'She got an internship at Ralph Lauren by asking her neighbor who worked there' dang if youre rich you're already on your way to being successful. Its so hard to network and grow connections for anyone who isnt already in that social/professional sphere.
@@Kissmycrownsad part is, most schools don't even teach accurate information, let alone media literacy... As someone who went to good schools, I have to remind myself how privileged I am to have had so much access to knowledge
@@Kissmycrown schools raise children to perfectly fit into their capitalist consumer regimes. i feel like only at Uni did i get actively taught to critically think
Honestly, to me it feels very similar to when companies as why you want to work them in the interview. While you can BS your way into it talking about culture or whatever, the real reason is always money and bills
Bc that one individual can change the whole system bc they’ll listen to “their own” it’s crazy think that they want us all dead to make “their own world” when they already have the world why can’t wet just work together and make this place better like I don’t understand why they’d rather do all this heinous things
the impact glossier had on the 2010s (and even now) is truly insane. i remember being 15 and religiously watching their youtube channel bc i was convinced if i spent $80 i could look just like emrata or their cool interns
the 2015 glossier era was elite. I remember being a sophomore in college, sending all the girlies my discount code and being gifted the $10 when someone used it. I remember having $100 in glossier credit at one point.
I had very bad acne and acne scars back when Glossier first started to get big then, and seeing everyone around me who already has perfect skin use their sheer face products just made me feel like it wouldn’t look right on me or wasn’t meant for me in the first place lol.
THIS, i perceived it as makeup for people who didn't need makeup. which is fine, some people only need powder or tinted moisturizer, but i've got secrets to keep ok 😂
That was exactly my experience! Everyone obsessed with the brand almost gave me a sense of "why even bother with heavy makeup?", and to me, that felt like a privileged question to be asking, just like "why do you want to work?" at an interview lol
this! The exclusivity surrounding glossier and the beauty and aesthetic trends it birthed are kind of upsetting tbh. You shouldn't have to naturally look a certain way just to be able to be a part of the club
the old glossier made me so confident in embracing my skin and not hiding behind makeup so it’s really sad to see what they’ve become… the old glossier girls looked like us with their normality but now they look like chic unattainable models
Thank you so much for talking about the misogyny in the double standards held against women in business. This has irked me so much about the “gaslight gatekeep girlboss” narrative because just like you said, if men exploit people in business they’re seen as geniuses, but if women do it they’re moral failures. The impossible standard of perfection women are held to is unattainable by design.
yes, cause men dnt claim to be the pinnacle of moral superiority, but women do thats y they get scrutinized more. they over promise and under deliver and end up just like their male counter parts or even worse in some case. you r just a make-up brand- clam down.
The failure of girlboss is in the name… girl not woman. A woman oriented business would be required to be more than an aesthetic and deal with the conundrums of childcare, maternity leave and balancing profits versus employee benefits ethically. Healthy female matriarchal power structures are absent as examples in the modern age.
The main problem with the girl boss narrative is that it's rooted in liberal white feminism, the ppl critiquing this are the same ppl also critiquing men being exploitative
Glossier is a PERFECT example of the substitution of consumerism and brands in place of third places and community (one of reasons for phenomenons such as the Stanley Cup craze). I believe Mina Le has an amazing video on this!
I was an ITG reader prior to the launch of Glossier and for me, Emily Weiss lost any semblance of relatability when she published an insane wedding preparation diary that included colonic irrigation. I know that plenty of celebrities (like Gwen Stefani) have praised colonic irrigation for helping them to "de-bloat" and "detox", but I've always felt optional interventions on your waste removal system is a disordered way of treating your body.
I actually do this regularly. I’ve struggled with constipation to the point of needing to go to the hospital. I do colonics every month and I have no problems anymore. The average colon hold 5-15lbs of waste so it’s better to get it out. Especially with colon cancer on the rise!
"optional interventions on your waste removal system is a disordered way of treating your body." This wording is so odd. Also, what do you mean, exactly? Taking laxatives, natural or medical, could fall under that. So many people struggle with gut issues, myself included. I personally wouldn't do a colon cleansing, it does sound very 'rich white almond mom', but sometimes letting nature do its thing isn't possible.
former nyc store employee here - really appreciated how you focused on the emotional attachment to the brand so many people had, which i have to say extended to our management as well in a really gross way. they would constantly feel personally attacked by any criticism we had with products/customers/on-the-clock experiences to the point where there was a clear disdain for anyone who dared to challenge the almighty pink jumpsuit. also worth noting that (i think) outtathegloss has been dormant because we were all laid off by summer 2020 (after being furloughed from march to june). as far as i'm aware, no offline editors from new york were reached out to about coming back when they opened the new locations here.
to me glossier has always been a representation of an upper class wealthy, white and cool girl that doesn’t try hard that aligned with the early 2010s tumblr times (shoutout to tumblr, I’m going back to you ❤) I never felt that glossier was targeted to me but I always felt interested in its aesthetic and what it stood for, the cool internet girl. glossier definitely transformed the idea of community within the makeup field, girls who weren’t even makeup artists or influencers would be talking about them and using them. Like you discuss a lot of lifestyle TH-camrs were using them, so to me it felt glossier wasn’t just about makeup but a an aesthetic and way of living. I have only bought from them recently, their cloud paint which I will probably never repurchase (not pigmented enough for my skin tone I always have to use a good amount for show off, I also prefer cream and powder blushes) and their boy brow which I haven’t used enough to decide on. Alls said, I do think that glossier still has a dedicated audience especially with gen z from what I can tell on TikTok. I think some of us still hold on to the lifestyle they represent because it was what we looked up to when we were preteens and teens on the internet. I went to the glossier in soho and it was really such a different experience than other beauty stores and it was filled with young girls. Thanks for such a great and informative video!
To me, glossier always seemed like a western take on an already (at the time) successful model in various parts of Asia. I do think it was great to see a makeup brand that was about enhancement versus concealment/transformation. A lot of Asian beauty products have an even smaller shade range, but as the video included… that doesn’t fair well in America. As we’ve seen with almost every makeup brand- they start minimal and expand. Saying all this to say I don’t think it was intentionally racist or not inclusive. The products are also pretty long lasting which honestly was such a breath of fresh air versus more problematic companies like Tarte. Also want to point out that with backlash, they responded accordingly which is more than a lot of other companies do. I’m not some current glossier stan. I probably won’t purchase from them again, but I don’t think they’re as horrible as the video is stating. Leaving DTC can be a huge loss of creative control/freedom and a huge percentage goes towards the major conglomerates like Estée Lauder when they shift to retail. Anyways, not sure what my point was. But I value seeing all of these differing perspectives.
This isn’t the most important but I’m shocked you thought the cloud paints weren’t pigmented enough! I have dark skin (as in I am a black person and some brands do not even go dark enough to match my face) and I found the cloud paints to be sooo unwieldy and pigmented. This is coming from someone with a heavy hand who really wants colors to show up haha
'working at girlboss incorporated is so slay hunty' sksksk. who could've predicted a brand that basically incorporated those vibes would've been racist
I'm still pretty into the overall branding and vibe of Glossier but because I can't try it out in person, I'm always skeptical to buy. I'm also not a makeup person so diving right in always feels like a risk to me
Same, back in 2016 when I was trying out makeup for the first time, Glossier did a real good job with sticking out as a beginner friendly makeup brand. and it is! Despite everything wrong with Glossier, there still are a few products that I see myself repurchasing until I find something better. (Milky jelly cleanser, generation G lipstick, future dew, stretch concealer, after baume, and boy brow are some of my holygrails)
A Glossier shill account led to a massive implosion of the biggest makeup group on Reddit and I’ll never be able to remove the association with drama from Glossier in my mind
@@nony_mation I cant link the articles but if you google “reddit makeupaddiction 2019 drama” Allure and Business Insider both wrote articles on the whole thing. Long story short, an account posted a selfie having used Cloud Paint and was gushing over it. Another user did some digging and saw it was a stolen picture and the account regularly talked about and promoted Glossier. That user was banned by the mods, but not the stolen picture user. It all called into question whether or not the mods were being paid to allow company shills (employees posing as regular users to promote products) to post in the community. All the mods but one stepped down and the community went into full meltdown. It was glorious to watch
@@nithya1372 a "shill" is someone who was paid to praise a company. they don't actually like the company, they're just doing it for the money. a "shill account" is an account on the internet that was paid to praise a company (which was glossier in question)
I remember being really bitter about Glossier's whole schtick because it felt like it was three years behind the whole KBeauty craze that had been sweeping into my corners of the internet. It was like twice the price of the products I was already using in bubble gum pink packaging for the same kind of philoophy and effects. Blergh
30:43 I think this could be partially because men generally aren’t encouraged to be very touchy-feely or socially involved, whereas women are often expected to participate in a lot of social activities, remember the details of people’s families and lives, know what’s going on in the neighborhood, etc. At least that’s been my experience observing women in the generation or two before me. Expectations have definitely shifted, but I think that could play a part.
