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| Company type | Public |
|---|---|
| Industry | Cosmetics |
| Founded | 1946; 80 years ago (1946) inNew York City, U.S. |
| Founders |
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| Headquarters | General Motors Building, New York City ,U.S. |
Key people |
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| Products |
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| Brands | (see§ Brands) |
| Revenue |  US$14.3 billion (2025) |
| −US$785 million (2025) | |
| −US$1.1 billion (2025) | |
| Total assets | US$19.9 billion (2025) |
| Total equity | US$3.87 billion (2025) |
| Owner | Lauder family (38% equity, 86% voting)[1] |
Number of employees | 57,000 (2025) |
| Website | elcompanies |
| Footnotes / references Financials as of June 30, 2025[update].[2] | |
The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (/ˈɛsteɪˈlɔːdər/EST-ayLAW-dər) is an American multinational cosmetics company, a manufacturer and marketer ofmakeup,skincare,perfume, and hair care products, based inMidtown Manhattan,New York City. It is the second largest cosmetics company in the world afterL'Oréal. The company owns a diverse portfolio of brands, including La Mer,Jo Malone London,Clinique andTom Ford Beauty, among many more, distributed internationally through bothdigital commerce andretail channels.
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The company began in 1946 whenEstée Lauder and her husband Joseph began producing cosmetics inNew York City. They first carried only four products: Cleansing Oil,Skin Lotion, Super Rich All-purpose Creme, and Creme Pack.[3] Two years later, in 1948 they established their firstdepartment store account withSaks Fifth Avenue inManhattan.
Over the next 15 years, they expanded the range and continued to sell their products in the United States. In 1960, the company started its first international account in theLondon department storeHarrods. The following year it opened an office inHong Kong.
In 1964, they introducedAramis, a line of fragrance and grooming products for men named after an exotic Turkish root originally used as an aphrodisiac.[4] In 1967, Estée Lauder herself was named one of ten Outstanding Women in Business in the United States by business and financial editors.[5] This was followed by a Spirit of Achievement Award fromAlbert Einstein College of Medicine atYeshiva University in 1968.[citation needed] In that year, the company expanded again, openingClinique, adermatologist-guided (Dr.Norman Orentreich),allergy-tested, fragrance-free cosmetic brand.
Estée Lauder's Cliniquebrand became the first women's cosmetic company to introduce a second line for men when, in 1976, they began a separate line called "Skin Supplies for Men", which continues to be sold at Clinique counters worldwide. In 1981, the company's products became available in theSoviet Union.
In the 1990s, brand acquisitions and licensing agreements contributed to explosive growth as the company transformed from a family-owned business to a publicly traded, family-controlled organization. The decade opened with the creation of Origins – the first wellness brand in U.S. department stores. The first licensing agreement for fragrances was with fashion designerTommy Hilfiger in 1993, followed byKiton,[6] an Italian fashion house (1995), and with American fashion designerDonna Karan (1997).[7]
Brand acquisitions began with an investment in the Toronto-basedMAC Cosmetics in 1994, which the company then acquired in 1998.Bobbi Brown Cosmetics, designed by the celebrated makeup artist, was acquired in 1995, as wasLa Mer – along with the original recipe for its supreme luxury product, Crème de la Mer, containing the nutrient-rich Miracle Broth. The company ventured into its first hair care and holistic beauty brand withAveda in 1997. The fragrance houseJo Malone London was acquired in 1999.[7]
On November 16, 1995, the Estée Lauder Companieswent public on theNew York Stock Exchange at$26 a share ($6.50 on apost-split basis; equivalent to $50 and $10 in 2024[8]).[9]
Acquisitions and licensing continued in the 2000s as the Estée Lauder Companies bought a majority interest in the hair salonBumble and bumble and completed its acquisition in 2006; an exclusive global licensing agreement was signed with fashion designerMichael Kors (2003). DesignerTom Ford began a project with the company and later an agreement was signed with him (2005) to develop and distribute fragrances and cosmetics under the Tom Ford Beauty brand.[7]
On July 1, 2010, the company acquired Smashbox Beauty Cosmetics, Inc., a brand created in Smashbox Studios inCulver City, California, by brothers Dean and Davis Factor (as inMax).[10]
On October 28, 2011, Aramis and Designer Fragrances, a division of the Estée Lauder Companies Inc., andTory Burch LLC announced the signing of a multiyear agreement for the exclusive worldwide license of the Tory Burch fragrance business. This partnership marked Tory Burch's first step into the beauty industry. The firstTory Burch fragrance products were introduced in 2013.[11]
In 2012, the company launched AERIN Beauty, a luxury lifestyle beauty and fragrance brand inspired by the signature style of its founder,Aerin Lauder.
