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Why I Want to Be an Esthetician: an Exploration of The Beauty Industry

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Taking a good look at the beauty industry

The beauty industry —encompassing skin care, color cosmetics, hair care, fragrances, and personal care—had a beast of a year in 2020: sales of color cosmetics fell by 33 percent globally, while overall retail sales in the beauty category declined by 15 percent. But the industry has been resilient in the past, and experts are predicting a return to growth in 2022. In this episode of the McKinsey on Consumer and Retail podcast, McKinsey partners Sophie Marchessou and Emma Spagnuolo share their outlook for the industry. (Megan Lesko Pacchia and Kristi Weaver  contributed to the research cited in this episode.) An edited transcript of their conversation with executive editor Monica Toriello follows. Subscribe to the podcast .

Monica Toriello: Hello, everyone. And I do mean everyone. I say that because often when people hear “ beauty industry ,” which is our topic for today, they think, “Oh, it’s going to be all about products for women.” So to our male listeners, I want to say to you, that is not true. On today’s episode, we’ll be discussing some important trends in the beauty industry, one of which is the growth in unisex products and men’s products.

Let’s meet our two beauty experts. Sophie Marchessou is a partner based in McKinsey’s Paris office. She’s been with McKinsey for over 12 years, and she lived in New Jersey for about eight of those years. She moved back to Paris in late 2019, and Sophie now leads McKinsey’s work with beauty companies globally. Emma Spagnuolo is a McKinsey partner who lives in New Jersey. Emma leads our work in the beauty industry in North America. She started her career at US-based retailers Abercrombie & Fitch and Bloomingdale’s, and she joined McKinsey about six years ago.

Let’s start with a very simple question. How have your own beauty routines changed this past year and a half?

Sophie Marchessou: Mine has followed what we’ve seen in global trends. My makeup consumption has definitely decreased. Part of it was just not being able to go try fun things in stores but also having just fewer occasions to wear makeup. On the other hand, I’ve definitely increased my consumption of skin-care, body-care, and hair-care products, as well as what we call DIY products, since getting my nails done in a salon or getting my hair cut wasn’t an option. But my spending is quickly shifting back to what was my prepandemic normal.

Emma Spagnuolo: I went absolutely crazy with color cosmetics because it was something exciting for me in the pandemic. Even though I had to buy them online, I was trying new things and experimenting at home. I did follow the trends, though, in that I created a skin- and hair-care routine for myself that I’ve never had before in the past. So, for instance, if before I was a “purely color cosmetics, hardly even a moisturizer” person, I now have a serum, a moisturizer, a sunscreen, and then a fuller cover-up on top of that before I start my makeup. So I’m both bucking and following the trends. But I’m probably brands’ and retailers’ favorite customer right now.

Monica Toriello: If this were a different kind of show, I would ask you the brand of every product you just mentioned. But this is not that kind of show. We’ll talk about the business side of things. I’m curious to hear your predictions about postpandemic beauty. Some experts are predicting a Roaring ’20s: people spending a lot of money again and “peacocking.” They’re predicting a beauty boom, a rapid recovery in color cosmetics—based on both the patterns that have played out in China  and a sense that people want to get back to dressing up, putting makeup on, and being out and about again. Are you foreseeing a beauty boom?

Emma Spagnuolo: I am. In the midst of the pandemic, we conducted consumer research, specifically in color cosmetics. We found that if you left it vague and asked people, “When the pandemic ends, how much do you expect to spend on cosmetics versus what you’re spending now?” you would see a significant rebound. We’re starting to see it in fragrance, of all places. Q1 [2021] fragrance sales were astronomical, both for brands and for retailers, which gives me hope that color cosmetics will be quick to follow afterwards.

Sophie Marchessou: You spoke about the industry declining by 15 percent, which of course was dramatic for a lot of players. But if you put that in perspective and compare it to other consumer categories, it’s fared a lot better.

I also believe that the outlook is a bit different by region. We’re pretty bullish about the next few years being much more exciting for color cosmetics. But we’ve seen it recover superfast in China, and we’re seeing a fast acceleration in the US as things are getting back to normal. But we’re a little bit more pessimistic about how long it will take for Europe to get back to normal and what the growth rates will be. Some of it is also just a reflection of the trends in the market prepandemic. It’s a differentiated picture by geography.

Digital experimentation and personalization

Monica Toriello: One of the biggest trends of the pandemic era across geographies is the shift to digital  and e-commerce . What are your favorite examples of how retailers have been using e-commerce and, more broadly, technology during the pandemic? What are some of the clever and effective ways that they’ve been able to persuade consumers to buy online?

Sophie Marchessou: Everyone has had to experiment; everyone has had their own tactics. Especially for higher-end brands, you’ve seen smart ways to use beauty consultants or advisers to be part of the transition toward online and to go into social selling—meaning you’re directly buying from someone who’s representing the brand but not going through the traditional e-commerce or store channel.

Emma Spagnuolo: The other digital element that I have found really exciting is the use of personalization  and quiz-type diagnostics. It’s a fun way to engage the consumer and to create a product for them that they feel is uniquely theirs. In some cases, there are six formulas and you take a quiz that pops out the best formula for you. There are other cases where it truly is a very personalized product. This trend has been successful in marketing for years now, and I think we’ll see it continue.

Sophie Marchessou: There’s another level of personalization that is common now in beauty, which is personalized packaging. For example, you’ll get your initials or some sort of personalized touch on your product, which makes it feel more authentic and more special to your needs.

But as soon as you go into customized formulation or truly customized packaging , it’s very difficult to make it a cost-effective offering. So, especially for large brands, it’s all about: Do you try to offer a bit of customization through your entire product line, or do you have a subset of your offering that’s a customized offering? [The latter] is the direction that a lot of brands are going. It’s a challenge but one that’s definitely worth investing in for the next few years.

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Social selling.

Monica Toriello: Sophie, you mentioned social selling. Social selling and livestream selling are huge in China  and other Asian markets but haven’t quite taken off in North America and Europe. Is it coming? What will be the tipping point? And then what should beauty players be doing right now in that space?

Sophie Marchessou: My guess would be that it will be a pretty substantial channel and way of selling, because it goes back to this desire for a personal recommendation, a personal touch and interaction, which consumers are increasingly favoring. I think it will only go to the tipping point when you have platforms that are supported in a large way, like you have in China. And today, you don’t. So you could imagine that some of the platforms that you have in China could be replicated in the US. TikTok, for example, could become an interesting channel for that.

Emma Spagnuolo: I have a pretty bullish take on this. Right now, we sit here in the US, and we don’t see how it could be as viable or as big as all of the other channels that we have. But I really believe that the value that we see coming out of China is going to excite all of those entrepreneurs who are looking to either expand their current offerings from China to the US, or [inspire] the entrepreneurs in the US to find a way to create that next channel. And then I think it’s absolutely going to take off.

Consumers today want that live interaction. They want to be engaged. They want the authenticity and the credibility that these KOLs [key opinion leaders] in China or influencers in the US bring to the product. Also, some people don’t like the in-store interaction. Social selling speaks to extroverts who are looking for somebody to be talking to them but also to the introverts who don’t love to talk to a beauty consultant when they’re in a store—so it actually reaches out to a large group of consumers who are interested in beauty.

The omnichannel future

Monica Toriello: You expect some stickiness in e-commerce and digital channels: you’ve said that digital channels will gain more than 15 percentage points of share globally, meaning some of the dollars that consumers used to spend on beauty products in stores, whether that’s department stores or drugstores, will instead be spent on digital channels. That is a significant channel shift. Beauty players, to some extent, have been preparing for this shift; they’ve been building their digital capabilities. But in your experience, are there things that companies should be doing that they’re still not doing on the digital front?

Emma Spagnuolo: The biggest thing that I would advise all of my beauty retailers to focus on is capturing and leveraging data and customer relationship management. The pandemic forced people online, so retailers were getting additional digital traffic that in the past they wouldn’t have. Now, it’s up to them to leverage that.

The pandemic forced people online, so retailers were getting additional digital traffic that in the past they wouldn’t have. Now, it’s up to them to leverage that. Emma Spagnuolo

Second, for those that have a store footprint, they have to create a store experience that complements and matches that digital experience—because consumers who were forced to buy from them digitally now have the ability to go back into the store. You want to make sure that it remains a seamless experience , because we’ve known for years now that the omnichannel consumer who is shopping both digitally and in store has a much higher lifetime value than anybody who’s shopping any single channel.

Sophie Marchessou: It’s important to define what it is, as a retailer or beauty brand, that you want to stand for and what consumer experience you want to provide—and stick to it. The answer doesn’t need to be the same for everyone. There are, depending on your customer targets, features that might be more or less relevant, so it’s not about going after the gimmicky things and having technology enhancements in the store just for the sake of having them. It’s about figuring out, in the consumer journey, what are potential pain points? And how do you then say, “Those three things I’ll prioritize. That will be how I deliver this omnichannel experience .” Then, make sure you trickle that down through the organization so that not just your digital team but also your store team is aware of the experience you want to provide, and explain why it matters.

That makes a big difference. I think the mistake a lot of retailers have made is being unclear on what they prioritize, especially when it comes to omnichannel features and experiences, but also not communicating it broadly enough in their organization. So they almost have a two-speed organization, and the two don’t work well enough together.

Monica Toriello: In beauty, as in other categories, the future of retail is omnichannel , as you’ve said. The role of the store  will change; it’ll be more about curation, personalization, and experience, rather than just transaction. What are the most exciting examples that come to mind when you think about the possibilities for brick-and-mortar beauty retailers? Are there any beauty retailers that are doing or experimenting with amazing things in stores right now?

Emma Spagnuolo: One of the retailers that I’ve been really excited about lately comes from the department-store channel. That’s interesting to me because the department-store channel is one that, over the past couple of years, has not been performing as well. It has not been performing as well in terms of [financial] numbers, but we’ve also felt as though the decisions being made in department stores may not have been as optimal as in some of our open-sell specialty channels.

What I’m seeing from this particular retailer, however, is that it has really made an effort to create an engaging store experience that brings in consumers, educates them, provides them with the opportunity to shop unencumbered, but then also has beauty consultants available if they need help. The store footprint allows people to come in, test product, look at product, smell product, and do it in their own area.