I totally agree!! I think that although male ceos have their dedicated fanboys, the ceos don’t become personal or invite community, it cultivates on its own online. I think as women like you said we are more involved with community and more open to it so it’s so profitable for companies targeted to young girls and women to create these communities and use them for gain. I don’t think a male targeted lifestyle brand would be successful as glossier with this system due to men’s lack of involvement in beauty and self care.
absolutely, I think the general expectation for women is that we learn how to "be women" through word of mouth, community, and sharing information amongst one another, rather than by reading encyclopedias or studying--which is also why I think the point about makeup brands engendering feelings of community in their advertising is a good one. At least, I THINK that's how women learn to "be" women, because I never talked about makeup or hair routines or diets with my friends or sister or mom, and I feel like a complete luddite/imposter whenever I'm near a makeup brush or when I'm buying hair products, and I have never been able to find a good source for any of those things that wasn't trying to sell me something.
Firstly, LOVE the name change & expanding of content! I was part of the glossier cult. Got my first products as Christmas presents in 2017 & that continued on for about 3/4 years. I was drawn in by the minimalist aesthetic, the light coverage ethos and the glowy/dewy look, was obsessed with the packaging etc. that bubble wrap pouch like a badge of honour that was only recognisable to fellow glossier girls, and you did feel a bit like you were part of something. It was a refreshing brand, I’d never been so interested in makeup before then, but glossier felt right up my street and the aesthetics I liked - I felt more seen. I’d tried with the heavy 2010’s makeup, and it always looked terrible and clownish on my face. So when glossier came along it was like, oh right, I don’t have to wear heavy coverage/matte makeup, buy loads of expensive morphe brushes - the glossier girls are just applying it with their fingers anyway! It felt more accessible (even though the price point wasn’t always) - more casual, less pressure, it was okay that you weren’t a master at cut crease eyeshadow, having “fleeky” eyebrows (LOL) or baking your face, which is what everyone was doing at the time. It felt more youthful and natural and not too mature, like other brands seemed to be. Anyway I’ve had quite a lot of the glossier products over the years, and I have to say I stand by haloscope, generation G, and lidstar. The way I wear makeup today probably still stems from my glossier days - very low maintenance, use my fingers to blend, and make the products last a long time. It did revolutionise the way we thought about beauty and makeup. But as you say, minimalist makeup is no longer a novelty, and I agree that glossier has fallen and I personally don’t see it making a comeback in the same way that it was. It defined an era and was the pioneer of a movement but it is failing to move with the times. Some things were not meant to last, and I think glossier is one of those cases.
Glossier was always more of my mom’s thing actually, she’s always been a no-makeup-makeup girl going back to like the 70’s but always with like a little bit of purple eyeshadow or eyeliner to make her eyes really pop Her favorite thing is probably the Cloud Paint blush, she really likes to make her own custom color by mixing Dawn and Haze
I got so confused scrolling, almost scrolled past but then I was like “is that Ellen??” And then you explained new channel name. I will miss film fatales but I’m excited for any and all content you put out 😊
Glossier was the first makeup brand I ever loved. I hated the 2016 full beat makeup. Once I found glossier I finally wanted to do my makeup lol. I reach for different products now but still have my favs from glossier that use daily
This articulates EXACTLY how I fell into Glossier around that time. I was so sick of the full beat look and how youtube was flooded with eye shadow palette collabs lmao. I genuinely felt like every other brand out there at the time was not into minimal makeup looks. It definitely transitioned the way I did my makeup (for the better) as I bandwagoned onto the trend...and made me want to do skincare more lol
The wholeeee reason I never got into makeup back then was because of how heavy it all looked. It was just too much for me, especially as a absolute beginner. The whole thick foundation, eyebrows (took me a while to actually realize how nice my brows already were), contour, highlighter, etc. was tooooo much. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t care about trends, if people decide full face is back I’m sticking to what I’m doing now but still. The no makeup make up look suits me so well.
I understand when you said the "clean girl" aesthetic has it's roots in golssier but it really started in the south asian comunity. I remember my auntie oiling her hair back into a sleek bun and making her skin have a beautiful glow only to get people to tell her that she looks unclean. But when golssier started doing the same thing but with mainly white models it become natrual and somehow people finally saw the bueaty in it. This is just my thoughts tho.
I still love my cloud paint 🤷♀️ It’s lasted an incredibly long time and the pink color and consistency is really at a level most blushes cannot compare to. The color pops and looks so smooth, even, and pretty on the skin. The boy brow and lip gloss are also staple items I go back to time and time again! And the cleanser is to this day the single most skin-friendly face wash I’ve ever used. It always soothes my irritated, acne-prone skin. Whatever the work/business culture, it can’t be denied that that they do have, at least from my experience, a handful of very good products.
I remember wanting these products so bad, but till this day Sephora Germany doesn't sell Glossier and I refuse to get it shipped from the US and pay outrageous import taxes haha
YES! I was buying stuff from ebay a couple month ago because I was tired of waiting soooo many years hoping it would come to germany. But FINALLY they ship here. 🎉
I checked out of the makeup industry in 2020 and if I ever decided to get back into it I think Glossier would appeal to me. If the brand wanted to revive itself I think it should become a mainstream retail brand. They were so isolated to their own website and social media that they still have a huge market out there that has little to no exposure to their products.
Me too. I coveted over the Glossier girl vibe in the mid 2010s despite it not shipping to my country at all, but after covid my interest in makeup/skincare just clocked out. Yet, I ordered from Glossier when they started shipping internationally haha. The products don't seem complicated and I just can't be bothered keeping up with the influx of new brands and trends
I really liked glossier back in the day, and it was b/c I genuinely liked the products I used from them. idk I was never rlly into Instagram so I thankfully missed the whole 'cult' & 'aesthetic' thing, but I found their concealer, milky jelly cleanser, and haloscope products really dependable for that 'fresh, dewy look'. I actually still use their concealer and haloscope! those products last foreverrrrrrrr & I like the way they look on me.
I first tried Glossier when I was 19 or 20, and it's crazy how much I felt like it completed the personality I was trying to curate for myself at that time. Something about it made me feel like I had achieved the person I had wanted to be for so long -- I remember girls in my dorm bathroom asking about my cloud paints and feeling so ultra cool. I haven't used their stuff in a long time (since the Outta the Gloss letter), but it does still make me feel nostalgic for that time. And I will admit, those blushes could still have me in a chokehold.
I was always thinking glossier looked so boring but I recently got the concealer, skin tint, and blush and they are actually kinda bomb which surprised the hell out of me. I don’t need much coverage so the skin tint is nice and feels so breathable. I do prefer the Danessa Myricks balm over it for oil control. The concealer is my fave. The blush layers beautifully over all products I’ve tried and gives a beautiful warmth to the face. My skin tone: Tan/Medium Deep, Skin type: oily, skin concerns: dullness
I remember seeing closet declutter videos where influencers would clingily hug their Glossier sweatshirts and say how they would never part with them. As someone who didn’t know what Glossier was (some kind of brand?) and couldn’t be bothered to find out, I thought this was very odd. "I love this mass produced hoodie with just this word and typeface on it!" Looking at it now, it seems like it was an affordable ticket to and signifier of a trendy cool girl community - an online SoHo House, if you will, with the added benefit of mutually reinforced clout. The thing with thirst brands that rise as viral social media phenomena is that what is appealing when it is new and trendy must one day become passé, especially compared to the next fresh thing. A focus on younger shoppers helps guarantee free viral marketing, but younger shoppers will flock to the new in-group in-the-know status-signalling object and signifier, which means they will also drop you for the next new thing of that sort.
I think what you said about the community aspect of female CEOs rings true to me. It’s almost like we know what we’re up against as women in this industry and we want to build a sense of community because it feels like we NEED each other to get ahead in the world. I think that brands capitalize on our need for community.
As a defunct girl boss with an ex popular brand I’m so fearful of starting another business or encouraging women to start one like I used to. You will criticized and torn apart eventually. I have yet to see a female ceo not get deeply cancelled and it’s really hard for women to get ahead for this reason. Not saying people shouldn’t be held accountable for making mistakes but weekly I was under fire for being taken out of context when I didn’t actually do said evil thing. I went into depression and almost killed my self over the isolation and walked away during covid. Still recovering
@@favouro6344 no. I disagree. You can get canceled even when you aren’t problematic. People often twist your words to mean something you never said or intended. It’s happened to me so many times. Like I said, accountability is important but a large percentage of women are taken down by other women witch-hunt style and men aren’t held to even a fraction of the same criticism or standards.
I wonder how bad Emily Weiss’ company culture really was in comparison to male owned companies. You raised a really good point. Bc so much racism occurs in big companies on every scale, micro macro, from every direction. It’s so institutional in a lot of companies and you couldn’t even dare to call it out because you know they already have an answer for everything and set it up to make you look like the crazy one
I agree that other companies might be getting away with it because of the magnitude, but I also hink it could be getting called out in "girlboss" companies more because they usually brand themselves as ethical. People love pointing out hypocrisy more than anything and Jeff Bezos never made how nice it is to work at Amazon part of his brand.
I have been waiting for many years to get my hands on some glossier products. Now that they finally ship to Germany and I have received my package I feel quit underwhelmed from the products. I don't think I would purchase from them again. Your video was super interesting to watch ☺️
I still use glossier, their products are actually good. The bow brow, stretch concealer and cloud paints are things I use regularly. And yes they do have a certain image or niche, but I feel like they just ‘get’ the effortless no-makeup, carefree makeup look and branding. I so bought into it because I was tired of having to feel like I needed to hide or change my features, while glossier was about emphasising what you have in a non-overdone way.
