Kylie Jenner Proves that the Makeup Industry is a Scam

[libertynap]

First off, I’m not talking crap about how anyone chooses to wear makeup or how much they should use on a day-to-day basis.

Whenever I go on social media, I always come across something that has to do with makeup. It seems like in any picture of someone wearing visible amounts of it will receive a crap-ton of comments regarding it. Whether the attention is positive or negative, it’s still shining a ton of light on the makeup industry. I remember way back when, the only makeup companies I knew were Maybelline and Estee Lauder. Now, all these so-called brands are popping up everywhere! The makeup craze has everyone thinking that they can package craft store glitter in pretty jars and sell it through their Instagram account. As they say, strike while the iron is hot.

Even though some brands have an empire built on “individuality,” who’s to say it isn’t the same crap that can be bought at a way lower price? For example, Kylie Jenner (those people always seem to find a way in everyone’s lives, don’t they?). She made her own makeup line. First it was lip products and now her brand new eye-shadow palette that was released a week ago sold out in, like, ten seconds. There’s been some controversy around it because it’s all apparently repackaged.

It all basically is! The makeup industry is scamming everyone. All the products are pretty much the same but with a different label. People are tempted to buy an overpriced lipstick or eye-shadow just because of the name slapped on it. Even though they already have the exact same shade in their collection they still want it because it’s somehow “different.” I will never understand that. Young girls will practically beg their boyfriend to buy them the new “Glow Kit” with their minimum wage Taco Bell salary.

I don’t get why people would want to own the same shade of lipstick or eye-shadow from different brands. Sure, the formulation is “different,” but if you already have one exactly like it that works just fine, why would you get another one if you don't need it? That leads to people complaining that they’re broke! Especially women on Instagram who wear a $35 lipstick and post stupid memes about having only $3.89 in their bank account. It makes me laugh. Ridiculous!

I’m not one to judge how people choose to spend their money. But I am one to judge when people complain about how they wasted their money on an overpriced, repackaged lipstick just because they want a piece of the brand.

Who agrees?

[redeyemindtricks]

I don't know ANY women or girls who have EVER asked their boyfriend/husband/other male person to buy makeup for them. Like, literally, not *ever*. That's even including boyfriends/husbands who've bought all the tampons and pads in that relationship for the last 10 years.
Lmao

Also -- Even if something is the same shade, it can still look different, or have a different finish, or just combine differently with different things in different ways.
You have a point **IF** the girl is someone who's not very knowledgeable about the products, and is just buying stuff because the new packaging is cool-looking or whatever. But, if the girl knows what she's doing, then there can absolutely be TONS of different products with the same or same-ish shade that do totally different things.

I mean...
I have totally different makeup stations for humid and dry weather.
If I know I'm going to have lots of pictures taken, I have different stuff with different levels of dewy finish.
I generally use at least 2 different black eyeliners together, and sometimes 3, because there's no one single black eyeliner that has the finish I want but that doesn't smear and adheres for a long enough time.
Etc.

Long story short... if you're talking about a woman who actually knows what she's doing with this stuff, then, nah, it's perfectly possible that she could have a whole shitload of products that are the same *shade*, but that do entirely different things at different times with other different products.

[Tarvold]

Just curious whether you have so many different sets of makeup because of your former profession, just as I have my own mini cloud computer set up in my garage because of mine.

[redeyemindtricks]

@Tarvold The photo-ready stuff yeah lol. Not so much the humid vs. dry climate stuff though, that's more just from moving around a lot

[BeautifulMind59]

I'm not into using 2 eyeliners because of time issues. But I was wondering if you could introduce a good black eyeliner that doesn't smear and adheres for a long enough time.
I've tried L'oreal, Revlon, Maybeline, and Cover Girl. I'm not happy with either of them. They either dry out after a while, don't adhere, or smear.

[redeyemindtricks]

@BeautifulMind59 You should get good results from MAC Technakohl. (That brand tends not to cause very many allergic reactions, too -- even in my girlfriends who have *super* sensitive skin.)

MAC is a higher price point than the ones you named, though (the technakohls are about $17 each, I think). Is price point an issue?

[BeautifulMind59]

Thanks for your answer. Price isn't that much of an issue. I like to own at least one of each makeup item in the high end, and the rest in the mid range. But sometimes some makeup in the low range seems to work better than the high end, it just doesn't have all the bells and whistles, so I would like know about those too.