They have a beauty bar set up, as well as a huge floor so you can try all different types of products—everything from color cosmetics to skin care to hair care to personal care. They’ve done a very nice job of staying on top of the trends. They have a large area dedicated to home fragrance, which was huge during the pandemic. Now, they’ve started to almost gamify the experience: you can come in and try all these different personal fragrances. So this has been truly exciting for me because it’s reopening department stores to create an exciting experience that goes beyond just stocking products.

It’s important to define what it is, as a retailer or beauty brand, that you want to stand for and what consumer experience you want to provide—and stick to it. Sophie Marchessou

Sophie Marchessou: One interesting retailer is Aroma-Zone, which is a French retailer. It is the first DIY concept that I’ve seen that is truly engaging and fun, and most importantly, is able to speak to very different customer segments, all in one store format and layout. If you are a die-hard DIY customer and you know what type of ingredients you need, then you can very quickly navigate toward the essential-oil aisle, then the container aisle, et cetera, and get everything you need. If you are a newer person to DIY, you have areas where there are lot of explanations on everything you need. It’s all in one stack; you can just pick the products. It’s a very interesting example of a retailer that’s innovated on something that speaks to a lot of customers now: do-it-yourself, sustainable products.

Taking action on sustainability

Emma Spagnuolo: Since we started doing our generational research in 2016, we’ve been seeing a simmering belief and willingness to pay for more sustainable products. We’re seeing a lot of brands and retailers start to take action in one of two ways. The first way is to change how they do things and how they package things in order to be more sustainable and more environmentally friendly . The other way is to come up with different initiatives that counteract some of the harm that they may be doing to the environment. This way, they have kind of a net-zero impact because they’re driving sustainability initiatives in other ways.

Sophie Marchessou: Early on, companies were able to pick and choose. For example, “Am I going to commit to [taking action on] climate change  and carbon reduction, or will I focus more on the formulation and the type of ingredients or sustainable packaging  I use?” Now, it’s a little bit too late to pick and choose. If you’re a large group or a large brand, you have to play in all of those areas.

The trick, which we don’t see companies do enough of yet, is to commit all the way down the organization and make that part of people’s evaluation metrics—because when your performance bonus is tied to very specific metrics related to sustainability, it changes the picture completely. All of a sudden, it truly becomes a corporate-wide priority.

‘A desire to be inclusive’

Monica Toriello: Sustainable products constitute one growth area. Another seems to be what I mentioned earlier, which is unisex products and men’s products. In fact, I’ve noticed that some of the biggest influencers in beauty right now are men. What are the implications for beauty-products manufacturers and beauty retailers, which have traditionally catered almost exclusively to women?

Sophie Marchessou: I think this speaks to a broader desire of beauty brands to be inclusive. And gender is part of that, but it’s not the only element. Ethnicity is another huge consideration, especially in the US. Interestingly, when we look at the size of the men’s beauty market, it is not outgrowing the overall beauty market. But it’s an important consideration for companies to decide whether they want to speak to that market, and [what is] the best way to do so. Is it just having inclusive imagery, which for some brands and products actually works? Or is it having a special dedicated line?

Emma Spagnuolo: The other thing is that the way we track men’s products versus women’s products is going to have to be slightly updated. One thing that I have seen proliferating is the idea of having a men’s line that specifically targets male consumers and that looks different and feels different from women’s. But at the end of the day, it’s still a body lotion or a facial cleanser.

Brands absolutely have to be talking to specific consumers. You can no longer just push your brand messaging and assume that if you spend the most, you’re going to be the winner. It’s about those who really speak to a specific consumer base and answer the questions that that consumer has. Those are the ones who are going to be successful. All spectrums of inclusivity are super important, whether it’s men or other ethnicities, or even older consumers who still feel young and are looking for younger brands.

Working toward a North Star

Monica Toriello: Let’s close with this question: If the CEO of a beauty company comes to you and says, “It’s been a tough year. There are too many things on my agenda. I want you to tell me the one thing I need to focus on in 2021 and 2022,” what would you say to that CEO?

Sophie Marchessou: Reenergize your organization and your people . I’m a firm believer that you only achieve change by relying on your colleagues and a team. You have to have a team that works together, that’s cross-functional, that’s working toward a North Star together.

Emma Spagnuolo: I would just advise everybody to think about: What is the next leapfrog step in digital and in e-commerce  that makes you uncomfortable, that you think could never happen in a million years? Think about that, and really pressure test whether that reaction is the right one, or whether or not this is something that you should be the distinctive leader in. That type of thinking is what helps organizations reach that North Star that Sophie’s talking about.

Sophie Marchessou is a partner in McKinsey’s Paris office, and Emma Spagnuolo is a partner in the New Jersey office. Monica Toriello is an executive editor in the New York office.

The authors wish to thank Megan Lesko Pacchia and Kristi Weaver , who help lead McKinsey’s work in the beauty industry, for their contributions to the research cited in this article.

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• WOMEN OF IMPACT

The idea of beauty is always shifting. Today, it’s more inclusive than ever.

Whom we deem ‘beautiful’ is a reflection of our values. Now, a more expansive world has arrived where ‘we are all beautiful.’

The Sudanese model Alek Wek appeared on the November 1997 cover of the U.S. edition of Elle magazine, in a photograph by French creative director Gilles Bensimon . It was, as is so often the case in the beauty business, a global production.

Wek, with her velvety ebony skin and mere whisper of an Afro, was posed in front of a stark, white screen. Her simple, white Giorgio Armani blazer almost disappeared into the background. Wek, however, was intensely present.

She was standing at an angle but looking directly into the camera with a pleasant smile spread across her face, which wasn’t so much defined by planes and angles as by sweet, broad, distinctly African curves. Wek represented everything that a traditional cover girl was not.

More than 20 years after she was featured on that Elle cover, the definition of beauty has continued to expand, making room for women of color, obese women, women with vitiligo , bald women, women with gray hair and wrinkles. We are moving toward a culture of big-tent beauty. One in which everyone is welcome. Everyone is beautiful. Everyone’s idealized version can be seen in the pages of magazines or on the runways of Paris.

We have become more accepting because people have demanded it, protested for it, and used the bully pulpit of social media to shame beauty’s gatekeepers into opening the doors wider.

Eye of the beholder

Technology has put the power to define beauty in the hands of the people. Mobile phones allow people greater control of their image, and include apps that come with filters used for fun, appearance, and entertainment.

Wek was a new vision of beauty—that virtue forever attached to women . It has long been a measure of their social value; it is also a tool to be used and manipulated. A woman should not let her beauty go to waste; that was something people would say back when a woman’s future depended on her marrying well. Her husband’s ambition and potential should be as dazzling as her fine features.

Beauty is, of course, cultural. What one community admires may leave another group of people cold or even repulsed. What one individual finds irresistible elicits a shrug from another. Beauty is personal. But it’s also universal. There are international beauties—those people who have come to represent the standard.

For generations, beauty required a slender build but with a generous bosom and a narrow waist. The jawline was to be defined, the cheekbones high and sharp. The nose angular. The lips full but not distractingly so. The eyes, ideally blue or green, large and bright. Hair was to be long, thick, and flowing—and preferably golden. Symmetry was desired. Youthfulness, that went without saying.

This was the standard from the earliest days of women’s magazines, when beauty was codified and commercialized. The so-called great beauties and swans—women such as actress Catherine Deneuve , socialite C.Z. Guest , or Princess Grace —came closest to this ideal. The further one diverged from this version of perfection, the more exotic a woman became. Diverge too much and a woman was simply considered less attractive—or desirable or valuable. And for some women—black and brown or fat or old ones—beauty seemed impossible in the broader culture.

In the early part of the 1990s, the definition of beauty as it applied to women began to loosen thanks to the arrival of Kate Moss , with her slight figure and vaguely ragamuffin aesthetic. Standing five feet seven inches, she was short for a runway walker. The British teenager was not particularly graceful, and she lacked the noble bearing that gave many other models their regal air. Moss’s star turn in advertisements for Calvin Klein signified a major departure from the long-legged gazelles of years past.

Moss was disruptive to the beauty system, but she was still well within the industry’s comfort zone of defining beauty as a white, European conceit. So too were the youthquake models of the 1960s such as Twiggy , who had the gangly, curveless physique of a 12-year-old boy. The 1970s brought Lauren Hutton, who stirred scandal simply because she had a gap between her teeth.

Even the early black models who broke barriers were relatively safe: women such as Beverly Johnson, the first African-American model to appear on the cover of American Vogue , the Somali-born Iman, Naomi Campbell, and Tyra Banks. They had keen features and flowing hair—or wigs or weaves to give the illusion that they did. Iman had a luxuriously long neck that made legendary fashion editor Diana Vreeland gasp. Campbell was—and is—all va-va-voom legs and hips, and Banks rose to fame as the girl next door in a polka dot bikini on the cover of Sports Illustrated .

Wek was a revelation. Her beauty was something entirely different.

Her tightly coiled hair was sheared close to her scalp. Her seemingly poreless skin was the color of dark chocolate. Her nose was broad; her lips were full. Her legs were impossibly long and incredibly thin. Indeed, her entire body had the stretched-out sinewiness of an African stick figure brought to life.

To eyes that had been trained to understand beauty through the lens of Western culture, Wek was jarring to everyone, and black folks were no exception. Many of them did not consider her beautiful. Even women who might have looked in the mirror and seen the same nearly coal black skin and tightly coiled hair reflected back had trouble reckoning with this Elle cover girl.

See and be seen

Fashion and beauty magazines present a paragon of aspiration, often setting beauty standards for women across cultures. The magazines also serve as giant advertisements for the industries dependent on selling these ideals to willing customers.

Wek was abruptly and urgently transformative. It was as though some great cultural mountain had been scaled by climbing straight up a steep slope, as if there were neither time nor patience for switchbacks. To see Wek celebrated was exhilarating and vertiginous. Everything about her was the opposite of what had come before.

We are in a better place than we were a generation ago, but we have not arrived at utopia. Many of the clubbiest realms of beauty still don’t include larger women, disabled ones, or senior citizens.

But to be honest, I’m not sure exactly what utopia would look like. Is it a world in which everyone gets a tiara and the sash of a beauty queen just for showing up? Or is it one in which the definition of beauty gets stretched so far that it becomes meaningless? Perhaps the way to utopia is by rewriting the definition of the word itself to better reflect how we’ve come to understand it—as something more than an aesthetic pleasure.

