Mark R. Hughes

Mark R. Hughes (January 1, 1956 – May 21, 2000) was an American entrepreneur who was the founder, chairman, and CEO of Herbalife, a multi-level marketing company.

Early life

Hughes was born in La Mirada, California, on January 1, 1956, the son of Stuard Hartman and Jo Ann Hughes. His parents divorced in 1970, when Mark was 14, and his mother retained custody of Mark.

At this point, the family survived on welfare payments with Hughes' mother suffering from mental health issues. She attempted to treat obesity and tension with amphetamines and sleeping pills. In the ninth grade Hughes dropped out of school and began using drugs himself. "I was a little delinquent," he says. "I got in trouble with the law." At 16, he was sent to CEDU High School, a private residential school for troubled youngsters in Running Springs, California, whose origins were associated with Synanon, a group founded in 1958 and later described as a cult. Part of Hughes' CEDU rehab required him to raise money by selling raffle tickets. Hughes became the school's best salesman. "The approval there was based on how much funds you raised," Hughes told People in 1985. "There was a lot of pressure, and I wanted to be the best right away."

Hughes was 19 years old and still working for CEDU when his mother died in her apartment of a drug overdose on April 27, 1975. According to the autopsy report, several empty vials of prescription drugs were found beside her bed, and her doctor told the coroner she "was known to over-ingest her prescription drugs." Toxicological tests showed potentially lethal levels of the painkiller Darvon in her system.

Career

Hughes began his career in 1976 at Seyforth Laboratories selling diet products. He spent three years there and was listed as one of the company's top 100 earners.