[redeyemindtricks]

@BeautifulMind59 hmm... the Eyeko "Fat" liquid liner is also one of my go-to's. I *thought* that was a lower price point (I haven't had to pay for it yet -- I got it as a birchbox sample a year or two ago, and then influenster sent me a full-size one), but it seems that one's around $18 or so too.

That one takes a bit of a slow hand -- you can't press it too hard or it'll start to run down yr face, but, if you apply it with the *right* pressure then it's pretty good on the no-smear front.

Apropos of nothing, I *wouldn't* recommend the Urban Decay glide-on liner. I tried it in the Perversion color (blackest black), and it actually made my eyes go all red when I put it on my lower waterline. I don't normally have such sensitive eyes, so... yeahhh I dunno (that doesn't usually happen even with cheap drugstore brands from South American countries)

[BeautifulMind59]

Thanks, I appreciate your help! :-)

[posted]

"It all basically is! The makeup industry is scamming everyone. All the products are pretty much the same but with a different label. "
Nigga are you serious? Some bitch who is famous for literally no good reason has a lipstick brand, thats a good clue it's bullshit. It's just another 'brand' meant to entice people to buy the same old shit. Like those commercials where some 90 year old man went hiking up a fucking mountain to pick a rare plant for makeup? LOLOK

[LittleSally]

I wanted to write the exact same thing as @Supersonic_Sex_Ninja did...

[Supersonic_Sex_Ninja]

There's more Jenners/Kardashians to choose from lol

[LittleSally]

@Supersonic_Sex_Ninja Haha So true...

[Darkfairie17]

HAHAHA I love this! Especially this line here "I will never understand that. Young girls will practically beg their boyfriend to buy them the new “Glow Kit” with their minimum wage Taco Bell salary." Because I honestly don't know how people afford to buy these expensive makeup products!

I guess everyone has things they spend their money on. But I've never really been a huge make up addict. I love make up, and I have a few palettes. But I typically just use drugstore make up.

Now I do get that some make up is definitely superior. I buy $20 foundation, but I also have acne! I need the coverage. But I do not wear it all the time.

I agree with you, there are a lot of products which you can easily buy the cheaper version and get a very similar result. I think make-up has definitely become too brand-oriented. We all have to have something because someone's name is on it. I respect people who genuinely want to bring different products into the market, especially for areas where there is a lack of products (ie. Cruelty free, organic, or even make up for people of different skin colours (as most makeup is geared towards white women)).

I think Kylie has merely figured out that she can make money by simply lending her name to a product. Good for her! But I think people should be more conscious as to what they are buying and why.

Everyone finds different products work differently for them. For instance, I can really only use Olay moisturizer on my face. But I have friends who find it to be too greasy. I have acne, and greasy skin and have no problems. But all other moisturizers are greasy for me. But that is just how the world works. Not one product works for everyone.

[AriadneSky]

Why would women have their boyfriend to buy them make up.. Thgey can buy it themselves with their own shitty paycheck. thats ridiculous. who does that. did you just make that up or do you know women who do that?

some lipstick stains and some eyeshade clumps so there's a difference between like department store and dollar store make up and some make up is cruelty free. so i see paying a few extra bucks for non staining non clapping non animal cruelty stuff.. but otherwise yeah i dont see paying tons for the same stuff.

of course better if make up was just tossed out. such a waste of money. jut use some kool aid to color the lips and leave the face alone in my opinion.

kylie jenner looks nothing like se actually looks. she's got a pound of make up on her face all the time. i guess see prob jelly bc kinda;l got to be a model and she's stuck puffing up her lips with glass jars. though kendall wouldn't have made it without the money & connections ion sure kylie knows that. anyhow did you actually p rove how anything was a scam or just say you think its dumb? i dpont think any of them are attractive. too over done too panted too full of themselves i can't imagine trying to talk to any of them.

[vishna]

I agree that her make up brand is a joke regarding quality control (applicators, half empty bottle, etc) But sometimes more expensive products do work better. A cheap eye shadow is more likely harder to blend, patchy, with bad color payoff. On the other hand a quality product may be more expensive because there is more pigment, it's easier to blend, and it applies evenly. Same thing goes for blush, lipstick (esp dark colors), and foundation. I don't agree with pricey products where I'm just paying for the name or packaging-but sometimes it is better to invest in a better quality product. Just like sometimes it's good to know when a cheaper product is worth it too :)
When it comes to owning 20 shades of pink, 10 shades of red, and allll the new eye shadow palettes, yea, I agree-it's a little wasteful and very much over the top. My Lorac pro has lasted over a year with almost daily use (of the same 4 eye shadows) how many of the same shades does a girl reallly need. :)

[Clarisa_]

That's your opinion, and my opinion is that I love Kylie Cosmetics! Well, I love makeup in general, yes, I'm a makeup junkie. No, I don't need a boyfriend to buy me makeup or I'm broke ( a second job will be nice so I could buy more makeup though).

