Is Beauty Counter a Scam? [An Honest Review]

Looking for Independent Beauty Counter Reviews?

There are a lot for good positive reviews out there, but are they telling you the truth or are they just singing the beauty counter praises hoping to get you into their downline? 

Well, I am not associated with the company in way at all and thus gain no benefit should you join. I am free to tell you "warts and all" in this review of Beauty counter and their business opportunity.

Is Beauty Counter a Scam?

Well, before I answer that question allow me to cordially welcome you to my blog and high five you for being smart by seeking out 3rd party independent reviews by independent bloggers.

This is how you find out what a company and their business opportunity is really like, avoid getting scammed and find a genuine way of making money.

Let's crack on with this review, dig deep and find out if Beauty Counter is a Scam Or Legit!

BeautyCounter is a multilevel marketing business in the beauty and cosmetics industry and market sector. They were founded by Gregg Renfrew in 2013 and are headquartered in Santa Monica, California. 

Currently they have over 150 products and 40,000 Independent consultants promoting their products. 

They also have retail deals with major out lets like Target and J.Crew. 

BeautyCounter are no small fry they company acquired NUDE Skincare and underwent 4 funding rounds that raised a total of US$86.3 Million. 

Currently they generate an estimated US$350 Million annually in revenue. Currently as a business BeautyCounter are valued in the US$100m to US$500m range. 

Similar beauty and cosmetic network marketing business's that complete either directly or indirectly with them include: 

• Seacret
• Motives Cosmetics
• Nu Skin
• Riway International
• Essante Organics
• Younique
• SeneGenece International

The angle that Beauty Counter take in the approach to business and their products is that of ensuring that their products are free from known toxins and have currently prohibited over 1,500 ingredients from their products. 

The BeautyCounter has over 150 different items, which is far too many for me to list them all here. The Product Categories that they have on their sites are as follows: 

• SkinCare: Moisturisers, Serums, face Oils, Cleansers, Masks, Etc Etc
• MakeUp: Face, Eyes, Lips, Brushes, Makeup Removers. 
• Bath & Body: Moisturisers, Body Wash & Scrubs, Hand Care, Hair care, Sun Protection. 
• Counterman: SkinCare, Shave & Beard, Body. 

While being a bloke and rather manly one at that - defo no "girly boy" here, I am not what you would call an expert when it comes to make up at all. 

What I do understand is business.

I can clearly see why women would go for BeautyCounter products - they are brilliantly marketed with a strong USP - unique selling point and that is being toxin free. 

The modern woman is much more conscious of her choices and what she is putting on her face and knows of the detrimental effects that toxins can have on her skin.  

Being a a network marketing opportunity. BeautyCounter has 2 main ways in which it's distributors can earn money, which are:

1. Direct Retail Sales: As this sounds, it is pretty straight forward, sell products and get compensated for your efforts by getting a commission for what you have sold. 
2. Team Building And Recruitment: Recruit Others into the BeautyCounter Business opportunity and and earn pass up residual commissions.

The compensation plan at Beauty Counter pays a maximum of 25% Commission on retail sales. Their Compensation plan for the recruitment side functions using the Unilevel compensation model. 

Beauty Counter Compensation Plan Detailed

In this section I will attempt to simplify the Beauty Counter Compensation Plan.

I advise to consult with the company document for full details. 

• Ranks

Beauty counter has 8 ranks in their compensation plan which are as follows: 

1. Consultant: To Qualify You must generate At least US$300 Business Volume Per Month
2. Senior Consultant: To Qualify You Must Generate At Least US$1,250 Business Volume Per Month
3. Manager: To Qualify You Must Generate At Least US$2,500 Business Volume Per Month
4. Senior Manager: To Qualify You Must Generate At Least US$5000 Business Volume Per Month
5. Director: To Qualify You Must Generate US$10,000 Business Volume Per Month
6. Senior Director: To Qualify You Must Generate At Least US$25,000 Business Volume Per Month
7. Executive Director: To Qualify You Must Generate At Least US$50,000 Business Volume Per Month. 
8. Managing Director: To Qualify You Must Generate At Least US$100,000 Business Volume Per Month

Business Volume is the sales volume generated by your downline inclusive of your own sales volume. No more than 50% of your business volume is permitted to come from one single leg of your unilevel downline.

Qualifying For Commissions

All Distributors are required to maintain a US$1,200 Personal Volume, of which US$250 must be from new retail clients or new distributors recruited during a 6 month period.

