Avon

Avon Products is the corporate entity historically associated with the Avon cosmetics and personal-care brand. Its origins date to 1886, when David H. McConnell, a New York door-to-door book salesman, began offering perfume as an alternative to books. The early business developed into the California Perfume Company, which expanded from a small Manhattan operation into an international direct-selling enterprise. The Avon name began appearing on products in 1928, and the company formally adopted Avon Products, Inc. as its name in 1939. The company’s defining commercial model was relationship-based direct selling. Independent representatives, often referred to as Avon representatives or historically as “Avon ladies,” used personal networks, printed brochures, demonstrations, and later digital tools to sell cosmetics, fragrances, skin-care products, jewelry, apparel, and household or personal-care goods. Representatives were generally independent sellers rather than employees, earning income from product sales and, in some markets, from recruiting additional representatives. This model gave Avon unusually broad geographic reach and made the brand especially visible in communities where conventional beauty retail was less developed. Avon grew into a multinational beauty company with operations in more than 100 countries. Its portfolio included color cosmetics, fragrances, skin care, bath and body products, hair-related products, jewelry, accessories, and fashion merchandise. Recognized product and brand lines have included Anew, Avon Color, Clearskin, Skin So Soft, Imari, Far Away, Today Tomorrow Always, Black Suede, Avon Care, and Avon Senses. Brazil became a particularly important market, overtaking the United States as Avon’s largest market in 2010. The company also entered China in 1990 and adapted its distribution model when Chinese restrictions temporarily limited direct selling. After years of declining sales, especially in North America, Avon undertook major restructuring. Its North American business was separated into New Avon LLC in 2016, while Avon Products moved its global headquarters to London and concentrated on international operations. The company also divested or restructured assets, including the sale of its U.S. manufacturing facility and the disposal of various businesses. These measures followed weakening sales, changing consumer purchasing habits, increased competition from specialty beauty retailers, and pressure on the traditional representative-led model. Natura &Co announced an agreement to acquire Avon Products in 2019, and the transaction closed in January 2020. The combination brought Avon together with Natura, Aesop, and The Body Shop under a major global beauty group. Avon Products ceased to be an independently traded New York Stock Exchange company when the transaction was completed. The Avon name and commercial operations continued within the broader group, although ownership and regional structures subsequently evolved. New Avon, the separate North American business, was acquired by LG Household & Health Care in 2019 and later changed its corporate name to The Avon Company. Avon’s history also includes significant governance and reputational issues. A long-running investigation into alleged bribery and possible Foreign Corrupt Practices Act violations in China and other markets resulted in employee suspensions and dismissals and a 2014 settlement with U.S. authorities. The company also faced scrutiny over animal testing in markets where local regulations required testing, although in 2019 it stated that it had ended regulatory-required animal testing across its brands by developing alternative approaches. In 2024, Avon Products filed for Chapter 11 protection in the United States in connection with litigation involving talc-based products. The legal proceeding marked another stage in the company’s complicated post-public-company history.

Avon traces its origins to 1886, when David H. McConnell founded the California Perfume Company in the United States. McConnell's early sales model relied on representatives who visited customers and demonstrated products personally. This approach distinguished the business from fixed-location retail and created a scalable relationship-selling network. The Avon name was adopted later as the company expanded, drawing on the association with Stratford-upon-Avon in England. During the twentieth century, Avon expanded its catalog business and representative organization across the United States and international markets. Fragrance, cosmetics, skincare, bath products, and personal care became the foundation of the assortment. The representative network allowed Avon to reach consumers in communities that were underserved by conventional beauty counters, while catalogs provided a repeatable way to present a large selection of products. The “Avon Calling” advertising language became one of the best-known expressions of the model, and a 1954 television commercial helped establish the brand in mass media. Avon developed a close association with women's economic participation because many representatives used the business as a flexible source of income. The company also built a public-purpose identity around women's health and empowerment. In the 1990s it promoted breast-cancer awareness through pink-ribbon products and fundraising, extending that work into the twenty-first century. These initiatives became an important part of Avon's corporate and marketing narrative. The company later faced structural challenges. Beauty consumers increasingly moved toward specialty retailers, e-commerce, social platforms, and fast-moving product trends, while traditional direct selling became harder to sustain in some markets. Avon responded with international restructuring, digital tools for representatives, product innovation, and changes to its corporate portfolio. In 2010 it acquired Silpada, a direct seller of silver jewelry. In 2015, an affiliate of Cerberus Capital Management acquired 80.1 percent of Avon's North American business for reported cash consideration of $170 million; a subsequent 2016 investment increased Cerberus's economic involvement in Avon Products. These transactions separated the North American operating business from the remaining international Avon Products structure. In 2019, Natura &Co announced an agreement to acquire Avon Products through a share exchange. The transaction was intended to combine two large relationship-selling businesses and increase the resulting group's scale in direct-to-consumer beauty. Completion in January 2020 made Avon a privately held subsidiary within Natura &Co and removed Avon Products' common stock from the NYSE. Avon subsequently operated alongside Natura &Co's other beauty brands, with the group emphasizing direct selling, digital channels, retail presence, and a broader global footprint. In the 2020s, Avon has sought to refresh a brand often associated with older consumers and traditional catalogs. Its “Embrace Your Power” positioning and subsequent social-first activity have promoted confidence, representation, and women's agency while supporting new cosmetics and fragrance launches. The company has also updated its logo and packaging and used TikTok, Instagram, influencers, and representative-led digital commerce to reach younger audiences. The brand's continuing challenge is to preserve the trust and personal connection of its historic model while making its products discoverable and culturally relevant in a digital beauty market.

