02.28.22
John Demsey, executive group president, The Estée Lauder Companies, (ELC) was informed today that he must leave the company, effective this week.
According to the company, this decision is the result of Demsey’s recent Instagram posts, which he apologized for last week. The company says the posts “do not reflect the values of The Estée Lauder Companies, have caused widespread offense, are damaging to our efforts to drive inclusivity both inside and outside our walls, and do not reflect the judgment we expect of our leaders.”
William P. Lauder, executive chairman, and Fabrizio Freda, president and CEO, signed a letter with the news, which was sent to all global employees on February 28th.
The letter also included the following message:
“Inclusion, diversity and equity are core to our company’s values and priorities globally. Furthermore, over the past two years, we have worked together as an organization to advance our approach to racial equity and have taken a hard look at where we can and should do better. Together we are making progress against our commitments to our employees, our partners, and consumers.”
“Our employees, and especially our senior leaders, are accountable to continue driving our progress and to respect the values of this company for the long term.”
Demsey has been at the helm of leading brands, including MAC Cosmetics, for more than 30 years.
