Cover Stila Stay All Day Matte Lip Colour. Photo: Rustan's The Beauty Source
Stila Stay All Day Matte Lip Colour. Photo: Rustan's The Beauty Source
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Lipstick sales dipped in the onset of the pandemic. Now it’s back with a vengeance, earning its spot as one of the fastest selling item in the luxury market
In this masked world we’ve been living in, it is almost a no-brainer that whatever we put on our lips will eventually smudge the inside of our mask, or worst, smear on our faces. Add to that, it makes no sense to wear lip colour when our lips are hidden beneath our masks as no one can see them anyway. These issues prompted lip make-up sales to drop significantly (about 15 per cent in the US) in spring 2020, according to a study by McKinsey & Company. In Japan, the home to popular brands like Shiseido and Shu Uemura, lipstick sales dipped 70 per cent in May 2020. The same is the case in other Asian countries like Hong Kong, Singapore, and the Philippines.
Read also: What Lipstick Shade Best Suits Your Skin Tone? We Ask Makeup Experts
Above Chanel Rouge Coco Baume. Photo: Rustan's The Beauty Source
Chanel Rouge Coco Baume. Photo: Rustan's The Beauty Source
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However, as Covid-19 cases start to decrease, social butterflies are starting to go out and almost back to regular programming, and more countries are relaxing face mask mandates. With this, the lipstick market is making a grand comeback. A story published by CNN in 2021 states that according to the latest figures from market research firm IRI, lipstick sales are up more than 80 per cent in April 2021, and growth is more likely to continue in the coming months or even years.
Because of this big potential, luxury fashion houses are joining the lipstick bandwagon on top of the usual suspects like Bobbi Brown, MAC, Estee Lauder, Charlotte Tilbury, Stila, and more. The product releases can go as high as a three-digit price tag per tube, with some even housed in diamond-studded or art-inspired cases. And people still buy them. Why?
Read also: 7 Of Our Favourite Nude Lipsticks For Subtle Glam Makeup
Above Tom Ford Lip Colour Matte. Photo: Estee Lauder Companies
Tom Ford Lip Colour Matte. Photo: Estee Lauder Companies
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Some reports attribute it to, quite literally, the Lipstick Effect or the willingness of consumers who are used to a certain level of luxury to forego big-ticket luxury goods and instead buy affordable luxuries when facing an economic crisis. An example is, instead of purchasing a limited-edition croc handbag, people are more likely to get drawn to buy an expensive lipstick, which they can wear and even showcase as an accessory (such in the case of beautifully packaged lip products from their favourite fashion houses). Using a tube of a flattering shade of lipstick is said to uplift the buyer’s spirits amid the crisis. Remember Audrey Hepburn’s famous quote: “On a bad day, there’s always lipstick”? The same principle applies here.
Read also: How To Pull Off Red Lips? 7 K Stars Show Us How It‘s Done
Above MAC PowderKiss Velvet Blur. Photo: Estee Lauder Companies
MAC PowderKiss Velvet Blur. Photo: Estee Lauder Companies
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In addition, since there is still a lot of hybrid-everything going on (from hybrid work, hybrid events, and so on), purchasing a lipstick makes more sense as you can use (and flaunt) it whether you’re in Zoom meetings or at face-to-face gatherings. And because lipstick is tiny, it can easily fit inside your purse, allowing you to take your little “luxury accessory” with you wherever you go. This is where the stylish packaging plays a big role.
Dubbed as the Birkin of lipsticks, Rouge Hermès comes in the eponymous French fashion house’s signature orange box complete with a dust bag—something that mimics the packaging of the iconic handbag. With its matt and satin formulas, and unique flattering colours from bold pinks to warm mauve, it is no surprise that Rouge Hermès items fly off the shelves fast.
Read also: 7 Light Makeup Looks You Can Easily Recreate on Graduation Day
Above Rouge Hermès
Rouge Hermès
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Early this year, Belgian fashion label Dries Van Noten also debuted its range of beauty products, including a lipstick encased in a vibrant two-toned metal case with bold prints the Belgian designer is known for.
In the case of Dior Addict lipstick, an ultimate couture touch is infused through a case inspired by the House of Dior’s creations: the raw elegance of denim; the topstitched pink case with a vinyl effect; and an ultra-silvery case with a mirror effect. Plus, Dior Addict joins the growing roster of refillable lipsticks alongside brands such as Fenty, La Bouche Rouge (which comes in a nice leather case), Guerlain, Hourglass, YSL and more—a move toward a more sustainable planet.
It turns out, no matter if it’s the iconic MAC Ruby Woo, Chanel No8 or the US$62,000 limited-edition Guerlain KissKiss Gold and Diamond, lipsticks are more powerful than we thought.
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Whether on assignment or not, Maritess is always on the lookout for off-the-beaten-path destinations as well as the yummiest finds in the Philippines and abroad. In 2020, she plunged into the black hole of Korean la la land. Follow her escapades at @matetreyes.