2014 was the year I graduated college so I definitely loved blogs and miss them. Glossier was not something I felt was for me (little pricy, not inclusive) at the time. These days they’ve been outpaced by milk makeup, kosas, saie and other like brands.
def remember the days where glossier was neck-to-neck with milk makeup. it still sometimes feels weird to think about milk makeup being considered more relevant than glossier 😩
This is the first video I've ever seen from you and I really enjoyed it, so take this as an indication that your rebrand and branching out is successfully finding new people, I suppose!
I’ve been buying glossier on and off since 2016, and I agree with everything you’ve said in this video. Being from the NYC/NJ area, I was always going into the flagship store to buy products. I think what made me not like glossier in the early days were the limited products and shade ranges. As a black woman, the concealer and skin tint was just so lackluster. I think things are better now but for me it’s a little too for me to invest in most of their products since other brands like tower28, saie, ami cole and kosas are doing the “glossier” look so much better than glossier. I also think the glossier play was a good idea that came too early. If it came out during the boom of euphoria in 2019, I think it would’ve done great numbers. I also think that glossier play was a direct competition to milk makeup since milk was like the more fun, playful competitor with its’ fun packaging and colors. Plus Glossier’s move to attract gen z through Olivia was poorly executed in my opinion from a marketing perspective.
This was a really well done video! Loved the way it was structured and presented, as someone with ADHD the fact I managed to stay engage for nearly an hour is a testament to this :)
"too little too late" is the way i describe glossier as well! as an aussie girly i was a fan of glossier since like 2016 and desperately wanted their products, but they waited way too long end their exclusivity marketing scheme. becoming available in more countries in 2023 after all these scandals and the downfall of girlbossism reeks of desperation, and the dupes are here baby! i can get cloud paint dupes for a quarter of the price at my local grocery store, the market they created is SATURATED. i also think in your section about how girlboss SHE-EOs are judged more harshly, i think a lot of it has to do with their consumer base. generally i think women, especially the kinds of women who were glossier devotees who bought into their optics, would very harshly look upon the scandals involved in the brand, unlike the musk-ites and bezos boys. these girlbosses exploited our values while upholding and perpetuating harm!
I've replaced almost all of my Glossier products over the years, but their bubblewrap eye and lip cream that they discontinued was the best, and I have never found a suitable replacement 😭my undereyes had never been more smooth. RIP
I legit thought you had a second channel there for a second and i was ready to subscribe when i realised it was only a name change haha Anyway great video! I'm not that interested in make up myself so id never heard of this company but its always fascinating to me when companies rise and fall and make their mark online while i remain oblivious haha
I think a lot of millennials like Glossier still. I think it’s kind of a mistake of theirs to shift marketing to a solely younger audience. The youngest millennials are in their late 20s and the oldest are 40, and they were buying Glossier in the first place, so why not market to them even more? Add some anti aging things and you’re good to go.
Yes! So I'm a Gen X- I'm in my early 40s. I LOVE the concealer because it doesn't emphasize my eye wrinkles, like a lot of other concealers, even with the Glossier powder on top (I've used other powders on top which DO settle into my fine lines). I love cloud paint as well. Similarly, it's really nice on aging skin. Their products last forever, so I still use several of their products that I bought a LONG time ago. They should totally market to millennials/ Gen X! **although this video makes me want to find a new brand that works just as well for me. Now researching alternatives!**
I'm still a big fan of Glossier and I agree with you that most of their "original fanbase" is still there. I mean I think the whole of Glossier was built on nostalgia and it hits that nerve for a lot of us. The problem I have now with them is that they built themselves on listening to their customers. Now they're doing the exact opposite. All these reformulations, it's utterly absurd. I am a frequenter on their Reddit group, which is quite massive. There is a lot of outrage from the original fan base about how they are wrecking their brand. They keep sinking deeper and deeper and they are doing it to themselves.
I was fully absorbed in the glossier hype way back in 2015 because of tumblr lol. I remember getting the boy brow, generation g, wowder, and concealer. I’ve considered trying the new lipsticks but the facade that they once had over the public has been tarnished as you’ve pointed out and there’s more equivalent products you can find for cheaper imo. Fully support the pivot to cultural analysis btw! That’s my favourite kind of content 😁
The editing job on this video is absurdly amazing I love it so much!! Also changing outfits and locations for some reason kept me more engaged and I finished the video in one sitting!
i remember being a very broke high schooler and wanting to use glossier sooooo much. it felt like all the cool people used it. that being said, as a black girl i always felt that they weren’t making products for *me* then, during 2020, i remember black/poc employees at the company made an instagram account exposing the poor treatment they faced in the workplace. i’m completely uninterested in buying from them now. so many beauty brands in the west are doing glossier’s whole “thing” inclusively
Such a well done video! I love the deep dive, and how much effort was done shaping the visuals and storytelling with each chapter! Excited to see where the channel goes!
As someone who really didn't do the 2016 full beat, Glossier really appealed to me with their minimal makeup approach, and I remember getting products immediately when they went live. I loved their perfume too when it launched. With that being said, I haven't bought anything in years because you can find similar products in other brands.
This is the first video I'm watching from this channel. Not only is your commentary interesting and well researched, but your graphics and editing is FUCKING hilarious in the most cutesy subtle way!! 😂😂😂 #Subscribed!!
Just finished the video. Definitely interesting to realize how beauty companies try to ‘befriend’ their costumers compared to how the tech companies market themselves. And I love that your best friend made a cameo ☺️ Loved your video on Normal People together!
No because something that fascinated me about glossier was their referral program (i abused the hell out of that $10 referral link) and their pink pouches (i still have them all). i loved that no matter how little i bought I'd always get something cute to reuse as birthday gift card for my friends or as a little school pencil bag 😭
Here to say that I'm no beauty girlie, I don't know much about cosmetics or brands and I don't even know if Glossier is available in my country but you made this piece so interesting! I was captivated the entire time. Great commentary from you on these more cultural elements, as always. Thanks and can't wait for the next one.
Loving the new channel name and I'm interested to see more of what you do. I would love to see you discuss Tarte since they've had their fair share of controversies. I never really got into glossier and that looks like that might be a good thing.
I’m someone who really tried to like Glossier for a while, and after buying and using a lot of their skincare and makeup, I’ve concluded that the brand really was 90% marketing, %10 noteworthy products. To me, everyone seemed profoundly mid; boy brow kinda held my brows, milky jelly kinda cleansed, the eyeshadows were kinda pigmented, and on and on. I never repurchased anything (except for boy brow before I found another alternative). Combine that with the price, which wasn’t high end but a lot for what you got, and it was pretty clear that the hype was coming from that Glossier cult, especially when you talked to anyone outside of it about the brand. I still remember that when I walked back from my local store with a bagful of Glossier, my mother took one look at the stickers and the pouches and that dang pink bag, and said “You’re paying for the packaging.” While I tried to defend it at first, with hindsight and the help of this amazing video, I have to say she was right. not just about paying for the packaging itself, but paying for the “packaging” of the products themselves, aka the idea of the aesthetic millennial pink effortless girlie life that included the products.
As a fellow goes by el girl myself, the fact I never thought of the phrase el literacy is soooo annoying because it’s SO PERFECT!! Thank you for giving me another funny name pun to use on my unsuspecting victims
I absolutely love LOVE these long format videos. A deep dive, something almost like a podcast that you can listen to and take something insightful from once you're done with it. Love the content and super hyped I found this channel
as someone who’s studying creative business this was really interesting and informative to watch you talk about the different marketing strategies and the “downfall” of a brand so i’m definitely excited to see more videos like this!!
A major factor in the change of the brand was from some of the OG builders of the brand like Annie left. Like most companies, it gets too big and hard to hold onto.
when glossier first skyrocketed into popularity, i saw a lot of girls my age getting so into it-meanwhile i didn’t even know what they were selling. i could tell just by looking at the people posting about it that it wasn’t *for* me. not just as in “oh that’s just not my thing,” but as a microcosm of how femininity was this unattainable, mystical state for me. no matter how hard i tried, i could never fit into the mold all the pretty cool girls fit into naturally. glossier was pretty, soft, and feminine without being “girly.” and even though i now identify as non-binary, i didn’t have that language when i was a teenager. glossier was just a reminder of how i did not and could not fit the standards set by the “other girls”
So now, instead of being okay as a woman, you shoehorn other women into rigid stereotypes yourself. If you can't be feminine, then obviously you're not either. We're truly living in the most misogynistic times huh..
@droolingpine9658 maybe not for you, but obviously it is this deep for this person, which is why they shared their experience. You could say to this whole video "it's not that deep" and go and watch something else.
I started using Glossier (skin tint, haloscope, boy brow, and stretch concealer) in 2016 as a freshman in college and it probably singlehandedly saved me from making some regrettable decisions with a Kylie lip kit or Tarte shape tape. Not that there was anything wrong with that look, I just definitely didn't have the skill to pull it off. I still use the skin tint exclusively and only wear actual foundation if there's no other option.