1. 2020Acquisition closes

   Avon Products becomes part of Natura &Co and is no longer separately listed on the NYSE.

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2. 2019Natura &Co announces Avon acquisition

   Natura &Co agrees to acquire Avon Products in an all-share transaction.

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3. 2015North American business transaction with Cerberus

   An affiliate of Cerberus Capital Management acquires a controlling interest in Avon's North American business.

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4. 2010Silpada acquisition

   Avon Products acquires Silpada, a direct seller of silver jewelry.

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5. 2007First global brand campaign launches

   Avon introduces “Hello Tomorrow” as a global effort to modernize its image.

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6. 1990Breast-cancer awareness initiatives expand

   Avon begins promoting breast-cancer awareness through pink-ribbon products and fundraising activities.

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7. 1954“Ding Dong! Avon Calling!” enters television advertising

   Avon begins television advertising associated with the phrase that became closely identified with its representative-selling model.

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8. 1886California Perfume Company is founded

   David H. McConnell establishes the business that later becomes Avon, using representative-led sales of fragrance and personal-care products.

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Accessible mass-to-mid-market beauty with relationship selling, social commerce, product value, and women's empowerment at its core.

• AnewSkincare

  Anew is Avon's principal anti-aging and treatment-oriented skincare family. The line has represented the brand's emphasis on accessible beauty technology and includes products positioned around concerns such as lines, firmness, hydration, and skin renewal.

• Skin So SoftBath and body care

  Skin So Soft is a longstanding body-care franchise associated with moisturizing and cleansing products. It is one of Avon's best-known names outside color cosmetics and demonstrates the company's ability to build repeat-purchase products around a recognizable benefit and sensory experience.

• Avon TrueColor cosmetics

  Avon True is a cosmetics platform covering makeup products such as lip, eye, and complexion items. The range supports Avon's effort to present contemporary, trend-responsive makeup at an accessible price through representatives and digital commerce.

• Far AwayFragrance

  Far Away is an Avon fragrance franchise. Far Away Beyond the Moon was promoted through social-first influencer activity intended to introduce Avon's fragrance business to younger consumers and encourage product discovery through TikTok and Instagram.

• Hydramatic Matte LipstickLip color

  Hydramatic Matte Lipstick is a matte lip product designed with a hydrating hyaluronic-acid core. Avon featured it in the “Embrace Your Power” advertising platform as an example of product innovation supporting its modernized beauty positioning.

• 2023Far Away Beyond the Moon social-first launch

  TikTok and Instagram

  Influencers used fragrance guessing and personal-achievement storytelling to create discovery content for Far Away Beyond the Moon. The approach emphasized surprise around the brand and perceived product value.

  Outcome. The agency case study reported 25 million impressions and a 19 percent average engagement rate.

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• 2022Embrace Your Power

  United Kingdom and international markets

  The repositioning presented women as possessing individual power and addressed the barriers created by gender inequality. Advertising featured musician Hamzaa and connected her story of finding confidence and voice with Avon's Hydramatic Matte Lipstick.

  Outcome. The campaign became a central platform for Avon's brand refresh and its effort to become more relevant to younger audiences.

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• 2014Beauty for a Purpose

  United States and digital social channels

  Avon used representatives, social posts, celebrity participation, and a mobile-optimized aggregation site to create a conversation around women's empowerment. The initiative encouraged participants to share images and stories using the #BeautyforaPurpose hashtag.

  Outcome. The campaign extended Avon's representative-led relationship model into social media and user-generated content.

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• 2007Hello Tomorrow

  Global · including the United Kingdom

  Avon's first global brand campaign shifted attention from individual product advertisements to the broader Avon identity. It presented the company as more modern and stylish and linked the launch to women's empowerment and International Women's Day.

  Outcome. The campaign marked a major repositioning effort and increased the company's global advertising investment.

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• 2023Increase social-first marketingStrategy

  Avon aimed to attract a younger generation of beauty shoppers and generate demand for new products.

