One of the amazing perks of being a member of PRSSA is the ability to take part in the career agency tours offered. On November 6th, our Chapter had the amazing opportunity of visiting one of the top makeup brands, Urban Decay.
Urban Decay was launched in 2006 in Newport Beach, California by co-founders Pat Holmes, Sandy Lerner, Wende Zomnir and David Soward. Now over 10 years since the launch of the company, it has continued to grow into one of the top global beauty brands. Urban Decay is constantly recognized in the makeup world, earning countless praise and awards over the years. Some of their top-hit products include their lipsticks, setting sprays, and the holy grail of palettes, the Naked palettes.
On the tour, we explored the main office space and the purple studio. The purple studio is hidden from the main street and serves the function of where meetings, parties, and photoshoots take place. One of the things our tour guide and influencer relations manager, Monica, pointed out was that Urban Decay isn’t a brand that takes themselves too seriously. Their office space surely shows, encased in the open space is colorful purple walls filled with art, past collaborations, and of course, makeup. The company even allows employees to bring their own dogs to work! As Urban Decay continued to grow, more space was needed. Over the last couple of years, the expansion has led to the purchasing of nearby buildings around the main office.
After the tour, we headed toward the Q&A panel where employees of the communications and public relations departments joined us. Janice, VP for Urban Decay’s Global Communications and guest speaker at the PRSSA Beauty and Fashion panel a few weeks back, moderated the panel. The ladies shared their career upbringings, day-to-day on the job, and how PR has changed over the years. The ladies also highlighted the importance of networking and how kindness can go a long way in your career.
Before wrapping up the panel, Janice wanted to leave us with some final thoughts. She emphasized that one of the tools for being successful in any career is to “be open-minded to your path” and to “not be afraid to be a temp”. She pointed out that many of the Urban Decay team members’ careers did not start at Urban Decay. Much of the current staff started as temps in local agencies or even in careers not related to public relations. Nonetheless, they were recruited to Urban Decay for their work ethic, kindness and willingness to step outside the box.
We thank Urban Decay for letting us tour their headquarters and meet with their amazing team of women who play a valuable role in the company. If you are interested in learning more about different companies and tours, sign up today to be a member of PRSSA!
