Leonard Lauder, billionaire heir to cosmetics empire, dies at 92
Leonard Lauder, the eldest son of cosmetics pioneers Estée and Joseph H. Lauder and the former head of cosmetics giant Estée Lauder Companies, died on Saturday, according to an announcement by the company. He was 92.
'Throughout his life, my father worked tirelessly to build and transform the beauty industry, pioneering many of the innovations, trends, and best practices that are foundational to the industry today,' Leonard's son William P. Lauder, who serves as chairman of the company's board of directors, said in the statement.
Born to a Jewish family in New York City, Leonard Lauder as a boy would join his mother on sales calls in salons and helped her pack boxes of powder and cleansing oils. He would later attend and graduate from Columbia University's School of Business after serving as a lieutenant in the US Navy for three years.
He formally joined Estée Lauder at age 25 in 1958, when the company had just a handful of employees and under $1 million in sales.
Estée Lauder Companies would grow into a global empire with a portfolio that includes Clinique, La Mer, The Ordinary, MAC Cosmetics and Bobbi Brown Cosmetics.
Among his many roles included serving as president for 23 years, beginning in 1972, and chief executive from 1982 to 1999. He was named chairman in 1995 and held the role until 2009, according to the company.
In 1995, Lauder took the company public on the New York Stock Exchange at $26 a share. The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (EL) now has a market capitalization of about $24.3 billion. According to Bloomberg's Billionaire Index, Lauder had a personal net worth of $15.6 billion.
When asked what he would want to be remembered for during a 2020 interview with CBS News, Lauder replied: 'He listened … and he was kind.'
Within 24 hours of meeting Lauder, one could expect intimate, often handwritten, notes from the beauty pioneer. It was a sales technique that resembled the professional style of his mother, who was also known for believing business was about developing and maintaining relationships and making people feel important.
'At the beginning, we never advertised … we gave out samples,' he told David Rubenstein, the co-founder of the Carlyle Group, in 2021. 'We gave out samples that were large enough. If you give a customer a sample of a product and they like it, they come back and buy it again and again and again— that's what builds the business.'
Lauder has been credited with creating 'the lipstick index' during the economic downturn following the attacks on September 11, 2001. He noticed that the purchase of cosmetics, especially lipsticks, tended to be inversely related to the economy because women replaced more expensive purchases with small pick-me-ups. In the fall of 2001, US lipstick sales increased by 11%. And back during the Great Depression, cosmetics sales overall increased by 25%.
Lauder was also a devoted philanthropist and art collector. In 2013, he pledged a 78-piece collection of cubist art to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City — the largest single philanthropic gift in the Met's history, according to Estée Lauder. He also established a research center for modern art at the Met, which supported fellowships, exhibitions and public lectures.
He was also an advocate of cancer research and served as an honorary chairman on the Breast Cancer Research Foundation's board of directors. In 1998, Lauder and his brother, Ronald S. Lauder, founded the Alzheimer's Drug Discovery Foundation, which supports drug research to prevent, treat and cure Alzheimer's.
'His impact will be felt for generations to come thanks to his tireless philanthropy, advocacy, and creativity in tackling some of the world's greatest challenges. The number of lives he touched and positively impacted across all his endeavors is immeasurable,' said Ronald Lauder, 81, who serves as chairman of Clinique Laboratories.
The company's founding family remains the biggest shareholder in the firm, and three members serve on the board of directors.
