Don’t get me started on the plethora of celebrities that are trying to stay relevant through brands that no one asked for and most forget about. Yes, Jennifer Aniston, Scarlett Johanson, and Lori Harvey are beautiful. However, I would never think to go to them for makeup, skincare, or haircare advice. There is a difference between being pretty and being interested in beauty.
I would more so turn to their makeup artists, facialists, and hairstylists first.
Although a new celebrity brand comes out every other week, a few stand-out brands are recognized more like traditional brands. Fenty Beauty, Rare Beauty, Honest Beauty, and others have taken over as brands that excel over being made by just a celebrity. However, one such brand that has fallen between the lines of being a celebrity brand and a regular brand. KKW Beauty and KKW Fragrance were both created by Kim Kardashian. Kardashian has become the modern businesswoman of our generation, a woman with three brands, a tv show, four kids, practicing to be a lawyer, and a woman with a sexy public persona.
In July of 2021, the world found out that KKW beauty would temporarily be shutting down to rebrand and make the company more sustainable. This included completely wiping the brand’s Instagram and the website. Similarly, in April of 2022, the fragrance brand was shutting down to rebrand and become one with the beauty website.
These revelations as Kardashian has become known for her businesses and her connection to the beauty industry. However, this will mark a revolutionary change in the celebrity beauty brand category. Will Kardashian become the next Rihanna of the beauty game, a brand that will stand the test of time and expand into a beauty empire? Or become the next Dessert Beauty by Jessica Simpson, a brand you will need to explain to your kids.
As a lover of the beauty industry, the history, and especially the drama, I have many thoughts on which direction her brands could possibly go in. Kim could create a sustainable brand that elevates the beauty industry in branding, packaging, and products. However, this could all be a way to get away from the name KKW, as she is no longer Mrs. West. If the rebranding is entirely focused on her divorce, her consumers will be able to tell. Kardashian can run a Billion dollar beauty industry or become like her sister Kylie, a beauty mogul who is a fake billionaire and comes out with a new product line every week; however, no one seems to have her products.
Suppose the KKW fragrance and beauty teams revamp the branding, name, websites, and products and create a luxurious brand. In that case, Kardashian can open stores and become a brand every beauty lover has in their makeup bag. As a successful businesswoman with a talented team around her, Kim has the ability to move toward being known purely for being a businesswoman who sells her products based on the quality of the products, not the name. That is up to Kim if this is the direction she is interested in taking because she will still be able to sell products just with her name slapped on them, even if they aren’t great, but it depends on the legacy she wants to have on the beauty and fashion industry.
Will Kim go back to her 2000’s colorful style or let Kanye influence her with monochrome beige tones? No matter what happens, the products will take off for a solid 3-6 months and then we will truly know whether this was a success or not.
Does anyone know when or if the brands will ever relaunch? No, however, I am waiting with bated breath to see if I will start creating my personal KKW beauty collection or need to write a new scathing article.
Words by Annika Petersen.
Graphic by Fai McCurdy.