We know that beauty has financial value. We want to be around beautiful people because they delight the eye but also because we think they are intrinsically better humans. We’ve been told that attractive people are paid higher salaries. In truth, it’s a bit more complicated than that. It’s really a combination of beauty, intelligence, charm, and collegiality that serves as a recipe for better pay. Still, beauty is an integral part of the equation.

But on a powerfully emotional level, being perceived as attractive means being welcomed into the cultural conversation. You are part of the audience for advertising and marketing. You are desired. You are seen and accepted. When questions arise about someone’s looks, that’s just another way of asking: How acceptable is she? How relevant is she? Does she matter?

Today suggesting that a person is not gorgeous is to risk social shunning or at least a social media lashing. What kind of monster declares another human being unattractive? To do so is to virtually dismiss that person as worthless. It’s better to lie. Of course you’re beautiful, sweetheart; of course you are.

We have come to equate beauty with humanity. If we don’t see the beauty in another person, we are blind to that person’s humanity. It’s scary how important beauty has become. It goes to the very soulfulness of a person.

Beauty has become so important today that denying that people possess it is akin to denying them oxygen.

There used to be gradations when it came to describing the feminine ideal: homely, jolie laide, attractive, pretty, and ultimately, beautiful. The homely woman managed as best she could. She adjusted to the fact that her looks were not her most distinguishing feature. She was the woman with the terrific personality. Striking women had some characteristic that made them stand out: bountiful lips, an aristocratic nose, a glorious poitrine. A lot of women could be described as attractive. They were at the center of the bell curve. Pretty was another level. Hollywood is filled with pretty people.

Ah, but beautiful! Beautiful was a description that was reserved for special cases, for genetic lottery winners. Beauty could even be a burden because it startled people. It intimidated them. Beauty was exceptional.

But improved plastic surgery, more personalized and effective nutrition, the flowering of the fitness industry, and the rise of selfie filters on smartphones, along with Botox, fillers, and the invention of Spanx, have all combined to help us look better—and get a little bit closer to looking exceptional. Therapists, bloggers, influencers, stylists, and well-meaning friends have raised their voices in a chorus of body-positivity mantras: You go, girl! You slay! Yasss, queen! They are not charged with speaking harsh truths and helping us see ourselves vividly and become better versions of ourselves. Their role is constant uplift, to tell us that we are perfect just as we are.

And the globalization of, well, everything means that somewhere out there is an audience that will appreciate you in all your magnificent … whatever.

We are all beautiful.

In New York, London, Milan, and Paris—the traditional fashion capitals of the world—the beauty codes have changed more dramatically in the past 10 years than in the preceding hundred. Historically, shifts had been by degrees. Changes in aesthetics weren’t linear, and despite fashion’s reputation for rebelliousness, change was slow. Revolutions were measured in a few inches.

Through the years, an angular shape has been celebrated and then a more curvaceous one. The average clothing size of a runway model, representative of the designers’ ideal, shrank from a six to a zero; the pale blondes of Eastern Europe ruled the runway until the sun-kissed blondes from Brazil deposed them. The couture body—lean, hipless, and practically flat-chested—can be seen in the classic portraits by Irving Penn, Richard Avedon, and Gordon Parks, as well as on the runways of designers such as John Galliano and the late Alexander McQueen. But then Miuccia Prada, who had led the way in promoting a nearly homogeneous catwalk of pale, white, thin models, suddenly embraced an hourglass shape. And then plus-size model Ashley Graham appeared on the cover of the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue in 2016 , and in 2019 Halima Aden became the first model to wear a hijab in that same magazine , and suddenly everyone is talking about modesty and beauty and fuller figures … and the progress is dizzying.

In the past decade, beauty has moved resolutely forward into territory that was once deemed niche. Nonbinary and transgender are part of the mainstream beauty narrative. As the rights of LGBTQ individuals have been codified in the courts, so have the aesthetics particular to them been absorbed into the beauty dialogue. Transgender models walk the runways and appear in advertising campaigns. They are hailed on the red carpet for their glamour and good taste but also for their physical characteristics. Their bodies are celebrated as aspirational.

The catalyst for our changed understanding of beauty has been a perfect storm of technology, economics, and a generation of consumers with sharpened aesthetic literacy.

The technology is social media in general and Instagram specifically. The fundamental economic factor is the unrelenting competition for market share and the need for individual companies to grow their audience of potential customers for products ranging from designer dresses to lipstick. And the demographics lead, as they always do these days, to millennials, with an assist from baby boomers who plan to go into that good night with six-pack abs.

Hyejin Yun undergoes eyelid surgery in the Hyundai Aesthetics clinic in Seoul. The procedure makes eyes look bigger. South Korea has one of the highest rates of plastic surgery in the world; one in three women ages 19 to 29 has had cosmetic surgery.

Social media has changed the way younger consumers relate to fashion. It’s hard to believe, but back in the 1990s, the notion of photographers posting runway imagery online was scandalous. Designers lived in professional terror of having their entire collection posted online, fearing that it would lead to business-killing knockoffs. And while knockoffs and copies continue to frustrate designers, the real revolution brought on by the internet was that consumers were able to see, in nearly real time, the full breadth of the fashion industry’s aesthetic.

In the past, runway productions were insider affairs. They weren’t meant for public consumption, and the people sitting in the audience all spoke the same fashion patois. They understood that runway ideas weren’t meant to be taken literally; they were oblivious to issues of cultural appropriation, racial stereotypes, and all varieties of isms—or they were willing to overlook them. Fashion’s power brokers were carrying on the traditions of the power brokers who’d come before, happily using black and brown people as props in photo shoots that starred white models who had parachuted in for the job.

But an increasingly diverse class of moneyed consumers, a more expansive retail network, and a new media landscape have forced the fashion industry into greater accountability on how it depicts beauty. Clothing and cosmetic brands now take care to reflect the growing numbers of luxury consumers in countries such as India and China by using more Asian models.

Marked by beauty

We’ve been chasing beauty for millennia, primping and painting our way to a more desirable ideal. Cultures in every era have held different standards of feminine beauty and myriad means of achieving it, from the toxic lead cosmetics of the past to today’s Botox injections. But the standards often serve the same aims: to attract and retain a mate; to signal social status, wealth, health, or fertility; and of course, to simply feel beautiful.

Social media has amplified the voices of minority communities—from Harlem to South Central Los Angeles—so that their calls for representation can’t be so easily ignored. And the growth of digital publications and blogs means that every market has become more fluent in the language of aesthetics. A whole new category of power brokers has emerged: influencers. They are young and independent and obsessed with the glamour of fashion. And fashion influencers don’t accept excuses, condescension, or patronizing pleas to be patient, because really, change is forthcoming.

The modern beauty standard in the West has always been rooted in thinness. And when the obesity rates were lower, thin models were only slight exaggerations in the eyes of the general population. But as obesity rates rose, the distance between the reality and the fantasy grew. People were impatient with a fantasy that no longer seemed even remotely accessible.

Fat bloggers warned critics to stop telling them to lose weight and stop suggesting ways for them to camouflage their body. They were perfectly content with their body, thank you very much. They just wanted better clothes. They wanted fashion that came in their size—not with the skirts made longer or the sheath dresses reworked with sleeves.

They weren’t really demanding to be labeled beautiful. They were demanding access to style because they believed they deserved it. In this way, beauty and self-worth were inextricably bound.

Giving full-figured women greater access made economic sense. By adhering to traditional beauty standards, the fashion industry had been leaving money on the table. Designers such as Christian Siriano made a public point of catering to larger customers and, in doing so, were hailed as smart and as capitalist heroes. Now it’s fairly common for even the most rarefied fashion brands to include large models in their runway shows.

But this new way of thinking isn’t just about selling more dresses. If it were only about economics, designers would have long ago expanded their size offerings, because there have always been larger women able and willing to embrace fashion. Big simply wasn’t considered beautiful. Indeed, even Oprah Winfrey went on a diet before she posed for the cover of Vogue in 1998. As recently as 2012, the designer Karl Lagerfeld, who died last year and who himself was 92 pounds overweight at one point, was called to task for saying that pop star Adele was “a little too fat.”

Attitudes are shifting. But the fashion world remains uneasy with large women—no matter how famous or rich. No matter how pretty their face. Elevating them to iconic status is a complicated, psychological hurdle for the arbiters of beauty. They need sleek élan in their symbols of beauty. They need long lines and sharp edges. They need women who can fit into sample sizes.

But instead of operating in a vacuum, they now are operating in a new media environment. Average folks have taken note of whether designers have a diverse cast of models, and if they do not, critics can voice their ire on social media and an angry army of like-minded souls can rise up and demand change. Digital media has made it easier for stories about emaciated and anorexic models to reach the general public, and the public now has a way to shame and pressure the fashion industry to stop hiring these deathly thin women. The Fashion Spot website became a diversity watchdog, regularly issuing reports on the demographic breakdown on the runways. How many models of color? How many plus-size women? How many of them were transgender? How many older models?

One might think that as female designers themselves aged, they would begin to highlight older women in their work. But women in fashion are part of the same cult of youth that they created. They Botox and diet. They swear by raw food and SoulCycle. How often do you see a chubby designer? A gray-haired one? Designers still use the phrase “old lady” to describe clothes that are unattractive. A “matronly” dress is one that is unflattering or out-of-date. The language makes the bias plain. But today women don’t take it as a matter of course. They revolt. Making “old” synonymous with unattractive is simply not going to stand.

The spread of luxury brands into China, Latin America, and Africa has forced designers to consider how best to market to those consumers while avoiding cultural minefields. They have had to navigate skin lightening in parts of Africa, the Lolita-cute culture of Japan, the obsession with double-eyelid surgery in East Asian countries, and prejudices of colorism, well, virtually everywhere. Idealized beauty needs a new definition. Who will sort it out? And what will the definition be?

In the West, the legacy media are now sharing influence with digital media, social media, and a new generation of writers and editors who came of age in a far more multicultural world—a world that has a more fluid view of gender. The millennial generation, those born between 1981 and 1996, is not inclined to assimilate into the dominant culture but to stand proudly apart from it. The new definition of beauty is being written by a selfie generation: people who are the cover stars of their own narrative.

