Jessica Herman

"Mary Kay is not what your grandmother used to wear anymore," says Bernadette O'Shea, an independent consultant for the cosmetic and skin-care company. She introduces her new recruit, Lindsay Scherr, who's fresh out of Northwestern University, to a couch full of Scherr's three friends who sit chatting inside the Gold Coast high-rise apartment.

It's a meager turnout for Scherr's "coming out" ceremony, an event Mary Kay-ers refer to fondly as the "business debut." However, flipping back her highlighted locks to reveal a pair of pearly studs, the college grad retains an attitude of confidence in her future career as a Mary Kay consultant.

"You may be thinking, 'Now why would Lindsay want to sell Mary Kay?'" O'Shea goes on, anticipating the question that Scherr's friends might be too polite to ask. "Yeah, it's become a family joke," Scherr pipes up and smoothes down her crisp white blouse as she laughs. O'Shea answers the hypothetical question by showing off the success of the 40-year-old business known for the signature pink Cadillac it rewards to high-selling consultants.

In a string of predictably posed quiz questions that the party guests answer for raffle tickets, O'Shea says Mary Kay is a top-traffic website, second to Amazon.com. While Scherr compares the colors of the cosmetics in her pink-tissue-adorned display to brands like MAC, she exclaims, "I was like, 'You're going to give me diamonds? Sign me up!'"

(2004-08-17)

Also by Jessica Herman

Shopping around
The "foreign classics" film buff opens the doors of his LEGO color-schemed video store, Odd Obsession as an event space and a place where people can learn about film
(2004-08-10)

Unstoppable
Twenty-eight-year-old Gabel first began wearing down Kinko's carpeting when he started Stop Smiling eight years ago in his dorm room at Columbia College
(2004-08-03)

Cupping runneth over
Making a recent cameo on Gwyneth Paltrow's back in the form of six discolored circles, cupping is the latest process that's new in the popular press, and old to Eastern medical practitioners
(2004-07-27)

Fancy fleas
You'll be hard-pressed to find the shabbiness that typifies the everyday flea market on the ninth floor of Marshall Field's
(2004-07-13)

iSpin
(2004-07-13)

Sexy city
(2004-07-06)

Crayon politics
(2004-06-29)

House of house
(2004-06-16)

The Vintage Life
(2004-05-18)

Shopping around
(2004-05-18)

The cool hunt is on
(2004-05-12)

Fraying and finishing
(2004-05-05)

about Newcitychicago | about Newcity magazine | advertising | privacy policy | FAQ | employment