The Business of Beauty Haul of Fame: Revenge of the Cheap Shampoo

Welcome back to Haul of Fame, your must-read beauty roundup for new products, new ideas, and a renewed rush for sparkly lip gloss. (Exciting times.)

Included in today’s issue: Amika, Ceremonia, Clinique, Covergirl, E.l.f., Fenty, Fine’ry, Glossier, Haus Labs, Huda Beauty, The Inkey List, Laura Mercier, Lip Smackers, MAC, Makeup By Mario, Park Ha Biological Technology, Polite Society, Range Beauty, Révive, Snif, Stila, Supergoop, Tarte, Too Faced, Topicals, Ulta Beauty, Urban Decay, and Polly Pocket.

But first…

Alix Earle’s hair is at it again.

Two years after the Long Island influencer helped nudge Mielle Organics toward its Procter & Gamble acquisition with her TikTok post extolling the joys of rosemary hair oil, the blonde has incited a fresh add-to-cart cycle with a new 6-second video about… leftover Pantene shampoo.

Really. On Dec. 22, the 24-year-old posted a video from the bathroom in her family’s home where she admitted that her “expired Pantene shampoo and conditioner” makes her hair feel “softer than it’s ever felt.”

The video has over 6 million views, half a million comments, and a breakout term on TikTok Search called “Which Pantene Did Alix Earle Use.” US Weekly and Yahoo News covered the story; “shampoo” entered TikTok’s most-tagged terms, according to their internal analytics. Pantene’s team at Marina Maher Communications told me that in the last 10 days, the brand recorded “over 28 million views and 18 million total engagements” on TikTok alone, adding that Earle’s post is not #sponcon. I believe them. P&G couldn’t pay someone to crow about expired product, lest the next tag is #liability.

So why is this random cheap shampoo video going nuts? Two reasons:

1. We’re entering an age of beauty cynicism where “brand science” is (rightly) seen as a marketing ploy. Unfortunately, often, so is real science. For decades, Pantene’s standard silicone-rich formulas have been dismissed by salon professionals with threats of waxy buildup and wilting volume. (Faith Xue at Byrdie has a sensible breakdown of the facts here.) Now, Earle — who is not a scientist or a hair expert, but is rewarded, in part, for her super-perfect hair — says at least for those with straight or wavy tresses, that’s just not true. In the words of Gen Z analyst Casey Lewis, it is a “Pantene conspiracy.” We love feeling like we’ve outsmarted Big Beauty. Even though, in this case, Pantene is owned by one of the biggest corporate machines in the category.
2. Someone like Alix Earle, who is wearing Miu Miu and Bottega Veneta, and working with top stylist Cassie Anderson, has given us permission to swap pricey shampoo for something that costs $5.94 at Target. Through beauty marketing, we are constantly told, “Make room in your budget for this product. It’s necessary for being pretty and therefore being valued.” But Earle has the dazzling smile and magnetic gaze of an all-grown-up high school crush. Her value is tied to her aesthetic. She’s hot and rich and she still says, “Use the stuff that costs less than a Starbucks latte.” That feels validating, even liberating, for the millions of shoppers on very real budgets. It’s an “I told you so” for every working woman who can’t purchase a $40 bottle of Living Proof on her Target run.

In short, shoppers are sick of opaque marketing claims and elevated costs without visible results. We will happily buy the $6 synthetic formula because at least it’s being real with us.

Meanwhile, Earle is two for two with converting TikTok viewers into P&G shoppers. A Hollywood friend who deals in VIP brand placement tells me she is currently “the only influencer who commands an online promo salary on par with the Kardashians.” So why is Earle lacking an official hair care campaign? Well, TikTok is supposed to go poof in two weeks. Unless the Supreme Court grants it a stay of execution, or millions of Americans figure out how to install VPNs on their phones, Earle’s core audience of 7+ million TikTok followers (and over a billion total eyeballs and counting) may be locked out overnight. She can absolutely overcome this through Instagram (4 million followers) and YouTube (about 250k subscribers), but still. This is a tricky time to make any major investments.

Hence, I guess, spending $12 total on your hair care routine in 2025.

Skincare

The Chinese skincare manufacturer Park Ha Biological Technology hit the NASDAQ stock exchange on Dec. 26. Its initial share price was $4; as of this writing, it’s up to $4.45. (Just in case you needed another reminder that beauty is an investment.)

MAC would like to remind you that they make skincare stuff, too. The brand you wore to the Brat tour now sells a Hyper Real “Serumizer,” which targets dark circles and costs $60. It hit stores on Dec. 26.

On Dec. 27, Supergoop bumped up its UV protection on its best-selling Unseen Sunscreen. It now has SPF 50, and costs $48. Rather pay $14? E.l.f. released its own Invisi-Stick SPF 50 on Dec. 24.

The Inkey List launched its Ectoin Hydro-Barrier Serum on Jan. 2. It claims to rehydrate the complexion in 15 minutes, which would make it the Apple Lightning cable of serums.

Clinique introduced an Even Better Clinical Dark Spot Clearing Serum on Jan. 2. It’s meant for hyperpigmentation, and comes with a fairly high price point of $63 for 30 ml. Is the brand beloved by Gen X hoping to trade its youth-based roots for a cool-but-luxe overhaul? Let’s keep watching, especially as its parent company, Estée Lauder, begins its next chapter.

Fenty Skin’s new gel cleanser, Cherry Dub Pore Purify’r, hit the Sephora app on Jan. 2. Rihanna announced the launch with an InStyle exclusive. The site’s e-comm numbers must be big enough for parent company LVMH to be paying attention, at least in the beauty space.