Glossier is one of those brands that I loved to look at but never bought from. The photos were always aesthetic and the branding was super cute, clearly tailored toward the things I and many others were intrigued by (pink, cute, minimal, no fuss, K-Beauty). However, it always felt weirdly exclusive. Like, my impoverished ass was looking at forbidden fruit and nectar, essentially. I had just recently gotten into makeup when the beauty community was going crazy over Glossier, and everyone using it was always gushing (which seems to be par for the course when anything gets popular, people just blow it up until the next big thing comes along). I felt like I was constantly being manipulated into thinking I wasn't pretty unless I bought into the "clean girl" scheme. Like, my bare face wasn't good enough for the world, I needed to harness my inner glowing goddess, blah blah. I still lurk in the community, watching declutters, documentaries, and swatch videos when I see something at the store that piques my interest, but I've made myself scarce on that front since I hated feeling unworthy of something I didn't even want in the first place. The only thing that I was ever genuinely interested in was the clear red gloss, as I'm a huge sucker for lip gloss and always have been, but I wasn't interested enough to drop a chunk of money on it, not when I could find something similar at the drugstore or the supermarket without breaking the bank.
@39:00 so there’s a saying “do you want to dismantle oppression, or do you want to be the one doing the oppressing?” And a lot of women who make it to the top want to enact the same harmful systems within patriarchy and capitalism and white supremacy- but they think if they have money and power they are now protected from those systems. But they’re more likely to be called out and booted due to misogyny because women will always be judged to a different standard. AND female consumers are more likely to hold companies to task. It’s an interesting phenomenon
Hi! For the glossier 3 shade issue, I’ve seen other TH-cam journalists use the “way back machine” to find things otherwise scrubbed by companies like this. You probs already know but they stuff you can find is crazy!
Funny enough, I’m more of a glossier fan now than ever before. Their new foundation launch revived the brand for me, tbh! I love the aesthetic and it comforts me because it brings me back to a fun time getting to know the beauty industry. ❤
Shit if I can find photos of the three shades I will, literally met Emily Weiss at a glossier pop up at nastygal so long ago, and specifically talked about the shade range
I have a little soft spot for Glossier because it was the first makeup brand that I tired when I was 19. Before that I didn’t really use makeup, I was coming out of my "I'm not like other girls" phase and starting to use makeup. Glossier felt welcoming enough to me to use because of the minimal clean look that wasn't too heavy or overwhelming. I'm 23 now, I love makeup and have a bigger variety in my collection but Boy Brow is my tried and true.
I appreciate this breakdown. While not a diehard fan, I have been a huge one of Glossier for 3 years now yet was never fully informed about Emily or the controversies within the company. I’ll still keep using Glossier as their concealer, skin tint, and toner are all I ever need in life, but at least I have a clearer background of the brand and it’s decline over it’s run.
definitely remember the time of glossier. as a young teen I was really into the aesthetic because they were so different from other brands and I wasn't into the ultra glam makeup. mostly because I had horrible acne and was so envious of people with that perfect skin look and wanted to emulate it so badly but couldn't. I think glossier tapped into that too. it was also expensive in my opinion! for what it was selling at least. I only ever managed to get two cloud paints and I think a serum which I used up so fast. I still have the cloud paints. but I remember watching all of the glossier GRWM where they would be filmed casually in their house and just be effortlessly beautiful and chic, aesthetic, clear skin.
32:14 i love this section! It's giving PhilosophyTube's Kelly Slaughter character. Also, this while video is wild to me, because I entirely missed Glossier, and I'm kinda grateful honestly.
I'm terrible at makeup and always hated the full-coverage trend, so Glossier hit a sweet spot for me. I absolutely bought into the cult in true millennial fashion, but I haven't purchased from them in years as I've found products I enjoy way more. The only one I miss is the Boy Brow because it's one of the few brands that have a true black brow gel, but I refuse to pay more for shipping than for the actual product, so I found an alternative. Excellent video!
I was a early fan of Glossier. This was due to my fixation with Into The Gloss which I routinely read and coveted for beauty advice. More than Glossier's products, the recommendations I got from those Top Shelf interviews gave me lasting favourites I still use today (Cetaphil Tub, Homeoplasmine, Avene products, Bioderma, Charlotte Tilbury Matte Revolution, Clinique mascara, Essie gel topcoat, the list goes on). While I still have my Glossier favourites I routinely replace (Wowder and perfume) I have started to branch out to different brands and outlets for advice. It feels like my interest in Glossier declined alongside the decline of ITG. In my opinion, they need to rebuild their community on ITG if they want to recapture the magic of before.
I watch a nonzero amount of makeup industry drama videos, and almost got whiplash from how insightful and eloquent this was. Great examination of the larger systems and phenomenons around Glossier, thank you for helping me understand the world with a bit more nuance.
Their biggest mistake was not launching stores in Scandinavia. To this day I think it’s impossible to order from glossier to Norway. I was obsessed with the aesthetic and everything the brand offered but was not able to purchase it when it was at its peak. It’s a thing for Norwegians going to the UK and the USA to purchase beauty products or fashion which are unavailable in the country. Granted, Sweden and Denmark could order it from their webpage, but those located in Norway could not.
I never even heard of this brand before, I guess I was never as into the beauty youtube as I felt. Now that I'm older, I find the whole "clean girl" aesthetic uncomfortable I just feel like it's too white, even when presented by other poc. It reminds me of unsavory comments about being dirty because of the colour our skin I'm glad I found this channel I'll be watching your other videos now :)
Biggest issue with contemporary branding in this influencer era is lack of healthy distance from customer. That’s the biggest luxury established brands have and it’s a tricky part of marketing today to balance brand-customer relationship. That lack of distance was actually skyrocketing them into billionaire status, but the inevitable consequence of it is the insane potential to crash with the same velocity as they launched. Which happened. Not only to this shitty brand. So… it’s game over for Glossier. Finito. Sayonara. Auf Wiedersehen.
I remember the first time I’d ever seen glossier it was a TH-cam ad, the one with the still woozy song goodie bag. I think it was the first and only time I’ve sat and watched a whole ad. The song plus the visuals were just…chefs kiss! Made me want to buy from them so bad
I know it's 100% marketing but I still want Glossier. I was too young for it at the time of the boom and back then it wasn't worldwide but now I'm considering buying the Glossier You rollerball along with a lipstick, a cloud paint and the iconic clear lipgloss just because I always wanted those. I remember looking at aesthetic pink pictures with the clear gloss on pinterest and instagram in 2019 and just WANTING that. It's the aesthetic but sue me, I'm just incredibly into that. If they just tapped into Gen Z marketing more they'd be so successful IMO.
'She got an internship at Ralph Lauren by asking her neighbor who worked there' dang if youre rich you're already on your way to being successful. Its so hard to network and grow connections for anyone who isnt already in that social/professional sphere.
Exactly!! That’s why all the elites send their kids to the same schools. Networks matter!
A broke anti-social me could never 😂
I feel like marketing classes should be mandatory for everyone so that maybe brands won’t be able to trick us so easily.
Oh and working in the service industry so we can learn how to treat people too.
If you went to a decent high school you learned about propaganda and general media literacy. 😶
@@Kissmycrownkey word being "decent"
@@Kissmycrownsad part is, most schools don't even teach accurate information, let alone media literacy... As someone who went to good schools, I have to remind myself how privileged I am to have had so much access to knowledge
@@Kissmycrown schools raise children to perfectly fit into their capitalist consumer regimes. i feel like only at Uni did i get actively taught to critically think
I would honestly throw hands if a rich woman asked me IN A JOB INTERVIEW "Why do you work?"
*Ahem*
MONEY.
Honestly, to me it feels very similar to when companies as why you want to work them in the interview.
While you can BS your way into it talking about culture or whatever, the real reason is always money and bills
This has 666 likes i shall not mess it up, so heres a thumbs up👍🏾
“Uhhh…because I get hungry and I like not sleeping on the street?”
“I’ve always been very passionate about being able to afford food”
Okay the whole “persecuting the individual instead of the system” is brilliantly put
Bc that one individual can change the whole system bc they’ll listen to “their own” it’s crazy think that they want us all dead to make “their own world” when they already have the world why can’t wet just work together and make this place better like I don’t understand why they’d rather do all this heinous things
the impact glossier had on the 2010s (and even now) is truly insane. i remember being 15 and religiously watching their youtube channel bc i was convinced if i spent $80 i could look just like emrata or their cool interns
the 2015 glossier era was elite. I remember being a sophomore in college, sending all the girlies my discount code and being gifted the $10 when someone used it. I remember having $100 in glossier credit at one point.
Huh, didn’t expect to see u here!! Luv ur content btw
I had very bad acne and acne scars back when Glossier first started to get big then, and seeing everyone around me who already has perfect skin use their sheer face products just made me feel like it wouldn’t look right on me or wasn’t meant for me in the first place lol.
