Secrets of The Beauty Industry

I work for the number one beauty company in the world and thought you'd all like a to know a little gossip from behind the scenes.

1. Yes, I get freebies.

This is one of the first questions I get asked when I say where I work. And yes, freebies are as abundant as you might think &  yes, it's also as wonderful as you'd imagine! I'm literally running out of places to put stuff. I remember begrudgingly handing over money for shampoo about 6 months after my internship finished (and I was back at uni) with a heavy heart. Don't worry though - you'll be pleased to know my stocks are replenished and my hair now always looks bouncy and full of life..  bouncier, anyway.

From random new product desk drops (where everyone in the company gets a product on their desk in the morning) to perfume samples to ridiculous discounts on the internal staff shop, the freebies are undeniably one of the best perks to working backstage in the beauty industry.

2. Honestly..

You should trust us a little bit more! Every single peice of information about a product that we put out there has gone through a rigorous legal procedure to make sure were not deceiving consumers. Seriously, if it says it makes your skin softer IT WILL BLOODY MAKE YOUR SKIN SOFTER! If it says your wrinkles will appear reduced, we can't just make that shizz up. 

You might be interested to know that the UK are also the most strict with these regulations, especially with Photoshop. You should see some of the other countries ads - they've been airbrushed so much they may as well have had an oil painting commissioned. 

3. Frenemies

So, did you know that loads of beauty brands are owned by the same company? You did? Well did you know by "owned" we don't mean there's loads of different companies dotted around the country with a few big dogs in charge somewhere else.. They're all very cosily under one roof. Marketing for Garnier suncare literally sit closer to Maybelline marketing that Garnier haircare, and the team for YSL Beauty regularly go for coffees with Lancôme. Cosy right? 

4. Not so copy-cats

So if you see a product launched by one company, followed by a very similar product launched by a competitor a few months later - they've clearly pinched their idea, right? Probably not. New products take about 18months on average to launch, and that's when the product has been created, tested and finalised!

 It's closer to five years to create a new product from scratch, so actually, seeing a competitor release something similar a few months before is more like seeing someone post all over Facebook wearing that killer outfit you've been saving for a special occasion next week. Bastards.

Finally..

5. Yes, it is because I'm worth it.

And no, I've never heard that one before...

London: The Smog & The Silver Lining

Well, one of my New Year's resolutions is to start blogging again, as I was surprised by the amount of you lovely people who came to me and said they enjoyed it!

So, I've been a little quiet lately. I'm seriously thinking of uploading some more photos to Facebook just so people don't think all I do is stay in binge-watching Netflix.. (which I only do, like, once twice a few times a week..)

But the reason I've been off the radar is that I became A PROPER GROWN UP ADULT. Or at least I'm hoping that I'm really pulling off pretending I am. I've got a full time job, a flat in the city... and I got an actual credit card. Scary.

I LOVE living in London, but everything has its good and bad points.

Here's my lowdown of the smoggier parts of living in london, and the silver lining that comes with it.

SMOG: TOURISTS. Get your selfie stick out of my face.

SILVER LINING: The secret smug feeling you get from eye-rolling/hating on tourists because they're not true Londoners like you..



SMOG: Signal failures. I'm sorry what? There is WIFI in stations now - are you telling me I can see 356 photos of my mother's second cousins new goddaughter whether I like it or not and you can't ask the next station if there's a train there?! Someone introduce TFL to Richard Branson..

SILVER LINING: Okay, forget the moaning. I used to live two miles from the nearest hourly bus stop in my beloved Cheshire and now I can get from ANYWHERE to ANYWHERE at ANYTIME.. pretty much. The novelty hasn't yet worn off. Although I've learnt to control the grinning to myself.





SMOG: People are rude. It's a stereotype but it's true. If you must ask a stranger a question my best advice is to be pretty certain that they are a tourist or recently moved/fresh meat..

SILVER LINING: It's really easy to come across as a really nice person by, like, smiling at someone. Also, if you are in a mood where you don't really want to talk to anyone you are not a bad person in London. In fact, the space-invading perpetrator is the bad guy here everyone will - silently - acknowledge.

SMOG: You've got loads of friends in London right Becky? It'll be super easy to hop on the tube and see them all the time, right? Let's take a moment to consider that London is HUGE. Everything is so spread out. If you live past Canary Wharf, you may as well live in Paris to me.

SILVER LINING: Everything being spread out actually means you get a good chance to see a lot of places around the capital. It would be boring if everyone lived in the same postcode.. even if extremely convenient and significantly reduce my Oyster card spend.

SMOG: A bit of a mixed one.. there's SO much going on, which is in no way smoggy at all. But it's very easy to feel like you've failed at being a true Londoner. If you haven't been at the totally edgy underground asian fusion Tarantino themed cocktail bar in Shoreditch this weekend, what's the point of even being in the city!? Hey, sometimes, you just want to enjoy binge-watching Netflix once twice a few times a week..



SILVER LINING: There are so many amazing apps/websites/blogs just for you, you lovely little London lover! From a good old restaurants and bars, to finding random spontaneous events around last minute, theres an app to seize the crap out of a day in the capital if you want to (and if payday was fairly recent). In fact, the more organised/sad/OCD  amongst us may even have a dedicated folder..

The good far outweighs the bad in the big smoke, and this list clearly doesn't even scratch the surface. 

Here's a few little photos I found on a browse through my camera roll that help explain why I love it!