In 2014, the company acquired two insider beauty brands, RODIN olio lusso, a skincare brand known for its "Luxury Face Oil", andLe Labo, a fragrance and sensory lifestyle brand. Later that year, the company also made its first investment in India by buying a minority stake inForest Essentials, a luxury cosmetics company specializing inAyurvedic products.[12] In 2015, the company acquiredEditions de Parfums Frédéric Malle, a fragrance brand, and GLAMGLOW, aHollywood skin care brand.[13]
In 2016, the company acquired Becca Cosmetics, its first color cosmetic group acquisition since Smashbox in 2010.[14] In November 2016, the company made its largest acquisition to date by acquiring California-based cosmetics company Too Faced for $1.45 billion.[15]
In 2019, the company acquiredDr. Jart+. Founded in Korea in 2004, Dr. Jart+ pioneered the marketing ofBB cream as a cosmetic.[16]
In 2021, the company acquired Canadian-based Deciem Beauty Group Inc.[17] In 2022, Estée Lauder opened a 300,000-square-foot (2.8-hectare) distribution center inGalgenen, Switzerland.[18]
In November 2022, the company announced it was to acquire the designer fashion houseTom Ford in a deal worth $2.8bn, withFord remaining as creative director until at least 2023.[19]
In 2024, the company announced its partnership with Messika.[20]
In June 2024, Estée Lauder completed the acquisition of DECIEM Beauty Group.[21]
In October 2024, the company officially opened its Global Fragrance Atelier inside La Maison des Parfums inParis, establishing an AI-enabled, advanced technology innovation hub dedicated to accelerating the development of its luxury and prestige fragrance portfolio.[22][23][24]
In September 2025, the company appointed Ossama Ogla as general manager of its Middle East operations.[25]
In December 2025, Estée Lauder announced that it has been taking minority stakes in beauty brands across China, Mexico and India such as The Ordinary. This is part of the company's strategy to target key markets in the Americas as well as emerging markets by targeting the growing middle class.[26]
In response to theCOVID-19 pandemic the Estée Lauder Companies announced on August 20, 2020, areduction in their workforce by 1,500 to 2,000 personnel worldwide, or about 3 percent of total employees. Most of the reductions will be support workers and store employees. The company also announce they would be closing approximately 10 to 15 percent of their stores, close in-store beauty counters, and focus more on digital operations.[27]
The Estée Lauder company has many brands and Estée Lauder is one of the brands. It has had sometimes high-profile spokesmodels, sometimes referred to simply as 'faces'. Past 'faces' for Estée Lauder includeKaren Graham,Bruce Boxleitner,Shaun Casey,Willow Bay,Paulina Porizkova,Elizabeth Hurley,Carolyn Murphy, supermodelLiya Kebede – the first African 'face' of Estée Lauder,Anja Rubik, and actressGwyneth Paltrow. As of 2008[update] the main spokesmodel for Estée Lauder was supermodelHilary Rhoda. In 2010, the company added three more faces to the roster, Chinese modelLiu Wen, Puerto Rican modelJoan Smalls, and French modelConstance Jablonski.[28]
In 2015, Estée Lauder signed modelKendall Jenner to promote the brand.[29]
In 2017, the company announced Violette Serrat as their Global Beauty Director.[30]
Alvin Chereskin, the founder of AC&R, was the long-time creative partner of the company.[31]
Current roster of Estée Lauder Global Ambassadors includeAna de Armas,Amanda Gorman,Bianca Brandolini d'Adda,Carolyn Murphy,Grace Elizabeth,Imaan Hammam,Karlie Kloss,Manushi Chhillar andYang Mi. In 2024, the company announced singer, songwriter and actress,IU, as their first Korean Global Brand Ambassador.[32][33]
