Max Factor is dying. Quietly. Slowly. And unnecessarily.
Years of ownership changes. In and out of the US market like a yo-yo. Now owned by Coty, Max Factor is truly a shell of what it once was.
Why should we care? This is the brand that invented modern makeup. By that I mean they invented wand-applicator mascara (would you believe it came as a cake that you had to spit on to make it into a paste!), foundation and lipgloss. The brand behind Marilyn Monroe’s look, and so many other screen legends.
So when I desperately need a well-priced mascara that won’t smudge or itch, Max Factor’s False Lash Effect should be an easy choice. It’s good and reliable. I used it for years. But I always find myself reachinb for something ‘more exciting’ at Boots.
Let’s put our strategist goggles on.
Oh my, everything suddenly became clear, like the opposite of a Specsavers ad. What I see first is that Max Factor lacks a clear identity: what does it stand for? What does it sell? For what? To whom? What makes it different or superior?
Honestly, I’m not sure Max Factor knows the answers either. It’s clung to a couple hero products (False Lash Effect & 2000 Calorie mascaras, Miracle Touch foundation, etc). These, while solid, don’t make up a brand identity.
There is no real differentiator, no compelling reason to choose them over the hundreds of other options on the shelf. As a consumer I wouldn’t know to go to them in which situation. It is sorely missing that elusive ‘something’ that defines it, “that makes it feel like a brand worth coming back to.
The slogan “The Makeup of Makeup Artists” might sound impressive in isolation, but feels hollow when you look for follow-through. I haven’t seen MF in makeup artists’ kits in years, and it doesn’t feel at all like contemporary professional makeup. Also they’ve lately been using the sign off “Reveal Your Xtraordinary,” which seems like a mere attempt to capitalise on the ‘X’ in Max Factor. Because what exactly is ‘Xtraordinary’ here? Without being shown anything out of ordinary, it’s hard to care.
Even signing Priyanka Chopra as brand ambassador, which at first thrilled me (I’m a Bollywood fan, she’s the OG Desi Girl) feels like a missed opportunity. What is the angle she brings to the brand: her cinematic legacy? Her focus on female empowerment? Her bold style? Her cultural heritage, thus perhaps inclusivity? Focus on a slightly more mature audience?
Kind of none, really, just the vague idea of Priyanka Chopra, and some buzz words to go with it. (My theory is that choosing Priyanka was pretty much solely motivated by the plans to launch in the very celebrity-driven Indian market; which they did recently).
Max Factor obviously tiptoes around having a real identity. It’s afraid to take a stand or to declare who it’s for. And in today’s saturated beauty world, that’s a one-way ticket to irrelevance.
But this time we’re not bystanders. Today we are repositioning Max Factor together.
Let’s first define the problem. I spoke to a total of 10 women about Max Factor, and also did a few hours of research online. Here’s a ‘sentence cloud’ consisting of some of the statements I picked up:
There’s a lot of past tense, vagueness and underwhelm there! Proving the lack of concrete positioning, we see a lot of conflicting statements, but one common point is that no one owns it as their own, at this point in time.
Problem:
Max Factor doesn’t stand for anything anymore.
It’s a brand people buy when they don’t care what they’re buying, a fallback choice than a brand of desire.
I still think Max Factor’s cinematic legacy is the most valuable thing the brand has (despite not being played up properly for years). They didn’t just sell makeup; they defined cinematic glamour, and did so for decades. It carved out what we still think of as ‘camera ready’ for generations. So many brands would dream that.
But that kind of old-school cinematic glamour doesn’t feel relevant anymore. It’s a bit too costume-y, too much of a vanity, and more relevant interpretations are already successfully claimed by the likes of Charlotte Tilbury. And leaning on it too heavily and literally today would trap the brand in a very small niche. It’s probably why Max Factor hasn’t clung onto it it much lately.*
Still, I can’t let go of that cinematic DNA. It’s a powerful legacy. Cinematic makeup still means seamless, undetectable, trendsetting, expert.
So I start thinking about what onscreen makeup meant back then and what it means now. And then it hits me.
Screens have changed. So has the way we show up on them.
Being on screen once meant movie stars, studio lights, professional makeup. For the rest of us even photos were rare, reserved for special occasions. Now? We’re all onscreen, all the time. Zoom calls for work, quick selfies, Instagram photo dumps, FaceTime chats with family and friends, making YouTube tutorials, virtual parent-teacher meetings, dating apps. I see my GP through a video call, for god’s sake. The screen isn’t an occasional stage anymore, it’s an essential part of our everyday life.
With that shift, looking good on screen has gone from being a distant, aspirational fantasy to an everyday reality, and frankly, a bit of an everyday pressure. Beauty as a category is still aspirational as hell, but it is also much more of an everyday need when you’re being constantly documented. How we look on camera has become a shared tension, whether it’s the unflattering glare of a webcam, an unexpected video call, or just a casual selfie.