This is just a part of my makeup station, and I just ordered more from UD, and to be honest I can't wait to buy Kylie's new birthday collection. I didn't get to buy it today because everything sold out :/
s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/.../...0fd4189641.jpg

[Clarisa_]

and no I don't care about the price, I buy both cheap and expensive makeup.

[CorrectGirl]

Damn that's some fucking eye candy right there!

[performerwannabe]

If you have Dolce and True Brown, you're winning at life.😉

[Clarisa_]

@CorrectGirl I know 😍😍

[Clarisa_]

@performerwannabe I just ordered them!!! XD

[rgb008]

omg…. jealous :O

[Clarisa_]

@rgb008 thank you! :)

[Rainie_]

Um I don't know what kind of "young girls" you know that makes their boyfriend buy their makeup...

And the reason some people spend more is because sometimes the quality is actually better, or the formula feels better. YOU maybe can't tell much of a difference but I certainly can. Some make up that are a bit more expensive last a lot longer than cheap ones. And so what if it's repackaged? People are allowed to have their own brands if they want to, and if they want to collaborate with a company or factory then good for them. I don't see it as a scam, this is how business work.

[redeyemindtricks]

Hahah I wrote the same thing about boyfriends.

Yeah, makeup is definitely a "you get what you pay for" thing -- at least up through the upper-middle price tiers. (Once you start getting into "designer" stuff like YSL and Tom Ford makeup, it's not really any better than what you get at the Urban Decay/MUFE/Too Faced price point... if anything, a little worse actually. But it certainly comes in attractive packaging!)

[mikemx55]

@redeyemindtricks I read it as using boyfriend money to buy it and not having the actual boyfriend buying it.

If you send the boyfriend, he'll probably come back with a 20 liter can of house paint and say: "There you go: lifetime supply of paint, just for you my baby doll"

[redeyemindtricks]

@mikemx55 wait, who takes random money from their boyfriend to go buy random shit without the boyfriend? •___•

[mikemx55]

@redeyemindtricks
-"I'll be pretty just for you, but I need money"
-"ok, there you go"
-"byyeee"

It's probably a thing, cause guys hate going shopping.. EsPeCially with women :boooorrring!!

[redeyemindtricks]

@mikemx55 Guys hate shopping with women? Srs?
uhh... my husband, and every boyfriend I've ever had, has always *loved* watching me come in and out of the dressing room in new outfits. ::shrug:: mb I just pick 'em well.

I mean, ok, a guy would be bored going into Sephora with me, but, I don't have to try stuff on there. I'm in, I'm out.

[mikemx55]

@redeyemindtricks Hahahah "I'm in, I'm out", in your mind, it takes 2 minutes, in his mind it takes 5 years and a half, in reality it takes about 30 mins.

Are you sure they really like shopping, or do they just like being around you?
I would tolerate those things, just to be around someone I'd like, and look as a couple, etc. (oR, sneakingly manipulating her into buying presents for me, like lingerie muhahahah *evil laugh* )

[redeyemindtricks]

@mikemx55 Nah dude I'm INCREDIBLY efficient -- to the point of treating shopping like an optimization problem. #nurdgurl #itshopeless
I pretty much only go into Sephora stores to get all the free stuff, anyway, and for a couple other things that are in-store only. Everything else I buy online and use ebates to get 4% cash back, plus my online account is linked to a few other review sites that give me even more free stuff.

Nah, my husband loves it. Even at home, we've had occasional nights without the kids where I've spent the first hour just putting on dresses for him, like his own personal wifey fashion show. <3

[mikemx55]

@redeyemindtricks Cool, private strip... multiple times xD 😉😂

[BlueEyedHipsta]

What you're talking about is Kylie Jenner copying NZ youtuber Shaaanxo's eye shadow pallet. The shades are almost identical but so are every nude eye shadow pallets, obviously there are differences in the quality and price! I ordered shaaanxo's pallet (which is an eye shadow pallet and a lipstick pallet) for $11usd on sale, it's full price is still half kylies one pallet.

