Our Town: Tahoe business owner helps women gain 'BeautiControl'

Nancy Oliver Hayden
Tahoe Tribune


Linda LaFavor-Coyle's world revolves around image, self-esteem and helping women feel good about themselves. She does this as a consultant, executive director and senior trainer with BeautiControl, a skin care, spa and image company. The Minneapolis, Minn., native, who says she is 50ish, has been a resident of South Lake Tahoe since 1985. She came to visit friends, and as so many people do, fell in love with Tahoe and moved here.

She was working as a clerk at the post office in 1988 when she saw an advertisement for BeautiControl in the Tahoe Daily Tribune. The company was looking for people to be beauty consultants in the area, and she became the first one at Tahoe. It was a perfect fit, since LaFavor-Coyle has a background as a make-up artist. She started attending cosmetology school while she was still in high school. Upon graduation at age 18, she received her cosmetology license and worked as a hair stylist in a neighborhood beauty salon for 10 years.

She went to Hollywood in 1979, where she attended the Joe Blasco Make-up School and was a make-up artist for TV and film for a few years. She then returned to Minneapolis and worked for Target as a make-up artist for the company's TV commercials for several more years.

LaFavor-Coyle started her business at Tahoe by inviting friends to a party and teaching them about skin care, the importance of sunscreen and how to "do" their make-up in five minutes. She is now a manager and leads a team of 480 women all over the U.S. She travels to meetings and training sessions to motivate and support them and stays in touch via e-mail, telephone and personal contact. Her business has grown to include a mobile spa program, where she goes to clients' homes and offices. She provides mini-spa treatments and teaches women to relax and pamper themselves.

Another facet of LaFavor-Coyle's business is "Tahoe Weddings A Go Go," where she provides in-room hair and make-up service for brides. She said this is the easiest, most fun thing she does - and it's all girl time.

Her success with BeautiControl has earned her several trips. She was one of 100 consultants out of 150,000 in the company who earned a seven-day trip to Monte Carlo in 2006. And because of her company car allowance, she hasn't made a car payment in 15 years.

She and her husband of 10 years, John Coyle, enjoy riding road bikes and competing in century road rides. They have two furry, feline "children," Lucky and Smoky, who are 15 years old. LaFavor-Coyle is a member of Soroptimist International of South Lake Tahoe and Barton Memorial Hospital Auxiliary. She is also certified for the American Cancer Society "Look Good, Feel Good" program for women with cancer. She teaches them how to take care of their skin and hair, including tips on applying make-up and using wigs.

Here are LaFavor-Coyle's answers to the Tribune's questions:

1. HOW WOULD YOU LIKE TO BE REMEMBERED WHEN YOU DIE?
"As a woman who helped other women build their self-esteem on the inside and out. I love to be their cheerleader and say 'yes, you can do it.'"


2. WHAT IS SOUTH LAKE TAHOE'S MOST PRESSING ISSUE TODAY?
"I would say the housing market. When I see a for sale sign, I want to say, 'Don't leave Tahoe. Do whatever it takes to stay in this beautiful place.'"


3. IF YOU COULD CHOOSE ANY AMERICAN CITIZEN TO BE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, WHO WOULD IT BE?
"My world revolves around supporting and encouraging women, so maybe it's time for a woman president?"


4. WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE FORM OF ENTERTAINMENT?
"John and I just bought a fifth-wheel travel trailer and enjoy traveling with friends and meeting new people. I intend to 'spa' the RV parks. We enjoy being outdoors, riding bikes and wine tasting. We plan to travel in the RV when we retire."


5. IF YOU COULD CHOOSE ONE THING TO DO OVER IN YOUR LIFE, WHAT WOULD IT BE?
"Oh, my gosh! I'm happy with my life. I feel like I've accomplished more than I ever dreamed I would, and there is nothing I would do over."


6. WHAT LIVING PERSON DO YOU MOST ADMIRE?
"My youngest sister, Brenda Montgomery. She has a gift of bringing out the best in people with her fabulous management and life skills and making everyone feel special. She is my mentor."


7. WHAT HISTORICAL FIGURE DO YOU MOST ADMIRE?
"I would say Mother Teresa. For her to be able to do something so important, especially as she advanced in age, is remarkable."


8. IF YOU COULD SPEND AN HOUR WITH ANYONE IN THE WORLD, WHO WOULD IT BE?
"That's easy, it would be Lance Armstrong. He could teach me everything he knows about road biking. I'd like to learn his discipline of how to just keep going on those hard hills."


