Listen up people… Many of you who buy makeup will most definitely have heard of and most probably used MAC the high-end high street brand with attitude, celeb endorsement and philanthropic credentials. The likes of Ru Paul and Rihanna have lent their names to their charitable causes. MAC sells a rainbow range of eye shadows, lipsticks plush brushes in slick roller bag kits and their own brand of perfumes. Personally, I like MAC, their products have breadth, style, texture and as many colours a girl could want. Their clever branding, sleek packaging, cool staff appeals to the Goth and the girl next door alike. Their noir clothed sales assistants are well trained, helpful and able to pursued me to part with my meagre student grant! I believe most are wannabe makeup artists, which means that they know a thing about skin tone, face shapes and what eye shadow colour really will suit a certain customer.
The down side? Yes, there is one… MAC is expensive, with mascaras priced at around £20 (blink blink!) it’s not the most ideal place to shop for students. Even if a fraction of that money does go to worthy causes.
Here I turn to Topshop, who launched a makeup range a few years ago. Topshop makeup is roughly half the price of MAC. But what about quality you ask? We’ll here the skinny, both makeup ranges are made by the same manufacture, meaning pretty much the same quality product.
So why are people still shopping at MAC if that is the case?
Well there are a few reasons I can think of:
MAC’s excellent branding – with their minimalist interiors, hip staff, Matt black packaging and kaleidoscope of lippy and eye shadow colours – it’s cool to be part of ‘team MAC’.
And well many people also like to stick to what they know!
My verdict – don’t be a sheep – it’s pays to shop around. Get away from the heard mentality. After a week after purchase, the packaging will have been long ago discarded, the glamorous assistant a dim and distant memory, the lid will be missing from your lippy and it will be rolling around at the bottom of your (likely) over stuffed makeup bag.
OMG where did you get your top from?! 