Coll. Lib. 27 Aug. 2008 <http://search.ebscohost.com/>. Edwards Creed, Jane, and Nancy Laichas. “Hello Tomorrow! Avon: Transforming A Global Giant.” Direct Selling News. 22 Aug. 2008 <http://www.directsellingnews.com/article_app.php?articleid=6>. Elliott, Stuart. “Avon Comes Calling With A New Campaign.” New York Times 15 Mar. 2007. 22 Aug. 2008 <http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/15/business/media/15adco.html>. “Reese Witherspoon Is An Avon Woman.” Just Jared. 25 Aug. 2008. 25 Aug. 2008 <http://justjared.buzznet.com/2007/08/01/reese-witherspoon-avon/>.