MAC Promotes Buglisi to Global Brand President

John Demsey, group president of The Estée Lauder Companies, announced Karen Buglisi has been named global brand president of MAC Cosmetics, effective immediately.

Buglisi has been senior vice president/general manager of MAC, responsible for global sales, artist training and development and finance and forecasting. In her new role she will add marketing and global communications to her responsibilities and will work closely with the creative and product development teams.

Buglisi joined MAC in 1998 as vice president of North American sales and artist training and development. During her tenure she built an infrastructure and leadership team that has nurtured and developed a talented and dedicated team of makeup artists that now number 12,000. She has taken on additional responsibilities and two years ago added international markets to her portfolio. Under her leadership, MAC’s international business has seen double-digit growth, outpacing market growth in all regions.

“Karen has superb leadership skills and has been instrumental in developing MAC into the No. 1 makeup artist brand in the world,” Demsey said. “She has done a tremendous job inspiring our MAC makeup artists, who are at the heart of the brand and the key to our success.” Demsey will continue to have direct responsibility for MAC’s creative, product development and charitable efforts, including the MAC AIDS Fund, of which he is chairman.

Buglisi has been instrumental in targeting strategic locations for MAC’s growing number of freestanding stores, including one that opened earlier this year in the heart of Times Square in Manhattan, which has become its largest freestanding store in terms of average weekly retail sales.

“I have had the honor and privilege to work with a team of incredibly talented professionals during the past 12 years. I’m proud that we’ve been able to grow MAC’s business without compromising the brand’s core values, which are even stronger than when I started” Buglisi said. “MAC still has great expansion potential, particularly internationally, and we will ensure that it stays consistent worldwide, yet culturally relevant in all its markets.”

Before joining MAC, Buglisi worked for Adipar, a fragrance distributor that was owned by Escada, a global fashion house, and was a field sales manager for Borghese, a global beauty company. She also is a member of the board of directors of the MAC AIDS Fund and is on The Estée Lauder Companies’ executive leadership team.

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