The beauty industry undoubtedly keeps us clean and fresh, yet they also have their fair share of blemishes. If you’ve ever wondered where to go for dirt on the beauty industry, look no further than Estée Laundry on Instagram. The account promises to give consumers a voice, rather than brands, as well as airing out the industry’s dirty laundry.
The latest industry tea includes a leaked email from staff at beauty brand Sunday Riley, a favorite of Victoria Beckham and Helen Mirren, that encouraged employees to post glowing online reviews of its products. There have also been allegations that the company removes negative reviews from its site. An excerpt from the email, which was posted on Reddit by an ex-Sunday Riley staff member, asks employees to write "at least 3" positive reviews for the Saturn acne mask in the coming week.
The email also includes instructions on downloading a VPN to prevent the feedback from being traced back to the company. The brand, which sells its products on Sephora, eventually admitted that it had asked staff to post positive reviews but claims the assessment should be consistent with the experience of each individual. Believable? No. Shady? We thought so.
Another juicy bit of gossip revealed by Estée Laundry relates to Brandon Truaxe, the founder and CEO of Deciem, a fashionable skincare company that manages several beauty brands. Launched five years ago, Deciem has taken the beauty industry by storm. Truaxe, however, has been a controversial figure at best. The company, whose sales have hit $300 million, has been supported by celebrities like Kim Kardashian, but its success is being overshadowed by its founder, who uses his Instagram to call out fans and companies, post offensive pics and even cancel business agreements.
In a recent video on Deciem’s Instagram, Truaxe wrote, “This is the final post of Deciem. We will shut down all operations until further notice, which will be about two months. Please take me seriously.” The location of the clip was tagged as the White House. “Almost everyone at Deciem has been involved in major criminal activity, which includes financial crimes,” he flippantly added.
Truaxe’s disjointed message left fans and partners baffled. He went on to call out hotels, restaurants, other cosmetic companies, “so many porn studios,” Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Donald Trump, Richard Branson, Tom Ford, Mark Zuckerberg, Tim Cook, and Leonard Lauder, the head of the Estée Lauder company.
Estée Lauder, which had purchased a 28 percent minority share in Deciem, took Truaxe to court in Toronto, hoping to remove him from the company’s board of directors and replace him Nicola Kilner, the current co-CEO. The also requested to limit his ability to fire employees and to keep him from speaking on the company’s behalf. The court agreed and ruled to oust Truaxe as CEO and forbid him from posting on the brand’s social media pages.
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By the way, Truaxe calls Deciem “The Abnormal Beauty Company.” Ya think? For more beauty brand dish, check out Estée Laundry on Instagram, where you are guaranteed a piping hot cup of tea daily.
