SeneGence

SeneGence distributors (referred to as "SeneSisters") work under a multi-level marketing system, with titles based on sales numbers and rankings. Income is calculated and derived from product sales, and commissions on wholesale product purchases from recruited distributors. To qualify for earning commissions, distributors are required to spend at least $200 semi-annually (every 6 months) to remain an active distributor. Levels of commissions range between 20%-50% depending on the amount of sales for that given 30 day period

An article in The Outline in December 2017 raised concerns about SeneGence's business model, the payment structures for independent distributors and concerns around 'front-loading' (when distributors buy potentially non-refundable large volumes of inventory either in preparedness for customer orders, or to combat product shortages). According to The Outline, SeneGence's "complicated pay structure" may indicate that the company is close to being an illegal pyramid scheme.{{Cite news|url=https://theoutline.com/post/2566/lipsense-multi-level-marketing?zd=1&zi=6s2fhmuf|title=About that lipstick all your Facebook friends are selling...|last=Del Valle|first=Gaby|date=6 December 2017|work=The Outline|access-date=2018-03-05|language=en}}

The Daily Beast has said that multi-level marketing distributors, including those with SeneGence, have made extremely aggressive and unsupportable sales claims.{{cite news |last1=Lorenz |first1=Taylor |title=How Women Are Fighting the Marketers That Nearly Ruined Them |url=https://www.thedailybeast.com/how-women-are-fighting-the-marketers-that-nearly-ruined-them |accessdate=29 August 2018 |work=The Daily Beast |date=14 March 2018 |language=en}}

In 2017, there were widespread reports of SeneGence distributors falsely claiming that LipSense had been designated as "the official lipstick of Broadway". According to Racked, the company has emailed distributors asking them not to make this claim, but has not challenged any distributors who ignore this request. Racked found no examples of any SeneGence cosmetics being used by Broadway productions.{{Cite news|url=https://www.racked.com/2017/8/30/16179162/lipsense-official-lipstick-broadway-false|title=There's No Such Thing as 'The Official Lipstick of Broadway'|last=Perry|first=Richelle|date=30 August 2017|work=Racked|publisher=Vox|access-date=2018-03-05}}

SeneGence products started with LipSense lip color, lip gloss, and lip color remover.{{Cite news|title=Fashionably awkward: A liquid lip color that lasts all day|last1=Taylor|first1=Anna|date=18 March 2017|work=TCA Regional News|last2=Lammers|first2=Carlee}} According to Romper, LipSense products contains polyethylene glycol-related chemicals and parabens suggested as not safe for pregnant and breastfeeding women.{{Cite news|url=https://www.romper.com/p/is-lipsense-safe-to-use-while-breastfeeding-science-explains-2930785|title=Here's What You Need To Know About Trying LipSense While Breastfeeding|last=Patel|first=Ojus|date=19 November 2017|work=Romper|access-date=2018-04-07|language=en}}

The entire line is cosmetics include lip colour, long-wear cheek products, complexion products (foundation, concealer, tinted moisturizer) and a wide range of cream eyeshadows.

Skincare products with a patented enzyme promoted as Seneplex+ Complex are also available for a number of skin types.

Celebrity distributors have included actress Loretta Swit{{Cite news|title=Actress stint as beautician means 'hot' makeup tips|date=4 January 2003|work=Kitsap Sun|page=A06}}{{Cite news|title=Survival aided by tips from Loretta and Ty|last=Massey|first=Dawne|date=20 February 2003|work=St. Louise Post-Dispatch|page=6}} and Teen Mom 2 cast member Leah Messer. Messer received negative feedback on her instagram account regarding her use and promotion of LipSense products on her young daughters.{{Cite news|url=http://www.intouchweekly.com/posts/leah-messer-slammed-daughters-makeup-144529|title=Leah Messer Puts Lipstick on Her Daughters, Is Mercilessly Attacked by Mommy-Shamers|date=2017-10-17|work=In Touch Weekly|access-date=2018-03-26}}

SeneGence sponsored Lauren Winans, a country musician from Buckhannon, West Virginia.{{Cite news|url=https://pittsburghmusicmagazine.net/2012/10/16/whats-popping-with-lauren-winans/|title=What's Popping With Lauren Winans|last=Fritzburgh|date=2012-10-16|work=Pittsburgh Music Magazine|access-date=2018-03-14|language=en-US}} and launched two new shades of LipSense -- 'Luv It' and 'Heartbreaker' -- named after Winans' songs "You're Gonna Luv It".{{Cite news|title=Singer/songwriter Lauren Winans hopes you're gonna 'Luv' her|last=Robinson|first=Amy|date=17 February 2013|work=Sunday Gazette-Mail}} and "Better at Breaking", respectively.{{Cite news|url=http://www.bgdailynews.com/community/singer-hopes-to-one-day-become-pop-star-set-to/article_7b5b9a93-3aee-5152-b3cb-fbd80abc8062.html|title=Singer hopes to one day become pop star, set to perform at Harley-Davidson event|last=Harvey|first=Alyssa|date=12 June 2014|work=Bowling Green Daily News|access-date=2018-03-14|language=en}}

