Mary Kay Cosmetics

Mary Kay Ash, Founder

Mary Kay Ash (May 12, 1918–November 22, 2001) was a U.S. businesswoman and the founder of Mary Kay Cosmetics, Inc.. Born Mary Kathlyn Wagner in Hot Wells, Texas, Ash worked for several direct sales companies from the 1930s until the early 1960s, achieving considerable success as a salesperson and trainer.

Frustrated, however, at being passed over for promotions in favor of men, she retired in 1963, intending to write a book to assist women in business. The book turned into a business plan for her ideal company, and in September 1963, Ash and her son, Richard Rogers, began Mary Kay Cosmetics with a $5,000 investment.

Mary Kay Cosmetics

The company originally operated from a storefront in Dallas but grew rapidly, particularly after Mary Kay was interviewed for CBS’s 60 Minutes in 1979. The famous pink Cadillacs awarded to top sales people were the most visible sign of the company’s success.

Mary Kay Consultants

Mary Kay Ash was widely respected, if not always understood, for her unconventional approach to business. She considered the Golden Rule the founding principle of Mary Kay Cosmetics, and the company’s marketing plan was designed to allow women [become Mary Kay consultants] to advance by helping others to succeed. Unfailingly supportive and enthusiastic, she advocated “praising people to success,” and her slogan “faith first, family second, career third” expressed her insistence that the women in her company keep their lives in balance.

Mary Kay Ash Foundation

Both during her life and posthumously, Mary Kay Ash received numerous honors from business groups, including the Horatio Alger Award. A long-time fundraiser for charities, she founded the Mary Kay Ash Charitable Foundation to raise money to combat domestic violence and cancers affecting women. Ash served as Mary Kay Cosmetics’ Chairman until 1987, when she was named Chairman Emeritus.

Mary Kay Ash remained active in the company until suffering a stroke in 1996. Richard Rogers was named CEO of Mary Kay Inc. in 2001. At the time of Ash’s death, Mary Kay Cosmetics had over 800,000 representatives in 37 countries, with total annual sales over $2 billion at retail.

Mary Kay Ash is interred in the Sparkman-Hillcrest Memorial Park Cemetery in Dallas, Texas.