Some people like makeup, they collect it, no judgement but I do agree the Kylie Jenner fad is insane. I can get awesome matte liquid lipsticks online for $1- $2.

[performerwannabe]

I've seen Shaaanxo's pallette and the colors are not even similar. 😂

[BlueEyedHipsta]

@performerwannabe encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images they are definitely similar

[performerwannabe]

Nope, I don't see it.

[nalaa]

I mean it's not as much a scam as good marketing. I'm sure it worked and I'm sure most people were aware that they can get the same lipstick elsewhere and kylie jenner isn't a chemist she didn't actually design the lipstick.

Stephen Colbert did a good part on that when a make up brand rebranded their products for star wars. I mean endorsments like that are really quite common. Nothing new.
I do agree the make up industry is a scam but because t heir products are actually shit and terrible for you and the environment. Not because they do celebrity endorsments

https://youtu.be/_X9ISiLhtHY

[KenM9215]

... that was great!

[YourFutureEx]

Personally, I've found expensive products to be of inferior quality as well. People think if they spend more, they will get more valuable objects but if we remove the name and the price tag and ask people to check the products, I doubt they'll choose those expensive ones. Scam!

[redeyemindtricks]

What types of products?

Generally, there's not too much of a difference between super-high-end and high-end products. But -- in the case of almost every consumer product in the whole world -- from the middle price points on down, you get exactly what you pay for.

Bargain-bin merchandise is always... bargain-bin merchandise.

[YourFutureEx]

@redeyemindtricks I have had luxury items like some T-shirts and shirts. Their stuff was inferior to the brands what regular people buy. I use Nike shoes and they still look like new after years. But I bought a designer pair from Puma, It barely made its seventh month even if it was twice as expensive.

My mom also told me about eyeliners she uses. She said they (expensive ones) suck. She showed me the difference between a mid priced and expensive one too. Mid priced was working flawlessly.

From my experience, you get what you pay for from low end to high end, but when you go for super high end, the quality deteriorates and price skyrockets.

[redeyemindtricks]

Puma? "Designer"? Loooooool

Puma is a lower price point than Nike -- and that's here in the US, where Puma products (from Germany) have tariffs added into their price and Nike products don't.

So... uhhh... unless India just taxes German goods into oblivion, that's weird (and both brands are manufactured in China/southeast Asia anyway, so, the tariffs may not even be based on Germany/USA).

Also, if you're talking about ACTUAL designer shoes (which Puma aren't), then, durability isn't the right metric anyway. Designer shoes aren't made to be durable, just like a Ferrari isn't made to be driven hundreds of thousands of miles.

[YourFutureEx]

@redeyemindtricks those aren't regular Puma. I know about brands. It was a designer line created by a specific designer and having his name on it which is two-three times as expensive than regular ones. I have had other "actually luxury branded" shoes too and they were just okay. But as you say, they're not made to be durable, it should make sense then.

But at least, an eyeliner is made to be applied on eye and it didn't even work lol. Shame, girls buy such things.

[YourFutureEx]

But hey, at least Ferrari delivers performance. What does these luxury clothing and make up give?

[redeyemindtricks]

As I mentioned, both here and in Rainie's comment... makeup is absolutely worth the extra money, until you get to the upper-middle price range. The only time that STOPS being true is once you get into the ultra-high-end designer stuff, when you're really just paying for the pretty packaging that the product comes in (same thing as with expensive perfumes).

There's a LOTTTTT of fake makeup out there dude. Lots and lots and lots of it -- even more in countries like India and China, where intellectual-property crimes aren't really prosecuted. If yr mother had that experience, then, I hate to say this, but she probably bought fake stuff.

Honestly, I'd be wary of buying makeup anywhere other than at flagship stores. I've seen fake makeup at super-expensive malls and department stores in places like Dubai and Shanghai.

[redeyemindtricks]

@Rainie_ Is there as much fake shit in the UK as there is everywhere else?

[YourFutureEx]

@redeyemindtricks what? Even in malls? That's strange.

[Rainie_]

@redeyemindtricks not really no, never come across fake makeup products in the UK. I have in China though when I lived there even at some expensive malls.

[redeyemindtricks]

@Rainie_ Yeah, China is the worst for fake stuff. But YEAH IKR? Right in the middle of the malls! No shame!

