Why Do Mary Kay Sellers Drive Pink Cadillacs?
At some point or another, we’ve all passed one of those bright pink Cadillacs on the road and we’ve immediately recognized its signature color: that’s a Mary Kay car.
Only a small number of Mary Kay consultants–people who sell the company’s cosmetics–earn the honor of driving a pink Mary Kay Cadillac. Currently, less than one percent (0.2%) of current consultants are driving one. But how do sellers earn that privilege?
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Getting–and Keeping–a Mary Kay Cadillac
Since its inception, the Mary Kay company has had reward milestones for its consultants, honoring them and their teams for achieving certain amounts of sales. Back in 1969, the company began its now-famous car program. In the following 50 years, only around 100,000 people have met the criteria to drive a pink Cadillac.
Reaching that distinction isn’t easy. A qualified consultant must assemble a team of at least 12-14* other direct-reporting consultants and get the team to sell over $20,000* of orders within four months. That will propel the team, and thus its leader, to the status of “Grand Achiever.” As a Grand Achiever, a Mary Kay Lady can choose between a cash prize or a car. If the total is above a certain amount for the year, they can choose the prestigious pink Caddy.
If a car is chosen, the consultant enters into a two-year co-op lease with Mary Kay in which the company covers some or all of the payments on the vehicle–if the consultant continues to maintain their sales status. If not, the person might have to fork over money to cover some of the lease, or give back the car entirely.
Originally, Mary Kay Ash–the founder and namesake of the company–wanted a vehicle to promote her new business, and when a Cadillac dealership agreed to match her compact color using a tint called “Mountain Laurel,” she began driving the first Cadillac Coupe de Ville. It became so enviable that she awarded identical vehicles to her top sellers in 1969, starting the tradition.
Since then, Mary Kay has branched out and offered different options at different sales incentive tiers, such as a black BMW 320i, a black Chevrolet Equinox, and a black Chevrolet Cruze. There are also multiple Cadillac models available in the exclusive pink color.
*Note: These exact numbers vary over the years
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Sources: Pink Lighthouse, Mental Floss
Aaron is unashamed to be a native Clevelander and the proud driver of a Hyundai Veloster Turbo (which recently replaced his 1995 Saturn SC-2). He gleefully utilizes his background in theater, literature, and communication to dramatically recite his own articles to nearby youth. Mr. Widmar happily resides in Dayton, Ohio with his magnificent wife, Vicki, but is often on the road with her exploring new destinations. Aaron has high aspirations for his writing career but often gets distracted pondering the profound nature of the human condition and forgets what he was writing… See more articles by Aaron.