The mother-daughter team of Cindy Simmons and Heidi Moore have been working together for nearly 25 years. The two women recently opened their own Merle Norman Cosmetics store and Gifts Galore gift shop in the Jonesville Steeplechase Publix plaza, located at the intersection of

The new Merle Norman Cosmetics features the company’s most state-of-the-art design and all of the products in the store are available in every shade and type for hands-on testing by customers. “Our customers have the freedom to experiment with our cosmetics on their own and we always offer a free makeover,”?says Heidi.

Both owners and the store manager Ashley Pevey have been trained at Merle Norman headquarters in Los Angeles, where they also got a peak at Merle Norman’s state-of-the-art advancements in skin care and cosmetics.

In the 1920s, Merle Norman created her own line of cosmetics to help women care for their skin and enhance their natural beauty. Merle Norman offered free samples of her products to neighbors, but had built a coast-to-coast studio business by the 1940s.

“It’s a great company to be a part of,”?says Heidi. “They’re very family- and people-oriented.”

Heidi and Cindy previously had worked at Merle Norman when it had first opened at the old Gainesville Mall more than 20 years ago and say they have been in love with the products since.

“We truly believe that this is a blessing from God and He gets all the glory,”?says Heidi, who is a member of Christian Life Fellowship Church with her mother.

In the back of their store is a unique gift shop that they call “Gifts Galore.” It’s loaded with everything from jewelry to dishes to inspirational items and it is the exclusive Jonesville dealer of Greenleaf home fragrance products. The owners say it’s “high-end, but very affordable.”

For more information, visit Merle Norman in Jonesville at 14230 W. Newberry Rd. or call (352)332-7404.