Leonard Lauder, philanthropist who globalized family cosmetic business, dies at 92

Leonard Lauder, a renowned philanthropist who expanded the family cosmetics business into a worldwide empire, has died at the age of 92.

Estée Lauders Cos. announced the news in a release on Sunday and said he died on Saturday surrounded by family.

Lauder, the oldest son of Estée and Joseph H. Lauder, who founded the company in 1946, formally joined the New York business in 1958. Over more than six decades, Lauder played a key role in transforming the business from a handful of products sold under a single brand in U.S. stores to a multi-brand global giant. He had held the title of chairman emeritus at the time of his death.

Estée Lauder's products are sold in roughly 150 countries and territories under brand names including Clinique and Aveda, according to the company's latest annual report. The company generated sales of nearly $16 billion in the fiscal year ended June 30, 2024, the filing said.

Estée Lauder went public in 1995, but members of Lauder family still have about 84% of the voting power of common stock, according to the latest annual filing.

Long Island base

The Estée Lauder Cos. has long had manufacturing and research facilities in Melville in Suffolk County. The company currently has more than 2,000 employees in and around Melville, according to a company spokeswoman.

Leonard Lauder recalled in an interview with Newsday in 2018 that he did the legwork to establish the Melville campus in the 1960s. At the time, the company wanted to consolidate four sites, all in Nassau County.

Lauder said he bought what was then a sod farm south of the Long Island Expressway because he could see Long Island’s population center was moving east.

“Most of our employees lived in New Hyde Park, but I knew as time went on we would be hiring most of the people from Suffolk County,” he said after a ceremony marking Estée Lauder’s 50th year in Melville. “I wanted a place that they could get to easily. . . . Today tells me that I was right 50 years ago. I had future vision.”

Lauder served as president of The Estée Lauder Cos. 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.

Under his stewardship, Lauder created the company’s first research and development laboratory, brought in professional management at every level, and was the impetus behind The Estée Lauder Cos.’ international expansion, helping to spearhead the company’s sales and profits exponentially, according to the company.

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 such brands as Aveda, Bobbi Brown, Jo Malone London and MAC, the company said.

Strong stewardship

During his years as chairman emeritus, Lauder was closely involved in the business and day-to-day operations and was a constant fixture at its global headquarters in Manhattan and at its stores around the world until the time of his death, the company said.

“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 of the board at The Estée Lauder Companies in a statement. “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. ”

Lauder was a longtime patron of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and, in 2013, pledged his 78-piece collection of Cubist art to the museum in the largest single philanthropic gift in the museum's history. He later added five major works to that pledged gift, the company said.

In concert with his Cubist collection donation, he helped establish the Leonard A. Lauder Research Center for Modern Art at the Met to support a program of fellowships, focused exhibitions, and public lectures. He also was the Whitney Museum of American Art’s chairman emeritus and a trustee from 1977 to 2011.

Lauder was married to Evelyn H. Lauder, who had been the senior corporate vice president at the cosmetic company and the founder of the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, from 1959 until she passed away in 2011.

On Jan. 1, 2015, Lauder married Judy Glickman Lauder, a philanthropist and internationally recognized photographer.

Lauder was born in 1933 in New York City. 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 U.S. Navy.

Lauder studied at Columbia University’s graduate school of business. He served as a lieutenant in the Navy and as a Navy reservist, for which the U.S. Navy Supply Corps Foundation later recognized him with its Distinguished Alumni Award.

In addition to his wife and son, William, Lauder is survived by his other son, Gary M. Lauder and his wife, Laura Lauder; five grandchildren, two great-grandchildren; and 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.

Newsday’s James T. Madore contributed to this report