Leonard Lauder
Encyclopedia
Leonard A. Lauder is chairman emeritus of The Estée Lauder Companies Inc.
He was chief executive until 1999. Today Estée Lauder operates several brands in the cosmetics industry including Estée Lauder
, Clinique
, MAC Cosmetics
, Aveda
, Bobbi Brown
and La Mer
. Leonard Lauder gained notoriety in 2001 for creating the Lipstick index
, a since discredited economic indicator
.
, and the older brother of Ronald Lauder
. He married Evelyn Hausner
in July 1959. They had two sons: William
, executive chairman of the Estée Lauder Companies; and Gary, managing director of Lauder Partners LLC.
He is a graduate of the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania
, and he also studied at Columbia University's Graduate School of Business
. He served as a lieutenant in the U.S. Navy. He formally joined Estée Lauder in 1958.
, where he has been chairman since 1994. He has donated both money and many works of art to the Whitney, and is the museum's most prolific fundraiser. The fifth floor permanent collection galleries are named for him and his wife, Evelyn. In 1998, he told a reporter for the New York Times that his "dream job" was to be the Whitney Museum's director. Most recently Lauder gave $131 million for the Whitney's endowment.
Lauder is a major art collector (he began by buying Art Deco
postcards when he was six), but his particular focus, rather than on American artists, is on works by the Cubist
masters Picasso
, Braque
, Gris
, and Léger
. He also collects Klimt
.
Lauder's interest in postcards led him to be acquainted with one of the owners of the Gotham Book Mart
, a well-known Manhattan bookstore, and he sought to help the Gotham reestablish its presence in the city when the owner had sold its longtime building and needed a new space. Lauder bought a building at 16 East 46th Street along with a partner, letting the building's storefront space to the Gotham. Later, the Gotham fell behind on rents, eventually resulting in Lauder and his partner to file for eviction. In a much-publicised closure of the renowned bookstore, the city marshall later auctioned the store's inventory, which was bought in a lot by Lauder and his partner to some protest from many other independent book sellers and collectors who were present at the proceedings and hoping to purchase some of the bibliophilic treasures.
Estée Lauder Companies
Estée Lauder Companies, Inc. is a manufacturer and marketer of prestige skincare, makeup, fragrance and hair care products. The company has its headquarters in Midtown Manhattan, New York City.-History:...
He was chief executive until 1999. Today Estée Lauder operates several brands in the cosmetics industry including Estée Lauder
Estée Lauder
Estée Lauder may refer to:* Estée Lauder * Estée Lauder Companies...
, Clinique
Clinique
Clinique is a manufacturer of skincare, cosmetics, toiletries and fragrances, owned by the Estée Lauder Corporation.- History :In 1967, American Vogue magazine published an article called “Can Great Skin Be Created?”, written by beauty editor Carol Phillips with Dr. Norman Orentreich, discussing...
, MAC Cosmetics
Make-up Art Cosmetics
Make-up Art Cosmetics, better known as M·A·C or MAC Cosmetics, is a manufacturer of cosmetics founded in Toronto, Canada and headquartered in New York City, New York.-History:...
, Aveda
Aveda
Aveda Corporation is a company headquartered in Blaine, Minnesota, that manufactures skin care, cosmetics, perfume, hair care products, and trains students in cosmetology and esthiology at the Aveda Institutes in Minneapolis, New York City, Washington, DC, Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto and many other...
, Bobbi Brown
Bobbi Brown
Bobbi Brown is the founder and CEO of Bobbi Brown Cosmetics. Her products are sold in over 988 stores and 56 countries worldwide.-Biography:From a young age, Bobbi loved makeup...
and La Mer
La Mer (cosmetics)
La Mer is a brand of cosmetics available to the public as a whole, and is owned by Estée Lauder and by a German cosmetic company.-Products:La mer is a German cosmetic company based in Cuxhaven...
. Leonard Lauder gained notoriety in 2001 for creating the Lipstick index
Lipstick index
The lipstick index is a term coined by Leonard Lauder, chairman of the board of Estee Lauder, used to describe increased sales of cosmetics during the Early 2000s recession. Lauder made the claim that lipstick sales could be an economic indicator, in that purchases of cosmetics - lipstick in...
, a since discredited economic indicator
Economic indicator
An economic indicator is a statistic about the economy. Economic indicators allow analysis of economic performance and predictions of future performance. One application of economic indicators is the study of business cycles....
.
Biography
Leonard Lauder comes from the Lauder family, a prominent American Jewish family of Hungarian and Czechoslovak descent in the cosmetics business; he is the son of Joseph and Estée LauderEstée Lauder (person)
Estée Lauder was an American businesswoman who was the co-founder, along with her husband Joseph Lauder, of Estée Lauder Companies, a pioneering cosmetics company. Lauder was the only woman on TIME magazine's 1998 list of the 20 most influential business geniuses of the 20th century. She was the...
