*NOTE Regarding Subculture* After the initial backlash to the problems with the Subculture palette, ABH reformulated it so that it would be similar to their other palettes in performance. If you'd like to read more about ABH's response to the Subculture backlash, here's a great article from back then: www.seventeen.com/beauty/makeup-skincare/a12014627/anastasia-beverly-hills-apologizes-for-subculture-palette/ I'm so glad you all are enjoying this video!! YAY!! Thank you to everyone who voted in my community poll for me to do this video this week!
Yeah: they dumped that product *into places like TKMAXX* instead of oblivion. People who couldn’t afford a regular palette bought that crap &… they caused a reverse media problem: people who only knew their worst product & would never buy a full price ABH product
Hey Jen First video I've watched & now a new subscriber. Great video and I really appreciate that you are impartial and show both sides of the situation. ✌🏻
It’s weird they wouldn’t have considered the cost before they promoted the list. Seems obvious. Unless the plan all along was to build hype from people getting on the list and then watering it down, but…they could’ve made that clear, too. The list is the first draft. Then, only a select group will make the final cut. Then they could rotate this every year or so in whatever manner they prefer (as long as the contestants are aware).
I remember this. Even then I could not blame those who chose to sell part of that bundle online. We have to remember all through out the time they were “searching” for the list. These artists were buying all these ABH products out of pocket to create these looks. If nothing else they already had part of what came in the PR box if not most of it. So it was natural and even environmentally responsible to sell the rest and not hord duplicates. They were not paid. This was their pay and they should be able to do what they like with the pay they received
@@joperez6745 well there's a lot of things that have "not for resale" on them... and i suppose that's just a simplyfied contract, so, like, it is not for resale, but as long as nobody tells on you, nobody cares, and it probably isn't worthwhile suing one individual over one product sale as well... so like yeah anything can be sold second hand
I bought the Jackie Aina palette. One of my favourite palettes for every day wear and special occasions. I was so upset for Jackie’s collab because she didn’t get no where enough hype for the palette and it was just such a good selection of colours for all skin tones. But then Norvina had already started her “rampage” of producing palettes it felt like every 6 weeks. It was all just too much.
They gave the Jackie Aina 2 to 3 weeks before the Carly Bybel one was released. Jackie's palette deserved more spotlight. It also felt for me like it wasn't really promoted, too. One of the most versatile palettes they put out.
I love these retrospective videos you’ve been doing! You have such a gift for story telling and presenting information in a thoughtful, entertaining way.
I remember this happening. I would come home from my call-center job to try to get on this list. I was not very good and not very consistent, but I always loved everyone else’s looks and I tried to re-create them. That time was a very creative time and I kind of hope that we do have a Renaissance of creativity back in make up.
I was there from the beginning, I adored the brand and I was a collector. I remember initially being excited for the Norvina brand but then before I could even obtain the first palette there were already two newer releases. I realized then that it probably wasn't the same quality. It was a hell of a lot more shades and it had just lost all of its magic. It was truly giving Morphe vibes and that turned me off completely. The last pallet that I purchased was the Alyssa Edwards palette. However I do still continue to use all the pallets that I do own by abh I adore them. Only purchased Norvina purple suede💜 my holy Grail no matter what you cannot fuck up a look using that palette. It's a blending dream even to a novice. Great deep dive Jen ❤
Years ago when ABH started out it was all about the brows. I had her original brow kit with the powder, the tweezers, and the stencils. When she started dabbling into makeup there was an anti-aging eyeshadow palette that I bought. It looked a lot like a Clinique palette if I recall correctly. It was a great palette, I wish I had kept it for the history of it. I am assuming that anti-aging wasn't Nirvana's target audience when she came into the business.
I remember coveting those Norvina palettes sooooo badly but at $60 a pop, they were out of my range. And then she came out with another and another and another to the point that it became overwhelming. I eventually forgot about them, but last weekend I found the Norvina Vol. 3 palette at TJMaxx for $16, so I snagged it just for nostalgia sake 😅
I wasn’t into the beauty community or consuming beauty content when all of that went down, but it was really interesting to hear about it. It sounds like it was a positive thing that wasn’t sustainable.
OMG This video just reawakened my 2018 makeup artists...This may be my roman empire. I remember the competition to get on the list was fierce!! I actually ended up getting chosen and i felt SO SEEN and whats better is i became friends with so many more people in the makeup community. I remember the search lasted over a couple weeks and I was added in the last round. I remember i was walking home from class and when I got the email I thought I was on glue...stopped everything and called my mom (she has no idea how iconic it was but she was lit nonetheless) . I believe I was on the list for a year before being removed, and personally, even though I was a bit sad, I was happy I was even recognized by a brand I had been obsessed with for years prior. Plus I think it really opened the door for influencers to connect with other companies and receive PR from them! I think had they just stated in their post that it would be for X amount of time, that way they could have maybe gotten some rough numbers on the cost and provided clarity to the small creators who had never received PR or worked with beauty brands. Love the video! What a time to be in the beauty community!
You took the words out of my mouth when you mentioned providing a survey for creators to actually pick the products they wanted. On the whole other end of the spectrum, I worked at the ABH counter within Macy's for years and they were the only brand that actually asked the associates what colors/shades we wanted for our gratis (gifted product) so I'm surprised that same thought wasn't utilized on this scale.
Claudia (Norvina) knew she was creating "The Hunger Games" in the social media beauty community with that ridiculous competition to get on the ABH PR list. And for people to believe she was genuinely shocked or disappointed that people were reselling those wasteful PR packages is delusional. Especially when PR showing up on eBay and other resources for reselling cosmetics was already a widespread problem. Claudia was very aware that many of those massive PR boxes would be resold, and she could use the "problem" to create even more brand visibility by positioning ABH as a victim. If she had channeled all that energy into creating innovative products (as creative director), maybe ABH's business wouldn't be in such bad shape today?
