Avroy Shlain vs Avon: Which Is Better to Sell in South Africa?

Here's the short answer on Avroy Shlain vs Avon: joining Avroy Shlain is free, and a Beauty Advisor earns a flat 25% on what she sells from her very first order, while Avon Justine charges a once-off R105 registration fee and works on a tiered discount that runs from 15% to 35% depending on your quarterly sales. Which one is better depends almost entirely on how much you plan to sell — and I'll show you the crossover point below.

Cards on the table first: I'm Liza Truter, an Avroy Shlain Group Manager, and I lead the Stay Ravishing team. So yes, I have a side. That's exactly why every Avon figure in this post is quoted from a published source with a date on it, and why I'll tell you plainly where Avon genuinely wins. A rigged comparison helps nobody — least of all you.

One note on sources: Avon Justine's own onboarding pages sit behind a login, so the Avon figures below come from sites published by independent Avon Justine business leaders, checked in August 2026. Fees and tiers change — always confirm Avon's current fees directly before you sign up.

How much does it cost to join Avroy Shlain vs Avon?

Avroy Shlain costs R0 to join. No joining fee, no starter kit to buy, no stock to hold. You need to be 18 or older, have a valid SA ID, live in South Africa, and have your own cellphone number — your one-time PIN arrives by SMS. Registration takes about a minute online, and I've written a step-by-step walkthrough if you want to see exactly what happens after that.

Avon's joining fee in South Africa is R105, a once-off amount added to your first order (as published on yourbeautyproducts.co.za, a site run by independent Avon Justine business leaders, August 2026). The same source lists paper brochures at R14.90 for one, R45 for five and R75 for ten, and says you register by submitting a first order of at least R580 — with an order of at least R580 needed every month thereafter to stay active.

R105 is not a lot of money. The bigger difference is that R580 monthly minimum: at Avon, your own money is committed every month before you've sold anything. At Avroy Shlain, you order once your customers have ordered from you.

Avon vs Avroy Shlain commission: how do the earnings compare?

At Avroy Shlain, a Beauty Advisor earns 25% on what she sells, calculated before VAT: she buys at BA price, sells at the brochure price, and the difference is her profit. It's flat — no tiers, no qualifying periods, the same 25% on your first R100 as on your ten-thousandth.

At Avon Justine, your discount is fixed at 20% for your first three months. After that you move onto Avon Rewards, where your sales in one quarter set your discount for the next quarter: under R1,900 a quarter earns 15% (Bronze), R1,900–R5,499 earns 20% (Silver), R5,500–R13,699 earns 25% (Gold), R13,700–R34,099 earns 30% (Platinum), and above R34,100 earns 35% (VIP) — as published on teamdiamonds.co.za and avonlady.co.za, both independent Avon leaders' sites, August 2026.

So where's the honest crossover? Working purely from those published tiers, purely as illustration:

• Selling under about R1,850 a month (R5,500 a quarter): Avroy Shlain's flat 25% beats Avon's 15–20% bands.
• Selling around R1,850–R4,600 a month: roughly level — Avon's Gold band also pays 25%.
• Selling consistently above about R4,600 a month, and especially above R11,400 a month: Avon's 30–35% bands beat a flat 25%.

A worked example, purely illustrative: if you sold R2,000 of orders in a month at Avroy Shlain, you'd keep about R500. The same R2,000 a month at Avon (R6,000 a quarter) lands in the Gold band at 25% — about the same — but only after your three months at 20%, and one slow quarter drops your next quarter to 20%, where R2,000 of sales would keep you about R400. The flat rate isn't always the biggest number; it is the most predictable one.

Both companies also pay commission for building a team. At Avroy Shlain that starts at 8% on R16,500 of monthly team sales as a Junior Group Manager and rises to 13% at Million Rand Manager level (R142,000 a month in team sales), paid monthly on team sales before VAT, on top of your own 25%. Avon offers leadership commission too; I couldn't verify its current figures from published sources, so check with Avon directly.

Avroy Shlain vs Avon at a glance

*Avon figures as published on yourbeautyproducts.co.za, teamdiamonds.co.za and avonlady.co.za — independent Avon Justine leaders' sites, August 2026. Confirm current fees with Avon before joining.

Where does Avon honestly win?

Brand recognition. Avon is a global name and "the Avon lady" has been part of South African life for generations. When you hand someone an Avon brochure, you never have to explain what it is. That familiarity genuinely makes the first conversation easier.

Make-up range. Avon's colour cosmetics range is bigger — foundations, lipsticks and mascaras across wide shade ranges, plus the Justine brand under the same roof. If make-up is your first love and the thing your friends already ask you about, Avon's range is deeper than ours.

Top-tier earnings. As the maths above shows, a big, consistent seller in Avon's Platinum or VIP bands out-earns a flat 25% on the same sales.

Where does Avroy Shlain win?

Starting cost. R0, nothing to buy, no stock — you can be registered in about a minute and your first steps arrive on WhatsApp.

Predictability. 25% on everything, from rand one, every month. No tier maths, no requalifying, no slow-quarter knock-on.

No monthly spend commitment. You're not committed to a R580 order every month — you order what your customers have already ordered from you.

Delivery on your stock orders. Free over R550 to your door, or over R750 to a PAXI collection point near you.

Fragrance-led range. Avroy Shlain has been a proudly South African direct-selling company since 1973 (as published on avroyshlain.co.za, August 2026), and fragrance is its heartland — which suits sellers whose circle buys perfume year-round.

WhatsApp-first selling. Our whole team system is built around selling from your phone — here's how to turn your WhatsApp into a beauty business.

Which is better to sell — Avon or Avroy Shlain?

Both are legitimate direct selling companies in South Africa, and both models work. The best brochure business to join in South Africa is the one whose numbers match how you will actually sell.

Avon suits you if you want the most recognised name on the doorstep, a deep make-up range, and you're confident you'll sell big, consistent volumes — because above roughly R11,400 a month in sales, Avon's top bands pay more than a flat 25%. You should also be comfortable with the R580 monthly order.

Avroy Shlain suits you if you're the one whose friends already ask what perfume you're wearing, you'd rather start without putting money in upfront, and you'd rather earn the full 25% from your first sale than work up a ladder. Most people who start a brochure business sell modestly at first — and in that range, the flat model simply works out better. When you're ready to grow, these five ways to sell more from every brochure is where I'd start.

---

If the flat-25% model suits you, joining my team is free and takes about a minute. Register directly here — that link registers you with me and the Stay Ravishing team, and we'll send your first steps on WhatsApp. Prefer a hand through the form? Use our guided sign-up. Still weighing it up? Start here, or simply WhatsApp me on 084 990 0030 and ask me anything — including the hard questions about Avon. I'll answer those honestly too.