According to Rogers-Kante (née Joni Rae Rogers), she established SeneGence after raising funds by selling a chemist's long-wear lip color product, 'Ultralux',{{Cite book|title=Million dollar lips: a journey into the hearts of women in business|last=Rogers-Kante|first=Joni|publisher=Jerni Publishing|year=2011|isbn=9780615464831|location=Irvine, California|pages=35–36}} which was later rebranded as the SeneGence product line LipSense.{{Cite book|title=Million dollar lips: a journey into the hearts of women in business|last=Rogers-Kante|first=Joni|publisher=Jerni Publishing|year=2011|isbn=9780615464831|editor-last=Roney|editor-first=Michael|location=Irvine, California|pages=40|editor-last2=Gibellino|editor-first2=Michelle}}

The company was initially based in Newport Beach, California. According to Rogers-Kante, the company earned $1.7 million in revenue from product sales in its first year of operation and $3.8 million the following year.{{Cite book|title=Million dollar lips: a journey into the hearts of women in business|last=Rogers-Kante|first=Joni|publisher=Jerni Publishing|year=2011|isbn=9780615464831|editor-last=Roney|editor-first=Michael|location=Irvine, California|pages=43|editor-last2=Gibellino|editor-first2=Michelle}} New regional offices were opened in Canada (Burnaby, BC) in November 2001 and Australia (Bundall, Queensland) in early 2003,{{Cite news|title=Party time for a lipstick man|last=Galacho|first=Olga|date=22 July 2003|work=Herald Sun (Melbourne)|page=28}} and the company subsequently expanded to Indonesia,{{Cite journal|date=April 2011|title=Main ingredients: Supplier news|journal=Global Cosmetic Industry|volume= 179|issue=3|pages=58|via=EBSCOhost}} the United Kingdom,{{Cite journal|date=1 June 2011|title=SeneGence International expands into UK.(International)|journal=Household & Personal Products Industry|volume= 48|issue=6|pages=30|via=Factiva}} and Italy{{Cite journal|date=1 November 2011|title=SeneGence International (brand news)|journal=Global Cosmetic Industry|volume= 179|issue=9|pages=12|via=Factiva}} in 2011. In the United Kingdom, the products are sold under the name 'SheerSense'.

As of 2016, the company reported around 50,000 distributors.{{Cite news|url=https://sapulpatimes.com/international-skin-care-company-taps-sapulpa-for-massive-expansion/|title=International Skin Care Company taps Sapulpa for massive expansion|date=2016-09-19|work=Sapulpa Times|access-date=2018-03-18|language=en-US}}{{unreliable source?|date=July 2018}} By 2018 they reported more than 500,000 distributors.{{Cite journal|last=Hudson|first=Subrina|date=26 March 2018|title=Making up a legacy: from mobile home to cosmetics sales in 12 countries|url=https://www.ocbj.com/news/2018/mar/26/making-legacy/|journal=Orange County Business Journal|volume= 41|issue=13|pages=7|via=Online OCBJ subscription}} The products have been reported as being sold by distributors in between 11 and 13 countries.{{Cite news|url=http://www.tulsaworld.com/business/manufacturing/re-establishing-roots-former-sapulpan-comes-home-to-build-direct/article_30981752-de8f-5956-956b-22d381ccd9ba.html|title=Re-establishing roots: Former Sapulpan comes home to build direct-sales cosmetics facility|last=Morgan|first=Rhett|date=April 2018|work=Tulsa World|access-date=2018-04-28|language=en}}{{Cite journal|last=Thompson|first=Leslie J.|date=2017|editor-last=Rojas|editor-first=Shelley|title=There's no place like home|journal=Acclaim 2017–2018|pages=6|via=issuu}}

In 2016, SeneGence leased a 49,415 square foot property in Foothill Ranch.{{Cite journal|last=Yahn|first=Don|date=27 June 2016|title=From orchard ranches to thriving industrial market|journal=Orange County Business Journal|volume= 39|issue=26|pages=B–49|via=EBSCOhost}}