In 1983, i won a runner up prize in a contest to name Sally Hansen nail polish. I got a 7 lb box of supplies and it remains one of the best moments of my life. I cant imagine getting the ABH full lineup lol. I would have been ever more excited by my contest lol, but my small town only got a few shades of the collection. I didnt realize for decades that they used one of my submissions for a polish, but not the one they gave a prize to.
Great video Jenn!!!The Mario palette was my favorite. I still wish it would come back. ABH turned into a colorpop and a morphe with all the releases so I stop looking at the brand all together, I got tired of hearing about them. I’m sure the pandemic also affected the sales, I stop collecting eyeshadow palettes all together during that time. As a brand I agree with you, they completely blend with the rest now.
I have been absent from the “beauty space” for quite sometime now! But dayummmmm this was such a good video to get caught up on! Sultry is for sure my all-time fav ABH palette too!!!!!
I remember when I brought the Alyssa Edwards palette only because the Queen herself. It's still mint in the box and that purchase financially hurt but I was more hurt the fans were not for sale in Australia. BEAST!
Anastasia has made it big in India, yes. However, slowly but surely, other brands (even some Indie and local ones) are taking over. Huda Beauty and Rare Beauty are huge here, for instance.
I do remember when “the list” was such a big thing and wondered how on earth that was sustainable. I knew people were going to get cut really quickly. I think if she had just done a giveaway she still would have gotten a lot of the benefits without all the hurt feelings. Last thing I heard about ABH was that they were in hot water for collaborating with a mlm.
At the time of this controversy, I think I was pretty burnt out on beauty drama so I never paid attention to it, but wow! I definitely agree with your opinion on why Norvina trimmed the list so much, but I think it could've been handled better. Thank you for another fabulous video, Jen!
Also I think she was offended that people took advantage of her kindness and went and sold the makeup for a profit. I mean I would have been offended. Giving away is one thing, but selling it, I can see why she would have been offended.
i do also understand if people sold things they had duplicates of, it doesn’t make sense to have something that you aren’t gonna use, selling the whole pr kit is pretty crazy tho
The main thing I remember is influencers getting the ICK over the list. The brand was beloved. Then, Norvina started launching all of her products and ABH pumped out a few palettes in a row and they were also burned out. It's interesting how these things happen. The rise and fall of the "It" brands.
I've never heard this story. Very interesting...I'd never buy. Because of the Pro Putin tweet. Brand owners need to keep their fingers quiet if they want to get new customers.
I have several abh products, they were sent in my Ipsy boxes lol. I missed all of this as I didn’t really get “into” makeup until the lockdown. Before lockdown I wore makeup maybe 5 times a year, during lockdown I decided to try it to boost my mood after we lost my daughters dad to the plague. I now wear it most days, it makes me happy to play with it and I find it fun. The abh items I have are lovely, not up there with my precious items, but they get use and please me well enough. Have yet to ACTUALLY purchase anything of theirs but I keep getting more of them anyhow lol
The way I remember it too is she made it sound like if she saw your tweet and liked it you’d be added to the list. It was early on in the search and she liked my tweet, I thought I was in. When eventually people started asking her about it I tweeted her and asked her too and she gave me a short response and I could tell she was already overwhelmed and it wasn’t going to happen. She got a lot of people’s hopes up and then crushed it.
Yes!!! ABH was my absolute favorite!!! I collected every pallet they made - but once the giant pallets started to come out: Norvina #1, 2, 3, 4, and so on - that’s when I stopped collecting - like you said they were launching so close together, much bigger palettes which took longer to explode, different consistency of the shadows, they didn’t seem to be like their usual 12 pan palettes that were flawless to use - I did notice though, the past few launches, they’ve gone back to the 12 pans and back to their original style - I need to try those to see if they are like the old ones that I loved!!
Love this! I've been side-eyeing ABH for a while now. I very much enjoy my Subculture and Jackie Aina palettes, but not interested in the weirdness. Just over it.
Indian viewer here! 😄 Yes ABH did a huge push here, I remember cos it was around the same time smokey glow did a video about them. But I don’t see ABH presence in any of my circles. Competition here is fierce at that price range! Specially with brands like simplynam and kay beauty
I think the way to do the list would have been to make it more like a competition - something like “over the next 3 months we’re going to pick 100 small creators to add to our PR list”. Still send the massive PR box, because that’s part of what made it so incredible, but limit the number from the start to something manageable, & timebox it
Edit: well I should have waited. You totally touched on this after I commented. Lol Is it weird that I relate to both sides of the pruning of "the list?" It is absolutely valid that people would feel hurt or sad that they are no longer part of the group. I would definitely be disappointed as well. But PR is never guaranteed, and anyone at any time could be removed for any reason. It is but necessarily a reflection of one's talent or character
Wonderful content as always, Jen! I think if Norvina had managed her boundaries - offer 100 people one entire season of releases - she could have still built the excitement and the goodwill without the expectations of it necessarily continuing. They could access and continue or not from there with lower damage to their reputation and wallet.