, and the older brother of Ronald Lauder
Ronald Lauder
Ronald Steven Lauder is a Jewish-American businessman, civic leader, philanthropist, and art collector. Forbes lists Lauder among the richest people of the world with an estimated net worth of $3.0 billion in 2007.-Life and career:...
. He married Evelyn Hausner
Evelyn Lauder
Evelyn Lauder was an American socialite and philanthropist who has been credited as one of the creators and popularizers of the pink ribbon as a symbol for awareness of breast cancer....
in July 1959. They had two sons: William
William P. Lauder
William P. Lauder is Executive Chairman and Chairman of The Estée Lauder Companies' board of directors. The Estée Lauder Companies is recognized as a global premium consumer goods company by the investment community and is one of the world's leading manufacturers and marketers of quality skin care,...
, executive chairman of the Estée Lauder Companies; and Gary, managing director of Lauder Partners LLC.
He is a graduate of the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania
Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania
The Wharton School is the business school of the University of Pennsylvania, an Ivy League university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Wharton was the world’s first collegiate business school and the first business school in the United States...
, and he also studied at Columbia University's Graduate School of Business
Columbia Business School
Columbia Business School is the business school of Columbia University in Manhattan, New York City. It was established in 1916 to provide business training and professional preparation for undergraduate and graduate Columbia University students...
. He served as a lieutenant in the U.S. Navy. He formally joined Estée Lauder in 1958.
Arts and culture
Leonard Lauder has long been a major benefactor of the Whitney Museum of American ArtWhitney Museum of American Art
The Whitney Museum of American Art, often referred to simply as "the Whitney", is an art museum with a focus on 20th- and 21st-century American art. Located at 945 Madison Avenue at 75th Street in New York City, the Whitney's permanent collection contains more than 18,000 works in a wide variety of...
, where he has been chairman since 1994. He has donated both money and many works of art to the Whitney, and is the museum's most prolific fundraiser. The fifth floor permanent collection galleries are named for him and his wife, Evelyn. In 1998, he told a reporter for the New York Times that his "dream job" was to be the Whitney Museum's director. Most recently Lauder gave $131 million for the Whitney's endowment.
Lauder is a major art collector (he began by buying Art Deco
Art Deco
Art deco , or deco, is an eclectic artistic and design style that began in Paris in the 1920s and flourished internationally throughout the 1930s, into the World War II era. The style influenced all areas of design, including architecture and interior design, industrial design, fashion and...
postcards when he was six), but his particular focus, rather than on American artists, is on works by the Cubist
Cubism
Cubism was a 20th century avant-garde art movement, pioneered by Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque, that revolutionized European painting and sculpture, and inspired related movements in music, literature and architecture...
masters Picasso
Pablo Picasso
Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santísima Trinidad Ruiz y Picasso known as Pablo Ruiz Picasso was a Spanish expatriate painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist, and stage designer, one of the greatest and most influential artists of the...
, Braque
Georges Braque
Georges Braque[p] was a major 20th century French painter and sculptor who, along with Pablo Picasso, developed the art style known as Cubism.-Early Life:...
, Gris
Juan Gris
José Victoriano González-Pérez , better known as Juan Gris, was a Spanish painter and sculptor who lived and worked in France most of his life...
, and Léger
Fernand Léger
Joseph Fernand Henri Léger was a French painter, sculptor, and filmmaker. In his early works he created a personal form of Cubism which he gradually modified into a more figurative, populist style...
. He also collects Klimt
Gustav Klimt
Gustav Klimt was an Austrian Symbolist painter and one of the most prominent members of the Vienna Secession movement. His major works include paintings, murals, sketches, and other art objects...
.
Lauder's interest in postcards led him to be acquainted with one of the owners of the Gotham Book Mart
Gotham Book Mart
The Gotham Book Mart, in operation from 1920 to 2007, was a famous midtown Manhattan bookstore and cultural landmark. The business was located first in a small basement space on West 45th Street near the Theater District, it then moved to 51 West 47th Street, then spent many years at 41 West 47th...
, a well-known Manhattan bookstore, and he sought to help the Gotham reestablish its presence in the city when the owner had sold its longtime building and needed a new space. Lauder bought a building at 16 East 46th Street along with a partner, letting the building's storefront space to the Gotham. Later, the Gotham fell behind on rents, eventually resulting in Lauder and his partner to file for eviction. In a much-publicised closure of the renowned bookstore, the city marshall later auctioned the store's inventory, which was bought in a lot by Lauder and his partner to some protest from many other independent book sellers and collectors who were present at the proceedings and hoping to purchase some of the bibliophilic treasures.