In Beauty Laid Bare, four twentysomething Brits travel to America to dive deep into the multibillion-dollar cosmetics industry. There are three dedicated fans: Chloe, a 21-year-old makeup artist and influencer from Belfast; Casey, a 25-year-old from Cheltenham who uses makeup to help him forge his identity as a gay man; and Resh, a 21-year-old Mancunian for whom makeup became a lifeline after an acid attack. They are joined by Queenie, a 21-year-old from London who doesn’t engage with beauty and is cynical about the industry’s aims.
By visiting big beauty brand HQs, going behind the scenes to see how products are really made and chatting with cosmetic surgeons and influencers, they lift the lid on what the beauty industry is really like – and it isn’t all pretty. Here are the biggest things you’ll learn: