We are familiar with EL's dubious practices. I witnessed those today for myself, when I saw various EL products labelled as "1.5 FL OZ./1.5 OU LIQ/xx ML" I started a Web search to find their UK office. So far I have failed, as their site mentions only their NY address. However, in my efforts I cam across the following (from http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~hugg/estee.htm), which i though of interest. I don't know how reliable the information is, given the quality of the spelling/grammar/punctuation, but it's intriguing: DESCRIPTION The Estee Lauder Group currently dominates the world cosmetics market. Control of brands such as Clinique and Essentials has remained the main strength of Estee Lauder's business. During the collapse the Estee Lauder Group pursued an aggresive policy of expansion swallowing the majority of the European fashion houses. Nearly all the cosmetics on sale throughout the world are now produced by Estee Lauder or one of it's wholly owned subsideraries (of which there are many). However this has led to some complacency, especially in the face of the growth of 'smart cosmetics'. As a stop gap measure to gain a foothold in this market Estee Lauder has announced a partnership with Dupont/Monsato, a cutting edge biotech company who produce a line of personnal beauty products, including the Calvin Klein sub-dermal perfumeries that are so popular at the moment. The vast size of the Estee Lauder Group has had some knock on political ramifications in Europe. The European Commision is the second largest stockholder of the company followed by the majority of the glitterkid set, who see Estee Lauder as a solid yet cool investment. This link to the establishment of Europe has raised complaints oversea's but has provided Estee Lauder with access to a large pool of security freelancers attatched to the glitterkids. This has allowed the corporation to reduce the number of security staff they employ full time. The Estee Lauder Group has reasonably close ties with the International Electric Corporation (IEC), who provide much of the recquired bulk chemical production of cosmetic products. Recently Estee Lauder has found itself competing with Cybercosmetica in the overseas market. The aggressive nature of Cybercosmetica and it's lead in 'smart cosmetics' has increased it's impact in the market despite it's comparativly small size. A low level corporate war is threatening between these seemingly frivolous corporations, excaserbated by a terrorist campaign currently underway against Estee Lauder stockists in the US which Estee Lauder suspects is being sponsored by Cybercosmetica. As soon as solid proof is discovered expect the lead to start flying. -- Chris KEENAN UK Metrication Association: http://www.metric.org.uk/ UK Correspondent, US Metric Association
