zable, indeed, dominant market share.  

For Revlon, some key mistakes in their supply chain have created a domino-effect, costing the company many of its suppliers, customers and creditors. Growing pressure from incumbent brands has heightened competition for materials, as those with healthy liquidity can pre-pay creditors and benefit from large orders and scaled economies. 

For Revlon, cumulative debt has meant some of their raw material suppliers are no longer sending shipments, cutting production and leaving the company only able to fulfil 70 per cent of orders, against an industry standard of around 95 per cent. 

Also, labour shortages due to the Covid-19 pandemic has slowed manufacturing, resulting in late product shipments and fines from retailers, as well as mismanaged inventory and failed forecasting.

What went wrong?

Known as a trailblazer, Revlon was once the most radical company in its space. 

In 1970, it was the first American cosmetics company to feature an African American model, icon Naomi Sims, in their advertising. In the 1980s, its progress campaigns featured diverse, not yet famous, new models like Claudia Schiffer, Cindy Crawford, and Christy Turlington, who would later become synonymous with the highest of high-end fashion. 

In the 1990s, the company’s Colorstay range of makeup gained notoriety for its patented formula which promised to remain fresh all day: a new frontier in cosmetics. 

When business was booming, Revlon’s strategy was to expand sales through mass market department stores, as well as buying expensive advertising. Like other legacy brands, they invested in magazine editorials which drove shoppers into stores, where sales would be converted through personal selling and glossy displays. As a strategy, this worked well into the 2000s, but failed dismally thereafter. 

The democratisation of beauty

In the 2010s, the narrative around beauty shifted dramatically, beauty became celebratory, more diverse and more