9. WHICH WOULD YOU CHOOSE IF YOU HAD THE CHANCE: WIN AN INDIVIDUAL OLYMPIC GOLD MEDAL OR A PULITZER PRIZE?
"I can't choose, so how about both. To be able to push yourself athletically as far as you can to win a gold medal would be such an adrenaline rush. And I'd love to be so talented with words and be able to share that with the world that I would win a Pulitzer Prize."


10. IF YOU COULD BE IN ANY PROFESSION OTHER THAN YOUR OWN, WHAT WOULD IT BE?
"Don't laugh, but at one time I thought of being a police officer. I think I would be good at handling situations and helping get the bad guys off the street."

Could you last a day without make-up?

From The Times on March 27, 2008
It's National No Make-up Day today - a command best not obeyed
by Sarah Vine

Today, apparently, is National No Make-up Day. Not in my house it isn't. Aside from the fact that my colleagues have done nothing to deserve the sight of me without my under-eye concealer, it is a ludicrous concept. You may as well have a National No Shoe-Wearing Day, or a National No Shouting on the Today Programme Day. Inconceivable, not to say inadvisable.

According to the organisers, we need it because we women are too dependent on make-up. Damn right we are - just as we're dependent on breathing. There is absolutely nothing wrong with giving Mother Nature's work a little touch-up now and then.

But no, it's for our own good, see. Time to throw off the mask, to let our skins breathe (not true, by the way: today's modern formulations don't clog up the skin), to be “more courageous in baring all”. Hmm. I've seen where this “baring all” gets us, and it's not pretty. How To Look Good Naked may make great TV, but in truth most people don't (look good naked, that is). There's a reason clothes were invented, and it wasn't just to keep the cold air out. Let's not apply the same misjudgment to our faces.

The British have always had an oddly puritanical attitude to make-up. Many women I know consider it somehow at odds with their feminist principles. Personally, I don't see it that way. Make-up gives me confidence, and confidence is good. Besides, many men claim that they prefer their partners without make-up - so you could argue that the wearing of it actually constitutes a small act of feminist rebellion.

Ultimately, however, it's all about how you wear it. A tacky gash of scarlet and Ashes to Ashes-style blue eyeshadow isn't going to fool anyone. Modern make-up, properly applied, looks neither tarty nor obvious. It's about looking yourself, only slightly less frazzled. And there's nothing wrong with that.

Wearing no make-up for once, HANNAH BETTS fails to get attention

My name is Hannah and I am a cosmetics addict. I have worn make-up every day since I was jailbait young, a not so fresh-faced 11. It started with Lolita lipgloss and continues, at just short of 37, with a routine that encompasses foundation, concealer, powder, eyeshadow, eyeliner, mascara, rouge and lip balm. Women tend to have a thing. Make-up is my thing. I don't do hair, nails, or particularly compelling outfits. However, I do reserve my right to go about with emerald eyelids.

We slap sporters are accused of vanity. Yet surely it is greater vanity to inflict one's unedited features upon the world? It is assumed that we are man-motivated. Yet chaps profess to despise cosmetics and are never happier than when informing me that I look more desirable without them. More- over, many's the time I have been chastised by weekend feminists who believe that I am letting down the sisterhood.

To all dissenting voices, I say: “This isn't about you.” Make-up is my public face and my private pleasure.

My day sans slap has an inauspicious start. The spectacle that confronts me in the mirror at 7am on Monday confirms my impression that not wearing make-up is for those who spend their weekends in the lotus position. I spent the weekend carousing, hitting the sack at 3am in the wake of a teary argument. My skin is greenish chalk, while my eyes have gone beyond the proverbial hole in the snow and are suggestive of domestic violence. And did I mention that I have my period? Cosmetics are the means by which I would wrest back control, only today all control is abandoned. I knock back three Nurofen, apply teabags to my lids, slather on my bodyweight in eye cream, and - that's it - unfinished face finished.

Four hours writing at my desk, and my features are becoming vaguely less Hammer House of Horror, but, still, as I prepare to leave the house, my virginal face propels me into crisis. Everything is thrown out by it: my clothes - too ballsy; my scent - too provocative; the rest of me - too bedraggled without a “done” focus as anchor. I look nondescript, characterless, bland. I am also ghoulish pale, reminiscent of those painful years before I discovered rouge, when schoolboys would follow me about humming The Addams Family theme. A neighbour mouths: “Poor you,” assuming lurgy.

