When the Estée Lauder Cos. launched Clinique on Amazon in March 2024, it marked a significant change in the way prestige beauty viewed Amazon, and the beauty company now has a total of 11 brands on the platform in the U.S., in addition to an international push.

At the WWD x FN x Beauty Inc Women in Power conference, the two women who brokered that partnership revealed the details of how it came to be.

“It feels very natural now. It’s been a phenomenal 18 months. But going back, it wasn’t quite intuitive. There was a time when Amazon and the Estée Lauder Cos. stood at the opposite ends of the table and that was no secret,” said Melis del Rey, general manager of health and beauty at Amazon U.S. Stores.

“But what was really incredible in my experience is that we literally came together and we had the opportunity to listen,” she continued. “There was a lot of listening, understanding our differences and really in a trusting way embracing those differences as well, and through that process, we found that actually our differences can be collectively our strength, which led to this really amazing partnership.”

On negotiating directly with Amber English, president, digital and online, the Americas, at the Estée Lauder Cos., over lunch, she added: “We put all our cards on the table, and we talked very candidly and openly. I don’t know whether this is a woman’s leadership style or it’s just you and I, but we connected so well. It was really helpful to build a strong partnership from Day One”

For her part, English said: “The way I describe it is we had an adult conversation. Sometimes when you get two big companies and it’s ‘here’s my terms, here’s this term.’ And before Estée Lauder, I spent 14 years at Amazon so I empathized, and I knew the areas that Amazon was going to hold core to, who they were — the consumer always. And then it was really helpful to have the relationship with Melis to say, ‘here’s what’s important to us, and here’s what’s important to our brands and that’s going to be a deal breaker, and that might feel silly, but it’s really important for our brand narrative.’”

She acknowledged that to say they shook hands at lunch and the deal was done would be an oversimplification, but it did help lay the groundwork: “There was a huge amount of the establishment of the relationship and where we landed came from us just saying, ‘Hey, this is going to be hard for me, do you think you can get them there, let me act as a bridge on that topic.’

“We both had to lean in and show some cards that I think in a normal negotiation someone would have said, ‘Oh, you showed your cards too early.’ And it was like, ‘yes, but I trust her, and I know that she has just as much vested interest in this as we do.’”

Key to this partnership was Amazon building features to tell the story of the Estée Lauder Cos.’ brands on its platform. Clinique, for example, was able to develop a Skin Analysis tool for its Amazon storefront to coincide with the launch. The interactive questionnaire in Amazon Premium Beauty custom-fit a skin care regimen for Clinique’s consumers.

“What we had to do is after we listened to their requirements, was go back and say, ‘OK, how do we innovate, how do we think about the shopping experience, use the power of technology and develop features that truly capture the consumers’ not just minds but hearts at the same time,’” recounted del Rey. “Because this is an area where we needed to elevate. We’ve created a new brand store experience. Our detail page experience was overhauled. We’ve actually worked with specific features, which was around enabling skin care diagnostics and shopping or finding the right shape or foundation. So really being true to the customer needs and using technology.”

For English, the media part was also a big attraction. “The thing that people sometimes miss with understanding Amazon is it’s easy to understand the commerce part of it, but it’s a massive media platform. The new customer acquisition is really interesting, but allowing us to have a safe and also sort of self-guided way to talk about our brand and our brand narrative is something that I don’t think a lot of people harness.”

This sentiment was shared by Stéphane de La Faverie, president and chief executive officer of the Estée Lauder Cos.

“We are very pleased with our progress with Amazon,” said de La Faverie during an earnings call last month. “Clinique was the first brand to launch, Aveda and Origins were the last ones to launch. Clinique continues to be very, very strong, which tells us that we’ve been able to not just attract new consumers, but also reengage with lapsed consumers. Over the past 12 months, Amazon not only is adding new consumers for us, but is also acting a little bit as a megaphone to our total business because Amazon is not only a commerce platform, but is also the majority of the beauty search that is happening in the market.”