For many years, Mary Kay Cosmetics had inventory “levels” or packages that started at $600 wholesale and went up to $3,600 wholesale. That highest inventory level was considered a “full store”, and often referred to as “profit level” because consultants were expected to reinvest any “profits” into inventory until they reached that much stuff on their shelves. After accumulating $3,600 wholesale inventory (either all at once or little by little), then consultants were advised that it was okay to start paying themselves the profits (if any) out of their Mary Kay businesses.

More recently, the company came up with the Pearl level of inventory, which is $4,800 wholesale. That’s even more product sitting on the shelf, and in my opinion, totally unnecessary. When carrying such large levels of inventory, consultants can run into problems such as:

• a customer orders a product she doesn’t have, and she must still place an order (and in order to get the products at wholesale cost, she may have to order unneeded items so that she meets the minimum order amount)
• she doesn’t really “need” anything but must still place an order to stay “active”
• products and packaging are changed, making the current product on her shelf obsolete
• some products expire before they’re sold
• the consultant simply can’t predict which products will be good sellers
• if the purchase of inventory was put on a credit card, it is quite possible that the monthly interest charges will be burdensome

If that isn’t bad enough…

One sales director is promoting an even HIGHER level of inventory, if you can believe that. She’s been promoting $5,400 wholesale as the “Total Success Package”. In my opinion, that is far more inventory than anyone needs on their shelf, and quite misleading to call it the package for “total success”.

Who starts a Mary Kay business with the intent to fail? Don’t all new beauty consultants want success? Doesn’t this “level” prey upon that desire to be successful in order to convince women to make a financially ill-advised decision?

To me, it is absolutely silly to purchase that much product up front or to accumulate that much on one’s shelf. I don’t think there are many consultants or directors who are selling enough to justify that much on hand. I realize that most recruiters are promoting the “you can’t sell from an empty wagon” theory, but this much inventory in a “business” like Mary Kay is beyond silly.

Check out the flyer created for to promote this big inventory package. Click on the image to see it full size. And don't miss the sales director's note on the bottom that you can use up to 4 credit cards for your order!