Beauty Math 101: Shop Smarter, Not Harder – How-to Get Real Value from Your Beauty Buys 🎯💄With Investment Banker Turned Beauty Creator Rachel Wiseman

Breaking Beauty Podcast

Dear Media, Jill Dunn and Carlene Higgins

Jilldunn, Arts, Beautyeditors, Style541811, Beautyexpert, Beauty, Carlenehiggins, Fashion, Society & Culture, Magazineeditors, Fashion & Beauty

4.7 • 954 Ratings

🗓️ 29 October 2025

⏱️ 61 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Just in time for the Sephora Savings Event (October 31st - November 10th), we’re sitting down with finance‑savvy beauty creator Rachel Wiseman — the brain behind the viral “Beauty Math” series — to decode the real cost of beauty products and the smartest ways to shop the season. Listen in to discover why beauty math literacy matters and how it can prevent you from feeling like you “got robbed” whenever you leave the store.

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In this episode you’ll discover:

How do sneakflation and shrinkflation apply in the beauty industry? The way brands shrink their product sizes or inflate “deal” prices while selling the same product.
What “anchor price” means and how it affects your purchase decisions.
The 2025 version of the “Lipstick Index” – does it still hold?
How tariffs and loyalty programs are influencing beauty pricing and whether refill products truly save you money.
Her category‑by‑category cheat sheets: the best value skincare, eyeshadow palettes, multi‑use makeup, and packaging that gives you the most bang for your buck, explained.
Holiday shopping tips you’ll want to bookmark: mini vs jumbo sizes, Advent calendars, and what deals are genuinely worth it.

For any products or links mentioned in this episode, check out our website: https://breakingbeautypodcast.com/episode-recaps/

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Hosts: Carlene Higgins and Jill Dunn

Theme song, used with permission: Cherry Bomb by Saya 

Produced by Dear Media Studio

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Transcript

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0:00.0	The following podcast is a Dear Media production.
0:08.1	Welcome to Breaking Beauty, the podcast all about the breakthrough people, products, and moments in beauty.
0:14.0	We're your host, Jill Dunn and Carleen Higgins.
0:24.2	Welcome back to another episode of Breaking Beauty Podcast.
0:26.3	I'm your co-host Jill Dunnan. I'm here alongside Carleen Higgins like I am every single Wednesday.
0:30.3	How are you, Carleen?
0:31.4	I'm great.
0:32.3	Thank you.
0:33.1	And we're two former magazine beauty editors turned beauty podcasters who are here for you
0:38.6	chatting about the breakthrough people, products and moments in beauty every single Wednesday.
0:43.6	Hell yeah. And we've had such a banner fall lineup of expert guests. We've had Bobby Brown on the
0:49.3	show. If you guys haven't listened to that one yet, please do check it out. We also had Lisa Eldridge.
0:54.9	We published a whole extended cut of that episode over on our YouTube channel, which people are
1:00.2	loving. So everybody go check that out. And Carleen, you were a guest as well because I interviewed
1:07.4	you. We had an exclusive here at Breaking Beauty. I interviewed you about your
1:12.0	skincare range that you've spent the last 18 months developing. It's called Cassat Beauty. Everybody
1:18.1	needs to go back and listen to that episode if you haven't had a chance to yet. And I believe
1:21.9	maybe today orders are officially shipping. So congrats to you. Well, thank you so much, Jill. The debut product is
1:29.2	La Palmaid. It is a retinoid skin ointment. I hope that everybody tries it, loves it. Check it out at
1:36.5	Cassatbeauty.com. I really appreciate the plug as well, Jill. I have to say. She's a founder now.
1:42.7	She is a founder now. We need to remember that.
1:45.3	We're wearing so many chapeaux. And if this is your first time tuning in, welcome to the show.
	...

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