Go-to-Market Strategies for Women Entrepreneurs

Creating and Exploring Success

Victoria L. Crittenden, Victoria L. Crittenden

• Publisher: Emerald Publishing Limited
• Year: 2019
• ISBN:
  9781789732917
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Women in Business
• Index: Business

The role of women in business and society is beset with traditions and expectations that leave women's ambitious desires unfulfilled. And yet, with the rise of the female entrepreneur, this is changing. Entrepreneurship expert Victoria L. Crittenden, along with a cast of first-rate global contributors, provides a lens into the power of women entrepreneurship. From home businesses and Mompreneurs, to women-led global businesses such as The Body Shop and Ceja Vineyards, chapters explore the role woman entrepreneurship plays in building self-efficacy, the power of creating and utilizing social capital, the importance of being authentic and true to one's self, and the value of family, friends, mentors, and role models. By discussing ideas such as the ecosystem of radical generosity, where women are recognized for their talents and where women help each other to succeed, Crittenden and her contributors show the power of empowerment -- empowerment that can positively impact the social and fiscal health of nations through better education, poverty reduction, and decreased violence. For researchers and students of entrepreneurship, this is an unmissable book exploring the positive societal impact and strong economic effects of female empowerment. Through discussing case studies of some of the most successful and powerful women over the last fifty years, this book acts as both an inspiration for women just setting out on their own entrepreneurial journey and validation to those women who have already encountered the ups and downs of their entrepreneurial endeavors.

PART I
SUCCESS STORIES OF WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS

Mary Kay Ash: Keys to Success

Sheryl Adkins-Green

Abstract

This chapter explores the attributes that made Mary Kay Ash a global success – attributes that helped her build a global cosmetics empire at a time when strong, successful female entrepreneurs were almost unheard of. Mary Kay’s can-do spirit led her to create a company that enriched – and continues to enrich – millions of women’s lives around the globe. Her example, her teachings, her legacy live on today, and that legacy has inspired countless entrepreneurs, leaders, and business students. The qualities she exhibited remain an important part of Mary Kay’s legacy: imagination, passion, determination, integrity, courage, and compassion. Although those qualities were innate in Mary Kay, they resonate today as guidelines for others to follow in shaping their own careers – or their own empires. Mary Kay’s path was never easy, but she met every challenge she faced with grit and determination. Because she shaped her own path against all odds in a way that was uniquely her own, those who study her methods today can benefit from the examples she set, and her footsteps can lead others on their way to a rich, rewarding future.

Keywords: Imagination; passion; determination; integrity; courage; compassion

YOU CAN DO IT!

Humble Beginnings, Big Dreams

Mary Kay Ash was a famous American businesswoman and the founder of Mary Kay Cosmetics, Inc. Her path to success was formed by the character-building experiences of her childhood, the inequalities she experienced in the male-dominated workplace, and her visionary leadership she shared with others. From the age of seven, Mary Kay not only had to take care of her ailing father, she also had to undertake all household chores such as shopping, cooking, and cleaning. Her mother always encouraged her by saying, “You can do it, Mary Kay, you can do it.” Later, these words of encouragement would help her make the impossible possible.

After being passed over repeatedly for promotions by her male counterparts, Mary Kay, at the age of 45, took her life savings of $5,000 and opened her dream company in 1963. She began with a basic skin care line and nine independent sales consultants who shared her desire to define success on their own terms. It was not a great time for a widow to start a business. In fact, her attorney and her accountant advised her to “scrap the company while you can still salvage a few dollars.” Instead, Mary Kay tapped into her “can-do” attitude, her experience as a successful salesperson, and her passion to make a change for women, and she moved forward with her business plan. Reporting profits within just a few months, the company continued to grow each year and opened its own manufacturing facilities in the United States and China.

As a result of the company’s phenomenal growth, millions of women around the world benefited from the Mary Kay business opportunity. Mary Kay passed away in 2001 on Thanksgiving, her favorite holiday; however, her legacy lives on. Today, the Mary Kay opportunity is offered to women in nearly 40 countries. The company is a leader in product innovation with more than 1,500 patents for products, advanced technologies, and packaging designs. This worldwide success also provides an important channel for giving back. For example, the Mary Kay Foundation in the United States funds research for cancers that affect women and programs to end domestic violence, and similar foundations in other countries fund philanthropies that are important to them.

