Name Shirley Polykoff | ||
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Died June 4, 1998, New York, United States Books Does She ... Or Doesn't She?: And how She Did it | ||
The Voice History of the Ads of the Day: Shirley Polykoff
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Shirley Polykoff (January 18, 1908 – June 4, 1998) was an American advertising executive whose "Does She... Or Doesn't She?" tagline for Clairol dramatically increased sales and earned her a place in the Advertising Hall of Fame.
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Born in Brooklyn, she started her career in magazine and retail ad sales before taking a position at Foote, Cone & Belding. In 1955 she took over the Clairol account, and her line helped take the hair color category from $25 million to $200 million annually, with Clairol holding a 50% market share. Even though her Clairol advertising campaign encouraged women to take charge of their own lives, she did not want to be seen earning more than her lawyer husband and insisted that her advertising agency cap her salary at $25,000 a year. Upon the death of her husband, her company immediately doubled her salary twice and promoted her.
She was #24 on the Advertising Age 100 people of the 20th century and is very likely the model for the character Peggy Olsen in Mad Men.
