Jan. 24, 2025: Beauty News to Know
It might be a new year but the beauty industry's up to its same old shit. Let's dive in.
Welcome to the first-ever Glossed Over, the most important inaugural event to occur thus far in 2025. Yes, I’ve made the foolish decision to start a bi-weekly Substack a mere five months before my wedding.
My goal is to bring you beauty’s biggest news in an easily digestible, raw, and hopefully thoughtful manner. Each post will follow the same general format: a quick check-in, the biggest headlines in beauty right now, new launches, my product du jour, and some closing notes.
I’ll be sharing my unfiltered and unbiased thoughts on it all—the good, the bad, the over-filled, and the uninspired. As a self-proclaimed Zillennial, I like to think I approach beauty with a unique lens: with one eye focused on bettering an industry that thrives on misinformation and (largely female) insecurities, and the other set squarely on the latest trending lip tint. It’s serious stuff, but it’s also not that deep.
Every so often, I plan to take a deep dive into a particular topic, news item, or trend that catches my eye. Perhaps I’ll share all the beauty prep I’m doing for my wedding or a post dedicated to answering any and all of your burning questions. I want to grow this with you, dear unnamed reader.
Right now, this newsletter is free. Eventually, I plan to limit full access to paid subscribers—because we should all get in the habit of paying for good journalism, and I have very expensive taste.
Please share this with your friends, family, and lovers, and comment below or message me with any thoughts or suggestions.
Oh and for those of you who don’t know me, hi! I’m Dani, a freelance beauty journalist with a lot of opinions.
Thank you for virtually being here!
Beauty’s Biggest Headlines
Sephora’s betting big on K-beauty 2.0 (Glossy)
TLDR: After hitting peak popularity around 2015—the days of Glow Recipe’s Watermelon Glow Moisturizer and the Peach & Lily Glass Skin Refining Serum—K-beauty is in the midst of a U.S. renaissance. Its resurgence began around the beginning of the pandemic, coinciding with a spike in barrier-function concern as well as a growing interest in K-pop and Korean culture. Now, Sephora has effectively cemented this second wave as a bonafide movement with reports that the retailer plans to double its K-beauty portfolio in the coming year. Aestura, which seems to be best described as the Korean equivalent to CeraVe, will be hitting Sephora shelves February 14, while Biodance, the brand behind the TikTok viral overnight sheet mask, will launch in stores on February 28. Beauty of Joseon, best known for its sunscreen, will arrive later in August.
The Glossed Over Take: Korean beauty is notoriously around five to ten years ahead of U.S. innovation, so this news definitely excites me. I wrote this story for Cosmo last year about my favorite K-beauty moisturizers, and I still regularly use the Etude Soonjung 2x Barrier Intensive Cream (though I’ve heard some online rumblings that it may be reformulated?), the Illiyoon Ceramide Ato Concentrate Cream, and the Aestura ATOBARRIER365 Cream. My one concern is that a major appeal of K-beauty right now is its stellar sunscreen formulas, most of which can’t legally be sold in America due to FDA restrictions (long story, but I explained it all here for Elle), so those coveted SPFs will still be hard to come by (any Korean sunscreens you see in Sephora have been reformulated to meet our standards). I’d also love to see more K-beauty makeup brands stateside.
Major beauty retailers are switching up their C-suites (Glossy, WWD)
TLDR: On the heels of several high-profile executive changes (including a new CEO and CFO), Estée Lauder has announced that Peter Jueptner, Estée Lauder international group president, will be leaving his position in April. His successor has not been announced. Meanwhile, Ulta’s CEO of just three years, Dave Kimbell, announced his retirement in early January and was immediately replaced by Kecia Steelman, who’s previously held roles at Target and Family Dollar.
The GO Take: For the majority of beauty consumers, none of this really matters. Sure, the Succession-like saga at Estée was good gossip but now that the board is Lauder-less, it seems like that chapter’s closed for now. I’m curious to see what Steelman will do to address the perennial battle against Sephora.
Target gives beauty dupes its stamp of approval (Beauty Independent)
TLDR: MCoBeauty, a mass-market Australian makeup brand known for its blatant copy-and-paste approach (see below for some its best sellers), launched in Target in early January. In many ways, this seems to be a tacit endorsement of the brand’s tactics—not just from Target but from America at large. It’s not the only mass-market makeup brand duping prestige products (hi, E.l.f., Makeup Revolution, NYX, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera), but it certainly seems to be the most open—and flagrant—about what it’s doing.
The GO Take: I’m actually working on a story about beauty dupe culture at large right now, so I’ll save most of my brilliant ideas for that. Here’s what I will say: There’s no shame in taking inspiration from others, but a good product should be able to stand on its own—in other words, a brand shouldn’t need to all but spell out what it’s duping in order to make it appealing. It feels like the laziest form of marketing to me.
