The Rise and Fall of MAC Cosmetics

MAC Cosmetics was founded due to a need in Toronto for professional grade makeup. Frank Toskan, along with his partner Frank Angelo, opened Makeup Art Cosmetics (MAC Cosmetics) specifically to bring in that kind of makeup, though most specifically Il Makiage, to their photographer and drag queen friends. Within only one year it was large enough for it's first standalone store in The Haircutting Place and within only a couple more years they began to produce makeup themselves. Over the years, this championing of queer people and their cruelty free stance has made many marketers question wether their marketing is even considered cause marketing at all, because they didn't use these founding inspirations in their promotional materials at all. Even as they grew they stuck to them fiercely though and even up until the sale to Estée Lauder, every element the brand was founded under was kept untouched.

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[AbsFabbs]

Mac will never go out of style in my opinion. Back in the 90s Mac was the only makeup brand that carried dark shades. For that reason a lot of millennials and gen x are very loyal because they were the first to support us. I remember begging my mom to buy Mac makeup in the 90s. I still have drawers full now at over 40. I will always support them because they supported me. Plus their stuff is better than the trendy stuff that’s popular now.

[lauravampire]

Even if Mac isn’t as big as they used to be, I appreciate how progressive they were from the beginning. Their lipsticks will forever be held dear to my heart.

[Garyforshort]

MAC has always been a staple. So many brands change their agenda according to politics and culture but mac has always supported queer culture whilst also delivering a good quality product.

[alienated]

I just bought two MAC items just last week and ive been in love. To me MAC is the pinnicle of luxury makeup, not Dior or YSL. I remember my mum bringing me to MAC counters when I was a kid and the vanilla smell of the lipsticks being so intriguing. To be able to buy a lipstick and an eyeshadow pallete is a dream come true of mine since I was 9. I hope MAC is here to stay

[c.v.]

I watch a lot of makeup release content and over the years I’ve seen a lot of brands come up and go under, and a lot of times people theorizing that MAC would be the next brand to go under. But a lot of the older content creators always doubt it because they have a lot of “quiet consumers”. All that means is that the brand is continuing to be successful in the way that it always was. By word of mouth, creation of community, and letting the quality of the product speak for itself.

To this day, Down to an Art is my favorite lipstick color from them.

[Facebodyfx]

My very first lipstick was Viva Glam I. I was in college and purchased it at Nordstrom. I loved the chocolate smell and thought it was the most beautiful red. I am 56 years old and still wear it.

[princessmiaxo]

My mom was a huuuuge MAC lover since before I was born but I had no idea it had such a huge tie to the LGBT community! I learned something new :)

[rrenatabp]

Honestly, I'm tired of influencer marketing and brands pouring money on cringey content creators so I'm glad mac isn't relying too much on it, even if I undertsand it can be very helpful for brands

[mantronixtube]

plus rupaul looks so gorgeous here ….
also i was young but around when we started seeing mac in the 90s…. i was in la and i remember that the mac counter was always insanely busy . you could only really get unique colors from mac . the quality was good. they were so forward …. recycling …. fighting aids …. no one did that back then .
i remember my young hip uncle worked at the famous one in nyc …. i think a lot of successful. creative people worked there . i don’t feel this kind of excitement or joy ? elation ? when i think of any makeup or clothing brands like we did then

[GifaLockhart]

I will always love MAC and it was cool to learn that the company has always had the same values as me. I grew up as the only East Asian in an all-white town who was obsessed with make-up since I was a little kid.

In those first 10 years of starting to play with make-up, I never found the right concealer or foundation shades until I found a MAC counter which was an hour's drive away.

Once I found the Pro Longwear concealer in NC30, I never looked back and I felt i actually did belong in the beauty space for the first time in my life ☺️

[LtheGoddess]

I started being a MAC customer in the mid 90s, then went on to work for them off + on for a total of 5 years. I started at the flagship Seattle Nordstrom counter—right after the Lauder buy out. It was an AMAZING time to be part of the company as we were a test region as MAC, not Nordstrom, employees. So there was a ton of fun, freedom + support!

A LOT has changed since then and the biggest part is that MAC is no longer an art/artist centered company, which breaks my heart. Under Lauder, it's become much more about numbers + financial bottom lines than artistry and play. It might not be obvious to consumers but those of us close to the culture know that it's just a standard corporate company now.

[jimmidominguez]

Netflix should make a show about their story!

[TwanWu]

I think when the cosmetics industry bubble inevitably bursts MAC would re-emerge as the best of them all. They have one of the widest range of products/formulas on the market. You can almost dupe anything by any other brand out there (barring indie brands) with something from MAC. When other brands endorsed influencers left and right, MAC stayed calm and mostly did small collabs (one lipstick per influencer). When other brands created trendy products to stay hyped, MAC realized those wouldn't last and waited it out (they never made dry crusty matte liquid lipsticks even though those were all the rage back in the day). When American influencers blasted MAC for being old fashioned (in reality they were just mad MAC didn't kiss their asses the way other brands did) MAC quietly built a huge following in other markets including Asia, which ironically is becoming a new beauty capital and setting trends for the West to follow. MAC in my eyes is proof that quality is always better than trends.

[Anonymous]

Personally, I'm just happy RuPaul is in the thumbnail. To me, undoubtedly the most iconic of Mac's promotional images

[amakeupjourney]

For those that don’t know, Victor Casale is still in the business, including bringing back some old MAC formulas, with his brand MOB Beauty.

[brittneybrisbin]

I never knew anything about the history of MAC Cosmetics. I recently bought "Sin" at my local mall, and I felt guilty for doing so (because it cost me over $20). Now knowing however that the brand was created by a gay couple, had women and drag queens at the forefront of their customer base, and did so much to fight AIDS and champion inclusivity at a time when neither of those things mattered to most makeup brands, I don't feel so guilty. I feel more like, as a woman and a lesbian, I'm honoring the history of my community.

[markjohnson]

Thanks for the deep dive. I remember MAC was very unique back in the day. They really stood out amongst all the other brands. I remembered their really cool Viva Glam campaigns with various celebrities. It seems there is just too much competition these days and MAC has gotten lost in the shuffle. MAC is sold at Ulta but not on the Sephora website at least in America. This is a HUGE issue because traditional Dept stores are dying so having a brand sold here and not at Sephora/Ulta with all of the other "cool" brands does not help if they want to be seen as modern and current.

[glambygabbydetroit]

MAC was my first love in makeup 🥲 the brand will always hold a special place in my heart

[classassignment]

12 years ago, I left MAC after being with them for 10 years. Things were starting to get bad then. They were cutting costs in a way us long devoted staff really felt. I can’t imagine how it is now.

[ghstbird]

I was living on West 10th in Greenwich Village in the 90’s, I believe MAC first store was not far from me. They were on Christopher Street, near 7th Avenue, just a block over from where I was. I remember that little store being cutting edge, sleek and very chic for the time. Oh, the good ole’ days of Manhattan ❤️🙌🏼💗