THE RISE AND FALL OF TARTE COSMETICS

Let’s discuss the rise & fall of Tarte cosmetics

~ S U B S C R I B E ~

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WHAT I’M WEARING:

Eyes: Urban Decay Wild Greens
Lips: Essence Clear Lip Gloss
Earrings: Ana Luisa

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FAQ:

What is your skin type? Normal to dry
What editing software do you use? Wondershare Filmora
How old are you? 27

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[mistichristensen]

Love, love, love this series. I’d be very interested in hearing more about KVD.

[LucisZ]

Tarte in my mind occupies the same space as like say bare minerals where it’s got a dedicated loyal base of people who use makeup as a tool not a hobby. I don’t have the numbers but I’m sure they’re doing fine. Especially now that they’ve kicked all the gimmicky childish stuff over to the Sugar Rush brand. Which is smarter than I realized at first! It took a minute to connect the dots but Tarte still gets to release their unicorn and mermaid products geared towards that younger or niche audience they cultivated while keeping the main brand more adult.

[jupiterliam]

I think the big difference between Becca and Tarte, and why Tarte may have more staying power than Becca, is that Becca's star product was really their highlighters, and people aren't really buying highlighters on a regular basis anymore. I think most people will buy a highlighter or two, take a few years to use them up, and then buy another. With Tarte, a lot of their big sellers are staple complexion products, like the shape tape concealer, the lights camera lashes, or the maracuja oil. People go through things like concealer, mascara, or face oil more quickly than they would a powder highlighter, so they're buying those products more often. Becca was never really able to get a foothold in the "staple products" space like Tarte was.

[Victoria-douj]

after covid my makeup style went from heavy to more light and natural, I love tarte. the packaging is cute and the formulas are consistent

[joydawnb]

As a former employee back in the early days, they didn’t start with a natural focus. When they rebranded in 2008, Maureen made the story that it was always a natural brand. The truth is, there were some products that had great ingredients, but they also discontinued a ton of items and it was more about cute packaging, quick fixes and fun colors. They had double ended glosses that were named after famous duos from pop culture, only 1 foundation that was light-medium coverage, and the only eyeshadow they had was limited edition or shimmer duos. When they launched lights, camera, lashes, we finally got more mainstream attention in Sephora. Those giant cheek stains were the hero product, but the problem was: they lasted for several years and there wasn’t much else that drew those clients to the brand. Maureen reformulated them to be natural, 1/2 the amount of product and hoped for the best. This was a couple of years before shape tape. It’s interesting to hear how everything has been scrubbed from the history of the brand from 1999-2008.

[maeganmchugh]

I have a soft spot for Tarte, even though Shape Tape isn't my favorite concealer formula either. Hard Candy would be fun to see, going from an edgy department store brand to being much more accessible at Walmart. Bare Minerals and It Cosmetics, how they got their starts on QVC and now have classic products, and Cover Girl would be really interesting! I could be wrong, but it seems like they've been one of the leaders in the major brands in giant parent companies starting to make the change to cruelty-free.

[katies]

Tarte still has a large following outside the beauty community that don’t know the drama that’s been going on. They look boring (and technically, they are) but there’s a large demographic of people that want neutral, subtle makeup and love their formulas. I personally love to have good quality subtle eyeshadow in my collection and Tarte eyeshadows are so good for that in my experience so I would love for them to make a comeback that is fully inclusive

[IvyroseGullwhacker]

Kelly, my degree is also in PR/Marketing and I used the Shape Tape Foundation saga as a case study in one of my classes my senior year! Loving this video.

[vickiem.]

I love Tarte as I have sensitive skin and can tolerate their products. Their packaging always sucks me in. The shadows are work appropriate and I love that hint of vanilla when I open a palette. I have enjoyed this series emencely. Thank you.

[sabrinadavis]

So I love how you "spill the tea", but you do it without shade and with so much respect!

[MsRockstarDC]

I love Tarte and had no idea the founder’s husband died in 9/11, which is so tragic.

[annamaleficent]

I would love to see Becca, Kat Von D, NARS, Benefit, Jeffrey Star Cosmetics, Morphe next <3

[misskimberly]

Benefit would be a good one for this series. I remember when their box blushes were popular and I know they have gimme brow but I just feel like they’re not as popular now

[jjennyj]

I actually really love tarte! The shape tape and ultra creamy concealers are still my all-time favorite concealers. And glow wand is really good too, and the maracuja lip balms are also so good.

[shanavillines]

I love Tarte! Knowing she lost her husband in 911, makes me want to support her even more!

[emilyhma]

I think Mac would be a great brand to talk about! When the YT makeup scene was still new, every YTer would be gushing over every new Mac collection, but they're almost never talked about nowadays, and no one talks extensively about the new limited collections or their giant Mac collections.

[debleigh]

I think what is interesting about Tarte, is, even though they took a huge hit in the YouTube beauty community, I think regular people did not get the memo.
Many of my acquaintances, and their daughters still by Tarte over everything else. Not to mention tarte just won first in three categories in allures best of beauty 2021. They won for the maneater mascara, Tarte shape tape, and Tartlette in Bloom eyeshadow palette. These are all old staples for them, so it’s pretty huge that they won in these categories for 2021.
I’m with you I think even within the beauty community they are making a comeback. Especially with their lip products. I think it’s much easier to go through a lip product than an eyeshadow palette. I think many of these beauty companies used to be measured by their eyeshadow palettes… Not so much today, because eyeshadow is not as important today as it once was.

[lim]

Tarte sells very well at the Ulta near me. They get new inventory every week, and many of the products sell out within that week. One of the associates there told me that it’s one of their best selling brands. They also do well at the Sephora near me.

[proudbnumber]

KVD would be great, but what I think would also be perfect for this series: MAC! I feel they shaped the entire makeup industry.

[TheLauren]

I really like Tarte products. I think a lot of their products work well for older consumers. While I am attuned to current trends, for me, Tarte shadows perform very well and last all day. The colors are neutral and well suited for women 30+. If I were to guess, Tarte’s consumer base trends older.