The Foundation of Success

Mary Kay Ash was, and still is, known for her legendary leadership skills. She built her dream company on them, and they still drive the heart and soul of the company today. Her core qualities drove her and made her a global business success and a life-changer for women everywhere. Tapping into these qualities can help shape a dream into a business plan and build character, authenticity, and integrity along the way.

Among Mary Kay’s many strengths, six key qualities made her an inspirational founder who built a global empire and a lasting legacy:

• Determination powered her focus and vision.
• Imagination drove her to see new possibilities and challenge the status quo.
• Passion inspired her to recognize obstacles as opportunities to excel.
• Integrity guided her relationships, business model, and life.
• Courage fueled her dedication to change.
• Compassion led her to touch the world and make it a better place.

Quality One: Determination

Purpose and poise, grit and grace, stone-cold determination balanced by legendary warmth and charm: Mary Kay Ash had an unwavering ability to remain dedicated to her goals while bringing others with her along the way. Taught the power of positivity by her mother at an early age, Mary Kay Ash shared her confidence by telling herself and others, “You can do it.” She believed that if you could imagine a goal, you could achieve it. As she often said, “The only difference between successful people and unsuccessful people is extraordinary determination.”

To understand what determination truly meant to Mary Kay Ash, one must know the specific circumstances under which she started her business. As Mary Kay wrote in Miracles Happen (Ash, 1994, pp. 4–6):

I had developed a strategy and a philosophy for beginning my own “dream company.” I had recruited several salespeople and invested my life savings into the chance of a lifetime. Using my years of experience in direct sales, I was going to train and supervise the Beauty Consultants, while my husband was going to handle the administrative details of our new business. We had assembled boxes of bottles and jars and brand-new labels that read, “Beauty by Mary Kay.” (Of course, this was later changed to Mary Kay Cosmetics.)

Exactly one month before we were scheduled to open, my husband and I were having breakfast together. He was reading the final percentage figures for our company, and I was listening very much as a wife often does when her husband talks about the budget – with half an ear, because I considered it to be “his problem.” At that moment, he suffered a fatal heart attack.

I believe that work is often the best antidote for grief. And so, despite my shock, I decided to open the business as planned. Starting the company had been my dream and my idea, but I had never imagined that I would run it alone. I knew that I didn’t have the needed administrative skills; and yet, at this point, all the merchandise, bottles and labels were useless if the company folded now. I had to go on.

I turned to both my attorney and my accountant for advice.

“Mary Kay,” my attorney said, shaking his head, “liquidate the business right now and recoup whatever cash you can. If you don’t, you’ll end up penniless.”

I had hoped that my accountant would be a little more encouraging, but after studying the situation he said, “You can’t possibly do it,” he said. “This commission schedule will never work. It’s just a matter of time before the company goes bankrupt – and you along with it.”

The day of my husband’s funeral, my sons and my daughter came to Dallas from Houston. Perhaps it was the worst possible time to make a business decision, but it could no longer be delayed. After the funeral, we sat in my living room and discussed the recommendations I had received. My children listened in silence.

My 20-year-old son, Richard, was a sales representative for Prudential Life Insurance Company. One of the youngest agents in Texas, he was making the incredible salary of $480 a month. (I thought it was just unbelievable – after all, he was just a kid!) If Mary Kay were to become a reality, I needed his help; but there was no way I could afford a salary like that. I took a deep breath and offered him $250 a month to help me guide the new company. Richard accepted without hesitation. And over the horrified protests of other family members and friends, he immediately quit his job and moved to Dallas.

My elder son, Ben, was 27 years old, married and the father of two. He could not pull up roots and move as quickly as his brother. But after hearing my plans to continue the company, he said, “One day I’d like to join you and Richard.” Then calmly and deliberately he reached into his breast pocket and pulled out a savings passbook. The balance showed $4,500 – a sum I knew represented everything he had saved since high school.