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The new beauty isn’t defined by hairstyles or body shape, by age or skin color. Beauty is becoming less a matter of aesthetics and more about self-awareness, personal swagger, and individuality. It’s about chiseled arms and false eyelashes and a lineless forehead. But it’s also defined by rounded bellies, shimmering silver hair, and mundane imperfections. Beauty is a millennial strutting around town in leggings, a crop top, and her belly protruding over her waistband. It is a young man swishing down a runway in over-the-knee boots and thigh-grazing shorts.

Beauty is political correctness, cultural enlightenment, and social justice.

In New York, there’s a fashion collective called Vaquera that mounts runway shows in dilapidated settings with harsh lighting and no glamour. The cast could have piled off the F train after a sleepless night. Their hair is mussed. Their skin looks like it has a thin sheen of overnight grime. They stomp down the runway. The walk could be interpreted as angry, bumbling, or just a little bit hungover.

Masculine-looking models wear princess dresses that hang from the shoulders with all the allure of a shower curtain. Feminine-looking models aggressively speed-walk with a hunched posture and a grim expression. Instead of elongating legs and creating an hourglass silhouette, the clothes make legs look stumpy and the torso thick. Vaquera is among the many companies that call on street casting, which is basically pulling oddball characters from the street and putting them on the runway—essentially declaring them beautiful.

In Paris, the designer John Galliano, like countless other designers, has been blurring gender. He has done so in a way that’s exaggerated and aggressive, which is to say that instead of aiming to craft a dress or a skirt that caters to the lines of a masculine physique, he has simply draped that physique with a dress. The result is not a garment that ostensibly aims to make individuals look their best. It’s a statement about our stubborn assumptions about gender, clothing, and physical beauty.

Not so long ago, the clothing line Universal Standard published an advertising campaign featuring a woman who wears a U.S. size 24. She posed in her skivvies and a pair of white socks. The lighting was flat, her hair slightly frizzed, and her thighs dimpled with cellulite. There was nothing magical or inaccessible about the image. It was exaggerated realism—the opposite of the Victoria’s Secret angel.

Every accepted idea about beauty is being subverted. This is the new normal, and it is shocking. Some might argue that it’s even rather ugly.

As much as people say that they want inclusiveness and regular-looking people—so-called real people—many consumers remain dismayed that this, this is what passes for beauty. They look at a 200-pound woman and, after giving a cursory nod to her confidence, fret about her health—even though they’ve never seen her medical records. That’s a more polite conversation than one that argues against declaring her beautiful. But the mere fact that this Universal Standard model is in the spotlight in her underwear—just as the Victoria’s Secret angels have been and the Maidenform woman was a generation before that—is an act of political protest. It’s not about wanting to be a pinup but about wanting the right for one’s body to exist without negative judgment. As a society, we haven’t acknowledged her right to simply be. But at least the beauty world is giving her a platform on which to make her case.

This isn’t just a demand being made by full-figured women. Older women are insisting on their place in the culture. Black women are demanding that they be allowed to stand in the spotlight with their natural hair.

There’s no neutral ground. The body, the face, the hair have all become political. Beauty is about respect and value and the right to exist without having to alter who you fundamentally are. For a black woman, having her natural hair perceived as beautiful means that her kinky curls are not an indication of her being unprofessional. For a plus-size woman, having her belly rolls included in the conversation about beauty means that she will not be castigated by strangers for consuming dessert in public; she will not have to prove to her employer that she isn’t lazy or without willpower or otherwise lacking in self-control.

When an older woman’s wrinkles are seen as beautiful, it means that she is actually being seen. She isn’t being overlooked as a full human being: sexual, funny, smart, and, more than likely, deeply engaged in the world around her.

To see the beauty in a woman’s rippling muscles is to embrace her strength but also to shun the notion that female beauty is equated with fragility and weakness. Pure physical power is stunning.

“Own who you are,” read a T-shirt on the spring 2020 runway of Balmain in Paris. The brand’s creative director, Olivier Rousteing, is known for his focus on inclusiveness in beauty. He, along with Kim Kardashian, has helped popularize the notion of “slim thick,” the 21st-century description of an hourglass figure with adjustments made for athleticism. “Slim thick” describes a woman with a prominent derriere, breasts, and thighs, but with a slim, toned midsection. It’s a body type that has sold countless waist trainers and has been applied to women such as singer and fashion entrepreneur Rihanna who do not have the lean physique of a marathoner.

Slim thick may be just another body type over which women obsess. But it also gives women license to coin a term to describe their own body, turn it into a hashtag, and start counting the likes. Own who you are.

When I look at photographs of groups of women on vacation, or a mother with her child, I see friendship and loyalty, joy and love. I see people who seem exuberant and confident. Perhaps if I had the opportunity to speak with them, I’d find them intelligent and witty or incredibly charismatic. If I got to know them and like them, I’m sure I’d also describe them as beautiful.

If I were to look at a portrait of my mother, I would see one of the most beautiful people in the world—not because of her cheekbones or her neat figure, but because I know her heart.

As a culture, we give lip service to the notion that what matters is inner beauty when in fact it’s the outer version that carries the real social currency. The new outlook on beauty dares us to declare someone we haven’t met beautiful. It forces us to presume the best about people. It asks us to connect with people in a way that is almost childlike in its openness and ease.

Modern beauty doesn’t ask us to come to the table without judgment. It simply asks us to come presuming that everyone in attendance has a right to be there.

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Essay Service Examples Life Beauty

Why Beauty Industry: Essay

Service-Dominant Logic in the Hair and Beauty Industry

Introduction:.

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How to define service-dominant logic in the beauty industry?

Characteristics of the service-based industry :, service has changed in the beauty industry:, trend 1: more diversified services, trend 2: specialization, personalization, high additional value, trend 3: men's beauty is a common trend, references:.

• Claessens, M., 2015. Characteristics of Services: What is a Service – And what makes it so special? 3rd June.Marketing Insider. [Online]. [18 August 2019]. Available from: https://marketing-insider.eu/characteristics-of-services/
• Kestenbaum, R., 2017. How The Beauty Industry Is Adapting To Change. 19 June. Forbes. [Online]. [18 August 2019]. Available from: https://www.forbes.com/sites/richardkestenbaum/2017/06/19/how-the-beauty-industry-is-adapting-to-change/#4e8b55de3681
• Lunch, R & Vargo, S (2004). The Service-Dominant Logic of Marketing. [Online]. (2 ed.). :. [18 August 2019].Available from: https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/e/9781315699035/chapters/10.4324/9781315699035-11
• Martin, M., 2007. Services Marketing: Focus on Service Characteristics to Create Competitive Advantage . 2 April.Cascade Business News. [Online]. [18 August 2019]. Available from: http://cascadebusnews.com/business-tips/marketing/176-services-marketing-focus-on-service-characteristics-to-create-competitive-advantage
• Pranab, P., 2010. Service and the Characteristics of Service: Intangibility, Inseparability, Variability, and Perishability.16 April. Blogspot. [Online]. [18 August 2019]. Available from: http://pravab.blogspot.com/2010/04/service-and-characteristics-of-service.html
• Rajput, N. 2016. Allied Market Research. Cosmetics Market by Category (Skin & Sun Care Products, Hair Care Products, Deodorants, Makeup & Color Cosmetics, Fragrances) and by Distribution Channel (General departmental store, Supermarkets, Drug stores, Brand outlets) - Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 2014 - 2022. [Online]. 52(27), 137. [18 August 2019]. Available from: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/cosmetics-market
• Silva, B., 2019. Social Trends Drive Men’s Market. 3rd April. Beauty Packaging. [Online]. [18 August 2019]. Available from: https://www.beautypackaging.com/issues/2019-02-01/view_features/social-trends-drive-mens-market/42027

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Why are You Passionate About the Beauty Industry?

Home > Beauty School Experience

How YOU Can be Passionate about the Beauty Industry and Make a Difference

Have you been thinking about going to beauty school, but something is holding you back? Let’s look into why are you passionate about the beauty industry.

Milady | May 5, 2023 | 10 min read

Why are You Passionate About the Beauty Industry? You might have landed on this article because you’ve been thinking about going to beauty school, but something is giving you pause. Maybe it’s a Negative Nellie in your life who’s telling you that the beauty profession isn’t a serious career. Or maybe you’re questioning whether a career in beauty will be rewarding enough.

Whatever your reason for landing here, we hope what we’re about to say helps.

Table of Contents

What is the beauty industry anyway?

• What’s beauty school all about?
• How does being a beauty professional make a difference?
• What should I do next?

The beauty industry is exactly that—a real industry,  one that brings in billions of dollars in revenue each year  and is projected to grow even bigger over the next decade. The industry encompasses all beauty-related services (like hair and nails, for example) as well as products, like cosmetics and other personal care items.

As you can imagine, the types of professions you could go into are seemingly endless. Makeup artist on a movie set? Check. Product manager at a cosmetics company? Check. CEO of your own beauty brand? Check. Hairstylist or barber in your own salon? Check. Esthetician or massage therapist in a spa? Check. Instagram influencer in the world of nail art? Check.

And that’s a SHORT list of possibilities.

So for any naysayer in your life who makes a snide comment about the beauty industry like, “Why would you want to do  that   for a living?” You can simply counter with this: “Why wouldn’t I? This industry is thriving and fabulous!”

• DID YOU KNOW:  The overall employment of barbers, hair stylists, and cosmetologists is projected to grow 11 percent from 2021 to 2031, which is much faster than the average for all occupations. [Source:  U.S. Bureau of Labor ]

So what’s beauty school all about?

Consider beauty school your starting point—your gateway to a career that  you  define and shape. It’s the place where you learn theory and gain technical expertise for your chosen discipline—barbering, cosmetology, esthetics, nails, or massage therapy.  Everything you learn prepares you for your state’s licensing exam .

And from there? The choice is yours.

You could take your barbering license and rent a booth in a shop—and eventually open your own. Or you could take your esthetician license and work for a spa in a popular vacation destination. Or maybe you decide to do hair for fashion shoots. Or maybe in addition to working in a hair salon, you also freelance for a beauty publication where you review the latest trends.

Beauty school is just the first step. The next steps are up to you!

• DID YOU KNOW : The most successful beauty pros will tell you that your beauty education shouldn’t end when you graduate.  Lifelong learning is the key to ongoing success .

OK, that’s fine. But how does being a beauty professional make a difference in people’s lives—or the world?

At its simplest,  being a beauty professional  means you impact every client you come in contact with. You have the opportunity to help them feel great about themselves—and that’s no small thing.

