The True Nature and Spirit of an Enterprise Shine Bright in Tougher Times

With the unexpected pandemic, the global retailing industry faces sudden and drastic changes. During this tough time where the surging sales has come to a screeching halt, how does Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (ELC) support its employees around the world, and uphold the core corporate value of “family” to protect consumers and employees in the face of adversities?

Although the pandemic has kept us apart with social distancing rules in place, deep down inside, we remain closely together. 
Over the past two months, people have avoided contact and seldomly talked with others due to safety considerations. In surreal scenes of empty airports and shopping malls, the number of those working there far exceeds the daily total of visitors. 

ELC Prioritizes Employees 
Prudently Taking Care of Employees in All Aspects 

A counter saleslady of ELC recalls when she was attending a customer on February 6, at the beginning of the outbreak, she noticed the unusually high body temperature of the customer. She was shocked to learn that the customer had just returned from Hubei Province, and it was the last day of her home isolation. Despite her fear, the saleslady remained professional and calm, put aside her anxiety and worries, and wrapped up the trial session with a customer-first attitude. 

She kept her smile and after bidding farewell with the customer, she immediately notified her supervisor. Upon learning the situation, ELC asked the saleslady to immediately sanitize all objects that came into contact with the customer and herself, and get off work and go straight home. ELC asked her not to ride public transportation on her way home, and provided her related information on medical resources. At the office, senior executives also convened an emergency meeting. In addition to establishing a taskforce for the case, and take care of all the things this saleslady should be concerned with, including immediately granting her a two-week paid leave and designating personnel to check up on her daily and referring her to medical assistance, ELC also notified the department store to launch full-scale disinfection measures. The saleslady recalls that she rested at home free of worries for 14 days and received daily calls from ELC, and was touched by the company’s warm care. 

ELC also continued to follow up on the customer’s health status. Although both the customer and the saleslady were proven uninfected after being tested, the saleslady was proud of ELC’s crisis management, opting to protect employees first. ELC was the first in the industry to procure infrared forehead thermometers, gloves, and alcohol, to ensure the safety of all counter salespeople, and immediately launched the mechanism of resources dispatch and coordination, collecting all masks available to protect the employees working on the first line of service. 

At the height of the pandemic, ELC headquarters prioritized protection of employees and customers; sacrificing sales and profits, ELC instructed all countries around the world to adopt “No Touch Service.” In Taiwan, ELC was the only cosmetics company to implement No Touch Service. Considerate and friendly one-on-one service was the High Touch Service the cosmetics industry prided itself for. With a global policy of No Touch Service, ELC would inevitably suffer losses in revenue. However, with safety of employees and customers as the top priority, ELC’s decision-making team did not hesitate to make the transition from High Touch to No Touch, fully displaying ELC’s principle and resolution of protecting its employees and customers. Managing Director Catherine of ELC Taiwan said that, when she first received the instruction of No Touch Service, she struggled a bit within, but she immediately realized that ELC was brave and responsible to make this decision to protect its employees and customers. During times of drastic changes, a truly respectable and visionary company is one that does not fixate on short-term profits, and strives for sustainability and protection of its human asset. 

ELC Cares for Employees around the World
Ensuring Post-Pandemic Protection

ELC headquarters in NYC has launched a number of initiatives to support the fight against the pandemic: ELC donated to “Doctors without Borders” to bring medical resources to regions in need, and prepared reserves to support subsidiaries across the globe. To contain the spread of the pandemic, ELC has deployed employees with medical expertise and factories around the world to produce hand sanitizers for regions of high demands. 

Nonetheless, as a company that has always regarded its employees as part of the family, ELC is more concerned with post-pandemic protection of employees and their families. Over the past few months, the pandemic has hampered global economy. Anticipating the potential financial losses of its employees and their families around the world as the result of the pandemic, as well as decreased incomes due to decreased number of customers, Estée Lauder Companies has specially established the “ELC Cares Employee Relief Fund.” Employees struggling financially can apply anonymously through internal system for subsidies. ELC regards its employees as the most precious assets, offering its global employees a peace of mind and warmth. Being part of the ELC family, all branch companies around the world have long fought together, achieving great feats in the cosmetics industry and embracing countless glorious moments. Let’s work together through this difficult time, and we will definitely see a brighter future. 

Corporate Humanitarian Spirit Originates from Family and Civic Responsibility

During the pandemic, ELC not only ensures employee income, but is more concerned with the health and safety of employees and consumers. These core values are heritages passed down in the family-controlled company. At ELC, “family” not only refers to employees, but also consumers. Its attitude of valuing family more than profit further reveals how much emphasis ELC puts on the core values. 

Furthermore, ELC strives to keep pace with time, and is an industry leader in corporate social responsibility. 
In as early as the 1990s, ELC led the trend of “Cause Marketing.” According to Wikipedia, “Cause Marketing” is marketing done by a for-profit business that seeks to both increase profits and to better society in accordance with corporate social responsibility. At the time, Mrs. Lauder initiated the “Pink Ribbon” campaign for breast cancer awareness, and founded the M.A.C. Aids Fund. Both endeavors have continued until today. 

In 2019, ELC was recognized by Human Rights Campaign with a perfect score of 100 percent on the Corporate Equality Index for its efforts in women’s rights and gender equality. In the same year, Forbes Magazine also ranked ELC atop the list of “Best Employers for Women.” 

As the top American cosmetics group, ELC was founded by Mrs. Lauder in NYC in 1946. Currently, ELC owns some of the most popular brands in the world, including Estée Lauder, Clinique, La Mer, Bobbi Brown, Origins, and Jo Malone London, which operate in 150 countries globally. These brands’ powerful influences and strong customer loyalty originate not only from ELC and its charity foundations, but also ELC employees around the world. 

ELC Executive Chairman William P. Lauder mentioned in an exclusive interview with CommonWealth Magazine during his visit to Taiwan two years ago that, when his mother, Mrs. Evelyn Lauder, launched the “Pink Ribbon” campaign, she not only proposed the idea of having cosmetics counter salespeople as the front window to deliver the message, giving them a sense of mission, but also introduced humanitarian spirit to ELC, leading the company onto the path of corporate social responsibility. 

In 2020, ELC is preparing for future challenges by strengthening internal accountability framework. ELC knows perfectly clear that employees and consumers are key forces driving the business forward, and with its insistence on placing employees and consumers as top priority, ELC has set the best example of corporate social responsibility.