View From Behind the Sales Director’s Desk
A note from a Mary Kay Sales Director’s office assistant…
I just wanted to let you know that I believe that PinkTruth is a good and noble effort to help people. You will probably not reach those die-hards but you can’t be discouraged by that.
I am an office assistant for a Sr. Director. I consider her and her entire family as friends. They are nice people. I started as an independent contractor in 2015 so I’ve SEEN IT ALL. I work about 35-40 hrs making $11 per hour.
My boss is a reasonable and lovely woman. REASONABLE in all areas of her life except, you guessed it, MK. Even her husband is in the Pink Fog. Her whole family is.
Her daughter and niece are recruits. No one is making any money including my boss. She is currently in Car Production (again!). She needs $42,000 I think, to get her car. She has driven a Caddy before but that kind of production is pie in the sky right now. She is currently behind in production and is trying to make up for the production by buying inventory. We have adjusted her inventory shelves to accommodate this extra stuff. It’s making her depressed. She acts upbeat for the sake of her downline and adoptees and others, but is drowning.
She does not know that I read Pink Truth. She would DIE if she knew I read your site. I learn more about the company and what goes on from your site than from her. I know all the little nitty gritty details that I shouldn’t know. She only tells me the good stuff.
Needless to say, I feel sorry for her. But I truly believe that she is too blinded by the Fog and too deeply entrenched to get out or to even want to get out. This is her 20+ year “in business.” Sales have been slow. She has lots of customers that order but they order just their regular skin care and color and never order the limited editions or fragrances or body care. Lots of these items are getting old sitting on the shelves. Very sad. If it weren’t for trading with other consultants who need product, stuff would go bad.
She has one offspring director who is struggling and barely makes production every month. This offspring has just received her THIRD “exception” to remain a director even tho’ she does not make the numbers.
My boss’s dream to be an NSD, I’m afraid, will never be. But she trudges along, hoping for the best. That something will turn this whole thing around. That the next few recruits will push them up.
Well, keep up the good work. Although and I am deeply involved in MK because of my job, I consider it just a job and are not blinded by the whole thing. Luckily, I still see clearly :o).
Sometimes I feel like a two-face. I smile and take care of things at the office like I believe in the whole thing. But, in my heart, I think its all a crazy racket.
Visit the
Please reconsider working for this person. $11.00/hr is not a living wage in this day
Also, if you are still working as an independent contractor at $11 per hour, that’s even worse than being a W2 employee. Furthermore, your “boss” may be violating state labor and tax laws by having you as an independent contractor rather than a W2 employee if you work on any kind of fixed schedule, do the type of work an employee of the “business” (this ain’t no business though) would normally do and are not permitted to work for other companies. Your boss could be on the hook for a sizeable amount of past due federal and state payroll taxes plus as much as 40% penalties on those taxes, and interest. In any case, $11/hour isn’t that great of a wage, unless perhaps you’re in the Dakotas or Montana. Maybe.
I’m live in the southern Dakota. That’s a crummy wage here as well. At least I would not be able to provide much other than rent to house myself and two kids on that wage. With that aside, I’d likely to qualify for SNAP benefits and Medicaid for them – but it wouldn’t look good if the MK SD office assistant had to have government assistance. It’s those darn optics!! It all needs to look real good and shiny. Who gives a rip about the truth.
I am NOT the office assistant, lol. No thanks!!
“I’m live” … I promise I have a brain. I even reread it and missed it 🤪 don’t think us Dakotans are buffoons just because… we’re Dakotans 🤓
Another thing to consider as an independent contractor: if you’re injured on the job, your medical bills and lost income won’t be covered by Labor & Industry (or whatever it’s called in your state). Depending on the injury, it could became a prolonged legal and financial mess for both parties. It’s not a risk you should take, especially for the peanuts she’s paying you.