Révive’s overnight mask, called Rescue Balm, hits shelves this week. It’s a $215 formula with poppy flower extract. That ingredient is noted for its rich antioxidant load, and turns up in “clean” beauty brands like Vintner’s Daughter. But also, shouldn’t it have been used in more “Wicked” beauty tie-ins?

On Jan. 2, Topicals debuted a slickly hysterical new campaign by Gen-Z director Aicha Cherif, an emerging documentary filmmaker who’s also worked with Nike. Emily Sundberg, who writes the business newsletter Feed Me, says “I think more brand creative teams should be scouting Tribeca film fellows.” She’s right, and also? More Tribeca directing development grants could go to makeup artists.

Makeup

On Christmas Eve, Makeup by Mario debuted Hydrating SuperShine, a $26 gloss that comes in 11 shades. It features sodium hyaluronate, a saltier form of hyaluronic acid which is also injected into knees to help with arthritic pain.

The comeback kids at Haus Labs rolled out their Structural Volumizing + Lengthening mascara on Dec. 26. It’s $29 and the brush has spindly, fanned-out bristles to supersize lashes.

Laura Mercier introduced a new version of her tinted moisturiser on Dec. 26. It has SPF 30 and comes in 20 shades. I’ve been testing it, and the medium-coverage formula spreads easily across the face. Laura Mercier had another win on Dec. 23, when Billie Eilish used the brand’s pressed powder in a TikTok video about her concert makeup.

On Dec. 26, Stila unveiled eight “gel-based” lip oils that promise maximum shine along with hydration. That includes a pale blue shade called “Ice Queen” that seems like a callback to the brand’s ’90s glam years. (Will Gen-Z ever know the thrill of clicking the wheel on a new Stila Lip Glaze?)

Stila also dropped a newly formulated Stay All Day Liquid Lipstick on Dec. 26. It comes in 12 shades and has a velvety finish. Covergirl did the same thing with their Outlast Forever Velvet Pigment lipstick, which hit Ulta Beauty on Dec. 26. Stila’s is $24; Covergirl’s is $12.

Tarte says one of their $26 Maracuja lip products is sold every six seconds. That means by the time you read about their Dec. 26 shade extensions — four new lip balm glosses, six juicy lip plump sticks, four lip plumping oils, and 12 lip liners — the company will already be $52 richer.

And one more for the lip launches: Too Faced introduced three glimmering shades of Kissing Jelly on Dec. 27, including Cherry Cheesecake, Birthday Kiss, and Strawberry Frosting. They’re $22 each and Instagram is very excited.

Urban Decay’s Face Bond highlighter drops dropped Dec. 27. They come in eight shades and cost $34. Wisely, the packaging is the exact same as the brand’s Face Bond foundation, but with some sparkles on the cap.

Dec. 29 saw the official debut of Huda Beauty’s Electric Lilac face powder, but influencers (including Huda herself!) leaked the $38 limited-edition shade on social media before it hit shelves.

Welcome to Sephora, Range Beauty! The indie label hit shelves on Dec. 30 with four products—foundation, powder, primer, and face and body oil—designed for reactive skin, or, in the words of founder Alicia Scott, “skin that acts up.” They’re $22 to $33.

Polite Society, the brand by Too Faced Beauty founders Jerrod Blandino and Jeremy Johnson, launched a powder blush stick at Ulta on Dec. 31. It comes in eight shades named after cities like London, Miami, and Malibu. (But not New York, because we are not polite…)

We may not be getting the “Polly Pocket” movie anytime soon, but on Jan. 1, we got the toy’s makeup collaboration with Beauty Creations. It’s $44 and includes lip oil, setting spray, powder, and a shadow palette. The collab fits nicely into #dollcore, one of Pinterest’s main trends for 2025.

Speaking of Pinterest trends, Glossier debuted its Black Cherry collection on Jan. 3, just in time for the moodboard site’s “Cherry Coded” bucket. Glossier’s hitting the trend with a plummy red version of its Cloud Paint cheek tint and lip balm, plus a red metallic eye pencil and lip pencil. The colour payoff is sheer and buildable. Reddit’s Glossier channel seems a little sore that the cherry Balm Dotcom skews pinker than Clinique’s Black Honey, but the differentiation seems smart. Makeup-obsessed shoppers can, after all, simply buy the Black Honey. (They can also buy Glossier’s Ultralip in Ember, which is also… sorry, but really… just Black Honey.)

Haircare

Amika’s $32 Superfruit Star oil hit shelves on Dec. 26. It has sea buckthorn berry extract, and claims it’s clinically proven to mitigate 86 percent of breakage while styling.

Ceremonia released its Dry Shampoo Powder Pouf on Dec. 27. It has two kinds of powdered clay, arrowroot and kaolin, plus rice, tapioca, and corn starches and celery extract to “support scalp health.” The product costs $28 and is a Sephora exclusive for now.

Fragrance

Fine’ry debuted three women’s scents and nine men’s scents on Dec. 30 at Target. They’re $38 each and smell like your mom wouldn’t buy you Parfums de Marly for Christmas.

Glossier You, meet Snif Me. The “shape-shifting skin scent” hit Ulta on Dec. 30 with notes of plum and sandalwood, and has a sharp tagline: “With Me, you’re the best version of you.” It retails for $65.

And finally…

Good to know that no matter how famous your mom is, you still want a Hello Kitty tube of Lip Smackers for kindergarten!

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