RED lipstick dates back thousands of years, interwoven through history from Egypt to the Elizabethan era and beyond; deeply connected to status and the women’s movement. But post-pandemic, sales have plunged.
When you think of red lipstick…
…you may well think of movie icons Marilyn Monroe or Elizabeth Taylor, whose scarlet pouts became trademarks, instantly associated with Hollywood and glamour.
Lipstick was already linked to status?
Thousands of years ago, ancient Egyptians like Cleopatra, are said to have crushed carmine beetles to use their bright red pigments as lip colouring, which in itself was one way of appearing more striking and superior in society.
And on through history…?
Elizabeth I adored a bold red, coating her lips in a reputed half an inch of lip paint, with a belief during the era that lipstick contained magical or healing powers. Elizabeth is said to have made her own, using cochineal, egg whites, gum Arabic and fig milk and is further said to have invented lipliner - mixing ground alabaster with colour and rolled into a pencil shape that dried in the sun.
And it’s connected to the women’s movement?
The first commercial lipstick was invented in the late 19th century in Paris and in the early days of the suffragette movement in the United States, women began wearing red lipstick to public events and marches, as an act of defiance against those who regarded it as a symbol of scandal or a lack of morals. 1920s flappers wore it too to symbolise their independence.
Now?
The sale of red lipstick products has fallen by 40 per cent according to the BBC, with a survey of by market research firm Kantar further documenting a global decline in make-up sales around the world. Kantar state in their report that "the pandemic certainly exacerbated the global decline, with cosmetics most impacted by less triggers for usage” - the mix of having nothing to dress up for and having to wear face masks meant lipstick wasn’t required. Eye-make up has weathered the storm - partly because eyes can be seen in face masks - but occasions requiring lipstick plunged. Weekly usage of cosmetics is down 46% in the UK compared to 2017 and 15% on 2020.
However?
Kantar point out that a fall in make-up usage was noted pre-pandemic, amid the global rise of the "pursuit of the natural look", with more than two thirds of women preferring to wear less make-up to obtain a more natural appearance. In the UK, 71% of women say they want a more natural look, with 72% of American woman agreeing and 90% of Chinese women.
Colour is on the way out?
The data points to changing trends. Sebastian James, boss of Boots in the UK, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme the High Street retailer has noted the trend, saying: “Over the pandemic we saw a lot less colour cosmetics in our trade, lipsticks and so on, and a lot more spend on self care.”
What now for the red lip?
With the world still opening up and face masks no longer legally required everywhere, perhaps it is time for a red revival. After all, Audrey Hepburn memorably said, “There is a shade of red for every woman”.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel