Leslie talks about her childhood: “I’ve been working since I was 10. My parents got divorced when I was 9, and my mother raised me, my brother, and my sister on a teacher’s salary.  My first real job was at McDonald’s. There was a girl there who taught me how to apply double shades of eyeshadow.  I always loved makeup, even though my mother didn’t approve. My mother never remarried, loved her independence, and always told me to have my own career.”

Leslie talks about the beginnging stages of her career: ”Blomingdale’s wouldn’t hire me, either, so I waited outside the buying-office door every day until they gave me a commission job selling hair sticks. I made 21 percent of all sales and ate a lot of popcorn and ramen noodles.  I got a job at Max Factor in product development and discovered I had a really good eye for color. I moved quickly from assistant to managmer. I was surrounded by younger M.B.A.’s who were making more than me and had attitudes. I resented that. As a result, I didn’t hire M.B.A.’s for years—I wanted passionate poeple coming up through the industry.”

She then goes on to talk about the developing stages of her success at Bare Escentuals: “In 1994, John Hansen, part of an investor group that owned Bare Escentuals, called me. I’d never heard of the company, which made the first mineral-based makeup line and had six stores in Northern California. A powder foundation that was good for your skin made great sense, but the shades Bare Escentuals had created were’t working. I knew complexions and how to match skin tones—I saw a huge opportunity. John hired me, and I became CEO within a few months. I relaunched the line as bareMinerals. There were seven of us in the office just winging it. By the fourth quarter of 1996, I thought we weren’t going to make it. I spent many sleepless nights worrying. There was not much on TV at 2 a.m., so I found myself watching a smiling woman on QVC selling jewelry and thinking, I could do that.”

The launch of bareMinerals: “I went on air August 30, 1997. I said things like ‘Do you want to make your skin break out even more? Then don’t try my product. But if you’re interested in something pure that you can actually sleep in, then let’s talk.’ That day, we sold $45,000 worth of product. The infomercials were a success, but people couldn’t find the product. So I focused on distribution.’”

The peak of her career: “In the mid-2000s, we started growing too fast and couldn’t keep up with demand, so there were a lot of lost sales. We hired Myles McCormick as our chief financial officer in 2004: He’s an M.B.A., and so I’ve learned to love M.B.A.’s. He’s now the CEO, and I’ve become executive chairman. Myles has alsways done the hard math and business analysis. I make decisions from the gut. I’ve received thousands of letters from bareMineral users. We send these women samples, and they talk about the product to friends, stranger, and colleagues.”

Her inspiration: “Why am I here? Because women want to feel pretty. If I have a bad day, I read these letter before I go to sleep at night. They remind me of what we do. It’s powerful. I don’t want to be a business. I want to be a community.”

“I have been working for Paul Kluger for over a year now. I have to say that this job has been the best experience anyone right out of college could ask for. I graduated from The University of Texas at Austin back in May of 2009. I started at Galleria Marketing in September of 09 and since then it has been a whirlwind experience. I had no sales or marketing experience but anything I needed to succeed in the business was given to me and I was impeccably trained. I have learned a great deal having Paul as a mentor, I have also met very interesting people and grown as a person. I am looking forward to being a part of company of this calibre for quite a while and I would recommend Galleria Marketing to anyone out there looking to gain some excellent management training and corporate experience.”

-Anamika Sharma

“July of 2009 I interviewed with Galleria Marketing. Its been thirteen months since then and I have to say the experience has been elating. With my recent promotion to Assistant Director; none of this would have been possible had I not taken a risk. The management in training program has defined management in a whole new light. I believe that few to no businesses allow a person to work in such a motivating environment. Not to mention that those who actually work are promoted. Who wouldn’t want to be given the opportunity to enhance their sales and marketing experience and be groomed into a top level executive management position? None the less, working for Paul Kluger has been a joy and the foundation to my and my daughters future.”

-Rebecca Trevino

When did you start with Galleria Marketing and what led you to work for them?
“I started as a field rep in Oklahoma City in January 2007. I had a lot of experience in promotional marketing as a Brand Ambassador and in retail sales and I was looking for a job that I could transition into and use my skills in a corporate environment. I applied for the Management Training Program and the rest is history. The day of my Second Interview I fell in love with the atmosphere, coporate structure, and overall opportunity. In the early Spring of 2007, I moved to Houston and was crossed trained into Human Resources. I have been working alongside Paul Kluger since June 2007, and I’ve advanced from a Recruiter to now an Organizational Human Resources Director.”