THIS, i perceived it as makeup for people who didn't need makeup. which is fine, some people only need powder or tinted moisturizer, but i've got secrets to keep ok 😂
@@perryfrost4911 I had someone straight up tell me it wasn’t for me bc of the acne 😂 so since then I haven’t had the urge to buy anything
i literally felt the same way omg
That was exactly my experience! Everyone obsessed with the brand almost gave me a sense of "why even bother with heavy makeup?", and to me, that felt like a privileged question to be asking, just like "why do you want to work?" at an interview lol
this! The exclusivity surrounding glossier and the beauty and aesthetic trends it birthed are kind of upsetting tbh. You shouldn't have to naturally look a certain way just to be able to be a part of the club
the old glossier made me so confident in embracing my skin and not hiding behind makeup so it’s really sad to see what they’ve become… the old glossier girls looked like us with their normality but now they look like chic unattainable models
Thank you so much for talking about the misogyny in the double standards held against women in business. This has irked me so much about the “gaslight gatekeep girlboss” narrative because just like you said, if men exploit people in business they’re seen as geniuses, but if women do it they’re moral failures. The impossible standard of perfection women are held to is unattainable by design.
yes, cause men dnt claim to be the pinnacle of moral superiority, but women do thats y they get scrutinized more. they over promise and under deliver and end up just like their male counter parts or even worse in some case.
you r just a make-up brand- clam down.
The failure of girlboss is in the name… girl not woman. A woman oriented business would be required to be more than an aesthetic and deal with the conundrums of childcare, maternity leave and balancing profits versus employee benefits ethically. Healthy female matriarchal power structures are absent as examples in the modern age.
I‘m pretty sure gaslight gatekeep is a joke
The main problem with the girl boss narrative is that it's rooted in liberal white feminism, the ppl critiquing this are the same ppl also critiquing men being exploitative
@@LotusesGalaxyOcean men called it girl boss so it wasn't as intimidating, as woman boss
Glossier is a PERFECT example of the substitution of consumerism and brands in place of third places and community (one of reasons for phenomenons such as the Stanley Cup craze). I believe Mina Le has an amazing video on this!
I was an ITG reader prior to the launch of Glossier and for me, Emily Weiss lost any semblance of relatability when she published an insane wedding preparation diary that included colonic irrigation. I know that plenty of celebrities (like Gwen Stefani) have praised colonic irrigation for helping them to "de-bloat" and "detox", but I've always felt optional interventions on your waste removal system is a disordered way of treating your body.
I actually do this regularly. I’ve struggled with constipation to the point of needing to go to the hospital. I do colonics every month and I have no problems anymore. The average colon hold 5-15lbs of waste so it’s better to get it out. Especially with colon cancer on the rise!
omg i remember this article!!! i also read it when it came out it was so wild!!
btw colonics are so dangerous yolanda hadid almost died from doing them regularly
Maybe they’re just good bottoms…lol
"optional interventions on your waste removal system is a disordered way of treating your body." This wording is so odd. Also, what do you mean, exactly? Taking laxatives, natural or medical, could fall under that. So many people struggle with gut issues, myself included. I personally wouldn't do a colon cleansing, it does sound very 'rich white almond mom', but sometimes letting nature do its thing isn't possible.
the whole “throwing parties for their most loyal fans” gives me mlm vibes
former nyc store employee here - really appreciated how you focused on the emotional attachment to the brand so many people had, which i have to say extended to our management as well in a really gross way. they would constantly feel personally attacked by any criticism we had with products/customers/on-the-clock experiences to the point where there was a clear disdain for anyone who dared to challenge the almighty pink jumpsuit. also worth noting that (i think) outtathegloss has been dormant because we were all laid off by summer 2020 (after being furloughed from march to june). as far as i'm aware, no offline editors from new york were reached out to about coming back when they opened the new locations here.
to me glossier has always been a representation of an upper class wealthy, white and cool girl that doesn’t try hard that aligned with the early 2010s tumblr times (shoutout to tumblr, I’m going back to you ❤) I never felt that glossier was targeted to me but I always felt interested in its aesthetic and what it stood for, the cool internet girl.
glossier definitely transformed the idea of community within the makeup field, girls who weren’t even makeup artists or influencers would be talking about them and using them. Like you discuss a lot of lifestyle TH-camrs were using them, so to me it felt glossier wasn’t just about makeup but a an aesthetic and way of living.
I have only bought from them recently, their cloud paint which I will probably never repurchase (not pigmented enough for my skin tone I always have to use a good amount for show off, I also prefer cream and powder blushes) and their boy brow which I haven’t used enough to decide on.
Alls said, I do think that glossier still has a dedicated audience especially with gen z from what I can tell on TikTok. I think some of us still hold on to the lifestyle they represent because it was what we looked up to when we were preteens and teens on the internet. I went to the glossier in soho and it was really such a different experience than other beauty stores and it was filled with young girls.
Thanks for such a great and informative video!
To me, glossier always seemed like a western take on an already (at the time) successful model in various parts of Asia. I do think it was great to see a makeup brand that was about enhancement versus concealment/transformation. A lot of Asian beauty products have an even smaller shade range, but as the video included… that doesn’t fair well in America. As we’ve seen with almost every makeup brand- they start minimal and expand. Saying all this to say I don’t think it was intentionally racist or not inclusive. The products are also pretty long lasting which honestly was such a breath of fresh air versus more problematic companies like Tarte.
Also want to point out that with backlash, they responded accordingly which is more than a lot of other companies do. I’m not some current glossier stan. I probably won’t purchase from them again, but I don’t think they’re as horrible as the video is stating. Leaving DTC can be a huge loss of creative control/freedom and a huge percentage goes towards the major conglomerates like Estée Lauder when they shift to retail. Anyways, not sure what my point was. But I value seeing all of these differing perspectives.
This isn’t the most important but I’m shocked you thought the cloud paints weren’t pigmented enough! I have dark skin (as in I am a black person and some brands do not even go dark enough to match my face) and I found the cloud paints to be sooo unwieldy and pigmented. This is coming from someone with a heavy hand who really wants colors to show up haha
'working at girlboss incorporated is so slay hunty' sksksk. who could've predicted a brand that basically incorporated those vibes would've been racist
it was a shock to the system
I love learning about drama I didnt know existed before
Omg same its so refreshing
I'm still pretty into the overall branding and vibe of Glossier but because I can't try it out in person, I'm always skeptical to buy. I'm also not a makeup person so diving right in always feels like a risk to me
@lorenadeleon3891not in every country 🥲 i wish 😔
I can only buy it online and their shade matching system is genuinely spot on for me! I find it really hard to get a match but it’s totally perfect!:)
@@sophiehasachoicenice to know!
Same, back in 2016 when I was trying out makeup for the first time, Glossier did a real good job with sticking out as a beginner friendly makeup brand. and it is! Despite everything wrong with Glossier, there still are a few products that I see myself repurchasing until I find something better. (Milky jelly cleanser, generation G lipstick, future dew, stretch concealer, after baume, and boy brow are some of my holygrails)
i’ve still been buying cloud paint and boybrow since 2017! tati actually put me on to the eyebrow gel :) i would definitely call those two staples
The evolution of this channel has been so fabulous!
A Glossier shill account led to a massive implosion of the biggest makeup group on Reddit and I’ll never be able to remove the association with drama from Glossier in my mind
What happened?
i need context hello
What is a shill account?
@@nony_mation I cant link the articles but if you google “reddit makeupaddiction 2019 drama” Allure and Business Insider both wrote articles on the whole thing. Long story short, an account posted a selfie having used Cloud Paint and was gushing over it. Another user did some digging and saw it was a stolen picture and the account regularly talked about and promoted Glossier. That user was banned by the mods, but not the stolen picture user. It all called into question whether or not the mods were being paid to allow company shills (employees posing as regular users to promote products) to post in the community. All the mods but one stepped down and the community went into full meltdown.
It was glorious to watch
@@nithya1372 a "shill" is someone who was paid to praise a company. they don't actually like the company, they're just doing it for the money. a "shill account" is an account on the internet that was paid to praise a company (which was glossier in question)
I remember being really bitter about Glossier's whole schtick because it felt like it was three years behind the whole KBeauty craze that had been sweeping into my corners of the internet. It was like twice the price of the products I was already using in bubble gum pink packaging for the same kind of philoophy and effects. Blergh
30:43 I think this could be partially because men generally aren’t encouraged to be very touchy-feely or socially involved, whereas women are often expected to participate in a lot of social activities, remember the details of people’s families and lives, know what’s going on in the neighborhood, etc. At least that’s been my experience observing women in the generation or two before me. Expectations have definitely shifted, but I think that could play a part.
I totally agree!! I think that although male ceos have their dedicated fanboys, the ceos don’t become personal or invite community, it cultivates on its own online. I think as women like you said we are more involved with community and more open to it so it’s so profitable for companies targeted to young girls and women to create these communities and use them for gain. I don’t think a male targeted lifestyle brand would be successful as glossier with this system due to men’s lack of involvement in beauty and self care.
Women are def expected to be of service to an impossible degree
Yeah… I wonder why that is?? 🙄
absolutely, I think the general expectation for women is that we learn how to "be women" through word of mouth, community, and sharing information amongst one another, rather than by reading encyclopedias or studying--which is also why I think the point about makeup brands engendering feelings of community in their advertising is a good one.
At least, I THINK that's how women learn to "be" women, because I never talked about makeup or hair routines or diets with my friends or sister or mom, and I feel like a complete luddite/imposter whenever I'm near a makeup brush or when I'm buying hair products, and I have never been able to find a good source for any of those things that wasn't trying to sell me something.
i somehow managed to read this as "girlboss-ler" and imagined an alternate universe where the onceler from the lorax started an mlm
Firstly, LOVE the name change & expanding of content!
