Avon is no longer the top global direct sales company as its market share has been exceeded for the first time since 2004 by rival brand Amway.
US-based beauty and skincare direct seller Amway gained a higher market share in global direct sales during 2014 at 9.1 percent, beating Avon’s market share which stood at 8.6%, according to Euromonitor data.
Avon clung to its title as global leader in 2013, narrowly beating Amway with a market share of 9.2 percent compared to Amway’s share of 9.1 percent.
Avon’s market share in global direct sales has steadily declined from a peak of 11.6% in 2010 while rival firms Amway, Herbalife and Mary Kay have gained market share.
In terms of US sales, Avon’s market share slumped to 4.3% in 2014 from a peak of 10.2% in 2007. Mary Kay, founded in Texas in 1963, became the leading direct seller in the US in 2013 and in 2014, gaining an 8.4% share.
Brazil is now Avon’s largest market, accounting for 50% of Avon’s annual revenues.
Avon’s market-share loss has been accompanied by a slide in its share price, which plunged to a 20-year low in January, before reports of buyout talks with private-equity firm TPG erased some of the losses.
Avon, which reported fourth-quarter earnings on Thursday, saw its revenue decline 20% to $8.85 billion in 2014 from a peak of $11.1 billion in 2011. The company has reported three straight annual losses, and has cut costs by $400 million to offset declining sales.