The Untold Truth Of CoverGirl

CoverGirl is positively iconic, and you even don't have to wear makeup to know that. CoverGirl is a household name, after all. The cosmetics company is one of the most well known in the world, and even those who aren't makeup gurus are probably familiar with the brand. CoverGirl has long been known for using famous models, actors, and other pop culture figures to represent the cosmetics line, but there is so much more to the company than gorgeous celebs and quality, affordable makeup.

If you think that you know everything there is to know about CoverGirl, think again. CoverGirl has a long and fascinating history that will be surprising even to those who consider themselves to be true CoverGirl aficionados. From the brand's early years to its continued impact on the beauty industry, to the possible future of the company, here's everything about CoverGirl that every beauty lover should know. 

When CoverGirl was launched, it wasn't as part of an independent cosmetics line. Instead, it was part of the Noxzema Chemical Company. Today, the name Noxzema is mostly recognized for Noxzema Skin Cream, a medicine cabinet staple for more than half a century. According to Byrdie, Noxzema was developed in the early 20th century as a sunburn remedy. It was later found to also help alleviate itchy skin and eczema, helping to ensure that it reached mainstream success.

By the 1950s, Noxzema Skin Cream was being sold as a cleanser and cold cream, and it became a part of the nighttime skincare routines of countless people. In the 21st century, Noxzema is still a budget beauty must-have that is widely used, although it's considered to be a bit old-fashioned these days. Even if you don't use the product yourself, though, you are still likely to find a bottle of the drugstore cold cream on your mother's nightstand.

CoverGirl was determined to be cost-efficient from the very beginning, according to Cosmetics and Skin. In its early years, it deliberately targeted girls and young women, keeping the price point low and selling the products in drugstores and grocery stores where young, savvy shoppers were the most likely to buy cosmetics. 

Beginning in 1962, CoverGirl began running the Co-Ed High School Cover Girl Contest which encouraged teenage girls to apply. Prizes included posing for the magazine Co-Ed, a year's supply of CoverGirl makeup, and a $100 U.S. savings bond. Although the schoolgirls who entered and won the contest were not exactly the glamorous models who would soon become the face of the company, they helped CoverGirl market the brand to adolescents and young adults. Featuring high school students also helped CoverGirl cultivate a youthful, wholesome image for its brand.

CoverGirl has boasted some pretty big names as its spokesmodels. Following Jennifer O'Neill's debut as the first CoverGirl in 1963, other high profile spokeswomen have included U.S. gymnasts Shawn Johnson, Nastia Liukin, and Alicia Sacramone, as well as celebrities Drew Barrymore, Queen Latifah, Cheryl Tiegs, Rachel Hunter, Niki Taylor, and Molly Sims.

CoverGirl doesn't just look for beautiful celebrities to represent their brand. They also expect their spokespeople to embody characteristics that the company values. When Johnson, Liukin, and Sacramone were appointed as CoverGirl spokesmodels in 2008, vice president and general manager of CoverGirl Cosmetics in North America Esi Eggleston Bracey revealed the qualities they had that made them CoverGirl material. "Shawn, Nastia and Alicia are wonderful additions to the CoverGirl family, representing CoverGirl ideals of both inner and outer beauty," Bracey said in a press release (via Investor Village). "We want to honor their confidence and help them shine in the spotlight. We are thrilled they are lending their beautiful faces to CoverGirl."

Model Christie Brinkley was with CoverGirl for decades, and she's had the beauty industry's longest running cosmetics contract. Brinkley was named the face of CoverGirl in 1976, according to The American Beauty Industry Encyclopedia, and she continued to be one of CoverGirl's spokesmodels for 25 years, as noted by Byrdie. Her appointment caused a huge rise in CoverGirl's popularity. It's clear that her impact on CoverGirl was massive, as it continues even today.

Brinkley has been around long enough to see the beauty and modeling industries change significantly. "Authenticity is really being appreciated now, more so than when I started my career," the CoverGirl representative told Byrdie in 2018. "It gives us such a colorful prism to see the world through — different viewpoints; personalities; and unexpected, empowering moments. I think that's a really beautiful, exciting thing and a powerful thing for people coming up in the business now. You don't have to feel so stagnant or like you're waiting for an opportunity. You're making it, making opportunities every day. That's huge."

CoverGirl has promoted diversity by hiring members of other communities underrepresented in the beauty industry. In 2016, Nura Afia became the brand's first Muslim ambassador. In 2018, model Amy Deanna became the first CoverGirl model to have vitiligo, a condition which, as explained by The Independent, causes white patches to appear on the skin due to a lack of pigmentation. The condition affects one percent of the world's population, but, until Deanna came along, models with vitiligo hadn't appeared in major ad campaigns. 

"Vitiligo awareness is something that is very important to me," Deanna told PeopleStyle. "Being given a platform to do so means so much... At the end of the day I am just like everyone else, I just happen to have spots. It's a part of my identity, but it doesn't define who I am... For there to be so many of us and so little representation, it's truly disheartening. I work with CoverGirl; I'm a black woman; I have vitiligo. That is empowering."

In 2015, Coty acquired CoverGirl, along with 42 other beauty brands, from Proctor & Gamble in a $15 billion deal, as reported by USA Today. The transaction made Coty one of the world's largest beauty brands, giving them not just CoverGirl but other major lines like Clairol hair care and Max Factor makeup. Coty already owned quite a few big label brands of its own at the time, including Calvin Klein perfume and Rimmel cosmetics. The acquisition didn't just make Coty one of the world's biggest beauty brands, but also the world's top fragrance brand.

"With the beauty talent from both sides and the fantastic portfolio of world-class brands, we have the opportunity to create a highly focused, pure-play leader and challenger in beauty which can deliver exciting opportunities and benefits for employees, licensors, customers and suppliers," said Bart Becht, Coty's chairman, at the time (via USA Today).

In spite of CoverGirl's seemingly large hold on the cosmetics industry, the brand isn't doing so well and its future may be in danger. In July 2019, shares of Coty plummeted as the company wrote down $3 billion in value of the brands they acquired from Procter & Gamble in 2016 — including CoverGirl. The Motley Fool reported in April 2019 that, according to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence, Coty stock lost 67 percent in value over the previous year as CoverGirl and other Coty-owned brands experienced declining sales due to supply chain disruptions and competition from newer brands, such as Kylie Cosmetics and Nyx. 

Coty's four-year restructuring plan has the company feeling optimistic, though. In a call with analysts (via Reuters), Coty's CEO Pierre Laubies said, "If we are able to stabilize our share in this moderately declining category, this will allow Coty to return back to growth."