I started getting into the beauty space late 2017ish but only to learn, not to participate. I’ve never bothered with other social media because I just like watching videos, so while I knew about the hype back then I didn’t care much and barely remember. I do remember that ABH was the go to for brows, and I was pleased when I bought my first brow gel. Spring 2019 I grabbed a highlighter palette from Winners (Marshals) and thought I had hit the jackpot. I went back for the second one and sent it to my sister in law in Brasil along side a too faced chocolate palette and she nearly died of happiness. Stuff from too faced and abh was pretty much unattainable luxury there at that time. Now, I have learned that I prefer a simpler style and don’t base my purchases around what’s popular. I want a good quality product that consistently preforms how I want it to, always looks good and is a good value for its price. I have curated my everyday makeup products to include only stuff like this, and keep it very simple; brows, mascara, tinted moisturizer, and currently looking for my perfect lip product(s) For days I want more makeup I will add blush, eyeliner and a little eyeshadow but haven’t found any that are so good I will incorporate into my everyday routine. It has been fun trying out new lip products, I think it might be a category where I change it up instead of always using the same thing. But I still haven’t found anything that is comfortable, looks good and stays on after I spend 40 minutes outside during lunch recess chasing around elementary students 😅
Great Video..what is amazing about you and your channel is you have been around and lived through alot of this...which makes your content always have that extra special missing piece that adds that personal effect that is so important to be a content creator!
I’m a person that works in a creative field. I can see where some people would think that being disappointed that you were cut from the PR list would sound entitled. HOWEVER, those people were put on the list for their skills and artistry. In literally any other case where your art (and yes makeup is an art; they’re not called makeup ARTISTS because it sounds fancy) is being judged, you would get an opportunity to ask why your work did or did not live up to an expectation, take the critique, and learn from it to better your work. None of these people received any sort of feedback about why they were cut, and therefore, were not given the opportunity to improve. I know that would be extremely devastating to me.
Fascinating. As a makeup enthusiast, I have never been on a PR list. I have never even won a contest. I teach and come home. But I completely understand how upsetting it would be to be put on and then dropped from PR.😢
Great video Jen! I've lived through all the ABH hype and downturn. I remember an the pallets getting released and a lot of us putting pause on our purchases for ABH. I just recently bought soft glam 2, mini of soft glam and I'm very happy with it. Other than that I haven't purchased from them since modern renaissance.
Whether it was intentional or not I feel like when Natasha Denona started doing the midi size palettes she ended up filling the gap left by ABH and people started collecting the midi palettes instead. They are more expensive than the ABH palettes but not unattainable and there have been 3-4 palettes released each year so people who do collect them aren't bombarded with releases. It would be smart for her to continue that model going forward and learn from ABH's mistakes. The Putin thing was what did for me though with ABH...
As an experienced retail professional ❤ I never gave a brand that much power ❤ and the quality change was obvious 😅 I own one jackie Aina palette to collect and one Tanama (sorry for the misspelling) which has the original kick ass formula I was introduced to 😂 I am hoarding that palette
I was far more shocked by the fact that the ABH CEO liked and followed a pro-Putin social media influencer( among others, supposedly), since this is something that directly affects me, my family, my friends and millions of others. I’m glad Robert Welsh spoke about it. That is the final nail in the coffin.
Agreed and all ABH products are now boycotted by me. I remember well the boycott of South African brands - and look what that achieved! It may take some time but we have a choice what our hard earned money supports.
I think they could do a few thinks back then: 1. Inform that they would put winners on the PR list for e.g. a year 2. Send just a few things in the initial box, and follow up with launches throughout the year 3. Limit the amount of winners and inform the publicic that there were e.g. 50 new spots All of those would limit the costs for ABH and ensure that the public would be aware of the rules.
The moon child glow kit had me in a chokehold for yearsss. I bought one from mercari as a teen and was so disappointed when I found out it was a FAKE! I bought a real one a few years back, it holds a special place in my heart.
I remember when everyone was so obsessed with trying to get on the list. It's so interesting to look back on. Especially knowing more now. I honestly haven't even thought about ABH since 😂
I never really got into collecting ABH products but I was at one point collecting the Dose of Colors quints and Sigma palettes. I still love both brands. I just tossed about half my eyeshadow collection due to age. The products still perform well but have a bit of a funky smell. I will repurchase marvelous mauves and I think I'll try Baked Browns II to see if I can replicate the tine of Boho from Untamed. I loved that shadow so much. Considering I never got close to hitting pan on some of the palettes I loved so much, and I can't even replace some of them it was a reminder to me to not go loco on the palettes. I've got about 15 left. I do have the 2 Dose of Colors palettes on my wishlist to grab during black Friday. I want the Lure collection from Blend Bunny, and I also really kind of want Sigma's Sleeping Beauty palette. I might just try to go for a couple of good neutral palettes and a couple of colorful palettes moving forward.
Agree! You’re so right! And it even trickled down to the regular folks like me without a channel begging and entering all of the influencers contests because many of them were overwhelmed by the sheer volume of the PR package, so they started massive giveaways just because they knew they couldn’t use/store everything that had been given to them. I remember entering so many giveaway contests. Unfortunately, I never received or won anything, but I clearly remember being obsessed with those that offered giveaways as well as watching the influencers doing new looks with their ABH products and then following them on different socials so that I could win something in a giveaway! LOL 😂❤
I have an original Modern Renaissance palette and an original Amrezy Hightlighter, those were gifted to me, new, like 4 years ago by a dear friend. I still love them.
I have never owned an anastasia product but I have been looking for a go to eyeshadow pallet that can go from natural to evening to replace al my old once. And the pallet you showed looks like it could be what I'm looking for
My first ABH palette was the original Subculture, so I skipped ABH’s eyeshadows after that. I depotted the gold shade and I still have it, but I avoided ABH for years. The ULTA 21 Days of Beauty sales were tempting, but I resisted. Loved the brow pencils and brow powders. This year Modern Renaissance was in one of my Boxycharm by Ipsy boxes, so I’m revisiting their formula. Definitely a do your eyes first, then your foundation product because the fallout is so intense. I remember the FOMO.
This is the first time I hear about the Abh list. I wonder did people know why they were taken off from the list? Was it views they got, or makeup they did or…? If I were Norvina I’d definitely market it as a trial kit - one time only, as an influencer starter box. Or explain the idea a bit better as you said, I suppose not many people knew what it means to be on a PR List.
