E.L.F. spotlights NASA scientists in “Women Taking Space” campaign

E.L.F. Cosmetics launches a digital film series featuring female NASA scientists asking how they take up space.

“Women Taking Space” profiles three women and discusses their work on NASA’s Europa Clipper mission, a space probe that studies the Galilean moon of Jupiter for signs of life. 

The campaign collaborates with creative agency Madwell, production company Starfish Projects and editor Robin Burchill. 

Burchill asks, “How will you take space?” to a NASA flight systems engineer, a Launch To Mars mission manager and a project staff scientist while they wear makeup from E.L.F. 

The scientists encourage other women to explore STEM professions. Tracy Drain, the mission manager says: “It is easy to think I cannot do that” and Erin Leonard, the project staff scientist, responds, “Don’t let anyone tell you that you can't, don't let yourself tell you that you can't.”

Underlining women’s contributions

The 30-second films explore why the women chose their careers and the importance of using technology to support human life. They also speak on the benefits of studying the arts and sciences to “solve complex problems.”

“Two of E.L.F.’s core values are empowering others and encouraging self-expression. One priority is to do this specifically with young women in mind, as they compose a large part of the customer base,” says Jenita Spirtovic, head of content at Starfish.

E.L.F. encourages girls to explore careers in space.The videos are posted across the brand’s social platforms, such as Instagram and TikTok.

Spirtovic highlights that women account for 20% of space exploration professionals, with similar representation challenges across STEM industries.

“E.L.F. can help be part of this solution by elevating the stories of women who have overcome these odds,” says Spirtovic.

According to Coursera, women’s representation remains low in STEM professions — comprising just over one-quarter of the overall STEM workforce.

To combat this, Olay launched a course on Coursera, a for-profit US-based open online course provider, to educate on “skin care fundamentals” and encourage more learners, especially women and women of color, to enter the cosmetic science field.

E.L.F news

Last month, E.L.F. Beauty released its “Not-So-White Paper,” suggesting that having women on boards correlates to better price-to-earnings ratios. Boards with three or more women and minorities are less likely to face large-scale discrimination lawsuits. However, the research found that progress in diversity on boards is hitting a plateau, particularly for women. The number of women on boards has not changed since 2020, at 27%.

Earlier this year, E.L.F. Beauty warned of price increases if Donald Trump won the US presidential election. Tarang Amin, E.L.F. Beauty’s chairman and CEO, believes Trump’s planned taxes on goods imported from China into the US would impact the company’s finances next year.

In 2019, under the Trump presidency, E.L.F. Beauty faced 25% tariffs and addressed the issue through select price increases, help from FX and supplier concessions.

Despite future financial fears, E.L.F. Beauty’s net sales increased 40% to US$301.1 million, driven by strength in its retailer and e-commerce channels for the three months ending on September 30 this year, compared to the three months ended September 30, 2023.