Merle Norman Cosmetics

          Connie Desrochers is the owner of Merle Norman Cosmetics on Warner Rd. in Phoenix, AZ. The cosmetics company has been in business for 90 years and is based in San Jose, CA. It started in 1931 by a woman named Merle Norman, though her nephew took over after she passed away in 1978. Connie has owned this Phoenix location for 32 years since 1968. She described the business’s products including skincare, foundation, color, and other cosmetics.

          When covid-19 hit, Connie explained how she had to let go of all her employees, so now she is running the business alone. This is due to the fact that during quarantine, most people were staying at home and thus not needing makeup anymore. The wearing of masks in public also contributed to this since most of people’s faces were covered. However, although makeup sales went down, skin care sales went up since an increasing amount of people were washing and cleansing their faces every night during covid.

          Connie never closed her store down during the pandemic, but instead kept business going through curbside deliveries, emails, and free shipping of her business’s products. She advised other small businesses to be prepared for situations like these. She also said that owners cannot dream their business and hope it survives, but instead work to keep it going and have backup funds as well!

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Learn more about this business and buy from them at: https://www.merlenormanstudio.com/AZ/PHOENIX/mn-5999/