I never got big in to ABH myself. I did finally try the Soft Glam palette last summer. It was a nice palette. I was impressed that it seemd like you couldn't go wrong with a look no matter what combination of colors you used. I decluttered it because it was a little to deep and the tones were a bit off for my skin tone and taste.
I loved the few videos norvina would do about the eyeshadow, formulas, and science behind them. I was like wow this is something different and cool and a look behind how things are created. But then she got so much into the social media thing and creating the Norvina collections, and I lost interest
There was a video about beauty dramas that I watched where a girl revealed information from statistics she bought from an American website. It indicated that the brand had taken a lot of money from third-party investors before the cheap Norvina line products and frequent palette releases came about. It is an assumption, but it was suggested that the brand shifted its focus towards profit under pressure from investors, causing a transformation in the brand, cause investors seemingly did not care about beauty world. However, since the video was released a few years ago, the details may not be entirely accurate, but the main idea remains that the brand's changes were driven by global and structural events rather than the owner's personality.
Regarding the ABH in India marketing push - my husband, while we were still dating and he was living overseas in India as an Indian citizen, sent me an ABH palette as a birthday present. So clearly its working for them!
PR is free the people who receive it are not entitled to it. The PR is a gift if the company changes marketing strategies, people have no right to be upset. Everyone was given something for their efforts. This needs to be a lesson that nothing comes for free
I'm from Bangladesh, a neighbour country of India. You're right Jen, ABH is quite booming here after Mac, Huda Beauty, Jeffree Star Cosmetics when it comes to mid range to luxury makeup.
Wow. What a cluster. I just found your channel (YAY!) and have been binging your content. I am just getting back into makeup after not wearing it for...30 years?! So I never knew about this drama. It doesn't change my opinion of ABH - as the owner of a small skincare business, I can understand how things spiraled out of control and couldn't be sustained. The whole thing was just too bad. I think Norvina had good intentions - she just didn't realize what was going to happen. Things amplified quickly and became out of control. At the end of the day they are a cosmetics company and are out to make money. A lot of times feelings aren't considered when money is the bottom line - and didn't Norvina have to answer to investors? So regardless of her intentions, the investors speak loudly and they want their money. This video was very well done and explained the controversy exceptionally well - thank you for that. I now feel more educated! But I will continue buying good makeup - whether it comes from ABH or somewhere else. But then I don't buy my makeup based on brand names. I buy what I've heard is, or what I feel is the best quality for the money. Love your channel - thank you! ❤
It really hurts me how much of a bad rep the Subculture palette gets. To this day is still one of my most favorite palettes ever! I just love the colors! Specially during fall. I feel like I’m the only one on this world that actually loves it
No you are not. I didn’t buy it but the colour story I thought was pretty good. What was the issue with the palette, I can’t remember. Was it the quality of some of the shades?
I personally don't feel bad for influencers who got dropped from the PR list because no contract was signed, and while I understand it sucks the brand had no obligation to keep sending free stuff to so many people. However an email warning the creator about it would have been a decent thing to do
*NOTE Regarding Subculture* After the initial backlash to the problems with the Subculture palette, ABH reformulated it so that it would be similar to their other palettes in performance. If you'd like to read more about ABH's response to the Subculture backlash, here's a great article from back then: www.seventeen.com/beauty/makeup-skincare/a12014627/anastasia-beverly-hills-apologizes-for-subculture-palette/
I'm so glad you all are enjoying this video!! YAY!! Thank you to everyone who voted in my community poll for me to do this video this week!
Yeah: they dumped that product *into places like TKMAXX* instead of oblivion.
People who couldn’t afford a regular palette bought that crap &… they caused a reverse media problem: people who only knew their worst product & would never buy a full price ABH product
Hey Jen First video I've watched & now a new subscriber. Great video and I really appreciate that you are impartial and show both sides of the situation. ✌🏻
No one -- absolutely no one -- does this type of content this well 😊 Thank you so much for your research, effort, and time in creating this video!
Jen is one of a kind and I love her and her content so much. Always so informative
I agree! She just goes deeper.
I 100% agree!
Jen is absolutely fantastic! ❤
Jen needs her own show...like a Dateline or 20/20 for the beauty space
Honestly, she should've just been the social media director. Her being the creative director, in my opinion was the downfall of abh
It’s weird they wouldn’t have considered the cost before they promoted the list. Seems obvious. Unless the plan all along was to build hype from people getting on the list and then watering it down, but…they could’ve made that clear, too.
The list is the first draft. Then, only a select group will make the final cut. Then they could rotate this every year or so in whatever manner they prefer (as long as the contestants are aware).
ding ding ding
This is genius. You'd think they'd have a whole team brainstorming to figure something like this out
I remember this. Even then I could not blame those who chose to sell part of that bundle online. We have to remember all through out the time they were “searching” for the list. These artists were buying all these ABH products out of pocket to create these looks. If nothing else they already had part of what came in the PR box if not most of it. So it was natural and even environmentally responsible to sell the rest and not hord duplicates. They were not paid. This was their pay and they should be able to do what they like with the pay they received
Selling Pr is illegal though,at least in the US
@@phantasmic1000selling it as though it were new is illegal, but you can sell anything second hand
@@joperez6745 well there's a lot of things that have "not for resale" on them... and i suppose that's just a simplyfied contract, so, like, it is not for resale, but as long as nobody tells on you, nobody cares, and it probably isn't worthwhile suing one individual over one product sale as well... so like yeah anything can be sold second hand
I bought the Jackie Aina palette. One of my favourite palettes for every day wear and special occasions. I was so upset for Jackie’s collab because she didn’t get no where enough hype for the palette and it was just such a good selection of colours for all skin tones.
