Is Glossier Still Good? Revisiting a Once Beloved Brand
Glossier is now at Sephora, cue the collection screams. Making this brand more accessible to the masses means the excitement is palpable. At its peak, Glossier was an innovative brand that was truly disrupting the way we look at makeup. Playful products that enhanced but did not dare cover up your natural beauty. It was minimalistic perfection wrapped up in a chic bubble-wrap Ziploc bag.
Though since it’s original launch into Canada, many diehard fans have simply drifted away from the millennial pink beauty cult. This comeback into mainstream retail almost feels like we’re all wearing millenial pink-coloured glasses and forgetting about the multiple controversies this once beloved brand has been faced with.
So… what happened?
There’s a few things that stand out in my mind:
The rest of the beauty world caught up. After the success of Glossier, the cosmetics industry simply became over-saturated. I personally struggled to feel excitement about new product launches because it felt like everything had already been done (or someone else was bound to do it better). Finding a Glossier dupe isn’t nearly as difficult as it once was.
They reformulated their best-selling product to meet ‘clean beauty’ standards. This push for brands to be green and clean is nothing more than a greenwashing marketing ploy to gain shelf-space at retailers like Sephora. Unfortunately for brands like Bite Beauty (RIP), a change in ingredients leads to a sudden decline in product quality and consumer trust. It’s a detriment to the brand’s reputation and pushes long-time fans into the arms of another makeup company.
The brand was deemed to be a toxic employer. There are several accounts of employee mistreatment, from layoffs during the height of the pandemic, to an entire Instagram page showcasing the racism experienced at by BIPOC staff. It’s disappointing and disheartening to hear what went on behind the millennial pink curtain, but unfortunately unsurprising to hear that a mega-successful brand has little respect for those they employ. I will note that Founder Emily Weiss has since stepped down as CEO in May 2022, but still holds title as President.
With all of this in mind, it’s surprising to see the brand’s revival now that they’ve become an official Sephora brand. I was curious to see if a corporate restructuring and an ingredient overhaul was enough to win me back as a Glossier fan, so I’ve revisited some of the products I once deemed to be a ‘ride or die’. Here are my thoughts:
Balm Dotcom Lip Balm and Skin Salve
I’m currently working through two tubes of the old formula and panicking at the mere thought of them being empty. Another beloved product has been stripped of lanolin as an ingredient. Bite Beauty’s agave lip mask suffered this same fate, and I’ve yet to find a replacement for either. I do appreciate that this new era of Balm Dotcom features an angled applicator, but I fear that’s not enough to trigger a purchase.
Milky Jelly Gentle Gel Face Cleanser
Out of the entire lineup, this was the most disappointing of them all. I can’t even bring myself to finish the bottle, because the formulation just isn’t on par with what it once was. This thread on Reddit confirms that the ingredients did change, and further validates how I feel about Milky Jelly now.
This was once my go-to makeup remover because of how gentle and effective it was. I can barely get it to remove my mascara now, and I’m wearing much less makeup than I used to! All I’m left with is intense raccoon eyes and a slimy film on my skin. 0/10, do not recommend.
If you’re going to spend any of your money on Glossier, let it be this. Cream blushes are incredibly trendy, but nothing else quite compares to Cloud Paint in my opinion. They have a gorgeous, watery consistency that makes for easy application and blending, and the shade range is stunning. You can even mix colours together to create your own custom tint (I’m personally a big fan of Puff & Dusk together).
Don’t let the size of these tubes fool you, either! A little dab truly goes a long way!
Lash Slick Lift and Lengthening Mascara
If you’re a fan of tubing mascaras, you will probably love Lash Slick. This still holds up as a great lengthening mascara, but I personally prefer a little bit more volume in my lashes. L’Oreal Voluminous Original currently meets my needs, and is lighter on the wallet than Glossier’s mascara.
That said, I do appreciate that they released an additional brown shade option. Though it just leaves me wondering why there aren’t more brown mascaras on the market??
Boy Brow Volumizing Eyebrow Gel-Pomade
Once upon a time, I was madly in love with this brow gel. I would shout from the rooftops how wonderful it was and would talk your ear off about it if prompted. Truly, I could not picture my life without it.
Boy Brow is still a decent product and I truly don’t have anything negative to say about it. There are just so many dupes on the market that Boy Brow is far less of a ‘must-have’ than it once was. These days I just opt for a strong-hold brow gel that keeps them combed up and in place all day long (read more about my current favourite brow product here). On the rare occasion that I do want a little more depth, I layer Essence Make Me Brow overtop; which is basically the drugstore equivalent of Boy Brow, but at more than half the price.
What are your thoughts on Glossier? Are there products you used to love that are worth revisiting?
Share in a comment below!
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