Avon calling

US: Let’s be honest. “Door-to-door salesperson” is not usually at the top of the list of dream jobs. But the current financial crisis has made the job seem more attractive, at least for women wanting to work for Avon Products Inc .

The American firm, whose representatives sell cosmetics and personal-care products door-to-door, has seen an increase in job applications. Avon’s US sale force has increased five per cent over this time last year. This is a welcome change for the company, which has had trouble finding enough sales reps for the US market.

In recent years, Avon has had trouble finding enough salespeople for the US market.

“More women are joining because of these times,” leadership sales rep Marie Benoit-Wilcox told The Wall Street Journal. Benoit-Wilcox, who recruited 30 new reps during the month of October alone, holds down a full-time job in another firm in addition to her Avon sales.

Some analysts warn, however, that the new sales force may not be as successful as they hope. “New reps might be disappointed when they find they’re not the only ones in difficult economic circumstances — their customers are, too,” says Ali Dibadj of Sanford Bernstein Global Wealth Management .

Deutsche Bank analyst Bill Schmitz disagrees. “Representative growth is the gasoline that drives the Avon car,” Schmitz says.