I was part of the glossier cult. Got my first products as Christmas presents in 2017 & that continued on for about 3/4 years. I was drawn in by the minimalist aesthetic, the light coverage ethos and the glowy/dewy look, was obsessed with the packaging etc. that bubble wrap pouch like a badge of honour that was only recognisable to fellow glossier girls, and you did feel a bit like you were part of something. It was a refreshing brand, I’d never been so interested in makeup before then, but glossier felt right up my street and the aesthetics I liked - I felt more seen. I’d tried with the heavy 2010’s makeup, and it always looked terrible and clownish on my face. So when glossier came along it was like, oh right, I don’t have to wear heavy coverage/matte makeup, buy loads of expensive morphe brushes - the glossier girls are just applying it with their fingers anyway! It felt more accessible (even though the price point wasn’t always) - more casual, less pressure, it was okay that you weren’t a master at cut crease eyeshadow, having “fleeky” eyebrows (LOL) or baking your face, which is what everyone was doing at the time. It felt more youthful and natural and not too mature, like other brands seemed to be.
Anyway I’ve had quite a lot of the glossier products over the years, and I have to say I stand by haloscope, generation G, and lidstar. The way I wear makeup today probably still stems from my glossier days - very low maintenance, use my fingers to blend, and make the products last a long time. It did revolutionise the way we thought about beauty and makeup. But as you say, minimalist makeup is no longer a novelty, and I agree that glossier has fallen and I personally don’t see it making a comeback in the same way that it was. It defined an era and was the pioneer of a movement but it is failing to move with the times. Some things were not meant to last, and I think glossier is one of those cases.
Glossier was always more of my mom’s thing actually, she’s always been a no-makeup-makeup girl going back to like the 70’s but always with like a little bit of purple eyeshadow or eyeliner to make her eyes really pop
Her favorite thing is probably the Cloud Paint blush, she really likes to make her own custom color by mixing Dawn and Haze
I got so confused scrolling, almost scrolled past but then I was like “is that Ellen??” And then you explained new channel name. I will miss film fatales but I’m excited for any and all content you put out 😊
same i was like oh a random discussion video, clicked and then saw and was like wait a mintune...i know her!
tee hee sorry about the confusion but thank you for sticking around!!
Glossier was the first makeup brand I ever loved. I hated the 2016 full beat makeup. Once I found glossier I finally wanted to do my makeup lol. I reach for different products now but still have my favs from glossier that use daily
This articulates EXACTLY how I fell into Glossier around that time. I was so sick of the full beat look and how youtube was flooded with eye shadow palette collabs lmao. I genuinely felt like every other brand out there at the time was not into minimal makeup looks. It definitely transitioned the way I did my makeup (for the better) as I bandwagoned onto the trend...and made me want to do skincare more lol
The wholeeee reason I never got into makeup back then was because of how heavy it all looked. It was just too much for me, especially as a absolute beginner. The whole thick foundation, eyebrows (took me a while to actually realize how nice my brows already were), contour, highlighter, etc. was tooooo much.
Don’t get me wrong, I don’t care about trends, if people decide full face is back I’m sticking to what I’m doing now but still. The no makeup make up look suits me so well.
I understand when you said the "clean girl" aesthetic has it's roots in golssier but it really started in the south asian comunity. I remember my auntie oiling her hair back into a sleek bun and making her skin have a beautiful glow only to get people to tell her that she looks unclean. But when golssier started doing the same thing but with mainly white models it become natrual and somehow people finally saw the bueaty in it. This is just my thoughts tho.
Thats so true its cuz in the west white women r STILL seen as the "ideal" unfortunately :c
frrr
I still love my cloud paint 🤷♀️ It’s lasted an incredibly long time and the pink color and consistency is really at a level most blushes cannot compare to. The color pops and looks so smooth, even, and pretty on the skin. The boy brow and lip gloss are also staple items I go back to time and time again! And the cleanser is to this day the single most skin-friendly face wash I’ve ever used. It always soothes my irritated, acne-prone skin.
Whatever the work/business culture, it can’t be denied that that they do have, at least from my experience, a handful of very good products.
1000% I’ve used my cloud paint everyday for 6 years (probs very bad but I’m broke) and it’s nowhere near empty!
I remember wanting these products so bad, but till this day Sephora Germany doesn't sell Glossier and I refuse to get it shipped from the US and pay outrageous import taxes haha
glossier actually delivers to germany now! was kinda shocked, I think they deliver pretty much worldwide now
YES! I was buying stuff from ebay a couple month ago because I was tired of waiting soooo many years hoping it would come to germany. But FINALLY they ship here. 🎉
glossier just started showing up in sephora in the states so it might actually be in sephora germany soon 😭
@@mimisdailydose still waiting for them to ship to Australia 😭
@@helena3536literally remember being so jealous as a teenager because they don’t ship to Australia 😅
I checked out of the makeup industry in 2020 and if I ever decided to get back into it I think Glossier would appeal to me. If the brand wanted to revive itself I think it should become a mainstream retail brand. They were so isolated to their own website and social media that they still have a huge market out there that has little to no exposure to their products.
They're in Sephora now!
they’re very popular
Me too. I coveted over the Glossier girl vibe in the mid 2010s despite it not shipping to my country at all, but after covid my interest in makeup/skincare just clocked out. Yet, I ordered from Glossier when they started shipping internationally haha. The products don't seem complicated and I just can't be bothered keeping up with the influx of new brands and trends
I really liked glossier back in the day, and it was b/c I genuinely liked the products I used from them. idk I was never rlly into Instagram so I thankfully missed the whole 'cult' & 'aesthetic' thing, but I found their concealer, milky jelly cleanser, and haloscope products really dependable for that 'fresh, dewy look'.
I actually still use their concealer and haloscope! those products last foreverrrrrrrr & I like the way they look on me.
I first tried Glossier when I was 19 or 20, and it's crazy how much I felt like it completed the personality I was trying to curate for myself at that time. Something about it made me feel like I had achieved the person I had wanted to be for so long -- I remember girls in my dorm bathroom asking about my cloud paints and feeling so ultra cool. I haven't used their stuff in a long time (since the Outta the Gloss letter), but it does still make me feel nostalgic for that time. And I will admit, those blushes could still have me in a chokehold.
I was always thinking glossier looked so boring but I recently got the concealer, skin tint, and blush and they are actually kinda bomb which surprised the hell out of me. I don’t need much coverage so the skin tint is nice and feels so breathable. I do prefer the Danessa Myricks balm over it for oil control. The concealer is my fave. The blush layers beautifully over all products I’ve tried and gives a beautiful warmth to the face. My skin tone: Tan/Medium Deep, Skin type: oily, skin concerns: dullness
I remember seeing closet declutter videos where influencers would clingily hug their Glossier sweatshirts and say how they would never part with them. As someone who didn’t know what Glossier was (some kind of brand?) and couldn’t be bothered to find out, I thought this was very odd. "I love this mass produced hoodie with just this word and typeface on it!"
Looking at it now, it seems like it was an affordable ticket to and signifier of a trendy cool girl community - an online SoHo House, if you will, with the added benefit of mutually reinforced clout. The thing with thirst brands that rise as viral social media phenomena is that what is appealing when it is new and trendy must one day become passé, especially compared to the next fresh thing. A focus on younger shoppers helps guarantee free viral marketing, but younger shoppers will flock to the new in-group in-the-know status-signalling object and signifier, which means they will also drop you for the next new thing of that sort.
an HOUR???? what a fucking treat thank u so much im so ready for this
also "elle literacy"?? genius
I think what you said about the community aspect of female CEOs rings true to me. It’s almost like we know what we’re up against as women in this industry and we want to build a sense of community because it feels like we NEED each other to get ahead in the world. I think that brands capitalize on our need for community.
As a defunct girl boss with an ex popular brand I’m so fearful of starting another business or encouraging women to start one like I used to. You will criticized and torn apart eventually. I have yet to see a female ceo not get deeply cancelled and it’s really hard for women to get ahead for this reason. Not saying people shouldn’t be held accountable for making mistakes but weekly I was under fire for being taken out of context when I didn’t actually do said evil thing. I went into depression and almost killed my self over the isolation and walked away during covid. Still recovering
and excuse my typos, walking in my city teehee
@@aliameagan7240maybe all those women were problematic. Being a woman does not equal being a good person. Smh
@@favouro6344 no. I disagree. You can get canceled even when you aren’t problematic. People often twist your words to mean something you never said or intended. It’s happened to me so many times. Like I said, accountability is important but a large percentage of women are taken down by other women witch-hunt style and men aren’t held to even a fraction of the same criticism or standards.
@@favouro6344 reread my initial comment too. I never said women aren’t capable of making mistakes
I wonder how bad Emily Weiss’ company culture really was in comparison to male owned companies. You raised a really good point. Bc so much racism occurs in big companies on every scale, micro macro, from every direction. It’s so institutional in a lot of companies and you couldn’t even dare to call it out because you know they already have an answer for everything and set it up to make you look like the crazy one
Curious what these so many racist big companies are -links?
@@kham6006you're capable of using your phone and doing your own research
I agree that other companies might be getting away with it because of the magnitude, but I also hink it could be getting called out in "girlboss" companies more because they usually brand themselves as ethical. People love pointing out hypocrisy more than anything and Jeff Bezos never made how nice it is to work at Amazon part of his brand.