 | This section needs to beupdated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(July 2025) |
For fiscal year 2016, the Estée Lauder Companies achieved net sales of $11.26 billion, a 4% increase compared with $10.78 billion in the prior year. Net earnings for the year were $1.11 billion, a 2% increase compared with $1.09 billion in the previous year, and diluted net earnings per common share rose 5% to $2.96, compared with $2.82 reported in the prior year.[34] As of 2018, Estée Lauder Companies ranked 258 on theFortune 500 list of the largest United States corporations by revenue.[35]
Leonard A. Lauder was chairman emeritus.William P. Lauder is the chairman of the board.Fabrizio Freda was president and chief executive officer from 2009 through 2024.[36] As of 2025,Stéphane de la Faverie, the former executive group president, was named president and CEO of ELC.[37]
Jeanette Sarkisian Wagner was president of the company's International Operations division, who quickly introduced the brand's product line to the women of the Soviet Union and China when those countries began to open up in the 1980s and '90s. Under Wagner, the division went from a small and relatively unprofitable arm of Estée Lauder to one that brought in about half of the company's revenue. She oversaw the opening of the company's first location in the USSR one week after thefall of the Berlin Wall.[38] Wagner launched marketing campaigns in over 100 countries for the company.[39]
In October 1992, the Breast Cancer Awareness campaign was launched byEvelyn Lauder (Estée's daughter-in-law) who co-created the "Pink Ribbon"[40] withSelf magazine as a symbol of breast health.
The Estée Lauder Companies' annual Breast Cancer Awareness campaign involves all of the 19 brands that make up the Estée Lauder Companies. They collectively represent theBreast Cancer Research Foundation's first and largest corporate supporter. Since 1992, the Estée Lauder Companies' breast cancer campaign has raised more than $89 million globally for research, education, and medical services.[41]
The Estée Lauder Companies brands include:[42]
Cosmetics
| Fragrance Haircare
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Estée Lauder Companies appeared on lists of major companies supportingSOPA, the controversial, but unsuccessful, Congressional anti-piracy bill that was considered overreaching by critics.[44][45]
In 2001, it was reported thatchildren were discovered working in a factory inCambridge, New York, making products for Origins, one of Estee Lauder's natural products brands. The contracted company was Common Sense Natural Soap & Bodycare, owned by a group led by cult leaderYoneq Gene Spriggs. Estee Lauder said it immediately moved to terminate the contract with the manufacturer it had been in business with for 5 years, stating it was totally unaware prior to the initial inspection.[46]
The Estée Lauder Companies perform non-animal and human volunteer testing to assess product safety and efficacy. Estée Lauder Companies product goes throughanimal testing where required by law by its country government. The Chinese governmentrequires testing on animals for many cosmetic products.[47] This causes controversy for smaller brands that are "cruelty free" but were acquired by Estée Lauder.[48]
Since at least February 2001, Estée Lauder and its brands have been the target of aboycott campaign led by pro-Palestine activists who have targeted the corporation because of thepro-Israel activities ofRonald Lauder.[49][50][51][52] In June 2003, the San Francisco-basedQueers Undermining Israeli Terrorism (QUIT) took up the boycott with their "Estée Slaughter" campaign.[53] The boycott has generated ananti-boycott campaign by supporters of Israel.[54]
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