Helena Rubinstein: A Pioneer of the Modern Beauty Industry

In the early 20th century, Helena Rubinstein defied gender, class, and cultural expectations to become one of the first pioneers of the modern beauty industry. Today, her namesake luxury cosmetics brand is worth more than one billion dollars. Harvard Business School professor Geoff Jones wrote a case study about the visionary leader. He explored her journey—and the lasting impact she made on global beauty standards—on Cold Call in 2019 with host Brian Kenny.

Key episode topics include: gender, leadership, feminism, beauty industry, entrepreneurship, entrepreneurial business strategy, marketing

HBR On Leadership curates the best conversations and case studies with the world’s top business and management experts, to help you unlock the best in those around you. New episodes every week.

• Listen to the original Cold Call episode: How Helena Rubinstein Used Tall Tales to Turn Cosmetics into a Luxury Brand
• Find more episodes of Cold Call.
• Discover 100 years of Harvard Business Review articles, case studies, podcasts, and more at HBR.org.

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