But then Norvina had already started her “rampage” of producing palettes it felt like every 6 weeks.
It was all just too much.
🩺 I bought a backup because it was just too good. They really did Jackie dirty. It should have had at least 3 months by itself.
They gave the Jackie Aina 2 to 3 weeks before the Carly Bybel one was released. Jackie's palette deserved more spotlight. It also felt for me like it wasn't really promoted, too. One of the most versatile palettes they put out.
@@LEbackstage It wasn’t promoted at all.
That’s one of my absolute favorite palettes EVER! It’s right up there with my Tati Beauty palette! 😍
Notice how all of ABH's new release is nothing compared to the old releases and collabs. That Jackie palette was stunning
Hey Jen, Romanian watcher here. Anastasia and Claudia's surname is Soare [Swa-reh]. Also, soare means sun 😊
commenting so this gets more attention, i was cringing the whole time
I love these retrospective videos you’ve been doing! You have such a gift for story telling and presenting information in a thoughtful, entertaining way.
I remember this happening. I would come home from my call-center job to try to get on this list. I was not very good and not very consistent, but I always loved everyone else’s looks and I tried to re-create them. That time was a very creative time and I kind of hope that we do have a Renaissance of creativity back in make up.
Even a Modern Renaissance 😅
I hope so too.
Ready for this…lest we forget the shenanigans these brands try to pull on us.
I was there from the beginning, I adored the brand and I was a collector. I remember initially being excited for the Norvina brand but then before I could even obtain the first palette there were already two newer releases. I realized then that it probably wasn't the same quality. It was a hell of a lot more shades and it had just lost all of its magic. It was truly giving Morphe vibes and that turned me off completely. The last pallet that I purchased was the Alyssa Edwards palette. However I do still continue to use all the pallets that I do own by abh I adore them. Only purchased Norvina purple suede💜 my holy Grail no matter what you cannot fuck up a look using that palette. It's a blending dream even to a novice. Great deep dive Jen ❤
Years ago when ABH started out it was all about the brows. I had her original brow kit with the powder, the tweezers, and the stencils. When she started dabbling into makeup there was an anti-aging eyeshadow palette that I bought. It looked a lot like a Clinique palette if I recall correctly. It was a great palette, I wish I had kept it for the history of it. I am assuming that anti-aging wasn't Nirvana's target audience when she came into the business.
I remember coveting those Norvina palettes sooooo badly but at $60 a pop, they were out of my range. And then she came out with another and another and another to the point that it became overwhelming.
I eventually forgot about them, but last weekend I found the Norvina Vol. 3 palette at TJMaxx for $16, so I snagged it just for nostalgia sake 😅
I loveee finding (probably out of date) palettes from this iconic era in discount stores and thinking '15 yr old me would be sooooo jealous rn' 😂
I wasn’t into the beauty community or consuming beauty content when all of that went down, but it was really interesting to hear about it. It sounds like it was a positive thing that wasn’t sustainable.
OMG This video just reawakened my 2018 makeup artists...This may be my roman empire. I remember the competition to get on the list was fierce!! I actually ended up getting chosen and i felt SO SEEN and whats better is i became friends with so many more people in the makeup community. I remember the search lasted over a couple weeks and I was added in the last round. I remember i was walking home from class and when I got the email I thought I was on glue...stopped everything and called my mom (she has no idea how iconic it was but she was lit nonetheless) . I believe I was on the list for a year before being removed, and personally, even though I was a bit sad, I was happy I was even recognized by a brand I had been obsessed with for years prior. Plus I think it really opened the door for influencers to connect with other companies and receive PR from them! I think had they just stated in their post that it would be for X amount of time, that way they could have maybe gotten some rough numbers on the cost and provided clarity to the small creators who had never received PR or worked with beauty brands. Love the video! What a time to be in the beauty community!
You took the words out of my mouth when you mentioned providing a survey for creators to actually pick the products they wanted. On the whole other end of the spectrum, I worked at the ABH counter within Macy's for years and they were the only brand that actually asked the associates what colors/shades we wanted for our gratis (gifted product) so I'm surprised that same thought wasn't utilized on this scale.
Claudia (Norvina) knew she was creating "The Hunger Games" in the social media beauty community with that ridiculous competition to get on the ABH PR list. And for people to believe she was genuinely shocked or disappointed that people were reselling those wasteful PR packages is delusional. Especially when PR showing up on eBay and other resources for reselling cosmetics was already a widespread problem. Claudia was very aware that many of those massive PR boxes would be resold, and she could use the "problem" to create even more brand visibility by positioning ABH as a victim. If she had channeled all that energy into creating innovative products (as creative director), maybe ABH's business wouldn't be in such bad shape today?
In 1983, i won a runner up prize in a contest to name Sally Hansen nail polish. I got a 7 lb box of supplies and it remains one of the best moments of my life. I cant imagine getting the ABH full lineup lol. I would have been ever more excited by my contest lol, but my small town only got a few shades of the collection. I didnt realize for decades that they used one of my submissions for a polish, but not the one they gave a prize to.
You can’t say all that and then not give us the shade names 😩😂
share with the class.
STILL NO DETAILS?!
Great video Jenn!!!The Mario palette was my favorite. I still wish it would come back. ABH turned into a colorpop and a morphe with all the releases so I stop looking at the brand all together, I got tired of hearing about them. I’m sure the pandemic also affected the sales, I stop collecting eyeshadow palettes all together during that time. As a brand I agree with you, they completely blend with the rest now.
I have been absent from the “beauty space” for quite sometime now! But dayummmmm this was such a good video to get caught up on! Sultry is for sure my all-time fav ABH palette too!!!!!
I definitely fell for this and spammed my twitter feed with looks trying to get noticed. Two of my social media friends actually made the list.
