Merle Norman Cosmetics

Merle Norman Cosmetics is an American privately held cosmetics manufacturer founded in Santa Monica, California in 1931 by Merle Nethercutt Norman and J.B. Nethercutt. The company is headquartered in Los Angeles, California and operates over 1,100 franchise studios.
== History ==
Merle Nethercutt Norman, with a background in chemistry, began creating her own cosmetic products at her own Santa Monica estate's kitchen in the early 1920s. Her nephew, J.B. Nethercutt, dropped out of CalTech to help her with establishing the company. In 1931, they opened her first cosmetics studio in Santa Monica. By 1934, the company had expanded to dozens of studios across the contiguous United States, the majority of which were owned by women. Merle Norman began the "Try Before You Buy" philosophy which is still used by their studios today.
In 1952, the headquarters was relocated to a new facility in Westchester, Los Angeles, which is still in use. In 1963, Norman stepped down as Chairman and passed down the company to J.B. Nethercutt.
By 1981, Merle Norman was briefly traded publicly on the American Stock Exchange (now the New York Stock Exchange), but reverted back to being private.
By 2004, the company had an operating income of over US$100 Million and has expanded internationally to 8 countries. Later in 2004, Nethercutt passed the company down to his son, Jack Nethercutt II.
During Merle Norman's 80th anniversary convention in 2011, the company unrevealed a new logo; the first revision since the company's foundation in 1931. Along with the new logo, the designs of the packaging and products were updated as well.
In wake of the 2019–20 coronavirus pandemic, Merle Norman was contracted to produce WHO approved hand sanitizer with 51 other beauty brands.
== Business model ==
Merle Norman is a privately owned company that has been family owned since its creation. The company's growth has based primarily on the franchises itself. In 2019 the company began e-commerce alongside its traditional franchise model.
The company operates a franchise based model which operates over 1,100 franchise "studios" in 8 countries; United States, Canada, Mexico, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Guatemala, Taiwan, and Hong Kong, the majority of which are in North America. The studios are Retail|retail outlets with the majority of them located inside shopping malls and strip malls. All the studios are independently owned and do not charge a franchise fee. New studio owners attend a 3 week training seminar at the Westchester corporate headquarters.
The company has had several partnerships with OPI Products to produce joint product lines. Merle Norman has associated with University of Southern California to produce several exclusive products in their school colors for its athletes and cheerleaders.The company helped fund the Merle Norman Stadium.
=== Conventions ===
Merle Norman hosts a convention yearly at a random major United States city to announce new products and lines to the franchisees designed by the company. Highlights include sneak peeks at upcoming or exclusive products, gifts for attending franchise owners, and live makeover tutorials by professional make-up artists. New product collections that are announced at convention are themed after Earth's seasons.
== References ==
== External links ==
* Merle Norman Cosmetics instagram page
* Merle Norman Cosmetics facebook page
* Merle Norman Cosmetics twitter page
* Merle Norman Cosmetics linkedin page
* Merle Norman Makeup Online: Amazon.com
* Merle Norman Makeup Products for sale | eBay
* Merle Norman Cosmetics Inc. Franchise Information
* Merle Norman Cosmetics Inc - Company Profile and News
Category:American companies established in 1931
Category:Companies of the United States
Category:Cosmetics companies of the United States
Category:Privately held companies of the United States
Category:Personal care brands
Category:Cosmetics brands
Category:American brands