But a beauty professional’s impact can go much deeper. It’s not unusual for clients to confide in the beauty pros they work with, from joyful things, like weddings and births, to sad things, like job losses,  deaths, and even domestic violence.

In fact, some states require licensed beauty pros to receive training in understanding the latter. And it’s precisely why we created our  Milady RISE Certification in Client Well-Being & Safety , which teaches beauty professionals not only what to look for in terms of domestic violence and human trafficking, but also what to do next.

• DID YOU KNOW : Beauty pros are also able to spot things their clients literally can’t see. Here’s how one  hairstylist identified skin cancer on a client’s head .

All that said, we imagine what you’re looking for are stories about real beauty professionals making a real difference in their communities . . . and the world in general. The following stories should fit the bill, but again . . . they’re only a small sampling of all the awesome things that people are doing.

• Meet Afolakemi Lawani and Lilian Anderson, the owners of The Natural Hair Care Institute in Minneapolis, Minnesota.  Business owners in their own right, they both recognized a need in the beauty and wellness industry for more hair braiding education. However, the road to opening The Natural Hair Care Institute wasn’t easy.  KEEP READING .
• Meet Melanie Day, the owner of You’ve Got Curls and Hair Loss Center in Lexington, Kentucky.  With her multicultural hair salon, Melanie is changing the game, spreading awareness, and helping people embrace and love their natural hair. In addition to regular salon services, You’ve Got Curls & Hair Loss Center offers consultations and resources for those experiencing hair loss due to COVID-19, postpartum pregnancies, medications, alopecia, and cancer.  KEEP READING .
• Meet Sean Casey, the founder of TwinCutZ barber shops in Southwest Florida.  The shop gives back to the community each year with a back-to-school event, giving away free haircuts and backpacks to kids in the community, involving each location and barber for a total of over 1,000 haircuts.  KEEP READING .

As you can see, beauty pros find all sorts of ways to use their skills to make an impact that goes well beyond beauty.

Wow! The beauty industry does sound like the right place for me. What should I do next?

Remember, beauty school is the first step. And we know you might have a ton of questions about it, which is why we’ve written several articles to help.

• Why Should You Choose Beauty School Anyway?
• All Your Beauty School Questions, Answered
• How to Succeed in Beauty School

Welcome to the wonderful world of beauty! Always ask yourself “Why are you passionate about the beauty industry?” to remind yourself why you joined the beauty industry. Good luck and we can’t wait to see what you do next.

Ready to take the first step towards an exciting and rewarding career in the beauty industry?

Sign up for the Milady email list. As a subscriber, you’ll get a sneak peek into the world of beauty and all the possibilities that await you. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to stay in the know and start your journey towards a brighter future today.

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About Milady

Milady is on a mission to prove that a career in the beauty industry can lead to professional success and personal fulfillment. Our job is to create forward-thinking education that reshapes the industry and uplifts the next generation of beauty professionals. Let’s change the face of beauty. Learn more about Milady,  here .

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115 Cosmetology Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

🏆 best cosmetology topic ideas & essay examples, 👍 good essay topics on cosmetology, 🥇 most interesting cosmetology topics to write about, 📌 simple & easy cosmetology essay titles, ❓ research questions about skin care.

• Cosmetic Industry Five Forces Analysis For the cosmetic industry, the most important barriers are the exclusive rights and economies of scale. Potential Development of Substitute Products Ease of substitution Buyer inclination to substitute Buyer switching costs Relative price performance of […]
• Catholic Church View on Cosmetic and Reconstructive Surgery Therefore, the authors had a negative stance on cosmetic surgery performed on women, stating that it was a betrayal of the “truth of the feminine self” and a contribution to the exploitation of the female […]
• Luxury Cosmetics Branding and Pricing It is considered that “beauty products appeal to the emotions and customers tend to choose based on the product image,” yet luxury brands, such as Chanel, usually emphasize the quality of cosmetics and the technology […]
• Lush Fresh Handmade Cosmetics: Brand Image Thesis: Lush Fresh Handmade Cosmetics maintains the consistency of their brand image of a sustainable, natural, and eco-friendly beauty product by encouraging recycling, using package-less practices, choosing natural and vegan materials to produce their cosmetics, […]
• Factors Affecting the Consumption of Men’s Cosmetic Products The main aim of this study was to determine the factors that affect the consumption of cosmetic products in the male population.
• Bright Cosmetic Firm’s Contingency Planning The company is located in South Korea due to the increased prevalence of the cosmetic industry in South Asia, with a revenue of approximately 50% of the global market.
• Multimodal Analysis of Cosmetic Surgery Advertising The analysis has considered the textual and visual elements used to pass the messages to the targeted audience. The essence of this section, therefore, is to provide an in-depth understanding of the issue under investigation […]
• Kiara Sky Cosmetics Company Analysis The application of analysis skills coupled with specific ways of researching a company allows an individual to evaluate and determine the success of a particular business.
• Gender and Sexuality in Cosmetic Advertising It also assesses the correctness of truths conveyed to and the effect of these advertising images to the audience. The woman’s position to the back could be interpreted as a sign of feminine subordination.
• Chanel Cosmetics Competition Analysis The management of this firm has been keen on adopting new market trends, which has ensured that the firm remains relevant in this industry.
• La Roche-Posay Cosmetics in European Market It is within this context that the essay examines the European market of LRP by analyzing the beauty market, competition, positioning strategy, identifying brand consumers, examining market trends, and the type of innovations evident in […]
• Ethical Issues and Considerations in Cosmetic Surgery The effects of war in the 20th century saw the widening of the scale of reconstructive surgery due to the increase in the number of people with intense injuries that required intense reconstructive practices.
• The Extent of the Cosmetic Industry in Australia The use of advertising in the promotion of the marketability of this product is a strategy that Procter & Gamble has effectively developed across Australia and the rest of the international market.
• Osborne Cosmetic Surgery’s Market Viability As a result, of Austin’s maturing population and the lucrative location with the most prevalent cosmetic surgery rates, the city is appropriate for the surgery services business.
• Cheek Dimples: Cosmetic Surgery Cheek dimples are frequently referred to as a hereditary dominant characteristic. The data collected was evaluated, and the findings showed that the phenomenon of cheek dimples is mostly a dominant trait.
• Isopropyl Alcohol in Cosmetics and Medicine Isopropyl is synthesized in two steps: through the reaction of propylene with sulfuric acid and the consequent hydrolysis. In the context of isopropyl alternatives as sanitizers, ethyl alcohol serves as a solid option.
• Racial Discrimination Through the Cosmetics Industry The variety of preconceptions such as the hypersexuality of black women and the perception of their beauty as an unideal version of whites’ one also indicates racism.
• Black Women and the Cosmetics Industry While the industry experienced a significant increase in revenue and scale, the source of this process was the racial discrimination of black women since the marketing campaign emphasized that black women are beautiful.
• Female Consumers on Luxury Brand Clothing Over Cosmetics Consumption The findings of this study suggests that the majority of the respondents preferred to spend more on clothing, although luxury brand clothing preference was notable only to a minority of the respondents.
• AG Hair Cosmetics: Style With Substance We are a company that’s driven by the passion, and determination of our employees and artists spreading the infectious AG philosophy.
• Cosmetic Surgery in Thailand and Cultural Implications Following the current environmental changes and the exposure of the ozone layer, many skin complications have been reported in which many of the victims end up undertaking plastic surgery.the provision of medical services in contemporary […]
• Cosmetic Surgery Implications A good evaluation of the pros and cons of cosmetic surgery should be considered because after all, this is surgery and there are high possibilities of complications that arise later on after surgery.
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The beauty industry summary author intro & questions.

The Beauty Industry

“The Beauty Industry” is an essay, of modern English Essays from the syllabus of B.A/ADP part-II. This post covers; about the author, summary of the essay, and important questions and answers.

Aldous Leonardo Huxley (July 26, 1894- November 28, 1963) born in England was an English writer, philosopher, and a prominent member of the Huxley family. He was the third son of a writer and schoolmaster.

He was best known for his novels including Brave New World and nonfiction work such as The Doors of Perception. He was also a humanist, pacifist and satirist. Later he got interested in psychological mysticism. He always used to explore the inner beauty of the things around him.

 It is for the main reason that in this essay, he registered his revolt against the superficial standards of the internally hollow people. He was widely known as one of the pre-eminent intellectuals of his time. He wrote novels, short stories, poetry, travel books, essays, and screenplays.

His famous novels include Crome Yellow, Antic Hay, Those Barren Leaves, Point Counter Point, and Eyeless in Gaza, etc. His famous essay collections include Ends and Means, The Art of Seeing, The Doors of Perception and Heaven and Hell, etc. His writings show philosophical insight and satire.

Summary | Main Idea of the Essay

In this essay, Huxley has analyzed the causes of the tremendous increase in the use of beauty products in America and Europe. He has also indicated the impact of beauty aids on the appearance and health of users. Huxley says that the women of the modern age are extravagant and spend extra money on their physical beauty.

 The writer humorously says that the women of old age are rare nowadays. American women spend about three million pounds a week or one hundred and fifty-six million a year on their faces and bodies. This amount is more than twice the revenue of India. The American magazines contain a large number of beauty ads.

This industry can compete with the movies or automobile industry. There are some reasons for this extravagant beauty. Firstly, they are now free to use cosmetics as compared to the past. They are free to earn and spend. Secondly, there is a general increase in prosperity. Now the people are wealthier than their forefathers. The rich have the habit of keeping up their personal appearances. So the poor people also imitate the rich and wealthy people. Women are conscious of beauty and its right.

The old ladies with white hair, wrinkles and bending back, and hollow cheeks are disappearing very fast. Now, today women of every age look attractive, smart, and artificially beautiful. In this process, they forget religious restrictions.

In this modern century, women are working in every field of life and they know to look beautiful. This is their right and they are passionate about attaining this right. The skin foods, facial surgery, facial mask, injection of paraffin wax, and different lotions make the women attractive and beautiful.

There is no difference between the portrait of a mother and her daughter. The beauty industry is successful in all aspects. Huxley laments that the craze for women to look beautiful is failed in many aspects. In the modern age, women are mad to use cosmetics and other skin products.

Cosmetics may hide wrinkles of old age and hollow cheeks but not a corruption of the soul and inner self. In the pursuit to look young and attractive, women forget their spiritual beauty. But spiritual charm is more vital than outer beauty.

