by TINTSWALO BALOYI
JOHANNESBURG, (CAJ News) – AVON is intensifying its recruitment drive in the aftermath of massive job losses from the coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis.
The beauty company has stepped to mitigate the impact by offering prospective sales representatives who wish to supplement their income an opportunity to open their own online stores and participate in the booming e-commerce industry.
To that end, the company has enhanced its digital infrastructure to ensure that the new sales representatives recruits can leverage the ubiquity of online platforms to enhance their earning opportunity.
Avon developed a personalised website for its newly recruited representatives for marketing and selling Avon products. It is providing them with free online digital marketing training and supplied them with free digital tools with content to promote their business on social media.
This is to ensure optimal usage of these e-commerce platforms.
In addition, Avon Representatives could open their online store without incurring any capital outlay and personalise it within Avon Justine’s corporate identity guidelines.
“Being a company for women, Avon is cognisant of the struggle women face as the sole caregivers and the far-reaching impact this pandemic has had on their ability to take care of their families,” said Mafahle Mareletse, Managing Director of Avon Justine Africa, Middle East and Turkey.
He said in line with their brand promise to support women, Avon would ramp up its recruitment drive to offer women, who are the primary drivers of the cosmetics and personal care industry, the opportunity to reap the benefits of the growth of this industry which has largely bucked the trend and continues to show steady growth.
“By empowering women with this earnings opportunity, we are also making a meaningful contribution to giving women financial independence which in turn will free them from the clutches of their abusers,” Mareletse said.
The latest unemployment statistics released by Stats SA paint an ominous and gloomy picture for millions of female-headed households who are facing the depressing prospects of impoverishment due to loss of income.
Figures indicate that unemployment rate increased to 30,1 percent in the first quarter of 2020 compared to the fourth quarter of 2019, taking the number of unemployed persons to 7,1 million.
However, the latest unemployment figures do not factor in jobs lost during the hard lockdown in the second quarter of 2020.
Treasury’s worse case scenario projects a 16,1 percent contraction, and 7 million job losses.
“These are not just numbers, but they represent people who have now been deprived of an income,” Mareletse stated.
He expressed hope the representative recruitment drive would help female entrepreneurs break through the difficult times.
“The direct selling industry offers women a compelling opportunity to earn an income due to the low barriers of entry and the minimum capital outlay required,” Mareletse concluded.
– CAJ News