Personal Volume is the sales volume generated to retail clients and is inclusive of your own purchases. 

• Retail Commissions

The basic rate for commissions for retail sales is 25% this can rise to as much as 35% based on your sales volume. 

​

• Generate Over US$750 In sales but less that US$1,500 you can earn a 5% bonus - Total 30% commission
• Generate Over US$1,500 In sales but less that US$3,000 you can earn a 7% bonus - Total 32% commission
• Generate Over US$3,000 In sales you can earn a 10% bonus - Total 35% commission.

• Residual Commissions

The residual commissions at Beautycounter are paid using the Unilevel Compensation Model. 

The unilevel compensation model can go infinitely wide and infinitely deep your own direct recruits are placed on level 1,  your recruits' recruits are placed on level 2, your recruits recruits recruits are placed on level 3. The unilevel continues in this fashion. 

• Orange Colour - Your Direct Recruits, Your level 1
• Yellow Colour - Your Recruits Recruits, Your Level 2

If you can imagine a blue colour placed below the Yellow, this would be your Level 3 recruits. 

Beautycounter only pays out commissions on 4 levels and as a percentage of the total sales volume that has been generated by the 4 levels. 

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How much is paid as a percentage is fully determined by a few factors including your own personal rank within the Beauty Counter compensation plan and by what level your team sales volume is on. 

• Consultant: Earn 5% From Your Level 1 recruits
• Senior Consultant: Earn 7% From level 1 & 5% From level 2
• Manager: Earn 9% on level 1, 7% From level 2 & 5% From level 3
• Senior Manager: Earn 9% From levels 1 & 2, & 7% From level 3 and 5% From level 4
• Director: Earn 9% From levels 1 to 3 & 7% From level 4

• Beautycounter Generation Bonus

The generation bonus at beauty counter permits a distributor to earnings beyond the 4 levels compensated by a unilevel downline team. 

This bonus compensated on generations inside a single unilevel team. A generation is defined when the highest rank, a director, is discovered in a single unilevel leg.

That first Director rank rounds off the first generation in that particular unilevel leg, a second is rounded off when a second Director level distributor is found on the same leg. 

If no second Director rank is found in that same unilevel rank the generation extends down the whole length of the leg until one is discovered. 

A first generation director level distributor absolutely must be found on the first 4 levels of your unilevel team. 

​

Your commissions are calculated as a Percentage of Your total sales volume inside a given generation. The number of generations that you are permitted to earn is determined by your rank.

• As A Director: You Can Earn 3% commission on Your first generation only
• As A Senior Director: You can earn 5% commission on your first generation and 3% commission on your second generation.
• As A Executive Director: You Can Earn 5% commission on your first and second generation and 3% commission on your third generation
• As A Managing Director: You Can Earn 5% commission on your first, second and third generations and 3% on your fourth generation

• Recruitment Commissions

Recruitment commissions are only paid out when a distributor that you have personally recruited reaches the rank of senior consultant or greater. 

• Recruit a Distributor That Qualifies At Senior Consultant Level You Earn A US$25 commission
• Recruit a Distributor That Qualifies At Manager Level You Earn A = US$50 Commission
• Recruit a Distributor That Qualifies At Senior Manager Level You Earn A  US$100 commission

Those commissions are paid on a monthly basis and only for as long your recruits maintain their rank in the compensation plan and structure. To get the commissions you must also be at the same level or above those that you are receiving the commission for.  

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The compensation plan by Beauty Counter is one of the easiest to follow and it is easy to understand why it is only a 1 page document and not like the rather complex 36+ page ones that I have sifted through and examined by many other other companies.  

It does appear to me that the compensation plan is specifically designed for the company to continue to grow and not to collapse in on its self by being recruitment heavy.

Paying out on only 4 levels does make this one of the better compensation plans that I have seen. Many MLM experts including Jon Taylor clearly state the maximum number of levels should be less than 5. 

A slight concern is they go over slightly by his stated maximum commissions to be paid out as 25%. Although the base rate is 25% it rises to 35. 

Something that I always do, always will is check out how a company is seen by a professional organisation such as the Better Business Bureau. 

Checking those minor details does allow me to see how professionally the company conduct business - at least in a legal manner and how they treat their clients. 

Unfortunately, the BBB profile for BeautyCounter is being updated and no information is currently available in regards to their accreditation or rating.  