In advanced countries, women have no limit to thinking about soul purgation. That’s why they forget their inner beauty and only adorn their faces with beauty products. This may sometimes lead them to dull faces in spite of paint and make-up. So, the beauty industry is a failure.

According to Huxley, a woman is not like an ajar that requires exterior beauty or decoration. She should focus on interior beauty and inner self purity. Huxley believes that cosmetics may hide wrinkles but not soul corruption.

He points out that beauty is the name of good health, while ugliness is the name of some vices which live in the human soul. Huxley says that a campaign for beautification is a failure because it does not touch the beauty of the soul. If a woman is immoral, mean, and ugly inwardly or spiritually, she cannot be called beautiful.

Important Questions and their Answers

Even the great depression could not beat down the American women’s habit of makeup. Explain it with reference to the essay The Beauty Industry.

Aldous Huxley is an English poet, novelist, short story writer, and essayist. In this essay The Beauty Industry he shows the causes of the craze or trend of beautification in the modern age. General prosperity causes an increase in beautification.

The women of the elite and rich classes take great care of their physical appearance. So, prosperity results in a great change of life. It is because they have enough money to spend on the decoration of their faces. This change in the status of women also makes women freer than they were in the past.

So, they are free and independent to attend the social function of their own choice. The American women spend a huge amount of their monthly income on the purchase of the different items of toilet and make-up. Roundabout one hundred and fifty million pounds are annually spent on make-up and other items of women’s toilet.

This huge use of money is even more than the annual budget of India. It also makes the beauty industry prosperous and successful. Moreover, the annual expenses of one hundred and fifty-six million pounds never let the beauty industry decline. That’s why the American beauty industry never becomes a victim of the slump.

The American women retain their physical appearance by using different items of a toilet. These are such as modern massage machines, paraffin injections, patent oils, hair lotions, nail polishes, puffs, powders, and costly creams. The lavish use of these costly items makes their toilet and make-up expensive.

Modern women do so merely in order to appear or look more attractive and charming than the women of the past. Not only, do they spend too much money on their make-up but also on their facial surgery? In brief, we can say that the more the beauty items and products are, the more the new trends and cults are growing. So, the writer has rightly said that nowadays the beauty industry is more successful and flourishing than any other industry.

How has it become possible for a grandmother to look as young as her granddaughter?

Why and how have old women disappeared from western society?

Why does Huxley refer to a Repellent in the make-up of some modern women?

The Beauty Industry, we mean every kind of item of make-up and toilet which women use for decorating or beautifying their bodies. All the items of make-up such as puffs, powders, lipstick, nail polishes, blushes, eye-brows, perfumes, body sprays, lotions, and oils of different kinds, etc are produced in the factories on a large scale.

Women lavishly use all these toilet items or articles. In this way, they use a huge amount of their monthly income on them. As a result, it becomes a successful and flourishing business today. In the past age, women who paid much attention to their physical appearances and outer beauty were regarded as wicked.

Now, in the present or modern age, this trend has been changed. Beautification and make-up of faces are a symbol of women’s lofty status in life. Moreover, it is also not considered a sign of moral corruption. So, beauty is regarded as a sign of good health. Ugliness is thought to be some kind of disease or sickness.

So, in order to look much more attractive, charming beautiful, young, and pretty, women incline to the beautification of their physical appearance on a large scale. In their habit of over-painting of faces, women use so many toilet articles for making up their faces.

As a result, they seem to be wearing masks. They cease even to look human at all. Their faces are not pretty, attractive, and soft because they are inwardly hard and dead. Their faces look repulsive because they lack inner beauty and spirituality.

Modern women succeed in retaining their outer beauty with the lavish use of make-up and toilet for a long time. In this way, the old women look young and graceful. As a result, sometimes, it becomes difficult to differentiate between a real young lady and an old one.

Huxley rightly, remarks that people will be lacking old grandmothers in the future. The reason is, that white hair, wrinkles, a bent back, and hollow cheeks will come to be considered old-fashioned defaults.

How does the writer prove that the real beauty of a jar is in an affair of the inner self?

Why does Huxley compare women to porcelain jar?

How is the human body compared to a China jar in the essay The Beauty Industry?

In what sense does Huxley give the example of a porcelain jar?

Huxley, s view is for moral beauty rather than physical beauty. Discuss.

Express in your words Huxley’s view on beauty and ugliness.

What is the moral of the essay the Beauty Industry? How, according to Huxley, does spiritual ugliness affect surface beauty?

In the essay, The Beauty Industry Huxley very beautifully and clearly gives his views on beauty. He does not favor the women who try to look beautiful and attractive with the help of the lavish use of make-up. He criticizes their craze for beautification because they try to look beautiful by the means of artificial methods.

He thinks that real beauty is not a matter of make-up or the use of toilet articles only. According to him, real beauty is as much an affair of the inner self as of the outer self. Huxley is of the firm view that the beauty of a woman cannot be compared to the beauty of a porcelain jar(the China jar).

The beauty of a flower pot is a matter of shape, color, surface, and texture. The jar may be empty or filled with spiders, full of honey or stinking material, it makes no difference to its beauty or ugliness. But a woman is an alive entity and her beauty is therefore not skin deep.

The surface of the human vessel is affected by the nature of its spiritual contents. The writer is of the firm view that real beauty is not merely a matter of face or skin but of the beauty of mind and soul. The writer has seen many women who by the standard of perfect beauty are highly pretty.

They have a fine body shape, lovely color or complexion, and attractive physic but they can’t be called beautiful because they are inwardly or spiritually ugly. In simple words, it means to say if a woman is empty spiritually. She can’t become impressive or attractive just by beautifying or decorating her face.

A pretty woman must be attractive and impressive from the outside as well as from the inside. Some old women try to hide their hollow cheeks by using different beauty aids and cosmetics. Moreover, women themselves have invented some cults of beautification which keep them aware of their physical appearance.

As a result, they use toilet products of all kinds lavishly. Their artificial methods of make-up and toilet cause some serious physical faults. In spite of their use of different aids and cosmetics on their faces, there always remains a deficiency that causes ugliness under the surface of their extra make-up.

As a result, sometimes they cease to be wearing masks. In this way, they often seem like ghosts under their assumed guise of artificial make–up. Huxley thinks that every woman can look beautiful if she becomes spiritually beautiful at first.

There is irony and humor in the essay The Beauty Industry. Discuss

Point out examples of irony and humor in this essay.

The Beauty Industry is a funny and satirical essay. Explain it in your words.

Huxley openly and aptly makes fun of the cult or craze of the modern women who decorate their visages with unnatural aids or products of the toilet. He ironically says that the beauty industry in America kept on flourishing even during the great depression or crisis.

It is because American women spend roundabout three million pounds a week on their lavish use of toilet products. They decorate their faces just outwardly but neglect their inner beauty. The writer very beautifully and aptly combines irony and humor to express his point of view about women’s craze for unnatural and artificial beauty. He creates fun by saying;

Europe is poor, and a face can cost as much in upkeep as a Rolls Royce. The most that the majority of European women can do; is just to wash and hope for the best.

The writer ironically says about the British Marton that we are sometimes naturally shocked to see her appearance but normally we are not shocked. He further says in a funny manner.

In Paris, where this over-painting is most pronounced, many women have ceased to look human at all. He further ironically and humorously remarks: The crone of the further will be golden curly and cherry lipped, neat-ankled and slender.

In simple words, he means to say that people will be lacking old grandmothers. The reason is, that white hair, wrinkles, a bent back, and hollow cheeks will come to be considered old-fashioned.

The campaign for more physical beauty seems to be both a tremendous success and a lamentable failure. Elaborate

How can the beauty industry be called a failure?

The essay The Beauty Industry imparts a deep moral lesson to the readers. Beauty is not a skin-deep idea rather it is a matter of good manners and great ethics. According to Huxley, real beauty is as much an affair of the inner self as of the outer self.

Women decorate their faces and bodies with the lavish use of toilet products in order to look young, attractive, and graceful. In this way, they often neglect the need of purifying their inner self. Though their lavish use of beauty aids and toilet products adorn their faces yet they cannot decorate their souls with purity.

In other words, it means to say that a woman cannot hide the ugliness or corruption of her inner- self with the use of cosmetics. Huxley gives an example of a porcelain jar. A woman is not like a China jar or flower pot that needs outer decoration. So, a woman cannot be compared to the beauty o a flower pot.

Rather, it involves some other human aspects as well. The beauty of good manners, great ethics, and courtesy brings real beauty. Ideal beauty also lies in harmony. If there is no harmony between the inner and the outer, it is not real beauty. So, only that woman can be called real impressive and attractive who s beautiful both inertly and outer.

Nisar Sipra

An SEO, Blogger, and Digital Marketing specialist. He is also a dedicated educationist with over 12 years of experience. Passionate about advancing educational content digitally, he focuses on elevating organizational efficiency and promoting digital literacy. Committed to aligning online educational resources with search engine standards for a valuable and authoritative presence.

5 thoughts on “ The Beauty Industry Summary Author Intro & Questions ”

Thanks mam g

Mam what is the meaning of tremendous.

What is meant by extravagant.

What is the meaning of soul purgation.

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• Beauty Interview

This Black Beauty Publicist Has an Important Message About Products Everyone Needs to Hear

Chandler Rollins is the head of public relations for skin-care brand Farmacy , where this week she has decided to cease media pitching in solidarity with the Black community. Here, she shares, in her own words, her personal experience with racism in the beauty industry — plus, what brands (and us, its consumers) need to do better. This story was told to Kelsey Castañon and has been edited for length and clarity.

The first time I experienced blatant racism in the workplace was in my first job out of college. I was on the editorial side before I transitioned to PR, working for a publication that focused on the salon business specifically. I was an associate editor. I was just exploring beauty for the first time, at the height of the natural hair revolution that was happening in 2013 or 2014. I would go back and forth between my natural hairstyles and my straight hairstyles . I was told one day when I was wearing it natural, "You look rather ethnic today." That was the word used: ethnic .

I further questioned the language and said, "What about this hairstyle? 'Ethnic' is a very interesting word to use to describe my look and my style." She was like, "Well, I've never really seen your hair look this textured before." Now, I'm someone who's particularly interested in semantics. I went to journalism school; language is incredibly important and powerful. We often see people hide behind words when the root of what they're trying to say is, "You're different; you are not like me."

These things are very divisive. Even though they're not overtly racist, they stem from a system that promotes these types of feelings .

Facing Racism in the Beauty Workplace and Beyond

To back it up, I'm a Black woman from St. Louis. I know all too well about the stories that we're seeing in the media. I've had friends that have gone through this experience. I've personally gone through these experiences. St. Louis is one of the most racist and segregated cities in America, and that's a part of my DNA; that's a part of who I am as a person. It's something that I've always just been mindful of in the workplace and how I navigate my career. During my first editorial internship at JET magazine, I was a senior in college, and the editor in chief at the time told me, "Don't go work for white people. You're always going to be pigeonholed, and you're always going to be tokenized."

I know a lot of Black publicists and journalists feel that pressure as well. That people look at you like you're the authority on Black topics because you are Black, so you can only work for Black brands or Black clients because somehow that gives you a leg up. But beauty doesn't have one face or one race. Part of the job should be that everyone is well-versed in all aspects of beauty.

My transition from editorial to PR was interesting because we both have the ability to tell narratives and shape stories. If you're not working in house for a brand, you're receiving information from the brand, and from there are able to craft a similar story.

I've been told from brands specifically that there is not a market for Black women, that this product is not made for Black consumers, but we still want you to pitch it out to Black magazines and Black publications and Black journalists.

In previous companies and agencies, I've had to do some real polishing, if you will, for certain products in the past. Particularly in the luxury beauty space, there are a lot of products that are made with either Asian consumers or Caucasian consumers in mind, and that could even be damaging to Black skin or skin that has melanin in it. In those instances, I'm speaking to lightening products that contain lightening agents, which is very common among French skin-care brands. I can also speak to this in regard to shade ranges . I've worked for a ton of beauty brands that have launched products with a dismal amount of color options available to Black women.

I've been told from brands specifically that there is not a market for Black women, that this product they want me to push is not made for Black consumers, but that they still want me to pitch it out to Black magazines and Black publications and Black journalists. I'd hear, "Chandler, you need to craft a press release and a pitch that makes it seem like our product is for everyone." It's the definition of posturing , essentially. And it's that blatant.

The Impact in Giving Black Women a Seat at the Table

I hit a wall approximately two years ago, and I said, "I can no longer continue to work for brands who operate their business in this manner. I can no longer feel comfortable being a part of organizations or repping clients that don't speak to women who are like me, and who actively create products that are completely harmful to us."

I stepped away from beauty for about nine months. Then I joined Farmacy in October of last year. The privilege of my work and the privilege I've had working at other companies is that I've always had a seat at the table, even if I was the only Black person there. I've always been a proponent of flagging and raising questions and being critical, even if I am a part of the organization. The majority response that I've received when raising these questions and concerns is, "Well, the Black woman isn't someone who buys our products, so we're just going to disregard that note completely."

In order for real change to happen, you need to give people a seat at the table, but you also need to listen to them. Hire people with different backgrounds and unique perspectives at all levels of your business. It is not OK, and it is not reflective of your customer base, to have one minority person in your entire organization, which is what I've experienced up until my role at Farmacy, where we have an extremely diverse workforce. The reason that's helpful and beneficial, and you'll be a stronger organization as a result of it, is because of the ideas and also the questioning. It's the critique from all those voices around that makes your beauty product better.

It doesn't start with just the communications team and the imagery you see on social media — that's the last step. When you're thinking about the evolution of a product, from the idea to it actually hitting the marketplace and editors and influencers and consumers talking about it, there's so much that happens before then. And so if you don't have Black chemists, Black women on the research and development team who are thinking about the concerns of all people, then everything else is null and void, at that point.

It's not an unbiased statement, but Farmacy really is the first organization where I felt 100 percent safe and my opinions valued. Women here have told me blatantly: "You were underpaid in every position that you were at previously, and we value you more than that and the work that you've done has contributed to that."

I cried after that moment because there was no one in my life, no one in my career, who has told me that I'm good enough. For someone like me, who's 29, who's been in this career since I graduated, I was fortunate enough that when I did graduate from college, I went straight into the workforce, but it's really unfortunate.

How You Can Support and Stand For Change

People need to be very critical about their consumption of products and the companies that they support

People need to be very critical about their consumption of products and the companies that they support . I challenge you: Take a look at your medicine cabinet, look at all of the brands that you use in a week or in a day, as part of your beauty regimen. Pull every brand from your cabinet that either hasn't said anything about this issue or has performatively or passively mentioned the Black Lives Matter movement . Don't use them this week.

What I think you'll see is the brands you'll be left with are probably small, indie brands. Because indie beauty is paving the way for social change and that your larger conglomerates and, again, French luxury brands will not be there. The brands that do it well, and that are on the right side of this issue, tend to be the ones with a smaller piece of this multibillion-dollar pie. For real social change to happen, we've got to get some of these larger companies on board, and I don't know if that's going to happen.

Before you buy a product, look at their LinkedIn. Google one of your favorite brands, and take a look at their executive board, their leadership team, at all levels. A lot of the stuff is public knowledge. Who are their assistants, who are the managers, who are the human resource operators, who is on their art team, their social media team? Take a look at that list. Do you see faces like yours? If you don't, then take a moment to evaluate and examine if this is a product that you want to continue using.

It's not enough to look at a brand's Instagram, because it can be very performative. It's an opportunity in which they have been able to save grace, if you will. The reposting of quotes, the reposting of videos — that is the bare minimum, but it's not enough.

Looking Ahead

I'm glad that a lot of brands are being called out and held accountable, particularly in this moment, but I want to also be aware that there's constantly room for growth. I do think there is hope.

There is a lot of work that can be done, and that's the thing that keeps me going: the fact that there are passionate people who are willing to do the work. I'm not going to send some bullsh*t email that says, "Hope all is well," and then pivot to, "Oh, and by the way, did you realize that we have a launch happening this week?" No. Publicists aren't robots; we're real people. It can be cathartic to acknowledge this is something we're all feeling, and to see just how many people are willing to step up and show that we are truly in this together.

• Personal Essay

Essay on Environmental Issues in the Beauty Industry

Introduction

All stakeholders in most economies always overlook the contribution of the beauty industry to environmental pollution. However, it is essential to note that there is a problem with the packaging materials and other substances used in the industry. Most economies are struggling to ensure that there is a strategy that can push them to achieve sustainability. As such, it is crucial to examine the role that the beauty industry plays in enhancing pollution. In the process, the project will seek to analyze elements and substances that cause pollution as contributed by the beauty industry (Becker, Gerstmann and Frank 115). An in-depth analysis of the matter can help environmentalists and other stakeholders make essential decisions and avert the problem. In this paper, much focus is shifted towards examining environmental issues that arise from the beauty industry, especially pollution. In an attempt to meet the objectives of the research, the project will seek to conduct a literature review on the topic of discussion and establish what other authors have done on the same. Equally, the project will feature a methodology used to gather information for concluding (Becker, Gerstmann and Frank 115). The report aims to answer the question, “what are the environmental issues associated with beauty industries?” In essence, the research offers more priority to understanding the issues in the beauty industry as contributed by cosmetics such as Dioxane in shampoo and bubble baths.

Literature Review

The research needs to conduct a background check on the topic of discussion in a bid to establish work done by other researchers. This will help gather crucial qualitative data for a detailed conclusion. For instance, Okereke, J. N., et al., in the article “ Possible health implications associated with cosmetics ,” takes a close examination of the health issues that are associated with the use of cosmetics (Okereke, J. N., et al. 58). The authors assert that it is vital to ascertain the level of significance of cosmetics in polluting the environment. In the research, examples of substances in the beauty industry that are environmentally unfriendly are listed, including Triethanolamine, Laureth Sulphate, mineral oil, and fragrance, among others. As such, the study will help establish the impact such beauty chemicals cause to the environment. Wiechers and Musee, in the year 2010, researched the use of nanotechnology in the beauty industry to meet the customers’ needs (Wiechers and Musee 408). The research takes a keen interest in environmental safety associated with the use of such cosmetics and what can be done to handle the matter. In essence, the authors have shifted focus towards risk assessment of cosmetic contribution to the environment. Kumar in the year 2015 conducted a study aimed at analyzing the global cosmetic industry and health issues that are associated (Kumar 1263). The author notes with concern products introduced in the cosmetics industry, which have an impact on the environment. The research will help establish formidable arguments on the topic of discussion.

Methodology

The research aims to use a qualitative approach in the process of gathering information. Qualitative analysis will facilitate the convenient and efficient process of data collection, which will be used to make essential conclusions. In the event of meeting the research objectives, the study will examine chemicals that are applied in the cosmetics industry and their composition. The aim of establishing their composition is to identify how the products can harm the environment. The toxic chemicals cause issues to animal and plant life within the ecosystem. As such, an overview of the chemical used in the industry will be part of the qualitative analysis that the study aims to conduct. Equally, the study seeks to apply qualitative analysis in establishing examples of environmental issues that have been witnessed in the event of cosmetic use. Failure to capture important information as it pertains to environmental pollution will lead to premature and less detailed conclusions.

The research will apply content analysis to gather information from scholarly articles that have been published. Content analysis is an essential research tool that many people apply to establish important qualitative aspects in some set of data. As part of the methodology, the research will employ content analysis to examine what other researchers have done on the same topic. The inclusion criterion applicable is based on relevance and contribution to the subject matter. Articles that do not discuss environmental issues associated with cosmetics do not meet the criterion and cannot be used in the study. Equally, studies that have elaborated on the beauty chemicals and negative effects they have on the environment meet the inclusion criterion and will be used purposively throughout the study. The internet will be useful in establishing various facts on the topic and analysis of content online.

Results and Findings

Results from the study conducted indicate that the beauty industry is a significant contributor to issues that are affecting the environment. For instance, the chemicals that are used to manufacture the beauty products are harmful, and their excessive use can lead to climate change. Packaging of the beauty products is also a significant worry to environmental stakeholders (Becker, Gerstmann and Frank 115). When products are packed using non-biodegradable plastics, the environment is affected negatively. The packaging in the industry is an issue that needs to be addressed is pollution has to be controlled. The use of cosmetics is on the rise, and their packaging materials are littered all over, which poses a significant environmental threat. Spilling of substances such as nail polish and perfumes is detrimental to the survival of organisms that rely on the environment for survival. To achieve sustainability that is essential for future generations, there is an urgent need to address the issue of pollution as contributed by all sectors of the economy. Make-ups, nail polish and other beauty products are a health hazard to the environment and need to be addressed early enough (Borger and Kruglianskas 399). Findings indicate that many people are more focused on averting environmental issues as contributed by other sectors overlooking the role of the beauty industry. As such, controlling the use of beauty products can be a massive step towards achieving environmental sustainability.

