An online exchange between China's 'Lipstick King' and a viewer over the affordability of an $11 beauty item shows just how messed up the country's economy is

Tech Insider : Economy, Economy
Beauty blogger Austin Li Jiaqi applies lipstick while livestreaming on the e-commerce platform Taobao on October 26, 2018 in Shanghai, China. 27-year-old man Austin Li Jiaqi, with a nickname 'Lipstick Brother', is the hottest online beauty blogger in China.

The rise and fall of Birchbox, the once-buzzy startup that was sold off twice in 2 years and has recently resumed shipping boxes

Tech Insider
birchbox retail store CHICAGO, IL - DECEMBER 11: Guests celebrate the arrival of the Birchbox retail experience at Walgreens in Chicago (410 N. Michigan Ave.) on December 11, 2018 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Daniel Boczarski/Getty Images for Walgreens)
Birchbox was acquired 10 years after launch for just $45 million.

Daniel Boczarski/Getty Images

I'm a beauty influencer who's gone on several brand trips. It may look glamorous, but they can be loads of work and I've experienced inequality on the job.

Tech Insider
influencer cynthia victor smiling
The 24-year-old Sri Lankan Tamil influencer left Rutgers University during the COVID-19 lockdown, and never looked back.

Cynthia Victor

I never thought I'd go into business. Now my sugar wax brand is on shelves in Ulta — here's what I've learned so far

Tech Insider : Style
Aliyah Marandiz holding Sugardoh
Sugardoh's TikTok page boasts over 530,000 followers with over 19 million likes, and features tips and tutorials on how to use their products.

Courtesy of Sugardoh

Olaplex is losing top employees as it faces falling sales and a hair-loss lawsuit

Tech Insider
An Olaplex shampoo bottle.
Olaplex employees, including two C-suite executives, have left the brand over the past several months.

Insider

3 things plaguing Olaplex that have nothing to do with the hair loss lawsuit

Tech Insider
An Olaplex shampoo bottle.
Olaplex faces multiple challenges, from fending off competitors to getting more stylists to recommend its products to customers, TD Cowen analysts say.

Insider

The 'lipstick index' strikes again: Beauty shoppers are still spending big, even as US consumers dial back on everything else

Tech Insider
A shopper looks at beauty products at an Ulta Beauty shop inside a Target store.
Target says Ulta Beauty sales in its stores increased fourfold from 2021 to 2022.

Target

TikTok's new Bold Glamour filter has gone viral for simulating 'mainstream beauty' but it's a reminder of how far AI has to go to integrate 'faces of color'

Tech Insider
Lakshmi Varanasi
The "Bold Glamour" version of me on the left and my minimal "no makeup" face on the right.

Lakshmi Varanasi

See Glossier founder Emily Weiss's wild ride from Teen Vogue 'super intern' to head of the billion-dollar beauty brand — and what's next now that she's no longer CEO

Tech Insider
Undated handout image of Glossier products. REUTERS/Glossier/Handout
Glossier is known for its low-key and natural-looking makeup and skincare.

Reuters

Walmart says it charged Beauty Box subscribers nearly $700 instead of $6.98 due to a 'coding error'

Tech Insider
Walmart Beauty Box
Walmart began selling its Beauty Box products in 2014.

Walmart

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