I remember when I brought the Alyssa Edwards palette only because the Queen herself. It's still mint in the box and that purchase financially hurt but I was more hurt the fans were not for sale in Australia.
BEAST!
Anastasia has made it big in India, yes. However, slowly but surely, other brands (even some Indie and local ones) are taking over. Huda Beauty and Rare Beauty are huge here, for instance.
I love LOVE this series!!! You and Robert Welsh absolutely kill it with these videos ♥️♥️
Watching this go down in real time was definitely a ride. Sultry and Soft Glam are still some of my favorites. Great video. 💕
I do remember when “the list” was such a big thing and wondered how on earth that was sustainable. I knew people were going to get cut really quickly. I think if she had just done a giveaway she still would have gotten a lot of the benefits without all the hurt feelings. Last thing I heard about ABH was that they were in hot water for collaborating with a mlm.
At the time of this controversy, I think I was pretty burnt out on beauty drama so I never paid attention to it, but wow! I definitely agree with your opinion on why Norvina trimmed the list so much, but I think it could've been handled better. Thank you for another fabulous video, Jen!
Woo Hoo! Listening while working on a Friday!! Yes! 🎉
Happy Weekend Friends!! ❤
Also I think she was offended that people took advantage of her kindness and went and sold the makeup for a profit. I mean I would have been offended. Giving away is one thing, but selling it, I can see why she would have been offended.
i do also understand if people sold things they had duplicates of, it doesn’t make sense to have something that you aren’t gonna use, selling the whole pr kit is pretty crazy tho
The main thing I remember is influencers getting the ICK over the list. The brand was beloved. Then, Norvina started launching all of her products and ABH pumped out a few palettes in a row and they were also burned out.
It's interesting how these things happen. The rise and fall of the "It" brands.
I've never heard this story. Very interesting...I'd never buy. Because of the Pro Putin tweet. Brand owners need to keep their fingers quiet if they want to get new customers.
Thank you for your position ❤
I have several abh products, they were sent in my Ipsy boxes lol. I missed all of this as I didn’t really get “into” makeup until the lockdown. Before lockdown I wore makeup maybe 5 times a year, during lockdown I decided to try it to boost my mood after we lost my daughters dad to the plague. I now wear it most days, it makes me happy to play with it and I find it fun. The abh items I have are lovely, not up there with my precious items, but they get use and please me well enough. Have yet to ACTUALLY purchase anything of theirs but I keep getting more of them anyhow lol
So well done Jen. I knew some of what had happened but not the details. Keep this type of content coming. ❤️❤️❤️
The way I remember it too is she made it sound like if she saw your tweet and liked it you’d be added to the list. It was early on in the search and she liked my tweet, I thought I was in. When eventually people started asking her about it I tweeted her and asked her too and she gave me a short response and I could tell she was already overwhelmed and it wasn’t going to happen. She got a lot of people’s hopes up and then crushed it.
Yes!!! ABH was my absolute favorite!!!
I collected every pallet they made - but once the giant pallets started to come out: Norvina #1, 2, 3, 4, and so on - that’s when I stopped collecting - like you said they were launching so close together, much bigger palettes which took longer to explode, different consistency of the shadows, they didn’t seem to be like their usual 12 pan palettes that were flawless to use - I did notice though, the past few launches, they’ve gone back to the 12 pans and back to their original style - I need to try those to see if they are like the old ones that I loved!!
Love this!
I've been side-eyeing ABH for a while now. I very much enjoy my Subculture and Jackie Aina palettes, but not interested in the weirdness. Just over it.
Indian viewer here! 😄
Yes ABH did a huge push here, I remember cos it was around the same time smokey glow did a video about them. But I don’t see ABH presence in any of my circles. Competition here is fierce at that price range! Specially with brands like simplynam and kay beauty
I think the way to do the list would have been to make it more like a competition - something like “over the next 3 months we’re going to pick 100 small creators to add to our PR list”. Still send the massive PR box, because that’s part of what made it so incredible, but limit the number from the start to something manageable, & timebox it
Edit: well I should have waited. You totally touched on this after I commented. Lol
Is it weird that I relate to both sides of the pruning of "the list?"
It is absolutely valid that people would feel hurt or sad that they are no longer part of the group. I would definitely be disappointed as well. But PR is never guaranteed, and anyone at any time could be removed for any reason. It is but necessarily a reflection of one's talent or character
Wonderful content as always, Jen! I think if Norvina had managed her boundaries - offer 100 people one entire season of releases - she could have still built the excitement and the goodwill without the expectations of it necessarily continuing. They could access and continue or not from there with lower damage to their reputation and wallet.
I love the passion and hard work you consistently share with us! ❤
Perfect timing! I've been decluttering all morning because I'm moving soon! Exciting! Eating some spaghettios taking a little break :)
Spagetti-Os are so unappreciated in their time. 💜
I love these break-down videos! Well, all videos of Jen's, but especially these!
❤❤❤ Love these types of videos! Please keep doing them!! Thank you for all your hard work and delivering us great content!!! 🙌🙌🙌
I started getting into the beauty space late 2017ish but only to learn, not to participate. I’ve never bothered with other social media because I just like watching videos, so while I knew about the hype back then I didn’t care much and barely remember.
I do remember that ABH was the go to for brows, and I was pleased when I bought my first brow gel. Spring 2019 I grabbed a highlighter palette from Winners (Marshals) and thought I had hit the jackpot. I went back for the second one and sent it to my sister in law in Brasil along side a too faced chocolate palette and she nearly died of happiness. Stuff from too faced and abh was pretty much unattainable luxury there at that time.
Now, I have learned that I prefer a simpler style and don’t base my purchases around what’s popular. I want a good quality product that consistently preforms how I want it to, always looks good and is a good value for its price. I have curated my everyday makeup products to include only stuff like this, and keep it very simple; brows, mascara, tinted moisturizer, and currently looking for my perfect lip product(s)
For days I want more makeup I will add blush, eyeliner and a little eyeshadow but haven’t found any that are so good I will incorporate into my everyday routine.
It has been fun trying out new lip products, I think it might be a category where I change it up instead of always using the same thing. But I still haven’t found anything that is comfortable, looks good and stays on after I spend 40 minutes outside during lunch recess chasing around elementary students 😅
Great Video..what is amazing about you and your channel is you have been around and lived through alot of this...which makes your content always have that extra special missing piece that adds that personal effect that is so important to be a content creator!
I’m a person that works in a creative field. I can see where some people would think that being disappointed that you were cut from the PR list would sound entitled. HOWEVER, those people were put on the list for their skills and artistry. In literally any other case where your art (and yes makeup is an art; they’re not called makeup ARTISTS because it sounds fancy) is being judged, you would get an opportunity to ask why your work did or did not live up to an expectation, take the critique, and learn from it to better your work. None of these people received any sort of feedback about why they were cut, and therefore, were not given the opportunity to improve. I know that would be extremely devastating to me.
Yaaaass love your brand deep dives!!
Fascinating. As a makeup enthusiast, I have never been on a PR list. I have never even won a contest. I teach and come home. But I completely understand how upsetting it would be to be put on and then dropped from PR.😢
Great video Jen! I've lived through all the ABH hype and downturn. I remember an the pallets getting released and a lot of us putting pause on our purchases for ABH. I just recently bought soft glam 2, mini of soft glam and I'm very happy with it. Other than that I haven't purchased from them since modern renaissance.
adore the deep dives you do. you have a niche in this space and you’re so valued here ❤
Whether it was intentional or not I feel like when Natasha Denona started doing the midi size palettes she ended up filling the gap left by ABH and people started collecting the midi palettes instead. They are more expensive than the ABH palettes but not unattainable and there have been 3-4 palettes released each year so people who do collect them aren't bombarded with releases. It would be smart for her to continue that model going forward and learn from ABH's mistakes. The Putin thing was what did for me though with ABH...
I would love to one day own a ND palette, but every time I add one to my cart, I just can’t justify it 😭 the price tag hurts too much lol
This was so insightful! Thanks, Jen!
Always love your deep dives!!
Ok completely off topic but where is the adorably cozy looking top from? Just started watching but excited to see the rest!
Oh man I wanted to be on the list SO bad
As an experienced retail professional ❤ I never gave a brand that much power ❤ and the quality change was obvious 😅 I own one jackie Aina palette to collect and one Tanama (sorry for the misspelling) which has the original kick ass formula I was introduced to 😂 I am hoarding that palette
I have only one - the Jackie Aina. And I will be cremated with it. Never get too attached to any brand. Even my own brand ( retail worker too)
I love your content always, I always learn something from you. Keep up the good work. ❤
I was far more shocked by the fact that the ABH CEO liked and followed a pro-Putin social media influencer( among others, supposedly), since this is something that directly affects me, my family, my friends and millions of others. I’m glad Robert Welsh spoke about it. That is the final nail in the coffin.
Agreed and all ABH products are now boycotted by me. I remember well the boycott of South African brands - and look what that achieved! It may take some time but we have a choice what our hard earned money supports.
I love you Jen so so much you bring us back to points in our lives that make us remember why we love makeup.
You're videos never miss when I'm looking for podcast entertainment while working. 😂😊
I think they could do a few thinks back then:
1. Inform that they would put winners on the PR list for e.g. a year
2. Send just a few things in the initial box, and follow up with launches throughout the year
3. Limit the amount of winners and inform the publicic that there were e.g. 50 new spots
All of those would limit the costs for ABH and ensure that the public would be aware of the rules.
I love that they came out with the mini palettes! So smart!
The moon child glow kit had me in a chokehold for yearsss. I bought one from mercari as a teen and was so disappointed when I found out it was a FAKE! I bought a real one a few years back, it holds a special place in my heart.
Girl your hair looks incredible in this video!
thank you so much for this video!!! i truly appreciate and admire your honesty and your content. 🥰🥰🥰
I remember when everyone was so obsessed with trying to get on the list. It's so interesting to look back on. Especially knowing more now. I honestly haven't even thought about ABH since 😂
ooh. A Jen video 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾
🎉
This story is 🍌🍌! I knew that ABH was super popular and then faded out, but I have never heard of The List before today. What a phenomenon!!
I am Brazilian, and I love yours videos!
I wonder how many people ended up being in the list? Love this video!!! ❤
I am a ABH collector still to this day. Great quality. I am shocked. ❌️⭕️
Wow what a throwback. I was fighting for my life on twitter trying to get on that list
I never really got into collecting ABH products but I was at one point collecting the Dose of Colors quints and Sigma palettes. I still love both brands. I just tossed about half my eyeshadow collection due to age. The products still perform well but have a bit of a funky smell.
I will repurchase marvelous mauves and I think I'll try Baked Browns II to see if I can replicate the tine of Boho from Untamed. I loved that shadow so much.
Considering I never got close to hitting pan on some of the palettes I loved so much, and I can't even replace some of them it was a reminder to me to not go loco on the palettes. I've got about 15 left. I do have the 2 Dose of Colors palettes on my wishlist to grab during black Friday. I want the Lure collection from Blend Bunny, and I also really kind of want Sigma's Sleeping Beauty palette. I might just try to go for a couple of good neutral palettes and a couple of colorful palettes moving forward.
Hey Jen.. I was feeling super ick yesterday so I'm late to this video.. but I just gotta say, you look so beautiful. 🔥☺️
Luv when you go back & break everything down. It's like getting an extra dose of you on Sundays. 😂
hot take - I loved Prism and Sub Culture :D
I did too!
