A
mazon has never been the most attractive
of sites, but lately, it’s been very
concerned with beauty. Not the
aesthetics of its page design but the business of
selling cosmetics and skincare products.On Prime Day 2019, Amazon customers could
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before that, Amazon announced the Amazon
Professional Beauty Store as a place for salons
and stylists to source products. And before that,
Amazon put forth its own skincare line, called
Belei, whose ingredients are based on search
terms used by beauty buyers on the site.Despite all this beauty, the company’s outlook for
that category isn’t so rosy. Amazon still has to
contend with its many competitors, dystopic
reputation, and the slew of counterfeit cosmetics
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Amazon-exclusive brand. The brand is cruelty-
free and vegan, and it aligns with the progressive
values of the performer’s fan base. But buying
products from a behemoth known for mistreatingThe Ugly Truth About
Amazon Beauty
PCMag Senior
Features Editor
Chandra Steele got
her tech journalism
start at CMP/United
Business Media. She
also writes fiction
and has been
published in
McSweeney’s
Internet Tendency.COMMENTARY