I Visited the Glossier Store in New York — The Work of a Brilliant Growth Hacker, Emily Weiss

I visited the New York store of Glossier, the D2C beauty brand that has taken the world by storm. I'd like to share what the experience was like.

Glossier founder Emily Weiss may not think of herself this way, but I consider her an incredibly sharp growth hacker. I'd also like to touch on that aspect of the brand.

What Is Glossier?

Glossier is a beauty brand founded in 2010 by Emily Weiss. Built around the concept of "SKIN FIRST. MAKEUP SECOND. SMILE ALWAYS.", the brand champions natural skin beauty over heavy makeup.

As of January 2020, Glossier had 2.6 million followers on Instagram, and as of 2018, their revenue reportedly exceeded $100 million (source: Glossier Hits $100 Million in Sales and Takes Aim at Big Beauty).

Best-Selling Products

Here are a few of Glossier's best-selling products.

The most iconic product is Boy Brow — a pomade that shapes and grooms the eyebrows.

The Balm Dotcom Trio lip balm set is also well-known.

Lash Slick mascara is another staple product.

Since I don't wear makeup myself, I'll admit I don't fully appreciate the appeal (ha), but I've come across the names and packaging of these products countless times online over the past few years.

The fact that they even managed to catch my attention — someone with zero interest in cosmetics — speaks to just how remarkable their reach really is.

Glossier's Growth Hacking Examples

I said at the outset that Emily Weiss is a growth hacker, and indeed Glossier has built its business in a way that reads like a textbook example of growth hacking.

Early Product Development Through Into the Gloss

While working at Vogue, Emily Weiss ran her own personal blog called Into the Gloss — a site dedicated to beauty tips and celebrity interviews.

Launched in 2010, Into the Gloss steadily grew its traffic and built a substantial readership. Emily Weiss also invested heavily in community building, forming personal connections with many readers who were passionate about beauty.

Through running Into the Gloss, she learned what kinds of products would actually sell — and in 2014, she finally launched the first Glossier product (How Glossier Turned Into a $400 Million Business in Four Years).

In growth hacking, there is a concept called MVP (Minimum Viable Product — the smallest possible version of a product that can be built and released). The approach involves building an MVP, gathering customer feedback (Measure), learning from it (Learn), and repeating that cycle to iteratively develop and improve the product.

In retrospect, Into the Gloss effectively served as Glossier's MVP in growth hacking terms. Running the blog kept the Build-Measure-Learn cycle turning continuously.

Boosting Retention Through Consistent Instagram Engagement

Glossier is well known for placing great importance on individual conversations with customers on Instagram, resulting in exceptionally high engagement.

Whenever Glossier's team spots a post about their brand, they diligently leave comments. When they find a particularly great post, they repost it. And when they encounter a complaint, they respond to it properly.

The key to retention is communicating with customers frequently. While standard CRM tactics like email marketing are important, Glossier's commitment to consistent, one-on-one communication through social media is something worth taking a page from.

Clever Tactics to Encourage and Leverage UGC

Glossier is also skilled at using clever, small-scale tactics to generate UGC (User-Generated Content — content created and posted by customers).

For example, they include original stickers with their products to encourage customers to create and share UGC posts.

The stickers get affixed to cosmetic pouches and packaging, which then get photographed and posted on Instagram.

When Glossier identifies a post they'd like to feature, they first check with the user in the comments section, like so:

Then they feature the post on their store, linked to the relevant product, like this:

They're not just great at generating UGC — they also do a solid job of putting it to good use.

A Theme-Park-Like Physical Store That Mass-Produces UGC

Glossier also operates physical retail stores, which serve to build brand world and generate UGC at scale. I had the chance to visit their New York location.

Inside the store, you're free to try any of Glossier's products. If I were a woman, I imagine my excitement would be through the roof.

There are sinks available as well, so you can really dive in and try out a full range of products.

Anyone who loves cosmetics is going to have an absolute blast. The store was packed, and everyone was clearly having a great time trying on makeup.

When you're feeling great, you naturally want to capture the moment in a photo. I noticed many people taking selfies in the mirrors — photos that would inevitably end up on Instagram.

While I was waiting inside, I had some time to kill, so I swallowed my pride and snapped a photo myself (ha). I have not posted it to Instagram, as it would be damaging to the brand.

Throughout the store, there were also plenty of Instagram-worthy photo spots where people were stopping to take pictures.

There's a high level of entertainment built into the experience. When you purchase something, your order is delivered from above via a conveyor belt-style system, as if it's just rolled off a factory line.

At this point, it's no longer a cosmetics store — it's a theme park where UGC is generated on a daily basis. And it plays a key role in reinforcing the Glossier brand universe.

Summary

I've shared my experience visiting the Glossier store in New York.

Glossier has built a system that combines digital communication through Instagram and Into The Gloss with immersive in-store experiences to create passionate fans — fueling retention, referrals, and even product development.

Setting aside the business analysis, if you love cosmetics, this is a store you are absolutely guaranteed to enjoy. Think of it as a trip to a theme park — well worth a visit, work-related or not.

If you've been there before, I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments!