
‘Drag Queen’ makeup revolution, Drags, and the ‘new beauty industry’
New research published by the National Institute of Cosmetic Research found that drag queens are becoming the face of makeup revolution.
“The drag queens have the highest demand for cosmetics,” said Dr. David Ebersole, the lead author of the report.
“It’s about time that we were able to have a little bit more diversity in our makeup.”
The study found that the top five brands of makeup—Hair, Makeup Revolution, MAC, Sephora, and Clinique—were all selling more than three times as many products as their competitors.
The most popular brand was MAC, which made a whopping $2.4 billion in sales last year.
This trend was also the top selling brand in 2012.
Ebersoles findings also highlighted a lack of diversity in the makeup industry.
“As the makeup industries become more multicultural, they also become more global,” he said.
“That’s what we found.”
Ebersolas research team analyzed sales data from more than 4,000 cosmetic stores, beauty retailers, and online beauty salons in the United States.
They found that in 2011, the top three brands accounted for 71% of all cosmetic sales.
In 2012, the third-largest makeup brand was Sephor.
Eberstoles team also found that brands like MAC and Clinique were losing market share to more established brands.
“These brands are becoming more popular and they are also becoming more global in their brands,” Ebersolis said.
The researchers also found “an unprecedented degree of intergenerational growth” in cosmetics.
The study is published in the Journal of Cosmetics Research.