The way makeup behaves on camera also follows its own specific logic, and often an unflattering one. It’s not the same as how it looks in the mirror, and we often find ourselves feeling frustrated with it.
This is where I felt Max Factor could barge back in and save the day. That connection between makeup and the screen is still theirs… They created it.
Insight:
Makeup for the screen is more important than ever.
It’s no longer just for the stars; we all live on screens now, and screen-ready beauty has become relevant to all of us.
&
Advantage:
Max Factor’s heritage as a cinematic innovator gives it the perfect foundation to own modern screen-ready beauty.
The challenge now is rethinking what screen-ready beauty means today, for a world where the screens are smaller, closer, and part of our rushed every day.
From there, the answer is obvious: Max Factor should own the idea of effortlessly screen-ready. It’s a concept rooted in heritage but made for today’s very acute pain points. A perfect evolution of “camera ready” for the realities of the world we live in.
Makeup that works as seamlessly on screens as it does in real life; through understanding light, cameras and screens, and playing with it through state-of-art makeup technology.
Beauty that feels easy and like you, but a bit more glam, and optimised for the realities of contemporary devices & the many screens we live on.
It’s not about selling a distant beauty ideal anymore. It’s about making everyone have their own moment of spotlight, whether smashing a presentation on Google Meet, or acing their Bumble profile.
And that means trendsettingly easy, breezy and effective products that add a bit of that timeless cinematic aura to your everyday.
Textures and formats that are lightweight and multitasking, intuitive and portable, with professional-grade performance and everyday glam feel, those that turn you into a star in whatever screen you’re appearing at.
Strategy:
Reimagine Max Factor as the go-to for effortlessly screen-ready makeup, blending timeless glamour with modern practicality.
Moving onto execution… First things first, a little mood board never hurts.
Visual Identity & Packaging
Visually, MF should reflect this balance between timeless glamour and modern, on-the-go relevance. The goal is to make Max Factor feel aspirational but accessible, like a beautiful frame for your everyday moments on (or off) screen. The packaging should feel sophisticated, but approachable and practical. Think clean, contemporary lines combined with some rich, opulent textures.
For packaging I’m thinking of a cream with a blurry/soft-focus finish complemented with gold accents and minimalistic type, completed with handwritten elements to convey that on-the-go feeling. Adding some subtle nods to the brand’s cinematic heritage would be lovely, too: embossed film reel textures, art deco or retro glam detailing here and there.
I put together a little collage of the forms, colours & details I envision for the packaging. Design gods, please forgive my sinful Canva mockup job.
Product Portfolio
I imagined a product lineup that captures a certain cinematic allure but with a contemporary, playful charm. Nothing too serious, just effortlessly glamorous and totally in step with modern life.
In particular, I kept thinking about their legendary Panstik. What if it came back, reimagined for today? That’s how the lineup of multitasking, on-the-go sticks was born. Here are the heroes:
Glass Skin One-Step Filter Stick
Blur Skin One-Step Filter Stick
Main Character Multitasking Glow Stick
Picture Perfect Soft Focus Powder-In-a-Stick
Quick Shoot One-Step Cushion Compact
Kissing Scene Lasting Glossy Lip Stain
All Day Shooting Makeup Setting Spray
Shooting Star Eye Gloss
On-Set Quick & Easy Setting Powder
Frame & Focus Built-In Contour in a Brush
On-Screen Duo Long Lasting Lip Combo
Style of Photography
Models should always be framed through a screen (smartphone, laptop, cinema or camera screen, etc) capturing everyday moments with a cinematic edge. Scenarios should range from polished and glamorous to relaxed and relatable; with lighting effects that create depth and a natural sense of glamour.
Product shots should show off exactly what the product does, like a filter brought to life. Elements like blurred edges, soft flares, or bokeh will hint at built-in filters, tying the imagery back to the screen-ready concept.
Here we are!
We did it!
We pulled Max Factor back from the brink of oblivion. The brand that invented modern makeup deserves better than collecting dust on the drugstore shelf and saying a meek “me too” or two once in a while.
“Effortlessly screen-ready” isn’t just a tagline. It taps something very specific, but not limiting because it’s also real, very relevant to pretty much all of us, all the time.
By owning its screen-ready DNA and making it relevant for today, Max Factor could be more than a memory. It’s time for this icon to reclaim the spotlighton every screen. From Zoom to TikTok, Saturday night selfies, even that surprisingly flattering bank ID shot.
* They must have learned their lesson with their Gwyneth Paltrow “cinema through ages” campaign of 2014 (underwhelming), and naming Marilyn Monroe as a brand ambassador in 2015 (more underwhelming).