There's a bunch of fake stuff here in Los Angeles, too, but it's in places where you should expect fake stuff if you're not an idiot (like the downtown garment/bazaar district areas... selling items for $1-2 that would be $10-15 if they were authentic, HMMMM.)

Same thing with Canal Street in NYC.

Haven't been to England in a long long time, but, I remember seeing more fake stuff in Manchester than anywhere else (not necessarily makeup, but bags and the like).

[zombiebabe]

that chick is fake and I don't know why people are obsessed in looking like her... and i saw a bunch of negative reviews on youtube about stuffs she sells.. they're expensive af too

[Anonymous]

This is done with A LOT of things. I was at Old Navy the other day and I saw a t shirt on the rack that was literally the shirt I was wearing. Only my shirt had the Arizona brand on it. I went in the changing room took my shirt off and put them next to each other to see if there was a difference. If the other shirt didn't have the store tags and Old Navy brand on the inside collar I wouldn't be able to tell them apart. They were the same fabric same length same design. Same everything besides what brand was written on the inside collar. Only the Old Navy one was about $8 more expensive than what I paid.

[Anonymous]

I can't remember which is which, but there are some makeup items where there's a genuine difference in higher vs lower quality, and others where there are literally only like three factories in the world making them for everyone.

As for the branding, it's how fashion works.

If you're not aware the entire runway fashion haute couture industry is a money losing loss leader to sell perfume accessories and cosmetics. The runway stuff creates an image for the brand, and then women buy their makeup/perfume because it's the image they want to buy into.

[BuchitaBuchys]

I agree, it's pointless and wasteful. If women want to be stupid and waste their money on a lipstick with some boring celebrity's name on it, when they have the exact same or identical quality from a cheaper brand, so be it. People are fucking stupid.

Just like the Beats by Dre headphones. They are expensive AF and you can find wayyyyyy better quality big goofy headphones like that literally anywhere else.

You're paying for the label, not the quality whenever it's celebrity endorsed.

[beautifulangel76]

I don't think it's the make up industry that's a scam but I think it's just people being stupid. There are many cheaper make up brands that work just as good or even better than the expensive make up brands. Why pay almost $100 for an eye shadow palette when you buy one that has a whole lot more in it for $10 to $20.

[HauteBrilliance]

I agree with you so much. My mother when she buys me makeup she usually goes to the drugstore and they can easily be better than those expensive branded makeup that everyone seems to be sporting on Instagram. Expensive isn't always better. Some drugstore makeup can even have much better quality than the high end ones.

[beautifulangel76]

@HauteBrilliance Yeah like nyx is really good and isn't expensive at all

[dipta]

Wow, do girls beg guys to buy them make-up?
I've never thought of that.

Anyway, some more expensive brands are really not the same as the cheaper ones and many actually have to deliver what they promise.
Like if you buy a very cheap made in china crayon, maybe it won't hold the same effect as the regular ones and is not even oil based...

[NatashaJ]

But also not everyone skin will react the same way. If you brought maybeline I might break out from a rash or something from that brand. Also sometimes some brands stuff sucks like I brought a foundation brush from elf and it broke in a month. So I think its good to have different brands because not everything works for everyone, or not every product will like the same products.

[NatashaJ]

not everyone will like the same products*

[somebodysaycheese]

i just can't get over how surgery and makeup made Kylie look 15 years older and a completely different ethnicity. I dont spend a shit ton of money on makeup that is basically killing my skin and body. Why not spend that on something more useful like natural skin products or a charity.

[melaniemel]

It's consumerism, and it may all look alike but there's subtle differences, things about it that if you're really into it you'll notice. Or maybe just think you notice! I wouldn't buy from these new people though at all. they're re-inventing the wheel. I don't even wear any makeup other than cover girl mascara and Chanel foundation powder, but this is how I see it with all this makeup craze.

[performerwannabe]

Partly agreed but mainly not. I would only consider buying something expensive if I made my very own money, begging someone to buy you something shows how much of a brat a person can be.
Personally, I understand why someone would want to buy a product that is similar to something they own. It's to find which one is the best. Quality differs from product to product. Just because you think they all are the same, doesn't mean it actually is.

[Checkers82]

Um just saying, with a lot of different brands there's difference in quality. I would never spend a lot on a product that didn't work really well. Yeah sure, some of the cheaper brands might work okay but others are just so terrible they aren't even worth it. Vise versa with the expensive ones. You just need to find what works with your skin and how you apply stuff.