Chairman Emeritus Leonard A. Lauder passed away on June 14. He was 92.

“Throughout his life, my father worked tirelessly to build and transform the beauty industry, pioneering many of the innovations, trends, and best practices that are foundational to the industry today,” said William P. Lauder, son and Chair, Board of Directors, The Estée Lauder Companies. “He was the most charitable man I have ever known, believing that art and education belonged to everyone, and championing the fight against diseases such as Alzheimer’s and breast cancer. Above all, my father was a man who practiced kindness with everyone he met. His impact was enormous. He believed that employees were the heart and soul of our company, and they adored him and moments spent with him. His warmth and thoughtfulness made an imprint on our company, the industry, and, of course, our family. Together with my family, The Estée Lauder Companies, and the countless people he touched, we celebrate his extraordinary life.”

Lauder was born in 1933 in New York City, the oldest son of Estée and Joseph H. Lauder, the founders of The Estée Lauder Companies. He was a graduate of the Bronx High School of Science, the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, and the Officer Candidate School of the United States Navy. Mr. Lauder studied at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Business. He served as a lieutenant in the US Navy and as a Navy reservist, for which the U.S. Navy Supply Corps Foundation later recognized him with its Distinguished Alumni Award. He formally joined Estée Lauder in 1958, and for more than six decades, Lauder was a visionary and an innovator, helping transform the business from a handful of products sold under a single brand in US stores to the multi-brand, global leader in prestige beauty.

An Extraordinary Life

Lauder served as president of The Estée Lauder Companies from 1972 to 1995 and as CEO from 1982 through 1999. He was named chairman in 1995 and served in that role through June 2009. Throughout his tenure at the company, Lauder consistently challenged the status quo, developing and implementing innovative sales and marketing programs that revolutionized the beauty industry. He created the company’s first research and development laboratory, brought in professional management at every level, and was the driving force behind The Estée Lauder Companies’ international expansion, helping to increase the company’s sales and profits exponentially.

A legendary brand builder, Lauder led the launch of many brands including Aramis, Clinique, and Lab Series, among others. Until his death, he remained deeply involved in the company’s acquisition strategy, including the acquisitions of Aveda, Bobbi Brown, Jo Malone London, La Mer, and MAC.

“Leonard Lauder was beloved by many and will be missed tremendously,” said CEO Stéphane de La Faverie. “To our employees at The Estée Lauder Companies, he was an inspiration and a champion. To the industry, he was an icon and pioneer, earning respect worldwide. His energy and vision helped shape our company and will continue to do so for generations to come. He was a deeply compassionate leader who cared profoundly about every person in the company. I feel privileged to have worked with Leonard, who has been the best mentor I could have dreamt to learn from. He will be remembered by all of us.”

Lauder worked throughout his life to promote dialogue among governments, political and non-governmental organizations, and the public and private sectors, believing that this interdisciplinary dialogue is crucial to progress. He served as a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and as Chairman Emeritus and a lifetime trustee on the board of directors at the Aspen Institute. He felt that public service was a person’s duty and, in addition to his time in the U.S. Navy, later served on the Advisory Committee for Trade Negotiations under President Ronald Reagan from 1983–1987.
Throughout his lifetime, Lauder was honored with a myriad of awards, including the “Lone Sailor” Award given by the US Navy Supply Corps Foundation, the Légion d’Honneur given by the government of France, the Women’s Leadership Award given by the Lincoln Center Corporate Fund Women’s Leadership Council, and the Palazzo Strozzi Renaissance Man of the Year Award. In 2020, he was inducted into the Retail Hall of Fame by the World Retail Congress.

The Lauder family received the esteemed 2011 Carnegie Medal of Philanthropy in recognition of its long-standing commitment to philanthropy and public service. In 2014, Mr. Lauder was named a Living Landmark by the New York Landmarks Conservancy. Mr. Lauder and Ms. Glickman Lauder also received the Gordon Parks Foundation Patron of the Arts Award in 2016.

Lauder shared many of the lessons he learned in business and life in his memoir, “The Company I Keep: My Life in Beauty,” published to great acclaim in 2020.

He was married to Evelyn H. Lauder, senior corporate vice president at The Estée Lauder Companies and the Founder of the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, from 1959 until she passed away in 2011. On January 1, 2015, Mr. Lauder married Judy Glickman Lauder, a philanthropist and internationally recognized photographer whose work is represented in more than 300 public and private collections, including the J. Paul Getty Museum, the Whitney Museum of Art, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the United States Holocaust Museum. Mr. Lauder considered himself lucky in love and believed that lightning really could strike twice.

Lauder is survived by his wife, Judy Glickman Lauder; his son William P. Lauder; his son Gary M. Lauder and wife, Laura Lauder; five grandchildren, Rachel, Danielle, Djuna-Bear, Joshua, Eliana, two great-grandchildren, many stepchildren and step grandchildren, as well as his brother, Ronald S. Lauder, and wife, Jo Carole Lauder, and their daughters, Aerin Lauder and Jane Lauder.

A private service will be held for friends and family. For those who wish, in lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation and the Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery Foundation. To share condolences, go here.