The most important person in beauty you’ve never heard of.
Do you have a career crush?
Last night, I listened to Jenny Slate read from her book Lifeform at a book club that Margaux hosted in the townhouse above the Lingua Franca store on Jane Street. I texted my husband in the middle of the talk, “I’m somewhere beautiful.” It was a specifically special room. Something about a space full of women talking about aging and motherhood and breakups (Thessaly La Force led the conversation) while rain was pouring on the windows in the background. I don’t know. It was also nice to meet some Feed Me readers who happened to be there.
Today’s letter is not about the $1B Rhode news, because there is nothing I have to add to that conversation. Instead, today I will give you two beauty stories you won’t read anywhere else today:
An interview with the most important product developer in the industry, Alexis Page.
A dispatch from Feed Me’s assistant
, who wrote about Kiehl’s from under the halogen lights of a hedge fund office in midtown. What he’s doing there is none of my business, as long as he keeps grinding for Feed Me.
I don’t really get career crushes. There are impressive people whose inner lives and daily routines I’m curious about, and whose advice I’d consider. But I’ve never worked for someone whose path I wanted to emulate or had someone whose resume I’d pinned to a proverbial bulletin board.
That list of impressive people whose advice I’d consider is medium in size, and one of the people on that list is Alexis Page. She’s also one of two people on the list who went to my alma mater, FIT.
Maybe you’ve heard of Alexis Page. If you have, it’s probably because you were an obsessive reader of Into the Gloss in 2019. Or you listened to the now-lost-to-cyberspace podcast, Not Really, during the pandemic (really wish those archives existed somewhere). If you haven’t heard of Alexis, who was Glossier’s original director of product development (who also came up with that signature pink pouch), here is how she has been described by the media:
“The most important person in beauty you’ve never heard of… A long-standing downtown girl, Page is in just about every Misshapes photo from the aughts.” - AirMail
“An IYKYK beauty ‘It’ girl.” - Puck
“One of the most sought-after product developers in the beauty industry.” -
“Alexis is one of the few characters that comes away unscathed in the Glossier tell-all by Marisa Meltzer. We met because she was on a podcast and I thought she was so smart I wrote her a fan letter.” -
’ Gift Guide“Every single person in the beauty industry knows Alexis: She’s just that good.” -
for New York MagazineAlexis’s career has always been a bit mysterious to me which is frankly, refreshing. Recently, she’s been in the news because she worked on Savannah James' gorgeous new skincare line, Reframe Beauty. Last week, when I was scrolling through the colorful launch page of Reframe Beauty and learning about Alexis’s work on the brand, I found myself thinking, How did Alexis get here?
Below, a little conversation with Alexis about the psychology of a purchase, pilates, and why brands should consider a higher level of excellence.
Reframe launched with a set of three foundational products. Why did you decide to start with those specific three products?
Savannah is one of the only people I've met who's as obsessed with products as I am. She's tried everything and is an accidental expert. She had a super clear vision for what she wanted to launch with and was really down to explore unique textures, which are kind of my calling card, so I knew we would have fun. We went to Korea twice to check out the beauty scene there, visit manufacturers and research new innovations. She always led with the idea of reframing what clinical skincare could be - it has to be proven effective, but we want it to look and feel great. When you're having a "good skin day", what does that mean? It's bright, it's tight, it's hydrated. The three launch products get you there.
Savannah James told Complex that you're the "the best product developer and innovator. Air Mail called you "The most important person in beauty you’ve never heard of." What quality of yours do you contribute your success to?