I go for a working lunch at London's hottest venue, the Connaught, with three of the capital's most glamorous and imposing PRs. The consensus is that I look young, but not good young. “Kind of Dickensian, laudanum-addict young,” as Kate puts it. Curiously, the lower half of my hitherto blemish-free face is breaking out in boils. “It's the detox,” notes Paula. “Your skin can't have been exposed to the air for years.”

I sidle off to purchase a new phone. The pubescent who couldn't wait to get his clutches on my contract when I accosted him with full maquillage rebuffs me. But, then, I have the sweaty-palmed demeanour of a shoplifter, skulking about, refusing to meet anyone's gaze.

I pride myself on my ability to flirt with man, woman and child, but, by supper, all charm has escaped me. I fail to secure anyone's attention: the waiter's, fellow diners', even my own. My 25-year-old ally tells me that I look cooler, edgier than usual. A trip to the nightspot Bungalow 8 is aborted after I suffer an attack of the vapours.

Next morning, I have a power breakfast with a prominent editor, restored to my beloved ladyboy mode. I ask my date what she would have thought had I turned up naked faced. “But, why would anyone do that?” she demands. Why, indeed?

I can cheat and get away with it, says make-up novice CAMILLA CAVENDISH

When my commissioning editor asked me to do this piece, I was surprised. “But I do wear make-up,” I protested. “I wear mascara!” She raised one carefully crafted eyebrow. And I realised that my involvement in this project might be her friendly way of telling me that the look I have worn since my teens - a flick of the comb and a 30-second whirl with Lancôme Black/Brown - may no longer be as appealing and carefree as I like to think.

It's partly indolence, not wanting to spend time pondering the cosmetics racks in Boots. It's also that these racks are largely indecipherable to me. I missed out on the stage when other girls were learning about concealer and lip-liner. I was playing the piano seriously when I was 16, and my piano teacher used to brandish her scissors at the slightest hint of a fingernail, so I never made it into the world of nail polish and manicures either. I usually end up rubbing most of it off because it looks so vampish.

I do care how I look. It's just that I have always regarded make-up as cheating, somehow. It is only recently that I have begun to realise that many of the women I have admired as effortless beauties are actually dab hands with the bronzer. My own recent experiments with bronzer came to an end when a male colleague became concerned that I had a rash, because of the line where I had forgotten to blend it in.

So when the lovely Paul from Bobbi Brown rang my doorbell, I was determined to memorise every brushstroke. And boy, were there a lot. There was concealer and corrector and blusher, all in delectable little black pots. It took a long time. But it felt fabulous, being adored and adorned. As Danny positioned the lights and flashed the camera, and Nicky expertly tweaked my hair, I felt like a B-list goddess.

The first person to see me was my husband. He glanced in, laughed, tried to stifle the laugh and went off to an important meeting. The next was my three-year old. “Why have you painted your hair?” he asked, frowning. After several repetitions of this toddler non-sequitur, I wasn't sure whether to laugh or cry. But of course I couldn't cry. I felt I couldn't even blow my nose, in case I erased my face.

I liked the flushed cheeks and startling blue eyes of the creature in the mirror. But she did look as if she was trying a bit too hard. Everyone said how “natural” I looked. But my cheeks felt as though they were wearing stage make-up. My skin felt tickly.

On the other hand, it was a face that clearly deserved to be dressed up for. I found myself pulling on a much smarter jacket than normal, and some kitten heels that I hardly ever wear. Leaving the house, I braced myself for pitying stares. But apart from a few vaguely appreciative looks from builders, there was no reaction. Entering a smart restaurant in the West End, a waiter rushed to open the door for me. I was lunching with a business contact I see about twice a year. He said: “You look different, somehow. Is it your hair?”

It gradually dawned on me that what I thought of as war-paint was expertly subtle. At Broadcasting House, where I was doing an interview for a programme I am presenting on Radio 4, no one gave me a second glance. Ingrid, my producer, who has known me for two years, didn't bat an eyelid.

Later that day, I gave a talk to some people in the City. One financier came up to me afterwards. “You're a great-looking woman,” he said. “Did you ever think about TV? Your looks won't last for ever, you know. You should get on with it.” So thank you, Paul, for creating the delusion. It still feels like cheating. But if I can cheat and get away with it, why not?

______________________

BeautiContol Online available at guaranteed lowest prices. Everyday is a BeautiControl Day!