  What changed. The brand used influencer marketing and social content on TikTok and Instagram for fragrance and beauty launches.

  Aftermath. The reported results supported a shift toward digital product discovery alongside representative selling.

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• 2019Agree to combination with Natura &CoM&A

  Avon and Natura both operated large relationship-selling businesses and sought greater scale in a beauty market increasingly shaped by digital and multi-channel commerce.

  What changed. Natura &Co agreed to acquire Avon Products through a share-based transaction.

  Aftermath. The transaction closed in January 2020, made Avon a private subsidiary, and combined it with Natura &Co's broader beauty portfolio.

  Exchange ratio. 0.3 Natura share for each Avon share (2019 transaction announcement)

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• 2015Separate most of the North American operating businessStrategy

  Avon was under pressure in North America and pursued a restructuring of its geographic portfolio.

  What changed. Avon sold 80.1 percent of its North American business to an affiliate of Cerberus Capital Management.

  Aftermath. The transaction separated the North American operating business from the remaining Avon Products structure while retaining the Avon brand in the market.

  Reported cash consideration for the 80.1 percent North American business. $170 million (2015)

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• 2010Acquire Silpada DesignsM&A

  Avon sought to broaden its direct-selling assortment beyond beauty products.

  What changed. Avon Products acquired Silpada, a direct seller of silver jewelry.

  Aftermath. The transaction added jewelry to Avon's portfolio and representative offering.

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• 2024Avon Products filed for Chapter 11 protectionControversy

  The company sought bankruptcy protection in connection with lawsuits concerning talc-based products.

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• 2024Talc litigation and Chapter 11 proceedingsControversy

  Avon Products sought Chapter 11 protection as part of an effort to address lawsuits concerning talc-based products.

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• 2019Animal-testing policy controversyControversy

  Avon faced criticism because some products sold in jurisdictions including China had historically been subject to regulatory animal-testing requirements. The company later stated that it had ended regulatory-required animal testing across its brands through alternative methods and reformulation.

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• 2014Foreign Corrupt Practices Act settlementControversy

  Avon reached a settlement with U.S. authorities concerning the bribery investigation, paying criminal and civil penalties and related amounts.

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• 2008China bribery investigationControversy

  Avon investigated allegations that employees and executives in China and elsewhere had engaged in bribery or related conduct potentially implicating the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. Several executives were suspended and later dismissed, and the investigation generated substantial legal and compliance costs.

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• 2024Avon appoints a marketing chief to modernize its image

  Chief marketing officer Özlem Çitçi described plans to make Avon more contemporary, update its logo and packaging, and attract younger beauty shoppers.

  Leadership changeCampaign
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• 2023Avon expands social-first marketing for younger consumers

  The brand worked with Connective3 on influencer and social campaigns supporting fragrance and beauty launches, including Far Away Beyond the Moon.

  CampaignProduct launch
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• 2023Avon announced plans for United Kingdom retail stores

  Avon announced plans to open physical retail stores in the United Kingdom, expanding beyond its historically representative-led model.

  Other
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• 2022Avon develops its Embrace Your Power positioning

  Avon used the positioning to connect its brand with women's confidence, individuality, and resistance to gender inequality, including advertising featuring musician Hamzaa.

  CampaignProduct launch
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• 2021New Avon Company changed its corporate name to The Avon Company

  The separate North American business created during Avon’s restructuring announced a corporate name change.

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• 2020Avon Products becomes part of Natura &Co

  The acquisition closed in January 2020. Avon Products ceased to be separately listed on the NYSE and the Avon brand became part of Natura &Co's multi-brand group.

  M&ALeadership change
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• 2020Avon Products ceased trading on the New York Stock Exchange after the Natura transaction

  Completion of the acquisition converted Avon Products from an independently listed company into a privately held entity within the combined Natura group.

  M&A
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• 2019Natura &Co agrees to acquire Avon Products

  Natura &Co announced an all-share transaction to combine Avon Products with its beauty portfolio, creating a major global direct-to-consumer beauty group.

  M&A
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• 2019Natura &Co agreed to acquire Avon Products

  Natura &Co announced an agreement to acquire Avon Products in a transaction that would combine Avon with Natura, Aesop, and The Body Shop.

  M&A
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• 2007Avon launches its first global brand advertising campaign

  Avon introduced the “Hello Tomorrow” campaign as a global repositioning effort designed to modernize the brand and move its communications beyond individual product promotion.

  CampaignOther
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1. Avon's Advertising in the 20th Century & Beyond
2. Avon Products
3. Avon launches first global ad campaign
4. Natura &Co to close acquisition of Avon
5. Avon's Embrace Your Power Campaign
6. Avon influencer and social media marketing campaign
7. How Avon's new CMO plans to modernize the 137-year-old beauty brand
8. Natura &Co announces Avon acquisition
9. Beauty for a Purpose