So, I saw the headlines pop up the other day, you know, the ones saying Estee Lauder got a new CEO. It wasn’t like earth-shattering news for my daily life, but it definitely caught my eye.
My first thought was just, “Huh, okay then.” Big companies swap leaders all the time, right? But then I got a bit curious. Didn’t go full detective mode or anything, just did some casual searching online while having my morning coffee. Clicked a few news bits, tried to get a feel for who this new person is, what their background looked like. Pretty standard stuff when you hear about a big change like that.
Doing that little bit of digging actually sent me down a memory lane. It got me thinking about Estee Lauder itself. I mean, I’ve used some of their products over the years. Not religiously, but bits and pieces. My mom used to have that classic Advanced Night Repair serum in the little brown bottle on her dresser. Seeing it all the time kinda made me try it when I got older.
Thinking Back…
This whole CEO change thing reminded me of something else, completely unrelated, but my brain works weirdly sometimes. Years ago, probably like a decade back, I was trying super hard to get a job in the beauty industry. Not specifically at Estee Lauder, but just in that whole world. It seemed glamorous back then, I guess.
- I remember spending hours polishing my resume.
- Sent out applications like crazy.
- Actually landed one interview for a junior marketing role at some company.
Man, that interview was tough. They grilled me about brand strategy, asking how I’d revive an old, classic product line without alienating the loyal customers but still making it cool for younger people. Sounds exactly like the challenge facing these big heritage brands, right? I totally fumbled it. Couldn’t string together a coherent thought, felt like an idiot afterward.
I didn’t get the job, obviously. Was pretty down about it for a while. Ended up taking a completely different path, worked in a field I never expected for several years. Learned a lot, paid the bills, but it wasn’t the ‘dream’ I thought I wanted back then. Funny how life works out.
So, seeing the news about the new Estee Lauder CEO just brought all that back. It made me think about the immense pressure these leaders must be under. You’ve got these iconic products, like that brown bottle serum, that people have loved for generations. You can’t mess with that too much. But you also gotta innovate, stay relevant, compete with all the new trendy brands popping up constantly.
It’s a massive balancing act. This new CEO, whoever they are, they’ve definitely got their work cut out for them. It’ll be interesting to watch from the sidelines, see what direction they take the company. Will they focus on the classics? Push for brand new things? We’ll see, I guess. I’ll probably keep half an eye on it, just out of old habit and curiosity sparked by that failed interview memory. Maybe they’ll change the packaging again, who knows.