Excessive use of beauty chemicals in the society is harmful to the environment. There is an urgent need to address the matter in a bid to ensure that sustainability is achieved. As noted in the study, substances such as make-ups can cause severe issues for organisms that live in water whenever they spill into such bodies (Becker, Gerstmann and Frank 115). Equally, minerals such as lead are harmful to the survival of aquatic animals, which poses a significant threat to the environment. Consumption of water that has such substances can cause complications for human beings. Most brands that manufacture beauty products are applying chemicals in their manufacture (Borger and Kruglianskas 399). The chemicals are washed down the sinks and transported to water bodies where they cause serious issues to organisms in there. The most challenging issue is that most of the chemicals do not break down, and instead, they accumulate in the ecosystem where they can lead to a climatic change.

Packaging materials used by cosmetic industries is a major issue that affects the environment negatively. The plastic waste is thrown all over the environment, thwarting any efforts to achieve sustainability in environmental conservation. Marine pollution is skyrocketing as there is increased use of beauty products around the globe. For instance, the bottles that hold shampoos and other beauty products should be designed in such a way that they are not disintegrated by the product that they are carrying (Becker, Gerstmann and Frank 115). Climatic changes as a result of pollution are posing a threat to the survival of biodiversity and other aquatic animals. The need to achieve sustainability in environmental conservation necessitates the formulation of policies that can help control marine pollution. The most important strategy is to reduce the release of beauty products to the environment, as most of them are non-biodegradable (Borger and Kruglianskas 399). Findings from the research should b applied to strategize on possible ways to control pollution as contributed by the beauty industry.

Beauty products cause pollution to the environment when released in excess. The report focuses on the environmental issues that exist courtesy of operations of the beauty industry. An in-depth analysis is given to cosmetics that are causing an ecological imbalance within the environment. The research applies principles of qualitative analysis to collect relevant information that has been used to conclude. Equally, content analysis has been used as a tool to establish appropriate information for this particular study. Metals such as lead find their way into water bodies causing serious issues to the existence of organisms. Packaging materials used, such as plastics that are non-biodegradable, cause pollution to the environment. In essence, the beauty industry is a significant contributor to the high levels of marine pollution that is witnessed. Industries that manufacture such products should be keen to avoid contaminating water bodies. Pollution should be put under control in a bid to achieve sustainability that can benefit future generations. Environmentalists and other stakeholders should hold talks and forge a way forward that can see the practice put under control. Legislation that punishes companies in the industry who cause pollution as a result of their substances might help reduce marine pollution.

Works Cited

Becker, Anna Maria, Silke Gerstmann, and Hartmut Frank. “Perfluorooctane surfactants in waste waters, the major source of river pollution.”  Chemosphere  72.1 (2008): 115-121.

Borger, Fernanda Gabriela, and Isak Kruglianskas. “Corporate social responsibility and environmental and technological innovation performance: case studies of Brazilian companies.”  International Journal of Technology, Policy and Management  6.4 (2006): 399-412.

Kumar, Sameer. “Exploratory analysis of global cosmetic industry: major players, technology and market trends.”  Technovation  25.11 (2005): 1263-1272.

Okereke, J. N., et al. “Possible health implications associated with cosmetics: a review.”  Science Journal of Public Health  3.5 (2015): 58.

Wiechers, Johann W., and Ndeke Musee. “Engineered inorganic nanoparticles and cosmetics: facts, issues, knowledge gaps and challenges.”  Journal of biomedical nanotechnology  6.5 (2010): 408-431.

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Outsiders: the new faces of Russian fashion are far from perfect

Moscow-based independent model agency lumpen challenges conventional standards of beauty by putting a spotlight on the new generation of post-soviet youth. who are the new faces of the east and why does it matter beyond the fashion world.

Contemporary fashion is not about perfection anymore. Eastern European girls — tall, skinny, angelically beautiful — have been the top casting choice for the past couple of decades, but the rules of the game are changing. Model agencies are trying to cast more ethnically diverse models and to provide a wider range of characters and body types. The Russian designer Gosha Rubchinskiy was among the first to cast his models from Russia’s streets — from friends, skaters and various types of lost youth. For Rubchinskiy, casting individuals rather than generic models was a way of putting a face to the story of post-Soviet youth.

In his wake, now comes the Moscow-based model agency Lumpen , set up by film director Avdotja Alexandrova, who founded the company based on her fascination with faces and characters who didn’t fit the standards of the fashion industry. Those outsiders were featured in Alexandrova’s films and video works but this wasn’t enough for her. She wanted to create a means for them to be employed and appreciated, and to receive more credit for their stories.

“I became a photographer and a film director because I’ve always been fascinated by unusual types. I used to think that I love really striking, bold faces simply because I have bad eyesight, but now I realise that my interest is deeper than it seems - I am drawn to both appearance and character of my models, to their stories and experiences as much as their faces,” says Alexandrova.

Lumpen models have already been featured in international fashion magazines, in a video by London-based fashion brand ZDDZ and in the latest Vetements Paris fashion show. Lumpen and Vetements, the French fashion brand often described as a successor to Nineties-era Maison Martin Margiela, were a real match: dressed in strangely oversized, disproportionate garments and leather, the Russian outcasts were in their element. Lumpen male models have also made unlikely poster boys for LGBT rights through editorials by British photographer Harley Weir and stylist Lotta Volkova for Re-Edition and Document journal exposing a different side of Russian masculinity.

The story, however, is not limited to pages of fashion magazines. Lumpen is interesting as a collective portrait of the new generation of Russians. These are the faces that would otherwise go unseen, the boys and girls living in their ordinary neighborhoods, in ordinary Russian cities, with no obvious connection to the international fashion world. Kids who just happened to pass someone who appreciated them for the way they are. They’ve lived most of their adolescence under a conservative government, in an environment hardly welcoming of individuality. Lumpen is a step towards appreciating the different, and in today’s Russia, it’s badly needed.

Featured editorials were published in Afisha Mag and Document Journal .

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The impact of the Russia-Ukraine conflict on the cosmetics industry: changes and opportunities on the Russian market

The conflict between russia and ukraine has significantly affected the cosmetics market in russia. however, it is recovering and a number of small and medium-sized european brands are looking to fill the gap left by the big players.

For more than a year now, the conflict provoked by Russia's intention to invade Ukrainian territory has been raging for more than a year. For a little less than a decade, both countries have been living in a situation of 'tense calm' that has led to the current conflict. In 2014, Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych was ousted after months of protests and unrest in the country's capital, Kiev. In response to his ouster, Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula, which previously belonged to Ukraine. Since then, tensions between Russia and Ukraine have been on the rise. Earlier, military clashes broke out in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine, where pro-Russian separatist groups have declared independent people's republics.

The situation has affected the lives of thousands of people and also the economies of both countries. In the case of Russia, many companies have ceased their activities in the country in protest against what has happened. And this cessation of activity on the part of the organisations also reached the cosmetics sector. Thanks to the help of ACCIÓ, 'Next in Beauty' finds out what the current situation is and how the cosmetics market has changed since then.  2022 was marked by a series of ups and downs that changed and continue to change the structure of the market, the players involved, the logistics as well as the behaviour of the end consumer.

As ACCIÓ's Moscow office points out, in March 2022, Estée Lauder, with its brands MAC, Clinique, Bobbi Brown, Jo Malone, Origins, DKNY, Tom Ford Beauty, announced that they were pausing their activity in Russia. In addition, all L'Oréal brands (Garnier, Maybelline New York, Lancôme and Vichy) closed their shops in the country. French retailer Sephora also closed its shops and ceased online sales in Russia. LVMH and Shiseido suspended sales and Procter & Gamble reduced its product portfolio and cancelled its investment.

Before 24 February, 70% of the Russian cosmetics market was controlled by large international companies, with the European Union and the United States being the country's cosmetics suppliers. Only 2 months later, by April 2022, the market had shrunk by 14% due to the flight and flight of large companies and corporations. As a result, retail product selection dropped by 25%. For fear of running out of stock, and consumers' response to the fear of shortages is to hoard goods . This caused cosmetics purchases in the first six months of 2022 to grow by 3%. But undoubtedly, the main indicator of how the outbreak of the conflict affected the Russian cosmetics market was imports, which plummeted. Specifically, by 80%.

More than a year later, and as the 'Acció' office explains, the market seems to have recovered from the big "losses" in terms of the end consumer. The big brands, albeit at less affordable prices (with an increase in RRP of between 10-100% depending on the brand), are present in both online and in-store shops. Some of the brands are introduced to the market through other countries following "parallel import" allowed by the local government after the anti-Russian sanctions were applied, other companies have changed their legal status and are now owned by local management that makes sales in the country with or without rebranding, third parties have sold their business and it is now developed by national entrepreneurs.

In Russia have appeared several European marks of average or small size that look for his recently unemployed niche by the "big "", especially in "niche" "holistic" "indie" beauty.

South Korea wants to become a leading player and seize the opportunity. A ccording to the South Korean Chamber of Commerce in Moscow, the country wants to become the country's leading cosmetics supplier. The price of these cosmetics also increased in 2022, by 10-50%, and the main cause was the fear of the possible fluctuation of the rouble and the increase in logistical costs .

Domestic companies themselves are also looking to take advantage of this opportunity. Currently, the most popular brands in Russia are: Natura Siberica, Faberlic, LibreDerm Laboratories, KOPA and Mixit. The latter and Natura Siberica have positioned themselves in the TOP 3 most mentioned brands by the media. Consumers also look more favourably on products made in their own country, which try not to raise their prices too much and try to cut costs on packaging and by eliminating ingredients from their formulas. Shortening the list of ingredients became a popular alternative when cosmetics producers saw the price of ingredients rise by up to 40%.

After 2022 and knowing what the conflict has meant for the Russian cosmetics sector, all that remains to be seen is what will happen in 2023. Well, the prognosis is guarded. It is alarming because globally the price of consumer goods has risen by 13%. Everyone is feeling it, but the consequences vary from one family to another.

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