By Jia Lissa 
In October 1996, a period marked by the New York Yankees’ imminent World Series triumph, Bill Clinton’s re-election trajectory, and the nascent popularity of Chanel’s "Vamp" nail polish, Allure magazine embarked on a groundbreaking initiative: the inaugural Best of Beauty awards. This pioneering endeavor, born from a desire to demystify the overwhelming landscape of beauty products for consumers, fundamentally altered how beauty recommendations were perceived and consumed, establishing a new benchmark for editorial integrity and consumer trust.
A Radical Concept in a Pre-Digital Age
At a time when the internet was largely a dial-up experience and social media was a distant concept, Allure’s decision to rigorously test and definitively declare the "best" product in each category was revolutionary. Unlike many women’s magazines that shied away from explicit comparisons, Allure aimed to fill a critical information void. The October 1996 issue, featuring the first list of 234 award winners, became an immediate sensation. Readers eagerly tore out pages, leading to unexpected stock shortages for many of the recognized products, including the now-iconic Chanel "Vamp."
Linda Wells, the founding editor-in-chief, recalled the initial trepidation surrounding the project. "Because of the initial misgivings about the project, we tiptoed into Best of Beauty, and deliberately didn’t have a party to celebrate it," Wells stated. "It became something that people anticipated. It became a seal. It became advertising, licensing. It became a Today show segment, but none of that happened at the beginning." The success, however, was undeniable, transforming a cautious experiment into a cornerstone of the beauty industry.
The Vision: Empowering the Consumer
The inspiration for the Best of Beauty awards stemmed from Wells’ personal experiences navigating the beauty aisles. "When you’re a beauty editor, you don’t live in the real world. You’re separate and insulated from the experience of shopping for beauty products," Wells explained. "I remember going into a drugstore—I think I had to buy shampoo—and thinking, This is impossible! I don’t even know where to start, and I know all these products." This realization highlighted a significant disconnect between industry expertise and consumer accessibility.
Drawing a parallel to the wine industry’s reliance on numerical rating systems, such as those popularized by Robert Parker, Wells envisioned a similar, albeit editorial, approach for beauty. "While we couldn’t come up with a numerical system, I thought that maybe, with all the knowledge that we have of products, we could select the best in each category to help readers find the best ones," she said. This concept leveraged Allure’s team of beauty editors and its network of contributors, including renowned makeup artist Kevyn Aucoin, to provide an informed, curated selection.
Navigating Industry Resistance
The radical nature of the awards did not go unnoticed by the beauty industry. Carol Hamilton, then vice president of marketing for L’Oréal Paris, acknowledged the initial consternation. "When Allure was born—before the awards—I was vice president of marketing for L’Oréal Paris, and what Linda was doing was so controversial," Hamilton recalled. "There was a lot of consternation, at least from L’Oréal, like, ‘How dare you judge our product!’" This sentiment was echoed by other major brands, many of whom expressed objections and even threatened to withdraw advertising.
S.I. Newhouse, then chairman and CEO of Condé Nast, provided crucial backing, a stance that had been instrumental in Allure’s launch. "He was never afraid of advertisers pulling their ads. Advertisers cancelled their campaigns over and over again in the early years of Allure, and S.I. supported the magazine and me through it all," Wells noted. Newhouse’s initial concern, however, centered on the potential backlash from brands whose products were not selected. "How would one beauty company feel when we named another company’s mascara or lipstick or whatever ‘the best’?" he reportedly asked. "And what gave us the authority to be so definitive? We weren’t Consumer Reports or Good Housekeeping, with a lab or a test kitchen full of scientists. We were naming our favorites based on our opinion."
Wells countered these concerns by emphasizing the rigorous, albeit subjective, nature of Allure’s evaluations. The magazine’s editorial team engaged in extensive testing, comparing products side-by-side and consulting with industry professionals. "We put all those products through a great deal of scrutiny in order to be sure that what we were choosing lived up to the designation ‘best of beauty’," Wells asserted. This commitment to thoroughness, even without a formal laboratory, distinguished the awards from mere opinion pieces.
The Rigorous Testing Process
The initial preparation for the Best of Beauty awards involved a significant logistical undertaking. Kristin Perrotta, an editorial assistant at the time who would later rise to beauty director, described the scene. "By the time I started, the products [to test] were already there. I’d never seen so many products. This was before Sephora had hit the US, but it would’ve been like a Sephora had exploded in our offices," Perrotta recounted. Boxes and bags of products filled hallways and offices, requiring a dedicated effort to manage.
To handle the sheer volume, Perrotta and her colleagues enlisted the help of friends and boyfriends, organizing "pizza parties" for weekend and evening testing sessions. Freelance writers, beauty professionals, and even socialites contributed to the evaluation process. Furthermore, the Best of Beauty awards ran concurrently with Reader’s Choice polls, adding another layer of data collection. "I also dealt with the reader ballots, because back then, Best of Beauty and Readers’ Choice ran at the same time," Perrotta added.
The descriptive language used to characterize the products was also a significant focus. Jennifer Tung, a staff writer, recalled the meticulous effort involved: "I remember having bags and bags of things in my little apartment and individually testing a million things and having to be like, ‘Does it feel like yogurt?’ Or, ‘What’s the consistency of this cream?’ At one point I ran out of adjectives." The aim was to be both precise and engaging, capturing the essence of each winning product.
The October Launch Strategy
The decision to launch the Best of Beauty awards in October was a strategic one, designed to avoid direct competition with the highly anticipated September fashion issues and to place the awards well before the holiday shopping season. This timing, however, unintentionally set a precedent. "It was always so funny because then, when every other magazine decided to do their version of Best of Beauty, they did it in October too," Wells observed. "I was like, ‘You realize that this was a totally random reason for us to do it in October?’"
