Avon Products, Inc., manufactures and sells beauty, household, and personal care products. It is one of the oldest direct selling companies in America. The company was founded in 1886 by David H. McConnell (1856-1937), originally named the California Perfume Company which focused on selling perfumes.

McConnell established a manufacturing headquarters and research laboratory in Suffern, New York in the 1890s. During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the company expanded its line of products to include cosmetics, household cleaners, food flavorings, and toiletries.

The company name was officially changed to Avon in 1939. Avon grew increasingly successful and profitable during the 1940s, and the company expanded into the international market in the 1950s. Avon diversified in the 1970s. Costume jewelry, fine jewelry, gift and decorative items were introduced to the product line, and the company entered the mail order business in 1973. The decade of the 1980s was a period of merger and acquisition for the company. Avon briefly entered the health care field, expanded its direct mail order business, and ventured into retail fragrance sales.

In 1989, ground was broken on a new distribution center and warehouse in Suwanee, Georgia. The construction of the site was completed in May 1991 and officially opened in February, 1992. In the Summer of 2013, Avon closed the Suwanee distribution center which eliminated 250 jobs. The decision to close was an effort to streamline and improve the health of the company. Orders which were handled by the Suwanee branch were moved to an Ohio facility.