Girlboss culture is more toxic than misogyny. They put down women and destroy women more than men ever did
@@kham6006you have a phone to type this so type this in Google.
I have been waiting for many years to get my hands on some glossier products. Now that they finally ship to Germany and I have received my package I feel quit underwhelmed from the products. I don't think I would purchase from them again.
Your video was super interesting to watch ☺️
I still use glossier, their products are actually good. The bow brow, stretch concealer and cloud paints are things I use regularly. And yes they do have a certain image or niche, but I feel like they just ‘get’ the effortless no-makeup, carefree makeup look and branding. I so bought into it because I was tired of having to feel like I needed to hide or change my features, while glossier was about emphasising what you have in a non-overdone way.
2014 was the year I graduated college so I definitely loved blogs and miss them. Glossier was not something I felt was for me (little pricy, not inclusive) at the time. These days they’ve been outpaced by milk makeup, kosas, saie and other like brands.
def remember the days where glossier was neck-to-neck with milk makeup. it still sometimes feels weird to think about milk makeup being considered more relevant than glossier 😩
Milk is more relevant? I feel like they've been fading, they keep shrinking the packaging while increasing the prices.
This is the first video I've ever seen from you and I really enjoyed it, so take this as an indication that your rebrand and branching out is successfully finding new people, I suppose!
ah that’s so good to hear, thank you!
I’ve been buying glossier on and off since 2016, and I agree with everything you’ve said in this video. Being from the NYC/NJ area, I was always going into the flagship store to buy products. I think what made me not like glossier in the early days were the limited products and shade ranges. As a black woman, the concealer and skin tint was just so lackluster. I think things are better now but for me it’s a little too for me to invest in most of their products since other brands like tower28, saie, ami cole and kosas are doing the “glossier” look so much better than glossier. I also think the glossier play was a good idea that came too early. If it came out during the boom of euphoria in 2019, I think it would’ve done great numbers. I also think that glossier play was a direct competition to milk makeup since milk was like the more fun, playful competitor with its’ fun packaging and colors. Plus Glossier’s move to attract gen z through Olivia was poorly executed in my opinion from a marketing perspective.
This was a really well done video! Loved the way it was structured and presented, as someone with ADHD the fact I managed to stay engage for nearly an hour is a testament to this :)
"too little too late" is the way i describe glossier as well! as an aussie girly i was a fan of glossier since like 2016 and desperately wanted their products, but they waited way too long end their exclusivity marketing scheme. becoming available in more countries in 2023 after all these scandals and the downfall of girlbossism reeks of desperation, and the dupes are here baby! i can get cloud paint dupes for a quarter of the price at my local grocery store, the market they created is SATURATED.
i also think in your section about how girlboss SHE-EOs are judged more harshly, i think a lot of it has to do with their consumer base. generally i think women, especially the kinds of women who were glossier devotees who bought into their optics, would very harshly look upon the scandals involved in the brand, unlike the musk-ites and bezos boys. these girlbosses exploited our values while upholding and perpetuating harm!
Ngl, i'll miss the old name but i'm soooo here for this channel's new era! 😊
she was iconic and she will be missed :(
I've replaced almost all of my Glossier products over the years, but their bubblewrap eye and lip cream that they discontinued was the best, and I have never found a suitable replacement 😭my undereyes had never been more smooth. RIP
I loved the bubble eye wrap too! I was sad that it was no longer a product. 😢
I legit thought you had a second channel there for a second and i was ready to subscribe when i realised it was only a name change haha
Anyway great video! I'm not that interested in make up myself so id never heard of this company but its always fascinating to me when companies rise and fall and make their mark online while i remain oblivious haha
I think a lot of millennials like Glossier still. I think it’s kind of a mistake of theirs to shift marketing to a solely younger audience. The youngest millennials are in their late 20s and the oldest are 40, and they were buying Glossier in the first place, so why not market to them even more? Add some anti aging things and you’re good to go.
Yes! So I'm a Gen X- I'm in my early 40s. I LOVE the concealer because it doesn't emphasize my eye wrinkles, like a lot of other concealers, even with the Glossier powder on top (I've used other powders on top which DO settle into my fine lines). I love cloud paint as well. Similarly, it's really nice on aging skin. Their products last forever, so I still use several of their products that I bought a LONG time ago. They should totally market to millennials/ Gen X! **although this video makes me want to find a new brand that works just as well for me. Now researching alternatives!**
I'm still a big fan of Glossier and I agree with you that most of their "original fanbase" is still there. I mean I think the whole of Glossier was built on nostalgia and it hits that nerve for a lot of us. The problem I have now with them is that they built themselves on listening to their customers. Now they're doing the exact opposite. All these reformulations, it's utterly absurd. I am a frequenter on their Reddit group, which is quite massive. There is a lot of outrage from the original fan base about how they are wrecking their brand. They keep sinking deeper and deeper and they are doing it to themselves.
I was fully absorbed in the glossier hype way back in 2015 because of tumblr lol. I remember getting the boy brow, generation g, wowder, and concealer. I’ve considered trying the new lipsticks but the facade that they once had over the public has been tarnished as you’ve pointed out and there’s more equivalent products you can find for cheaper imo. Fully support the pivot to cultural analysis btw! That’s my favourite kind of content 😁
The editing job on this video is absurdly amazing I love it so much!! Also changing outfits and locations for some reason kept me more engaged and I finished the video in one sitting!
omg thank you so much!! i worked so hard on it and i’m so glad it paid off
i remember being a very broke high schooler and wanting to use glossier sooooo much. it felt like all the cool people used it. that being said, as a black girl i always felt that they weren’t making products for *me*
then, during 2020, i remember black/poc employees at the company made an instagram account exposing the poor treatment they faced in the workplace. i’m completely uninterested in buying from them now. so many beauty brands in the west are doing glossier’s whole “thing” inclusively
Such a well done video! I love the deep dive, and how much effort was done shaping the visuals and storytelling with each chapter! Excited to see where the channel goes!
thank you!!! i appreciate it :)
this is my first video of urs but the rebrand to elle literacy is great. def has a ring to it. good choice
As someone who really didn't do the 2016 full beat, Glossier really appealed to me with their minimal makeup approach, and I remember getting products immediately when they went live. I loved their perfume too when it launched. With that being said, I haven't bought anything in years because you can find similar products in other brands.
This is the first video I'm watching from this channel. Not only is your commentary interesting and well researched, but your graphics and editing is FUCKING hilarious in the most cutesy subtle way!! 😂😂😂 #Subscribed!!
thank you so much 🥰🥰🥰
Just finished the video. Definitely interesting to realize how beauty companies try to ‘befriend’ their costumers compared to how the tech companies market themselves. And I love that your best friend made a cameo ☺️ Loved your video on Normal People together!
No because something that fascinated me about glossier was their referral program (i abused the hell out of that $10 referral link) and their pink pouches (i still have them all). i loved that no matter how little i bought I'd always get something cute to reuse as birthday gift card for my friends or as a little school pencil bag 😭
Here to say that I'm no beauty girlie, I don't know much about cosmetics or brands and I don't even know if Glossier is available in my country but you made this piece so interesting! I was captivated the entire time. Great commentary from you on these more cultural elements, as always. Thanks and can't wait for the next one.
I've legit just seen your new channel name. Love it!
thank you!!!
Loving the new channel name and I'm interested to see more of what you do. I would love to see you discuss Tarte since they've had their fair share of controversies. I never really got into glossier and that looks like that might be a good thing.
I’m someone who really tried to like Glossier for a while, and after buying and using a lot of their skincare and makeup, I’ve concluded that the brand really was 90% marketing, %10 noteworthy products. To me, everyone seemed profoundly mid; boy brow kinda held my brows, milky jelly kinda cleansed, the eyeshadows were kinda pigmented, and on and on. I never repurchased anything (except for boy brow before I found another alternative). Combine that with the price, which wasn’t high end but a lot for what you got, and it was pretty clear that the hype was coming from that Glossier cult, especially when you talked to anyone outside of it about the brand. I still remember that when I walked back from my local store with a bagful of Glossier, my mother took one look at the stickers and the pouches and that dang pink bag, and said “You’re paying for the packaging.” While I tried to defend it at first, with hindsight and the help of this amazing video, I have to say she was right. not just about paying for the packaging itself, but paying for the “packaging” of the products themselves, aka the idea of the aesthetic millennial pink effortless girlie life that included the products.
adding this to my “background white noise video essays” playlist 🫡
As a fellow goes by el girl myself, the fact I never thought of the phrase el literacy is soooo annoying because it’s SO PERFECT!! Thank you for giving me another funny name pun to use on my unsuspecting victims
I mean you can always do elle luminate
Loving the rebrand 🖤
i’ve been a makeup girly for a long time but i never bought a single glossier product. idk why exactly but i never really cared for the brand
I absolutely love LOVE these long format videos. A deep dive, something almost like a podcast that you can listen to and take something insightful from once you're done with it. Love the content and super hyped I found this channel
as someone who’s studying creative business this was really interesting and informative to watch you talk about the different marketing strategies and the “downfall” of a brand so i’m definitely excited to see more videos like this!!