Violet Grey is apparently opening up an NYC storefront (WWD)
TLDR: After a major sale to Farfetch, which then nearly tanked the brand, Cassandra Grey re-acquired Violet Grey with the help of private equity investors back in September. The beauty retailer is known for its elite beauty curation, tested and approved by a panel of industry experts (approved products receive the prestigious VIOLET CODE stamp of approval). The NYC store, expected to open on Madison Avenue sometime in the spring of 2025, joins the brand’s Los Angeles boutique and suggests the new owners will likely continue to invest in brick-and-mortar shopping experiences.
The GO Take: If nothing else, I’m very excited to see (and experience) Violet Grey’s allure IRL. I’ve always loved the idea behind Violet Grey and its illustrious stamp of approval. The retailer has previously helped popularize high-end brands like Augustinus Bader and Dr. Barbara Sturm, and was more recently an early supporter of Fara Mohidi’s chic Essential Lip Compact. I generally trust the brand’s eye for the best in beauty (or at least take it into consideration) and am interested to see what else Grey does now that she’s back in control.
Fresh on the Shelves
Release Date: Launching January 30 on Rhode’s e-commerce site.
What It Is: A soft-focus, next-generation lip liner of sorts (the brand says it’s creamier and “more seamless” than a lip liner but let’s not split hairs) in 11 shades. Per the brand, the Lip Shape “delivers efficacious ingredients that visibly enhance lip volume.”
The GO Take: Right off the bat, I’m not that intrigued by this, but I know the hype will eventually get to me (I’m merely mortal, after all). I like that Tate McRae was used in the ad campaign—a move that feels very Skims-adjacent. The colors all look nice and I’m sure the formula is a creamy delight, but I’m skeptical of its skincare claims.
Release Date: Available now on online at Crown Affair’s e-commerce site and Sephora; available in Sephora stores February 7.
What It Is: Crown Affair is phasing out its original Wash Day Duo for two new formulas: one meant to hydrate hair and the other to add volume. Most of the chatter has been about the texture of each product. The hydrating formulas are rich and creamy (fairly standard as far as hydrating haircare goes), while the volumizing ones feature a lightweight gel texture to help lift hair and add fullness. The brand is encouraging users to mix and match products to achieve their desired results.
The GO Take: Fair warning, I’m absolutely Crown Affair-pilled, so I simply cannot be biased here. I haven’t gotten my hands on the new formulas yet, but I’ll be testing them out (and taking them home) at an event next week, so I’ll definitely keep you all in the loop. I’m most intrigued by the gel conditioner, which feels like it might be a godsend for my endlessly oily hair.
Rare Beauty Soft Pinch Liquid Contour ($28)
Release Date: Available now at Sephora and Rare Beauty’s e-commerce site.
What It Is: Rare Beauty is finally building out its Soft Pinch family with the Liquid Contour. Available in seven shades, the brand says the liquid contour is weightless and easy-to-blend, enhancing features for a naturally lifted look that lasts. It’s the third product under the Soft Pinch category, joining the wildly viral Soft Pinch Liquid Blush ($25), famed for its color payoff and lasting power, and the less-successful Soft Pinch Tinted Lip Oil ($22).
The GO Take: I go back and forth on Rare Beauty. I like the blushes, brow gel, and the lip oils (and I’m sure a few other products that don’t immediately come to mind), but I don’t necessarily find myself reaching for them often. I’m curious why the brand put this product under the Soft Pinch family in particular. If anything, I think the liquid highlighter, liquid blush, and liquid contour should all be under the same category—the lip oil feels a bit like the odd man out, no? I’m keeping my eyes peeled for feedback on the shade range, though from a quick glance the darkest offering does look, well, dark. I received the collection earlier this week and will share my thoughts soon.
Most Valuable Product
Makeup by Mario Softsculpt Transforming Skin Enhancer ($32)
Why It Stood Out: I talk about this product a lot and for good reason; it really is great. It’s billed as a three-in-one cream bronzer to warm, shape, and even skin tone, but I think its name is all you need to know: It enhances the skin. I apply this pretty much every day, even if I’m not wearing makeup. It gives me the hint of color and shape I need to not look like a thumb. I’d say the cream formula is especially great for the winter, but I remember thinking the same thing this past summer.
Final Thoughts
Well, that’s all I have for you folks. I’m nervous and excited and cautiously optimistic about the future of Glossed Over. Make sure you’re subscribed so you don’t miss a thing.
Until next time! Xx
This is so comprehensive and brilliant in a number of ways 👏🏽
So excited for this!!!!!!!