Beauty doesn't need to have a moral price tag

By Belinda Higgins
Independent.ie

The huge swing towards ethical products is impacting on far more than just the grocery sector. Concerned consumers are also now increasingly choosing organic and natural cosmetics and skincare products. New research from Mintel shows that over 2,260 ethical cosmetics and skincare products* were launched in Europe in 2007 -- a five-fold increase on 2006 figures.

And 2008 looks set to be another bumper year for the market, with more than 420 new ethical beauty products already having hit shelves in Europe in the first few months. "Beauty manufacturers are innovating by making their products more compatible with the emerging lifestyle trends of ethical shopping and eco-consciousness," says Nica Lewis, Head Consultant of Mintel Beauty and Personal Care. "They're clearly looking at ways to cut down the amount of packaging they use and are trying to reduce the negative impact production can have on the environment."

Animal welfare issues, environmental concerns and health are the motivations behind consumers' growing tendency to think before they buy skincare and beauty products. The Irish market for personal care and cosmetics products is estimated to be worth €112.2m per annum. COLIPA (the European Cosmetic Toiletry and Perfumery Association) recently tipped Ireland as one of the countries with the most potential for future growth.

Cruelty-free products that have not been tested on animals make up the largest group of new ethical beauty products on the European market. Around half of women in France (49pc) and the UK (51pc) say that they look out for this label when buying beauty products. The EU is implementing a ban on animal testing for cosmetics, and a near-total ban on the sale of animal-tested cosmetics, from 2009.

The survey also revealed that 'all natural products' were another major consideration when choosing cosmetics and skincare items. Many cosmetics on the market are still loaded with toxins, artificial fragrances and preservatives. However, consumer demand has ensured that more and more companies are now offering natural and botanical alternatives. For example, British pharmaceutical giant Boots recently announced a new project to develop algae for use in its personal care ranges. Following on from the trend in the food markets, there is now heightened interest in eco-friendly and Fair Trade beauty products.

"We have already seen the no-animal-testing claim go from niche to mainstream over the past two decades," explains Lewis. "Although organic has proved popular in the beauty industry, the current trend for ethical claims centres around the use of Fair Trade ingredients and products having recycled and recyclable packaging. All natural (products) will also continue to appeal."

*This includes products that are fair trade, not tested on animals, that support a charity and that are environmentally friendly or have environmentally friendly packaging.

- Belinda Higgins

Teachers team up for direct sales business

BeautiControl Skin Care Products

By KEITH ROYSDON, The Star Press

For three Muncie teachers, teamwork in the classroom has translated into teamwork in business. Kim Williams, Sara Fauquher and Jennifer Kile teach sixth grade at Wilson Middle School. The three make up a teaching team -- Kile teaches math, Fauquher teaches science and Williams teaches English.

Outside school hours, the three are independent direct sales people. Each sells a different product, but they also team up for in-home parties to reach potential customers. "It's an opportunity to have fun, fellowship with women and earn a little extra money on the side," Kile said. Kile sells Premier Designs jewelry, Fauquher sells BeautiControl home spa products and Williams sells Pampered Chef cookware.

Williams laughed when asked why she sells kitchenware. "Rachael Ray is my idol," she said, referring to the TV personality. "I like to cook, and I like to cook for others." Fauquher said at-home spa products appealed to her because "I like to see people relax and get rid of their stress. Lord knows we all have it."

Billion-dollar industry
The direct sales industry -- long symbolized by door-to-door cosmetics and vacuum cleaner sales people -- has changed in recent years. The Direct Selling Association reported sales of more than $32 billion in 2006. The industry group says as many as 15 million people work in direct sales. Although men make up 25 percent of the independent sales workforce, it is still an industry dominated by women. The gender of the sales force coincides in many ways with the products sold. Cosmetics, jewelry and skin care make up nearly 34 percent of the products sold by direct sales people, according to the DSA. Home products, like cookware, make up 26 percent. Weight loss products and vitamins account for another 20 percent. For many years, Longaberger baskets were among the top products for direct sales people. The upscale baskets -- like many direct sales products -- are sold in home-based parties that mix business and fun for sales people and potential customers.