He is survived by his wife, Judy Glickman Lauder, and his sons William and Gary.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Globe and Mail
8 minutes ago
- Globe and Mail
Advanced Energy Declares Quarterly Cash Dividend
Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ: AEIS), a global leader in highly engineered, precision power conversion, measurement, and control solutions, today announced that its board of directors has authorized a quarterly cash dividend of $0.10 per share, payable on September 5, 2025 to shareholders of record as of August 25, 2025. Future dividend declarations, as well as the record and payment dates for such dividends, are subject to review and approval by the board of directors. About Advanced Energy Advanced Energy Industries, Inc. (Nasdaq: AEIS) is a global leader in the design and manufacture of highly engineered, precision power conversion, measurement and control solutions for mission-critical applications and processes. Advanced Energy's power solutions enable customer innovation in complex applications for a wide range of industries including semiconductor equipment, industrial production, medical and life sciences, data center computing, networking and telecommunications. With engineering know-how and responsive service and support for customers around the globe, the company builds collaborative partnerships to meet technology advances, propels growth of its customers and innovates the future of power. Advanced Energy has devoted four decades to perfecting power. It is headquartered in Denver, Colorado, USA.
Globe and Mail
8 minutes ago
- Globe and Mail
Is Lucid Stock a Buy Now?
Key Points Lucid Group has built a sizable business making electric vehicles. The company's production is starting to ramp up. Although earnings are negative right now, Lucid is moving in the right direction. 10 stocks we like better than Lucid Group › Lucid Group (NASDAQ: LCID) makes all-electric vehicles, including both a sedan and an SUV. That said, it is really just a start-up in what is a highly competitive and capital-intensive industry. It is hitting important milestones and increasingly looks like it may be an industry survivor. But is it worth buying? What does Lucid do? In some ways there's nothing particularly differentiating about Lucid. When Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) started making electric vehicles (EVs) it was really the only player in the space. Tesla effectively proved that EVs were a viable consumer product. Now every major automaker is making EVs and so are a large number of upstarts, like Lucid, that are trying to follow in Tesla's footsteps. So, Lucid is really just one of many companies trying to catch a little bit of Tesla's lightning. That said, there have been many upstarts in the space that have flamed out. Lucid has managed to keep moving forward. Today it has a lineup of sedans and SUVs. It has super-high-end EVs and vehicles that are relatively more affordable. Technology is one of the key focus points for Lucid. It has industry-leading batteries, which are basically the gas tank for an EV. So it isn't just a me-too company; it is adding materially to the industry's technology. There's a good reason to believe it can keep doing that and use that as a lever to build a sustainably profitable business. Where is Lucid today? The end goal is to become a sustainably profitable EV maker, but that's not where Lucid is right now. It is losing money on every single car it sells. That's not shocking, however, since Tesla had to go through this early stage of development, as well. But now that Wall Street isn't quite as excited about EVs as it once was, Lucid's stock price has been under material pressure. Notably, the shares have fallen over 90% from the all-time highs reached just after it became public. Essentially, investors are saying this is a high-risk investment. And it is a high-risk investment that most investors should probably watch from the sidelines. But for more aggressive investors, the low price could also be an opportunity to get in on the ground floor of a company that is steadily hitting important goals. The big goal right now is production. In the first quarter of 2025, Lucid made around 2,200 vehicles and sold roughly 3,100. Those are tiny figures in the auto sector but represent big year-over-year improvements. What's important here is that the more cars the company makes and sells, the wider its cost gets spread. And that, in turn, gets the business closer to turning a profit. To put a number on that, the company's gross profit margin in the first quarter was negative 97%. That's terrible, but it is also a huge improvement over the gross profit margin of negative 134% in the same quarter of 2024. The more cars it makes and sells, the closer it gets to a gross profit. The next step after that is attempting to achieve positive earnings. And if it does that, Lucid will have successfully followed Tesla's lead. Execution will be the key to Lucid's success As noted, this is not a great investment option for most investors. Only aggressive types should be looking at Lucid. It is nowhere near being a sustainably profitable business at this point, and it could be years before it gets there. Moreover, success here depends heavily on management's ability to continue executing well on its goals. And yet, given the fairly steady progress so far, it looks increasingly like Lucid could reach the key milestone that most investors want, a sustainably profitable business. If you believe the company can eventually get to that destination, it could be worth buying now, while the stock remains deeply unloved. Should you invest $1,000 in Lucid Group right now? Before you buy stock in Lucid Group, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Lucid Group wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $636,628!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $1,063,471!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 1,041% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 183% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of July 21, 2025
