Lipstick Sales Are Up 80% and It Has Nothing To Do with the Lipstick Index
As you know the lipstick index is a measure of how consumers are spending extra money. The phrased was coined by Leonard Lauder, Estee Lauder’s chairman of the board of Estee Lauder, and was used to describe increased sales of cosmetics during the recession early in 2000s. It’s a term that can’t be used to measure current makeup sales in our economy since the skincare and self care revolution overturned it in 2020.
That being said lipstick sales are actually up 80%! 80%! IRI, a market researcher that tracks points of retail sale, says that lipsticks hit 34.2 million dollars mid-April which is an increase of 80% from the same period last year. Don’t get too excited about the bounce back as they still fell short of pre-pandemic levels of over $40 million.
Actually, cosmetics sales for the past four-weeks ending May 22 have surged 16.7% from a year ago, according to data from Nielsen and over a 12-week stretch are up 24.7% from last year.
Here’s the good news….
The rise in sales actually has nothing to do with the Lipstick Index. I feel some sense of relief that sales of lipstick aren’t because people are tightening their belts and not spending money. Right now, the smart thing to do is save your money but also, you’re not going to see the economy return to normal until we let loose a little and start spending again.
Why are they up?
Simple answer that I’m sure you already know. Mask mandates have changed, more people are getting vaccinated and social interactions have picked up. We all want to look pretty again and do it wearing our favorite red lipstick.
Walmart recently told CNN Business that lipstick is a top performer in the last quarter sales.
I never stopped wearing makeup or lipstick the last year. As I’ve said many times in the past year it was important for me to keep my routines when things were so chaotic. It made me feel a sense of normal and I really don’t care that my routine may have included waxing my wood floors while wearing red lipstick. It’s all about the ritual for me.
I know many of you have missed wearing lipstick but haven’t yet felt comfortable getting out there without a mask yet. I’m vaccinated but I still very much wear a mask. I’m excited lipstick sales are seeing such an incredible turn over but it may take me a little while longer to be comfortable wearing it out without a mask on!