The Unprecedented Response: A Sales Phenomenon
The immediate aftermath of the first Best of Beauty awards was nothing short of spectacular. "Right from the beginning, it was a sales phenomenon," Wells stated. "It was met with real positivity from the companies, but more importantly, the readers loved it." With Allure’s circulation at approximately three million readers at the time, the impact was immense. Brands were caught off guard by the surge in demand, often unprepared for the sudden depletion of their winning products.
The awards also played a crucial role in elevating lesser-known brands. "There’d be some niche product [that would win], and it would often take the brand fully by surprise. It would make the product a success," Wells noted. "We’d hear that over and over again from these indie brands: ‘You made our business. We didn’t think we were going to survive had it not been for a Best of Beauty award.’" This underscored the awards’ commitment to genuine merit over brand recognition.
Hamilton further elaborated on the significance of this editorial curation. "I think Best of Beauty was very powerful because it was one of the first curations of beauty products [presented] in a way that the consumer could relate to," she said. "It was from an editorial perspective rather than a brand perspective, and I think that was what made it very exciting." The awards provided a trusted filter, empowering consumers to navigate the increasingly complex beauty market.
Evolution of the Awards: From Breakfast to Black-Tie
Initially, Allure shied away from a formal awards ceremony. "Because of the initial misgivings about the project, we didn’t make a lot of noise about the awards," Wells explained. "Eventually, as we became more confident, we had an event." The first official event was a breakfast held in 2001 at the Four Seasons Restaurant in New York City.
A decade later, for the 10th anniversary in 2006, Allure transformed the celebration into a lavish party at the iconic Rainbow Room. This event became a highly anticipated fixture in the beauty industry calendar. "We threw the party at the Rainbow Room and set up installations all around the room showcasing the winners by category, so when you walked in, it was like an exhibit," recalled Nancy Berger, publisher. Guests received early copies of the October issue, adding to the excitement.
The "goody bags" at these events became legendary. Initially heavy canvas totes, they evolved into wheeled suitcases overflowing with full-size beauty products. These suitcases, often valued at over $3,500 and weighing up to 70 pounds, became a symbol of prestige and a coveted item for attendees. "The suitcase was the definition of swag," Hamilton remarked. "You’d walk out and feel like you just won the beauty lottery." This practice not only delighted attendees but also fostered a sense of community within the beauty industry.
The Iconic Seal of Approval
As the Best of Beauty awards gained prominence, the need for a recognizable symbol of endorsement became apparent. The Allure Best of Beauty seal, a vibrant red circle with white lettering, emerged as a powerful branding tool. Deanna Filippo, design director, drew inspiration from earlier Allure design elements, incorporating stars and a bold color palette to create a visually striking and sophisticated mark.
"I wanted a color that wouldn’t go unnoticed and a symbol that portrayed Allure’s unique boldness and became a stamp of approval," Filippo stated. The seal’s immediate impact on product sales and brand recognition was profound. "The seal hasn’t changed much since we designed it. The color, the shape, the easy wording," Berger observed, highlighting its enduring design.
The seal’s utility extended beyond print. Brands began incorporating it into their advertising and product packaging, further amplifying its reach and credibility. "When the seal started to be used in advertising, that ended up really being a beacon," Wells said. "And it was a great marketing tool for us. Even though it was being used to market the product, it was also a very good rub-off effect on us. Allure was the ultimate stamp of excellence." This strategic integration transformed the seal into a trusted validation for consumers at the point of purchase.
Expanding Categories and Introducing Breakthroughs
Over the years, the Best of Beauty awards evolved to reflect the dynamic nature of the beauty industry. The introduction of the "Breakthroughs" category in 2002 acknowledged innovative products and technologies that pushed the boundaries of beauty science. Wells expressed enthusiasm for this addition, noting, "The Breakthroughs category was something I was really excited about because I felt like one of the things that the beauty industry often wasn’t given credit for was the fact that there were really legitimate breakthroughs in the business."
This category celebrated everything from ingenious mascara wand designs to complex formulations developed by scientific teams. The expansion also led to the separation of the Best of Beauty and Readers’ Choice awards into distinct issues, recognizing the value of both expert editorial judgment and consumer sentiment. "I also thought that our readers are experts in their own right. I mean, they know a lot, and so I felt like it was fair to have their expertise be held up and revered and not just footnoted," Wells explained.
Further adaptations included the introduction of "Splurge" and "Steals" categories, acknowledging the diverse price points within the beauty market and catering to a wider range of consumer budgets. The proliferation of new product types, such as serums and essences, and the increasing complexity of hair care, with the rise of scalp health products, also necessitated the creation of more specialized categories, mirroring the industry’s growth and diversification.
The Enduring Legacy: A Beacon of Trust
Nearly three decades after its inception, the Allure Best of Beauty awards continue to hold significant sway in the beauty industry. The awards have not only influenced consumer purchasing decisions but have also provided invaluable recognition and validation for brands. The seal remains a powerful endorsement, a testament to Allure’s unwavering commitment to editorial integrity and its dedication to serving the reader.
"To this day, I always buy things I see with the Allure seal. It’s a really powerful endorsement," Perrotta affirmed. Berger highlighted the internal impact: "Winning an award, it wasn’t just a marketing vehicle, it was also recognition, internally, that that product, that ingredient, that combination of ingredients, that was the award winner."
Ultimately, the Allure Best of Beauty awards stand as a monumental achievement in consumer advocacy. What began as a bold experiment to provide clarity in a saturated market has evolved into an indispensable guide, empowering millions of consumers to make informed choices and discover the very best in beauty. The awards’ enduring success lies in their steadfast dedication to their original mission: to help the reader, unequivocally and independently.
