Emily Weiss set out at 15 years old to rise up in the fashion and beauty world. Through determination and acquisition of multiple high-profile internships starting from a high-school age, Emily used her work ethic and her social media skills to learn the ins and outs of fashion and beauty, and found a unique beauty brand: Glossier.
Glossier is founded on the principles of simplicity and customer input. Emily started the brands with a mere 4 products, based on what she saw her friends and creatives in the industry using the most. In a Glamour article, she states that Glossier was born because she “loved the idea of women becoming their own curators and sharing their thoughts about beauty with each other.” This is considered a very radical concept in the beauty industry, where Emily felt brands often tried to push “new” and “trendy” makeup products onto their customers. Emily, on the other hand, prioritizes using social media for feedback from her customers. By beginning the brand with only a few products, she was able to use input from her customers to grow the brand to the 34 million dollar worth it has today. In an interview with QZ, She states that Glossier tries to do what other companies should, and go “the extra mile to leverage the expertise from the people they are trying to cater to.” For example, Glossier states on their website that many of their employees began as Glossier customers.
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| Glossier Founder Emily Weiss |
Additionally, rather than spreading traditional brick-and-mortar store locations throughout the country, Glossier is unique in their primarily online sales. However, they have unique “pop-up” store experiences built in a city for a few months at a time, used to spark interest. They are currently operating a pop-up store in Chicago, choosing this location as Chicago is one of the cities with the greatest online interaction with Glossier. The Chicago pop-up is an homage to the art and architecture of Chicago, as well as “adding surrealist touches,” such as “large tilted frames” (Chicago Tribune). Therefore, rather than a traditional store experience, the Glossier pop-ups create somewhat of a unique art show for customers to peruse.
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| Glossier Pop Up in Chicago, Located in an old Firehouse |
Glossier is so revolutionary in the makeup world because of the simplicity in design and ingredients. With simple yet aesthetically pleasing packaging, and short lists of ingredients with names customers can pronounce. For example, cloud paint, one of the brand’s most popular products, is a pigment that users can squeeze from a tube and put on their cheeks for color. But how did Emily Weiss make her creative journey to found such a revolutionary brand?
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| Glossier "Cloud Paint" |
Emily set out for her first internship at 15 years old, when she babysat for the family of a Ralph Lauren employee. She convinced him to let her into the offices, and through tenacity and hard work, proved she could manage the grueling tasks of an internship there. This led the young creative to an internship with MTV. (Glamour) These formative experiences gave Emily a glimpse into the world of fashion and beauty, where she took in all she could, “collecting” information from the industries. Eventually, she founded popular blog “into the gloss,” which focused on the beauty routines of celebrities and non-celebrities alike. This blog is still used today as a part of Glossier’s unique business model to use input from customers. As Luke Smilliee notes in his article, “Openness to Experience: The Gates of the Mind,” creatives tend to have less “learned irrelevance” than the typical person, and are able to take in more information for their own use rather than ignoring it. Smilliee would likely argue that Emily Weiss is very adept at avoiding irrelevance to new information, as she acquired a wealth of it during her internships that would eventually give her the skills needed to launch Glossier.
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Before reading this post I was familiar with the Glossier name but had never bought any of their products. Emily Weiss's story is absolutely amazing and her determination throughout her career is inspirational. I love how unique the collaboration is between them and their followers on social media, especially how receptive they are to feedback.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely love this brand. Since this summer, my daily makeup bag has slowly been taken over by Glossier products. I love what they stand for, promoting natural beauty and customer feedback, so it was really interesting to read about how Emily Weiss created the dynamic and impact of Glossier, her journey, and the collaboration on her products.
ReplyDeleteI think it's super interesting that Glossier is a primarily online brand. I have seen so many ads online for Glossier makeup, so it has really caught my attention. Usually having a brick-and-mortar store is a given for a makeup brand, so I love how Emily built such a successful brand without that traditional storefront. I really like how Glossier products promote simplicity, where other brands seem to promote complexity of makeup. It's the perfect brand for those who are beginners with makeup or who just want a more natural look. Such a great idea!
ReplyDeleteI think it's so interesting that they have been able to create such a loyal and strong customer base before they even began to open their brick and mortar stores. I also like that they are divergent in their minimalist packaging and storefronts, as well as their simple and honest advertising strategies. I had no idea that she got her start by essentially kicking the door down!
ReplyDeleteGlossier is my fave! I liked reading your post and learning about the founder and her experience with the beauty industry. I like how she took her experience and used it to found her own company that stands out because of how personable they are! The idea that she/ the company makes more of an effort to interact with customers is different but effective for a beauty brand.
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