Does that shirt have a keyhole in the back???? I’m pretty sure I have the same one and it is my FAVORITE SHIRT IVE EVER OWNED
I remember when this happened. It was insane. I never owned any Anastasia products but some of my friends went insane over buying all the palettes.
Agree! You’re so right! And it even trickled down to the regular folks like me without a channel begging and entering all of the influencers contests because many of them were overwhelmed by the sheer volume of the PR package, so they started massive giveaways just because they knew they couldn’t use/store everything that had been given to them. I remember entering so many giveaway contests. Unfortunately, I never received or won anything, but I clearly remember being obsessed with those that offered giveaways as well as watching the influencers doing new looks with their ABH products and then following them on different socials so that I could win something in a giveaway! LOL
😂❤
I have an original Modern Renaissance palette and an original Amrezy Hightlighter, those were gifted to me, new, like 4 years ago by a dear friend. I still love them.
I remember the madness. I applied daily thinking I’d get on it but looking back my work was shite 😂
I have never owned an anastasia product but I have been looking for a go to eyeshadow pallet that can go from natural to evening to replace al my old once. And the pallet you showed looks like it could be what I'm looking for
My first ABH palette was the original Subculture, so I skipped ABH’s eyeshadows after that. I depotted the gold shade and I still have it, but I avoided ABH for years. The ULTA 21 Days of Beauty sales were tempting, but I resisted. Loved the brow pencils and brow powders. This year Modern Renaissance was in one of my Boxycharm by Ipsy boxes, so I’m revisiting their formula. Definitely a do your eyes first, then your foundation product because the fallout is so intense. I remember the FOMO.
Thank you for the video Jen. I was there but just watched it all from the sidelines.
This is the first time I hear about the Abh list. I wonder did people know why they were taken off from the list? Was it views they got, or makeup they did or…? If I were Norvina I’d definitely market it as a trial kit - one time only, as an influencer starter box. Or explain the idea a bit better as you said, I suppose not many people knew what it means to be on a PR List.
This is all new to me. I've always thought ABH was only brows. Wow! I need to get out of my pond more often!
I never got big in to ABH myself. I did finally try the Soft Glam palette last summer. It was a nice palette. I was impressed that it seemd like you couldn't go wrong with a look no matter what combination of colors you used. I decluttered it because it was a little to deep and the tones were a bit off for my skin tone and taste.
I loved the few videos norvina would do about the eyeshadow, formulas, and science behind them. I was like wow this is something different and cool and a look behind how things are created. But then she got so much into the social media thing and creating the Norvina collections, and I lost interest
There was a video about beauty dramas that I watched where a girl revealed information from statistics she bought from an American website. It indicated that the brand had taken a lot of money from third-party investors before the cheap Norvina line products and frequent palette releases came about. It is an assumption, but it was suggested that the brand shifted its focus towards profit under pressure from investors, causing a transformation in the brand, cause investors seemingly did not care about beauty world. However, since the video was released a few years ago, the details may not be entirely accurate, but the main idea remains that the brand's changes were driven by global and structural events rather than the owner's personality.
Jen you are very logical and business savvy in the way that you think an I love it! ❤
Regarding the ABH in India marketing push - my husband, while we were still dating and he was living overseas in India as an Indian citizen, sent me an ABH palette as a birthday present. So clearly its working for them!
My friend has the moon child higher pallet and she says she just keeps it cause she spent so much money on it even tho she doesn’t use it.
PR is free the people who receive it are not entitled to it. The PR is a gift if the company changes marketing strategies, people have no right to be upset. Everyone was given something for their efforts. This needs to be a lesson that nothing comes for free
It's also "spec work", basically running a contest in order to get free labour from artists
I'm from Bangladesh, a neighbour country of India. You're right Jen, ABH is quite booming here after Mac, Huda Beauty, Jeffree Star Cosmetics when it comes to mid range to luxury makeup.
And now we know how JS is still in business. He’s selling to the international market. Maybe they didn’t follow the mess.
Supporting Putin was my line. That was it for me. Cancelled
Wow. What a cluster. I just found your channel (YAY!) and have been binging your content. I am just getting back into makeup after not wearing it for...30 years?! So I never knew about this drama. It doesn't change my opinion of ABH - as the owner of a small skincare business, I can understand how things spiraled out of control and couldn't be sustained. The whole thing was just too bad. I think Norvina had good intentions - she just didn't realize what was going to happen. Things amplified quickly and became out of control. At the end of the day they are a cosmetics company and are out to make money. A lot of times feelings aren't considered when money is the bottom line - and didn't Norvina have to answer to investors? So regardless of her intentions, the investors speak loudly and they want their money. This video was very well done and explained the controversy exceptionally well - thank you for that. I now feel more educated! But I will continue buying good makeup - whether it comes from ABH or somewhere else. But then I don't buy my makeup based on brand names. I buy what I've heard is, or what I feel is the best quality for the money. Love your channel - thank you! ❤
It really hurts me how much of a bad rep the Subculture palette gets. To this day is still one of my most favorite palettes ever! I just love the colors! Specially during fall. I feel like I’m the only one on this world that actually loves it
No you are not. I didn’t buy it but the colour story I thought was pretty good.
What was the issue with the palette, I can’t remember. Was it the quality of some of the shades?
You might have the reformulated one
I’m with you- one of favorites. I think it was totally ahead of it’s time, and no one knew how to work with the formula.
Abh had a pot concealer back then and it made me look good in pictures. I miss it.
I personally don't feel bad for influencers who got dropped from the PR list because no contract was signed, and while I understand it sucks the brand had no obligation to keep sending free stuff to so many people. However an email warning the creator about it would have been a decent thing to do