In September 2016, SeneGence purchased multiple properties in or near Sapulpa, Oklahoma for a new corporate headquarters, warehouses, and office space.{{Cite news|url=https://sapulpatimes.com/international-skin-care-company-taps-sapulpa-for-massive-expansion/|title=International Skin Care Company taps Sapulpa for massive expansion|last=Diehl|first=Don|date=2016-09-19|work=Sapulpa Times|access-date=2018-03-18|language=en-US}}{{Cite news|url=http://www.tulsaworld.com/business/manufacturing/hundreds-of-jobs-coming-to-cosmetics-company-expansion-in-sapulpa/article_5de0885e-5c84-5363-9a13-d3c813a0089e.html|title=Hundreds of jobs coming to cosmetics company expansion in Sapulpa|last=Morgan|first=Rhett|date=2 March 2017|work=Tulsa World|access-date=2018-03-18|language=en}} In October 2016 SeneGence broke ground on the new headquarters.{{Cite news|url=http://www.fox23.com/news/major-cosmetics-company-makes-move-to-sapulpa/454804736|title=Major cosmetics company makes move to Sapulpa|last=Mejia|first=Hector|date=2016-10-08|work=KOKI|access-date=2018-03-18|language=en-US}} The Kante family also purchased adjoining historical properties for further development.{{Cite news|url=https://sapulpatimes.com/historic-buildings-purchased-to-be-restored-by-senegence/|title=Historic Buildings Purchased, to be Restored by SeneGence|last=Diehl|first=Don|date=2017-03-09|work=Sapulpa Times|access-date=2018-03-18|language=en-US}}{{Cite news|url=http://ktul.com/news/local/city-leaders-looking-forward-to-future-development-in-downtown-sapulpa|title=City leaders looking forward to future development in downtown Sapulpa|last=Hutchins|first=Ethan|work=KTUL|access-date=2018-03-18|language=en-US}} The facility was expected to be finished in the second or third quarter of 2018.{{Cite news|url=http://www.newson6.com/story/36340334/senegence-founder-expanding-business-in-sapulpa|title=SeneGence Founder Expanding Business In Sapulpa|last=Farley|first=Meagan|date=12 September 2017|work=News on 6|access-date=2018-03-18|language=en}}

As at January 2018, SeneGence employed around 70 people in Sapulpa and Broken Arrow.{{Cite news|url=http://www.tulsaworld.com/business/manufacturing/senegence-expansion-into-sapulpa-includes-renovations-of-historic-buildings/article_81c17be9-fce8-5a04-8acf-ed208abc169d.html|title=SeneGence expansion into Sapulpa includes renovations of historic buildings|last=Morgan|first=Rhett|date=8 January 2018|work=Tulsa World|access-date=2018-03-18|language=en}}

In 2010, high-level SeneGence distributor Jeri Taylor-Swade was an active volunteer for the unsuccessful campaign of Republican nominee Sharron Angle. On 21 January 2011, Angle supported SeneGence by being a special guest for a promotional evening alongside Rogers-Kante and Taylor-Swade.{{Cite web|url=http://myemail.constantcontact.com/An-evening-of-glamour-with-special-guest-Sharron-Angle.html?soid=1103606869361&aid=QDQMufasq3Q|title=An evening of glamour with special guest Sharron Angle|website=myemail.constantcontact.com|access-date=2018-03-18}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/next-for-sharron-angle-the-avon-and-tupperware-circuit/2011/02/03/ABn6N5E_story.html|title=Sharron Angle and the makeup of the electorate|last=Kamen|first=Al|date=2011-02-04|newspaper=Washington Post|access-date=2018-03-18|language=en-US|issn=0190-8286}}{{Cite news|url=http://voices.washingtonpost.com/compost/2011/01/sharron_angle_cosmetics_you_ca.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130220093948/http://voices.washingtonpost.com/compost/2011/01/sharron_angle_cosmetics_you_ca.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=February 20, 2013|title=Sharron Angle + cosmetics: You can't make this up!|last=Petri|first=Alexandra|date=31 January 2011|work=The Washington Post: ComPost|access-date=2018-03-18}} Advertising for the event claimed that Angle would show how SeneGence products helped her "look great with 14-16 hour days and with numerous appearances daily" during the campaign.

In March 2017, former Oklahoma state senator Ted Fisher, who was reportedly a long-term adviser to Rogers-Kante,{{Cite web|url=https://www.directsellingnews.com/senegence-international-a-whirlwind-of-growth/|title=SeneGence International: A Whirlwind of Growth|last=Emmert|first=J.M.|date=1 November 2017|website=Direct Selling News|access-date=1 May 2018}} was appointed as the company's Economic Development Officer at the Oklahoma office.

Ben Kante, AKA Bennie Kante, the husband of Joni Kante-Rogers supported President Donald Trump’s inauguration party by donated $250,000.00 to help fund the celebration. In Oklahoma, he is known as having made the largest donor in the state. Many of the distributors supported Mr. Kante’s decision, and this led to inner strife with the consultants being bullied because of their political affiliation. https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2017/09/170904/lipsense-trump-donations-viral-lipstick

{{reflist}}

• [https://seneweb.senegence.com/ Official SeneGence website]

{{Multi-level marketing}}

Category:Multi-level marketing companies

Category:Cosmetics companies of the United States

Category:Retail companies established in 1999

Category:1999 establishments in California