Avon Plant Tour | My Kind of Field Trip

At 26, I can still remember the happy field trip days of my elementary years wherein we visited plants and factories of Crayola, Mongol, and Coca-Cola. My memory of those are still so clear that it seemed to happened just some weeks back. Happy days, indeed! I thought I am too old for plant tours like such but boy, I was wrong! The same excitement and happiness struck me once again when I, together with some fellow bloggers, had a chance to tour the Avon plant yesterday, August 24, 2012.

I know you know Avon. It has been The Company for Women longer than I can remember. Though I already have a handful of their products, I still got interested in knowing what lies behind those brochures and the 1-month to pay payment scheme. By this, you cannot blame me if I had to take a leave from work and let another teacher handle my class for day.

We were welcomed by the APMI executives as we entered the Avon 7-hectare plant located in Calamba, Laguna. Personally, I felt so special seeing almost all the Avon Philippines executives lined up to greet each and every blogger that enters the building. After the welcome remarks, we headed  to the function hall and indulged ourselves with the wonderful lunch served by Bizu.

Mr. Collin Whittington, APMI General Manager and Manufacturing Director, made sure that he gets to talk to all of the attendees. :)

After the scrumptious meal (I want more of that 10-hour steak!), we were asked to wear the most fashionable laboratory outfit -- the combination of a lab gown, a hair cap and a mask. Though we were not fans of this style, this is part of the tour's procedures to help ensure our and the products safety. 

The pairing of  a lab gown and red lips worked, right? :)

We were given the last few instructions before entering the plant proper. As we stepped into the production area, this huge sign welcomed us! Kilig! :)

To ensure the highest quality of their products, Avon makes sure that they adhere to the standards. According to Mr. Joey Adriatico, our group's tour guide, Avon has a periodic testing of the raw materials they use for products and all finished products undergo series of quality testings before releasing it to the market.

Here are some of the pictures I took while going around the Avon plant.

Ang linis, noh? :)

Yes, those are lipsticks. It will be released soon so better watch out for it! :)

We witnessed the last few steps on the production of lipsticks. In this area, each tube of lipstick is run over flame to give it a shine. Astig!

Avon still hasn't fully converted to machine-operated production that's why more than half of the procedures are still done by hands. 

New packaging, new nourishing oils  and a whole lot new goodness for  Skin So Soft lotions!

Avon's manufacturing plant in Laguna can produce about 44 million bottles of lotions in 250 days. They did the math and said that each batch of products takes only 3.2 hours to do, from raw materials up to its ready-to-use stage.

I must say that Avon really adheres to the world's standards in terms of their production and the quality of their products. They are very stern with sanitation and hygiene as well as the quality testing of the products they make. But what makes Avon one of the top leading company is the way how special they treat their employees and even their Avon ladies. They think their people above anything else because they believe that,  "Kung wala sila (employees and Avon ladies), wala kami (Avon company). Pero kung wala kami, okay lang naman sila. Kaya kailangan namin silang alagaan."

The tour was so enlightening that it made me look at my Avon lipsticks and lotions in a different way. I  should start giving love to each tube just like how the employees of Avon put their hearts into it while making it.

I can't wait for another plant tour, may it be in Avon or other plants. A tour like such is so educational for a big girl like me! :)

Insider's note: Avon just released a newer version of their Skin So Soft lotions. Stay tuned for more about it on my next posts! :)

Thank you, Avon and Ogilvy for the invite! It was super fun! :) See you again, soon!

Thank you, Lhen of Ogilvy! Thank you so much! :)