Make sure to open a case for the Depop hoodie you never got. You only have 30 days from when you ordered to open a case
oh i did don’t even worry, got a refund after editing the vid :)
The girlboss incorporated interlude took me out. We are yas queen working our way.
love the tiny cultists around the little candle
the editing in this is superb…feels like i’m watching a variety show from the 2000s in the best way
A major factor in the change of the brand was from some of the OG builders of the brand like Annie left. Like most companies, it gets too big and hard to hold onto.
when glossier first skyrocketed into popularity, i saw a lot of girls my age getting so into it-meanwhile i didn’t even know what they were selling. i could tell just by looking at the people posting about it that it wasn’t *for* me. not just as in “oh that’s just not
my thing,” but as a microcosm of how femininity was this unattainable, mystical state for me. no matter how hard i tried, i could never fit into the mold all the pretty cool girls fit into naturally. glossier was pretty, soft, and feminine without being “girly.” and even though i now identify as non-binary, i didn’t have that language when i was a teenager. glossier was just a reminder of how i did not and could not fit the standards set by the “other girls”
I see what you mean but the products should speak for themselves and not the following, feminine or not
@@DreamNationZz sure but the products didn’t speak for themselves. that’s the point of a brand
So now, instead of being okay as a woman, you shoehorn other women into rigid stereotypes yourself. If you can't be feminine, then obviously you're not either. We're truly living in the most misogynistic times huh..
Its not that deep
@droolingpine9658 maybe not for you, but obviously it is this deep for this person, which is why they shared their experience. You could say to this whole video "it's not that deep" and go and watch something else.
that pink bubblewrap ziploc bag was ICONIC. i used to want it more than the products themselves
Glossier JUST became available here in Germany. Live a few weeks ago. It's crazy
I started using Glossier (skin tint, haloscope, boy brow, and stretch concealer) in 2016 as a freshman in college and it probably singlehandedly saved me from making some regrettable decisions with a Kylie lip kit or Tarte shape tape. Not that there was anything wrong with that look, I just definitely didn't have the skill to pull it off. I still use the skin tint exclusively and only wear actual foundation if there's no other option.
as always this is so well researched and nuanced! so excited to see you expand and evolve even more
thanks leah 💖💖💖
i clicked on the video thinking "oh how fun, film fatales created a second channel" lmao so excited for you to expand your content!!!
thank you!!
Glossier is one of those brands that I loved to look at but never bought from. The photos were always aesthetic and the branding was super cute, clearly tailored toward the things I and many others were intrigued by (pink, cute, minimal, no fuss, K-Beauty). However, it always felt weirdly exclusive. Like, my impoverished ass was looking at forbidden fruit and nectar, essentially.
I had just recently gotten into makeup when the beauty community was going crazy over Glossier, and everyone using it was always gushing (which seems to be par for the course when anything gets popular, people just blow it up until the next big thing comes along). I felt like I was constantly being manipulated into thinking I wasn't pretty unless I bought into the "clean girl" scheme. Like, my bare face wasn't good enough for the world, I needed to harness my inner glowing goddess, blah blah. I still lurk in the community, watching declutters, documentaries, and swatch videos when I see something at the store that piques my interest, but I've made myself scarce on that front since I hated feeling unworthy of something I didn't even want in the first place.
The only thing that I was ever genuinely interested in was the clear red gloss, as I'm a huge sucker for lip gloss and always have been, but I wasn't interested enough to drop a chunk of money on it, not when I could find something similar at the drugstore or the supermarket without breaking the bank.
@39:00 so there’s a saying “do you want to dismantle oppression, or do you want to be the one doing the oppressing?” And a lot of women who make it to the top want to enact the same harmful systems within patriarchy and capitalism and white supremacy- but they think if they have money and power they are now protected from those systems. But they’re more likely to be called out and booted due to misogyny because women will always be judged to a different standard. AND female consumers are more likely to hold companies to task. It’s an interesting phenomenon
The format of this video was so enjoyable to watch. So glad I found your channel! 💖
Hi! For the glossier 3 shade issue, I’ve seen other TH-cam journalists use the “way back machine” to find things otherwise scrubbed by companies like this.
You probs already know but they stuff you can find is crazy!
Funny enough, I’m more of a glossier fan now than ever before. Their new foundation launch revived the brand for me, tbh! I love the aesthetic and it comforts me because it brings me back to a fun time getting to know the beauty industry. ❤
Shit if I can find photos of the three shades I will, literally met Emily Weiss at a glossier pop up at nastygal so long ago, and specifically talked about the shade range
I have a little soft spot for Glossier because it was the first makeup brand that I tired when I was 19. Before that I didn’t really use makeup, I was coming out of my "I'm not like other girls" phase and starting to use makeup. Glossier felt welcoming enough to me to use because of the minimal clean look that wasn't too heavy or overwhelming. I'm 23 now, I love makeup and have a bigger variety in my collection but Boy Brow is my tried and true.
I appreciate this breakdown. While not a diehard fan, I have been a huge one of Glossier for 3 years now yet was never fully informed about Emily or the controversies within the company. I’ll still keep using Glossier as their concealer, skin tint, and toner are all I ever need in life, but at least I have a clearer background of the brand and it’s decline over it’s run.
you're the best video essay girly out hereeee
definitely remember the time of glossier. as a young teen I was really into the aesthetic because they were so different from other brands and I wasn't into the ultra glam makeup. mostly because I had horrible acne and was so envious of people with that perfect skin look and wanted to emulate it so badly but couldn't. I think glossier tapped into that too. it was also expensive in my opinion! for what it was selling at least. I only ever managed to get two cloud paints and I think a serum which I used up so fast. I still have the cloud paints. but I remember watching all of the glossier GRWM where they would be filmed casually in their house and just be effortlessly beautiful and chic, aesthetic, clear skin.
Similar to how Avon customers had their own representatives that visit your house and talk . They were your friend but you were their customer.
32:14 i love this section! It's giving PhilosophyTube's Kelly Slaughter character.
Also, this while video is wild to me, because I entirely missed Glossier, and I'm kinda grateful honestly.
love the new name
I'm terrible at makeup and always hated the full-coverage trend, so Glossier hit a sweet spot for me. I absolutely bought into the cult in true millennial fashion, but I haven't purchased from them in years as I've found products I enjoy way more. The only one I miss is the Boy Brow because it's one of the few brands that have a true black brow gel, but I refuse to pay more for shipping than for the actual product, so I found an alternative. Excellent video!
I was a early fan of Glossier. This was due to my fixation with Into The Gloss which I routinely read and coveted for beauty advice. More than Glossier's products, the recommendations I got from those Top Shelf interviews gave me lasting favourites I still use today (Cetaphil Tub, Homeoplasmine, Avene products, Bioderma, Charlotte Tilbury Matte Revolution, Clinique mascara, Essie gel topcoat, the list goes on). While I still have my Glossier favourites I routinely replace (Wowder and perfume) I have started to branch out to different brands and outlets for advice. It feels like my interest in Glossier declined alongside the decline of ITG. In my opinion, they need to rebuild their community on ITG if they want to recapture the magic of before.
I watch a nonzero amount of makeup industry drama videos, and almost got whiplash from how insightful and eloquent this was. Great examination of the larger systems and phenomenons around Glossier, thank you for helping me understand the world with a bit more nuance.
Their biggest mistake was not launching stores in Scandinavia. To this day I think it’s impossible to order from glossier to Norway. I was obsessed with the aesthetic and everything the brand offered but was not able to purchase it when it was at its peak. It’s a thing for Norwegians going to the UK and the USA to purchase beauty products or fashion which are unavailable in the country. Granted, Sweden and Denmark could order it from their webpage, but those located in Norway could not.
I never even heard of this brand before, I guess I was never as into the beauty youtube as I felt. Now that I'm older, I find the whole "clean girl" aesthetic uncomfortable
I just feel like it's too white, even when presented by other poc. It reminds me of unsavory comments about being dirty because of the colour our skin
I'm glad I found this channel I'll be watching your other videos now :)
Biggest issue with contemporary branding in this influencer era is lack of healthy distance from customer. That’s the biggest luxury established brands have and it’s a tricky part of marketing today to balance brand-customer relationship. That lack of distance was actually skyrocketing them into billionaire status, but the inevitable consequence of it is the insane potential to crash with the same velocity as they launched. Which happened. Not only to this shitty brand. So… it’s game over for Glossier. Finito. Sayonara. Auf Wiedersehen.
I remember the first time I’d ever seen glossier it was a TH-cam ad, the one with the still woozy song goodie bag. I think it was the first and only time I’ve sat and watched a whole ad. The song plus the visuals were just…chefs kiss! Made me want to buy from them so bad
I know it's 100% marketing but I still want Glossier. I was too young for it at the time of the boom and back then it wasn't worldwide but now I'm considering buying the Glossier You rollerball along with a lipstick, a cloud paint and the iconic clear lipgloss just because I always wanted those. I remember looking at aesthetic pink pictures with the clear gloss on pinterest and instagram in 2019 and just WANTING that. It's the aesthetic but sue me, I'm just incredibly into that. If they just tapped into Gen Z marketing more they'd be so successful IMO.
Congrats on rebrand! Loved your channel before & loved this video, so go ahead girlboss 😂🎉
This is the first video ive ever watched of yours and i love the breakdown of the marketing. Its so interesting to peak behind the curtain