CTV News
38 minutes ago
- CTV News
Can his golf course ‘further' U.S.-U.K. relations? Trump will use meeting with prime minister to try
U.S. President Donald Trump gestures as he meets European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at the Trump Turnberry golf course in Turnberry, Scotland Sunday, July 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin) EDINBURGH, Scotland — U.S. President Donald Trump once suggested his golf course in Scotland 'furthers' the U.S.-U.K. relationship. Now he's getting the chance to prove it. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is meeting Monday with Trump at a golf property owned by the president's family near Turnberry in southwestern Scotland — then later traveling to Abderdeen, on the country's northeast coast, where there's another Trump golf course and a third is opening soon. During his first term in 2019, Trump posted of his Turnberry property, 'Very proud of perhaps the greatest golf course anywhere in the world. Also, furthers U.K. relationship!' Starmer is not a golfer, but toggling between Trump's Scottish courses shows the outsized influence the president puts on properties bearing his name — and on golf's ability to shape geopolitics. While China initially responded to Trump's tariff threats by retaliating with high import taxes of its own on U.S. goods but has since begun negotiating easing trade tensions, Starmer and his country have taken a far softer approach. He's gone out of his way to work with Trump, flattering the president repeatedly during a February visit to the White House, and teaming up to announce a joint trade framework on tariffs for some key products in May. Starmer and Trump then signed a trade agreement during the G7 summit in Canada that freed the U.K.'s aerospace sector from U.S. tariffs and used quotas to reduce them on auto-related industries from 25% to 10% while increasing the amount of U.S. beef it pledged to import. The prime minister's office says Monday's meeting will also touch on Israel's war with Hamas in Gaza, and that it hopes to welcome the Trump administration working with officials in Qatar and Egypt to bring about a ceasefire. Starmer plans to stress the urgent need to cease the fighting and work to end starvation and other suffering occurring amid increasingly desperate circumstances in Gaza. Also on the agenda, according to Starmer's office, are efforts to promote a possible peace deal to end fighting in Russia's war with Ukraine — particularly efforts at forcing Russian President Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table in the next 50 days. Protesters, meanwhile, have planned a demonstration in Balmedie, near Trump's existing course, after demonstrators took to the streets on Saturday to decry the president's visit. Discussions with Starmer follow Trump meeting Sunday with European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen at his Turnberry course. They announced a trade framework that will put 15% tariffs on most goods from both countries — though many major details remain pending. The president has for months railed against yawning U.S. trade deficits around the globe and sees tariffs as a way to try and close them in hurry. On Tuesday, Trump will be at the site of his new course near Aberdeen for an official ribbon cutting. It opens to the public on Aug. 13 and tee times are already for sale — with the course betting that a presidential visit can help boost sales. There are still lingering U.S.-Britain trade issues that need fine-tuning. The deal framework from May said British steel would enter the U.S. duty-free, but it continues to face a 25% levy. U.K. Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said Monday that 'negotiations have been going on on a daily basis' and 'there's a few issues to push a little bit further today,' though he downplayed expectations of a resolution. The leader of Scotland, meanwhile, said he will urge Trump to lift the current 10% tariff on Scotch whisky. First Minister John Swinney said the spirit's 'uniqueness' justified an exemption. Even as some trade details linger and both leaders grapple with increasingly difficult choices in Gaza and Ukraine, however, Starmer's attempts to stay on Trump's good side appears to be working. 'The U.K. is very well-protected. You know why? Because I like them — that's their ultimate protection,' Trump said during the G7. Also likely to improve Trump's mood is the fact that the U.S. ran an $11.4 billion trade surplus with Britain last year, meaning it exported more to the U.K. than it imported. Census Bureau figures this year indicate that the surplus could grow. Trump is set to return to Britain in September for an unprecedented second state visit. Trump will be hosted then by King Charles III and Queen Camilla at Windsor Castle. ___ Jill Lawless in London contributed to this report. Will Weissert, The Associated Press
