Let’s be real: Estée Lauder has been around so long she’s practically a fossil in gold packaging. But somehow, this brand is still everywhere. It’s the makeup counter your grandma swore by, your mom trusted implicitly, and your Gen Z cousin is suddenly rediscovering through TikTok like she just unearthed buried treasure.
So buckle up, buttercup. We’re diving into the glitz, the grind, the scandals, and the serums that refuse to quit.
💋 Origins: When Josephine from Queens said, “I will sell moisturizer like it’s Chanel No. 5”
Estée Lauder started with a woman named Josephine Esther Mentzer. She was a Queens girl with a chemist uncle, a lot of nerve, and a deep understanding that women love free samples. In 1946, she and her husband Joe started hawking creams they made in their kitchen. She rebranded herself “Estée” (because obviously “Josephine Mentzer Night Repair” doesn’t quite scream luxury) and hit department stores armed with a smile and an aggressive spritzing hand.
Her strategy? Be charming, sell hard, and never take no for an answer. Estée was the kind of woman who’d compliment your complexion, sell you a serum, and then talk her way into your Rolodex before you could blink. Respect.
💄 The Glow-Up: From Tiny Jars to Global Domination
Fast forward, and the Estée Lauder Company now owns half the damn beauty industry. MAC, Clinique, Bobbi Brown, La Mer, Tom Ford Beauty? All under her empire. Somewhere out there, Estée’s ghost is sipping a martini and whispering, “I told you so.”
The brand became the face of prestige beauty. White lab coats, blue jars, polished gold accents, the whole “rich aunt who has opinions about night cream” vibe.
Their secret sauce? A mix of science-y sounding marketing and emotional manipulation. (“Your skin deserves better” is just “You’re not trying hard enough” in a silk robe.)
🧴 The Ethos: Classy, Clinical, and a Little Bit Cult
Estée Lauder has built its entire identity around luxury meets legitimacy. Everything looks like it could cure heartbreak and crow’s feet at the same time. Their spokespeople are the epitome of clean, expensive, vaguely unapproachable beauty…like if a yacht had skin.
Their branding says:
“We’re not selling moisturizer. We’re selling the fantasy of being that woman.”
And honestly? They’ve nailed it for decades.
✨ Hero Products: The Ones You’ve Definitely Stolen from a Relative
Advanced Night Repair (aka ANR, aka The Brown Bottle That Refuses to Die)
This serum is Estée’s magnum opus. Launched in the ‘80s, it was the first “serum” to be marketed like a religious experience. Every few years, they reformulate it with new “technology” (translation: add hyaluronic acid and vibes). It still works, it still smells like mild nostalgia, and it’s still absurdly expensive.
Double Wear Foundation
The foundation that will survive nuclear war, your ex’s wedding, and a Louisiana summer. Full coverage, matte, and damn near bulletproof. Although this is far from my favorite, even I have to admit you’ll need industrial-strength remover to get it off. But hey, at least your should skin look flawless at your own funeral.
Youth-Dew Perfume
Launched in the 1950s when “women wearing perfume for themselves” was borderline scandalous. Smells like vintage power and rich-widow energy.
Pure Color Envy Lipstick
That sleek gold bullet that makes you feel like you own stock in a publishing house and refuse to answer emails before 11 a.m.
🐍 The Scandals: Beauty’s Shiny Veneer Gets a Crack
The China Problem
They love to say “we don’t test on animals”… unless required by law. Unfortunately, “required by law” covers markets like China, which means PETA will never be sending them a fruit basket.
Shareholder Drama
When your business model leans too hard on one country, and that country sneezes, your stock price catches pneumonia. Lawsuits followed, because capitalism never sleeps (especially not when luxury skincare is involved).
Nepotism, but Make It Glossy
The Lauder family still runs the show, which is kind of wholesome but also explains why the brand sometimes feels like it’s living in a 1995 Clinique counter fever dream.
💰 The Legacy: She’s Old Money, Baby
Estée Lauder is not chasing trends; she’s waiting for trends to come crawling back. Every influencer who claims to “discover” ANR is basically rediscovering her grandma’s bathroom shelf.
She’s timeless, slightly problematic, and probably plotting her next acquisition while we argue about “clean beauty.”
🧃 The Kristen Take
Estée Lauder was the original girlboss brand long before that word curdled. She built an empire from kitchen cream jars and sass, and while her company now behaves more like a global mega-corp than a scrappy startup, the DNA remains: make it feel exclusive, make it sound scientific, and sell the fantasy of expensive skin.
Do I love the history? Absolutely.
Do I trust the marketing? Not a chance.
Will I still use Double Wear when I need my makeup to outlast my will to live? Maybe not, but you bet your serum-soaked ass the rest of the world will.