Party teamwork
While Williams and Fauquher have been conducting in-home sales parties for a while, Kile has only recently joined the mix. The three have a game plan for their parties. Williams whips up some dishes using Pampered Chef cookware and utensils. While food is cooking, the group moves to the living room, where Fauquher demonstrates hand massages and neck wraps from BeautiControl. Kile then showcases Premier Designs jewelry offerings. "Then they can eat and fellowship and order products if they like," Fauquher said. "If someone wants to book just one of us, they can. But this is a way for us to 'team teach.' We're used to doing this in school and thought in our side business this is what we would be most comfortable doing."

Busy in breaks
While the school year can be busy for teachers, the three said they wanted something to keep them busy after hours and during breaks. "Almost every teacher I know does something else in the summer," Fauquher said. "I think most teachers have other jobs. It keeps them busy year-round." "Maybe my decision will change down the road, but right now I want to stick with teaching and doing this on the side," Williams said. Direct sales works for teachers, Kile said. "There's freedom to do things on your own schedule. I love teaching. I didn't want to quit teaching."

How to look good

The power of cosmetics. Befor & After Photos

from News AU

MIRANDA Bond believes her organic make-up company, which has been operating for just over a year, will soon be the biggest of its kind in the world. These are not modest aims but she's confident she's on track. After all, she says the company is doubling its sales every three months and is adding one or two people a month to the staff.

The growth has been phenomenal, something most companies can only dream of. But contrary to popular wisdom, Ms Bond and her partner Jenni Williams are now pulling the reins in on their growth, slowing things down so they're only taking baby steps. It's a strategy they believe will eventually make their company formidable.

Inika, headquartered in Thirroul south of Sydney, makes cosmetics, but it stands out from mainstream cosmetic companies by making them out of Australian minerals, 100 per cent certified vegan and 100 per cent organic.

The products were born out of the website Ms Bond established with Ms Williams, called www.thrivinghealthywomen.com.au. The women had come together because of health issues both had experienced. Ms Bond had been diagnosed with endometriosis and was told she couldn't have any children. When she was also told hormone levels can affect fertility and that chemicals in some cosmetics can affect a body's hormone balance, she got some progesterone cream, threw out all her cosmetics and changed her diet. Three months later she was pregnant.

Ms William's son is allergic to dairy, nuts, fish, eggs and is chronically sensitive to chemicals, so much so that if she touched his skin while she was wearing certain cosmetics he would have a drastic reaction. As both women embarked on their toxic-free lifestyle, they set up the website as a database of articles that related to women's health.

Soon they were fielding emails from women around the world looking for organic make-up, many because they had sensitive skins or allergies. After doing some research into organic make-up suppliers, they decided to have a go at making it themselves.

"Within two weeks we'd found the best natural formulators in Australia,'' Ms Ward said. Inika, which means "small earth'' in Hindi, was formed in March 2006 and by the middle of the year they had products in shops. As factories in Western Australia and South Australia churned out their foundations, lipsticks, mascaras and eye-shadows, the pace at which the company moved was extraordinary.

Their big break, Ms Ward said, was exhibiting at the 2006 Organic Expo in Sydney. "We signed up so many accounts with shops and salons. And within three to four months we were in 21 David Jones stores around the country. "We had no strategy really. Everything just fell into place. The strategy came later.''

Part of that was to make the move overseas, a bold step considering the products weren't very established in Australia. The main reason, Ms Bond said, was that the population in Australia wasn't big enough for their company to be sustainable. And the need for a wider market was because of perceptions, Ms Bond said. "A lot of people think that because a product is 'natural' it's not as good, but our products are up there with the global make-up houses,'' she said.

With the help of Austrade, the products are now being sold in New Zealand, Slovenia, Thailand, the UK and Canada, and are considered good enough to take on more established global natural cosmetics companies such as Jane Iredale and Dr Hauschka. It's in the UK that Inika is achieving great success, so much so the company has opened offices in London and a UK website. And this is where their new growth strategy comes in. Europe promises to be a huge market, but at the moment the products are sold only in Slovenia.

Likewise Asia, but at the moment they're sold only in Thailand. North America will also be lucrative, but they're sold at the moment only in Canada. "The product is sought after in China and Japan, but Austrade said don't do it, you'll implode,'' Ms Bond said. Likewise with North America. The company is leaving the US push until last. "Now that we've got a team in the UK, it's easier to manage growth,'' she said. "Now we can continue to build in the UK and Europe.

"Our strategy is to keep a handle on things, to not lose control.'' And one of the challenges of growth is maintaining the company's independence. "We'd like to keep the autonomy we have now, and keep the intimacy,'' Ms Bond said.