Recently, I was flipping through the pages of Shape, a women's fitness magazine, when I discovered that the magazine contained very little fitness/health content. Essentially, I had paid $4.99 for a seemingly endless array of beauty product advertisements, whose bright colors and well crafted copy promised me shinier hair, whiter teeth, and longer lashes. I have always known that the Beauty Product Industry was large, but a quick google search revealed that it's more comparable to a giant, with revenue estimated to be $63 billion in 2016. This fact led me to wonder how many cosmetic products I own and how much money I am contributing to this $63 billion.
Since these eye opening experiences are more fun with friends, I asked three of my roommates (Emily, Erica, & Jenna) to also participate in a little experiment. We began by laying out the beauty products that we use on a daily basis (pictured first). Then we laid out every piece of makeup we had in our possession (pictured second). And finally, for the moment of truth, we counted how many of each beauty product we owned.
It's easy to see from these photos that as females we tend to own much more makeup than we actually consume on a daily basis. And with that said some women (Jenna) consider makeup a hobby and own considerably more makeup than other women. Totaled together, there are 7 face powders, 8 mascaras, 34 blushes, 34 foundations/concealers,47 eyeliners, 74 brushes, 124 lip products, and 495 eye shadows among us 4 girls. All of the make-up pictured above roughly equates to $3,000, with my own products roughly equaling $400. One wouldn't think that products so small could cost so much, but the price of cosmetics greatly depends on the quality of the product and the brand. To prove how expensive even average cosmetics are, take a look at some of Target's prices.
Even though Target provides fairly reasonable prices for its cosmetics, it is easy to see how makeup can quickly add up to hundreds and even thousands of dollars.
My roommates and I have added $3,000 or more to the beauty product industry. That's quite the hefty penny for college students. Cosmetics seem like an odd expense for college students that usually do not have a lot of money, so why are young college females spending so much on makeup? Well, 18 - 22 year old females are the most concerned about image and lifestyle trends and are often influenced by "what's hot and what's not". So it just may all come down to image.
In My Misspent Youth , Meghan Daum writes about her unstoppable spiral into debt during her young adult life in New York. To be an excellent journalist she felt she had to uphold an appearance of a high-end lavish life. This feeling that she had to maintain a certain image led to her often indulging in costly dinners, daily Starbucks, long distance phone calls, expensive schools, and living in New York City. This lifestyle Meghan tried to uphold led to much financial hardship not only in her youth, but later in life as well.
Young college females spend their money on makeup to maintain an image just like Meghan Daum. Whether that image is professionalism, maturity, or stylishness, college females are contributing greatly to the Beauty Product Industry's revenue. Interestingly, this type of spending is considered socially acceptable among women because makeup is no longer viewed as a want, but a need. With 80% of college students working while in school, it may be difficult for college females to responsibly maintain an image and proper finances. If my roommates and I are any indication, females tend to purchase more makeup than they actually need. Meghan's story is a cautionary tale for all college students that pour valuable money into maintaining a certain image without a second thought.
Since these eye opening experiences are more fun with friends, I asked three of my roommates (Emily, Erica, & Jenna) to also participate in a little experiment. We began by laying out the beauty products that we use on a daily basis (pictured first). Then we laid out every piece of makeup we had in our possession (pictured second). And finally, for the moment of truth, we counted how many of each beauty product we owned.
It's easy to see from these photos that as females we tend to own much more makeup than we actually consume on a daily basis. And with that said some women (Jenna) consider makeup a hobby and own considerably more makeup than other women. Totaled together, there are 7 face powders, 8 mascaras, 34 blushes, 34 foundations/concealers,47 eyeliners, 74 brushes, 124 lip products, and 495 eye shadows among us 4 girls. All of the make-up pictured above roughly equates to $3,000, with my own products roughly equaling $400. One wouldn't think that products so small could cost so much, but the price of cosmetics greatly depends on the quality of the product and the brand. To prove how expensive even average cosmetics are, take a look at some of Target's prices.
Even though Target provides fairly reasonable prices for its cosmetics, it is easy to see how makeup can quickly add up to hundreds and even thousands of dollars.
My roommates and I have added $3,000 or more to the beauty product industry. That's quite the hefty penny for college students. Cosmetics seem like an odd expense for college students that usually do not have a lot of money, so why are young college females spending so much on makeup? Well, 18 - 22 year old females are the most concerned about image and lifestyle trends and are often influenced by "what's hot and what's not". So it just may all come down to image.
In My Misspent Youth , Meghan Daum writes about her unstoppable spiral into debt during her young adult life in New York. To be an excellent journalist she felt she had to uphold an appearance of a high-end lavish life. This feeling that she had to maintain a certain image led to her often indulging in costly dinners, daily Starbucks, long distance phone calls, expensive schools, and living in New York City. This lifestyle Meghan tried to uphold led to much financial hardship not only in her youth, but later in life as well.
Young college females spend their money on makeup to maintain an image just like Meghan Daum. Whether that image is professionalism, maturity, or stylishness, college females are contributing greatly to the Beauty Product Industry's revenue. Interestingly, this type of spending is considered socially acceptable among women because makeup is no longer viewed as a want, but a need. With 80% of college students working while in school, it may be difficult for college females to responsibly maintain an image and proper finances. If my roommates and I are any indication, females tend to purchase more makeup than they actually need. Meghan's story is a cautionary tale for all college students that pour valuable money into maintaining a certain image without a second thought.
This is crazy Sonja!! Very cool blog.
ReplyDeleteThat does not surprise me at all that you ladies have so much product. I swear every time my wife and her sister in laws get together, the bathroom looks like the beauty department at Ulta exploded in there. Great blog, I really like the reference to "my mispent youth."
ReplyDelete