Woman who struggled for cash after losing print factory job becomes first Avon lady millionaire

A woman who was jobless six years ago and struggling to pay the bills is celebrating after becoming the first millionaire Avon lady. Debbie Davis, 31, and her partner have earned £1.4million from selling cosmetics door-to-door for the make-up company. Miss Davis, who was raised on a council estate, has built up a team of 8,000 representatives and is the proud owner of a recently renovated home and a sporty Mercedes. After being made redundant from a printing factory in 2004, she found herself struggling to make ends meet and paid £15 to sign up as an Avon representative to help pay the bills. In just one week she became sales leader and recruited her partner, Dave Carter, to work in her team as a representative. During a three-week campaign they turned over £18,800 worth of products. Since then they have built up one of the largest teams in the UK. Last year Miss Davis, from Sunderland, took home £300,000 and has turned over a staggering £9.3million in total for the business. This year the couple were crowned the make-up company's top earners for the fifth year running. As a result, Avon gave Miss Davis a Mercedes, Mr Carter, 42, received a BMW X3 and the pair were sent on a holiday to Majorca. Miss Davis, whose mother was a former Avon lady, is now senior executive sales leader. She said: 'I never thought that by the time I turned 31 I would be able to say I am running a lucrative business with my partner. 'My Avon business has given me the opportunity to do and buy things I had never even dreamed of. 'I have been able to travel the world from Monte Carlo to Barcelona, drive my dream car and purchase my own home - a far cry from the council estate I was brought up on. 'This past year the size of my team has grown by almost 25 per cent and I have managed to recruit over 900 representatives from all over the UK.' To begin working for Avon, representatives pay a start-up fee of £15 which is deducted from their first two orders. From then on, for every £100 of products ordered, they receive a 20 per cent discount off the recommended brochure selling price, rising to 25 per cent for orders more than £40. It is this discount which creates their earnings. As sellers become more ambitious, Avon's management scheme allows representatives to recruit and manage their own teams. It is this work which enables the successful to get rich quick. The couple was recognised at Avon's annual Live Your Dream event this weekend, an annual ceremony which celebrates Avon's top achieving sales leaders for their success and hard work. They stole the show, winning a number of accolades including having the fastest growing team of representatives and highest earnings. In addition, Miss Davis and Mr Carter were awarded for having one of the top 20 highest achieving sales teams in the UK, which will see them whisked off on an all expenses paid holiday to Berlin.