“Mother,” he said, “I think you could do anything in this world that you wanted to.” Then he handed me the passbook. “Here’s my savings. If it will help you in any way, I want you to have it.”

On Friday, September 13, 1963, one month after the funeral, Mary Kay Cosmetics opened on schedule. With myself, nine salespeople, and my 20-year-old son as financial administrator, how did I know I could do it? Well, I didn’t! I had no crystal ball. All I knew was that I had to do it. As for the predictions of my attorney and accountant, I figured they didn’t have any crystal balls either. Besides, they didn’t understand the business the way I did. I also knew that I would never have a second chance to put my dream into action. If Mary Kay Cosmetics folded, I wasn’t going back to an easy retirement. I’d be broke! And that meant that I’d have to work for someone else for the rest of my life. That’s a very strong incentive! So no matter what anyone thought, I would not give up my dream. My children had said, “You can do it.” And that was all I needed!

Mary Kay Ash triumphed over tragedy, and the rest, as they say, is history, or in this case, legacy. It is hard to imagine a grief-stricken widow starting a business one month after her husband and business partner died at the kitchen table of a massive heart attack. But, for Mary Kay Ash, the answer was “yes, I can. I must.” Since 1963, millions of women around the world have been inspired to achieve their personal goals and financial success through the Mary Kay opportunity.

Quality Two: Imagination

Mary Kay was ahead of her time all the time. For Mary Kay Ash, it was always mission possible. An idea for a book became a revolutionary business plan, a lack of opportunity for women ignited a desire for change, and her ability to see beyond the boundaries of “what is” led her to blaze a trail for “what can be.”

Mary Kay built a social network one woman at a time, used word of mouth to drive engagement, and grew her start-up product line to include the best in scientific breakthroughs. She disrupted the idea of “business as usual.” She gave people the power to walk away from limitations by sharing this simple idea: “If you believe it, you can achieve it.”

Mary Kay was often quoted as saying, “Limitations live only in our minds. But if we use our imaginations, our possibilities become limitless.” One of her favorite inspirational stories was about the bumblebee:

We think the bumblebee is the perfect symbol because, as aerodynamic engineers “proved” many years ago, the bumblebee cannot fly! Its wings are too weak, and its body is too heavy. Fortunately, the bumblebee doesn’t know that and goes right on flying. At Mary Kay, we teach people how to spread their wings and fly on their own. I can’t think of a better way to help people. (Ash, 1984, p. 98)

This symbol of unequaled determination became one of Mary Kay Ash’s legendary icons of achievement and still motivates women today to soar.

Imagination powered the possibilities not only for Mary Kay Ash but also for all women. She often spoke about the power of imagination. Favorite quotes she often shared include:

“What you believe, you can achieve.”

“Every achievement, big or small, begins in your mind.”

“Be a dreamer. Have a sense of greatness. It has been said that if you can dream it, you can do it. And I believe that. Before your dream can become a reality, you have to see it in your own mind; see its fulfillment, whatever it may be.”

“You can go as far as your mind lets you.”

“Believe in yourself and know that you can do anything in this world that you want to do if you want to do it badly enough and you are willing to travel the road. Whatever you vividly imagine, ardently desire, sincerely believe and enthusiastically act upon must inevitably come to pass.”

Quality Three: Passion

As Mary Kay loved to say, “Nothing great is ever achieved without enthusiasm!” and “Leaders must be able to arouse enthusiasm.” Throughout her early years, Mary Kay Ash believed that a mediocre idea that generates enthusiasm will go further than a great idea that inspires no one. Enthusiasm is not just contagious – it spreads like wildfire. Employees often reflect the personalities of the company’s owners. A CEO’s enthusiasm and positive personality can permeate an entire organization.

We all know the powerful effect that enthusiasm has on groups of people, but most of our dealings with people are one-on-one relationships. In these relationships, the amount of enthusiasm we can generate is a measure of our powers of persuasion. Conversely, a lack of enthusiasm can produce negative results. Hesitation and self-doubt are equally contagious. Mary Kay Ash wrote: “It’s interesting to note that the word enthusiasm comes from a Greek origin meaning, ‘God within.’ Similarly, enthusiasm must begin within you – and when you are consumed with e...