Heir to billion-dollar beauty empire dies aged 92
Share this @internewscast.com

Leonard Lauder, who for 17 years ran beauty behemoth Estée Lauder after his mother’s death, has died aged 92.

The American businessman was the eldest son of Estée Lauder, after whom the cosmetics brand she founded is named, and her husband Joseph.

Lauder, along with his much-younger brother Ronald, 81, inherited control of the company from their parents.

He was most recently estimated to be worth $32.3 billion, as of September 2021, making him at the time the 44th richest person in the world.

Lauder died on Saturday, the company said without specifying a cause of death.

Estée Lauder, whose parents were Hungarian Jewish immigrants, founded her namesake brand in New York City in 1946, and over the years, it grew steadily under her leadership.

Leonard Lauder, Elizabeth Hurley, Sir Elton John and Shane Warne attend the Breast Cancer Foundation's Hot Pink Party at Waldorf Astoria Hotel on April 30, 2012 in New York City

At the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City on April 30, 2012, Leonard Lauder, Elizabeth Hurley, Sir Elton John, and Shane Warne attended the Breast Cancer Foundation’s Hot Pink Party.

Honorary chair Kate Capshaw and gala co-chair Leonard Lauder pose for portrait at The Women's Cancer Research Fund's An Unforgettable Evening 2020

Honorary chair Kate Capshaw and gala co-chair Leonard Lauder pose for portrait at The Women’s Cancer Research Fund’s An Unforgettable Evening 2020

The Lauder family in 1978 (left to right) Gary Lauder, Evelyn Lauder, Joseph Lauder, Est e Lauder, Aerin Lauder, William Lauder, Jane Lauder, Leonard Lauder, Ronald Lauder and Jo Carole Lauder

The Lauder family gathered in 1978, with members including Gary Lauder, Evelyn Lauder, Joseph Lauder, Estée Lauder, Aerin Lauder, William Lauder, Jane Lauder, Leonard Lauder, Ronald Lauder, and Jo Carole Lauder.

Lauder started at the company in 1958 when he was 25, after three years as a US Navy officer and graduating from Columbia University’s School of Business.

‘With brave American troops in harm’s way in Afghanistan and Iraq, my years of military service seem comparatively uneventful,’ he wrote in 2010 in a US Naval Institute newsletter.

‘Yet, for me, they were defining.’

Lauder eventually served as its chief executive of the company from 1982 to 1999 and chairman until 2009.

His mother always reminded him, ‘Comb your hair’, and introduced him first as her son, and only then noted his lofty position in the company.

‘My son always thought big. He worked every summer, every free moment,’ his mother wrote in her 1985 biography. 

The company grew from a family firm to a global giant under his leadership through a series of big acquisitions like MAC, Bobbi Brown and Aveda in 1980s and ’90s.

Lauder was the eldest son of Estée Lauder, after whom the cosmetics brand she founded is named, and her husband Joseph (pictured together)

Lauder was the eldest son of Estée Lauder, after whom the cosmetics brand she founded is named, and her husband Joseph (pictured together)

Leonard Lauder, Estee Lauder, Evelyn Lauder, and Gary Lauder attend an event at the Lauder residence in New York City on October 30, 1985

Leonard Lauder, Estee Lauder, Evelyn Lauder, and Gary Lauder attend an event at the Lauder residence in New York City on October 30, 1985

Lauder married Judy Ellis-Glickman (left), the widow of a close friend, in 2015, Judith Glickman. They are pictured with Elizabeth Hurley (right) in 2017

Lauder married Judy Ellis-Glickman (left), the widow of a close friend, in 2015, Judith Glickman. They are pictured with Elizabeth Hurley (right) in 2017

He also started the company’s research and development labs and expanded its presence to Europe, Asia, and beyond.

Estée Lauder now has two dozen brands and $15 billion a year in sales. The company is public, but the Lauder family has 86 per cent of voting rights and owns 38 per cent of shares.

Lauder’s son William was chief executive in 2004 to 2009 and is still the chairman, and his younger son Gary replaced him on the board in 2023. 

It was at a luncheon Lauder hosted in NYC that Donald Trump met Soviet Ambassador to the United States Yuri Dubinin, and began his close ties to Moscow. 

Lauder was also a patron of the arts and donated enough to have the family name on wings of the Whitney Museum of American Art and the Museum of Modern Art.

He also donated 78 cubist artworks by masters including Picasso, Georges Braque, and Juan Gris, valued at $1 billion, to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 2013.

A private art hoarding in his home on Manhattan’s Upper East Side was no less exquisite, as was his collection of 120,000 postcards going back to his childhood.

Those are expected to be donated to the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston.

Ronald Lauder, Jo Carole Lauder, Estee Lauder and Leonard Lauder

Ronald Lauder, Jo Carole Lauder, Estee Lauder and Leonard Lauder

Lauder with his extended family, including sons William and Gary

Lauder with his extended family, including sons William and Gary 

Leonard Lauder, who for 17 years ran beauty behemoth Estée Lauder after his mother's death, has died aged 92

Leonard Lauder, who for 17 years ran beauty behemoth Estée Lauder after his mother’s death, has died aged 92

He has also donated huge sums to cancer research, sat on the boards of medical charities, and in 2022 donated $125 million to University of Pennsylvania to establish a tuition-free nurse practitioner program.

Lauder married Evelyn Hausner in 1959 and they stayed together until her death in 2011.

Just two years later he was engaged to Brooklyn Public Library chief executive Linda Johnson, but called off the wedding.

Instead he married Judy Ellis-Glickman, the widow of a close friend, in 2015.

Lauder is survived by his sons William and Gary and by his brother Ronald, who was US Ambassador to Austria in 1986 to 1987 and had a failed bid for NYC mayor in 1988.

Share this @internewscast.com
You May Also Like

Scarlett Johansson Achieves Status as Top-Grossing Leading Actor in History

Scarlett Johansson has overtaken her Marvel Cinematic Universe colleagues, Samuel L. Jackson…

Matthew McConaughey Speaks Out About Fatal Texas Flooding

Matthew McConaughey broke his silence on the devastating floods that killed dozens…

Nantucket Property Dispute Erupts Over Alleged Tree Cutting

A property feud has erupted on a wealthy Massachusetts island after a…

Kaylee Goncalves’ Mother Discloses that Bryan Kohberger Assaulted Her Prior to the Murder

The mother of one of the four murdered University of Idaho students…

Anger among Texas flood victims as authorities fault National Weather Service

Victims of the catastrophic flash floods ravaging Central Texas are outraged as…

Texas Flooding Death Toll Expected to Surpass 100; Families Called to Identify Victims

The Texas Division of Emergency Management has projected that the death toll…

Katy Perry Enjoys Yacht Outing with Ex Orlando Bloom Despite Recent Split

Katy Perry showed off her incredible figure in a black bikini during…

European Muslim Leaders Gather with Israeli President to Advocate for Peace

Muslim leaders from across Europe met with Israeli President Isaac Herzog in…

Unveiling the Faces and Stories Behind Texas Flood Victims

At least 82 people were killed and dozens are missing after devastating flash…

Shocking Unseen Video Reveals Attempted Honor Killing

Timberline High could have been any American school on the afternoon of…

Trump Advises Elon Musk to Enjoy Launching the America Party

President Donald Trump mocked Elon Musk’s newly formed third party, describing it…

Why Taylor Swift Chose to Skip Campaigning with Kamala Harris

Amidst rumors and growing excitement about the possibility of her joining forces…