What are some of your important achievements?
“In the 3 years of working with Paul I have promoted 10 Assistant Managers and 6 outside deals. I won the 2007 and 2008 Raf Diaz Organization Holiday contests and was awarded ‘Most Valuable Player’ at the 2008 National Conference for being a top performing recruiter in the Diaz Organization. We broke the record for being the largest office in the nation. I’m frequently chosen to speak at leader’s meetings, run conference calls, and train other recruiters within other organizations. I achieved Administrator’s Club 2009 as a consistent top performing recruiter and recieved a Tiffany’s necklace.”

What are some of your key elements for success?
“It’s imperative to keep your enthusiasm on high at all times - your attitude is contagious. Building strong relationships with each individual you meet is the key to any successful business. Strive to be the best at what you do! And lastly, don’t let people more successful than you discourage you, instead let them coach you and pick their brain for how they got to where they are.”

What are a few of your goals for the future?
“To continue to provide opportunity to people that are hungry for success. Each day I think of why I’m here and where I want to be and I use that as my motivation to perform at my best each and every day. I encounter so many young professionals that seem lost in what they want out of a career and how to get there. If I impact and help change just one person’s life a week, or even a month, I am happy!”

Do you have any active hobbies and interests?
“When the weather permits, I love going to the pool or down to Galveston to the beach. I am very active in my church and I’m on their missions and volunteer team. I’m an avid Philanthropist and I just started a volunteer division at our firm… very excited about it! Our first mission is at the Children’s Museum.”

Tell us some fun facts about you.
“I got a concussion during my interview with Paul Kluger! If you’ve ever met him, you know that he’s a really funny guy. Well, Paul said something that made me laugh so hard, I threw my head back and hit in on the wooden back of the chair. To this day, we still laugh about it! Another fun fact about me is that I know almost everything there is to know about Ayurveda and Naturopathology.”

What’s your motto in life?
“Let go and let God. Humble yourself in everything that you do. Put others before yourself… not only will you get so much gratification from it, but you could change someone else’s life. And don’t let someone else direct you away from your road to happiness and success.”

Paul Kluger, owner of Galleria Marketing, had his first experience in sales at the age of three. He would accompany his father, a sales manager, on sales calls, where they sold everything from advertising to home improvements. His mother, a corporate manager, was another inspiration. Paul remembers watching her organize and run meeting, juggling customers and employees. “I realize now that my success is deeply rooted to my childhood”, Paul says. “Qualities like routine schedules, organization, taking control, problem-solving, and self-confidence shaped who I am today.”

Paul attended the University of Florida, where he studied chemical engineering. He also earned a degree in finance from Florida Atlantic University. After being laid off by two companies going out of business, he saw an ad titled “Business is Booming!” in Boca Raton, Florida and he knew he had found the right opportunity. He was on pace for a promotion to assistant manager in only three months. “The week I began production, four hurricanes hit south Florida in a row, which caused me to lose my team and forced me to rebuild my crew each time,” he says. “I was promoted in a total of 18 weeks, three weeks after the last storm hit by putting on 11 guys in one week, and running back-to-back business trips for two weeks straight!”

In September 2005, Paul got his opportunity on Quill in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. He left his promotion and moved to Houston, Texas, where he then promoted out 3 more deals. By the end of 2008, they had all closed up. Instead of quitting, he instead decided to work harder than ever before. That work paid off. In 2009, he promoted four deals with three more that opened this year in the late Spring and early Summer and he currently has 3 assistant managers in his organization.

“My office broke every record on the Quill campaign, doing 400 accounts for $85,000 in sales, with 72 reps in the office,” he adds, “I was nominated for the Million Dollar Club and Promoting Owner of the Year and I won Consistency Manager at this year’s Keys to Success. I have also piloted the Direct Energy and Dish Network campaigns.”

When it comes to his keys to success, Paul believes that his success is based on being systems-oriented and having the ability to overcome obstacles and remain focused on larger goals. “Life is like a roller coaster at times and I choose to enjoy the ups as well as the downs,” he says.