I could sift and wade though the internet and bring you complaints from any where, and any forum, site or complaints board. 

I don't particularly like to just dig up dirt from anywhere after all anyone can write any old BS on site jabber or even Glass Door.

Personally I give precedence and priority to the Better Business Bureau as they hold much more weight and are a more official organisation.

Rather than dish up some hearsay I'm reserving this area until Beauty Counter's file at the BBB is updated and we can see the complaints being made through official channels.

My Apologies. 

A safety of a product is something that is entirely subjective and while I am not going to give medical information or scientific data - that is something best left for experts in that field. 

I am inclined to think that BeautyCounter's Products are safer than many of their rivals due to being very stringent in regards to making sure their products are toxin free. 

It is my opinion being toxin free, or certainly having less toxins than their rivals makes Beautycounter product safer than other. 

But, 

Because they are toxin free that does not mean their products are entirely natural or organic or even chemical free.

The company highlight the ingredients in their products with an asterisk for them to be easily identifiable. 

Their products are not GMO free, Petrochemical Free or Free of Preservatives. I am not entirely convinced the product line is 100% free of known toxins, but I am certain they contain less than other brands. 

No, currently speaking BeautyCounter Products are Not FDA Approved. 

I seen no indication on a their website that their products are approved by the FDA.

I also see no indication on their site that their products are manufactured in a cGMP approved facility - a certification given out by the FDA indicating that the manufacturing process and facility is to a certified Good Manufacturing Practices standard. 

Meaning, there is no indication their products are made in a clean and safe environment. 

In my opinion no. 

The products by beauty counter may be free from a list of 1500 toxins but they are not completely free of all harmful ingredients that go in to cosmetics. 

For example they contain parabens, which mimics estrogen, and disrupts a woman's (and man's) endorcrine system.

They also contain Phthalates which is not too beneficial for your health either and like parabens I believe that too can be classified as an xenoestrogen. 

To say Beautycounter's products are completely clean would be false. 

There is lot of good plus points to said for Beauty counter - let's talk about the main points. 

• Good in depth and focused product range 
• Good USP - unique selling point that make selling their products easier
• Their compensation plan is focused on sales. 
• Company has been around for many years. 
• Cheap to get started

Nothing in my opinion will ever be completely perfect as perfection can always be improved. There were some things that I did not like about Beauty counter. 

• Their products do raise a lot of questions with informed consumers - i.e not paraben free or completely free of toxins. 
• Lack of training given to their new distributors. This is a fault with all MLM companies and not just Beautycounter.
• Not FDA approved or manufactured in an approved facility. 

Rather than just answer your question with a straight yes or no - let me prove to you how much you can earn and the likelihood of earning it. 

Let's have a look at the companies income disclosure statement. 

Going by their latest income disclosure statement we can see that only 3.2% of all beauty counter distributors managed to earn an average of US$2,134 per month. 

This is total income and does not include business expenses. It fair to say in my opinion that your chances of succeeding with Beauty counter and earning a liveable income is far less than 3.2%. 

That's a really good question!. 

By their very nature and structure all MLM businesses look like pyramid schemes but it is due to technicalities in the law and the 1979 Amway ruling that states as long as a network marketing company has a retail side to their business, that products be they physical or digital they cannot be classified as a pyramid scheme.

Thus in the eyes of the law, Beautycounter cannot be considered as a Pyramid Scheme.  

Absolutely!. 

Due to the structure and business model as well as how the company compensate their distributors without a doubt Beauty counter are indeed a multilevel marketing business opportunity. 

In my opinion Beauty Counter is not a scam. Not even close. They are a well established business generating hundreds of millions in revenue every year and even acquiring other brands. 

It might be difficult for most people to earn money from their business opportunity but this is not indicative at all of the company or opportunity being a scam. 

It is, in my opinion an indication of the company lacking proper training for their distributors, helping them to obtain the skill set that it takes to succeed in network marketing.  

I'm not a fan at al of network marketing opportunities due to the fact that 99% of people fail when they start a MLM based business. 

Most people fail due to the lack of training given to them by the company they are with, I don't see much in the way of any actual sales training given by beauty counter for their distributors. 

Although I don't advise you getting involved with this opportunity for that very reason I will say that due to the company structure and the way the compensation plan is I think Beauty Counter are one of the better ones that I have come across in the beauty and cosmetics industry.  

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