It’s sad to say that you are making more money at this than your boss is. And that $11 an hour isn’t much! Consider another job where your skills will be rewarded financially. Good administrative assistants are valuable. I teach at a university and the two we have in our department know how to do everything. We are already a bit scared with one retiring in the next year or so. Consider schools, universities, businesses, etc. in your area. Not only will you be paid more, but you’ll receive benefits such as health insurance, 401K, paid sick days and vacations, etc.
I’m not surprised by this article. I was just thinking, Is this my former Sr Directors office assistant? They need those spin off directors to debut and then fail so they can reabsorb the leftover units to maintain whatever kind of production they need.
This entire system is so unhealthy! I think now it’s easier to support the mess with credit cards. I don’t think it started out this bad. In 1963, there had to be a little bit of actual selling/business building. What do y’all think?? I’m just floating my developing hypothesis.
My director/recruiter struggled endlessly. Her personal life had a lot of problems. I know it was devastating when those problems became known to the public (the entire small town, not just her MK world). Since then, even, it has deteriorated more. How do they keep living in the denial?
I guess I did until basically my entire life fell apart. Then I was forced to reassess without the rose-colored glasses.
Random rant inspired by this office assistant’s post. Good post! You should consider a new job. You are much more valuable than $11/hr. Or perhaps start by asking for a raise. $20/hr or you walk. lol. You do you, boo.
In the beginning, Mary Kay consultants and directors could have never run their business’ the way of the modern consultants and directors do. The reason being banks rarely loaned money to unmarried women in the 1960’s and if married they usually had to have their husband co-sign. Women were not allowed to get a credit card until 1974 when the Equal Credit Opportunity Act passed.
Wow! This SD is losing money, but still spending money on an assistant? I wonder if this is solely to give the impression of a successful business. Full time at $11/hr is approx. $22K/year. At 35 hours/week, that’s still just under $20K annually. This one of the many expenses that drag on an xSDs profits, which is why none of their income claims come close to reality.
OP, do you have a view into her business ledger? My guess is she’s under water most months, and reports annual business losses on her taxes. While they claim that their commission and bonus checks are “income”, once you pull out expenses, all but the very rare xSD are actually running their business at a loss. If she’s in the US, line 31 of her Sched C tax filing will show her true business profit. For 99.6% of MLMers*, this line will show a negative value (business loss).
*According to research for the FTC.
I think you are right about keeping up appearances with her having an admin assistant to give the impression of success. This tends to happen a lot in MLMs where the appearance of success is vital to furthering the scam.
Plus required payroll taxes, if the “boss” is paying them like she should and not having this woman as an independent contractor, plus worker’s comp insurance depending on the state. It is more than just the hourly wage when you hire an employee, even if they just work on a very part-time basis. But, given the lack of business savvy by most of these beauty consultants, I kind of doubt the labor and payroll tax laws are being followed and it could cost this wannabe NSD even more than she realizes.
This could almost be the story of my former Senior director. When she lost me as director she soon after lost her punk caddy. She’s been trying desperately to requalify but needs a ridiculous amount by the end on the month. Oh the status of being part of a big Cadillac unit (insert HUGE eye roll). That now seems to be out of reach and the unit is pulling out the big guns . . . Wait for it. . . . Only need $16,000 whole sale to win a visit from the fabulous NSD!! Cheers, hooray, let’s do it!!! Only $16,000 in 15 days when Only 2-4 people show up to meetings, no one engages on the fb group, only 2 are registered for seminar. Let’s work the MK magic math once again.
Here’s a story we desparately need to hear about on this website… anyone hear of a Director falling out of qualification for the car and not keep up with the co-payments, and watch it actually get repossessed by one of those gruff looking repo men who smoke a lot of cigarettes? Would love to hear about that.
She lost the caddy but earned the next level down instead. I’m not sure how it was “turned in.” The goal to get a caddy is super high. The goal this month was $50,000 ws. That’s insane!
I had one of my “free” cars repoed. Just before I returned it, I backed into someone and it got a little damage. I had to pay so much 💵 to MK when I “won” my “free car.” What a dang scam!!!
Yeah, it’s unpleasant to watch them load it onto the back of their tow truck and haul it away. I did feel like a “lazy looser.”