, Columnist
Don't Count on the Lipstick Index for the Next Recession
Although women usually reach for cosmetics in tough times, beauty sales are slowing.
Have we reached peak beauty?
Source: Bloomberg
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When the economy takes a turn for the worse, consumers choose affordable treats such as cosmetics. That’s been the wisdom since the 2001 recession, when Leonard Lauder, then chairman of Estee Lauder Cos, coined the “Lipstick Index.”
The theory would suggest an uptick in women reaching for beauty products once more, as China’s recovery stutters and fears of a US recession resurface. But the phenomenon may not be so pronounced this time round.