The Estée Lauder Companies Executive Group President John Demsey is to leave the company, effective this week, following a recent Instagram post which caused widespread offence.
The post, subsequently deleted, led to Demsey being suspended without pay on 22 February. The post, sighted by The Moodie Davitt Report, featured a parody of a book cover of children’s television show Sesame Street and a deeply racial reference. It also made light of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Demsey, a renowned champion of inclusiveness and equality during a stellar 31-year career with the US beauty giant, apologised profusely in a follow-up Instagram post three days ago (see below). But it was not enough to save him after a widespread external (and partly internal) backlash.
In a joint letter to employees yesterday, subsequently issued publically, Executive Chairman William P. Lauder and President and Chief Executive Officer Fabrizio Freda wrote: “Today, John Demsey, Executive Group President, The Estée Lauder Companies, was informed he must leave the company, effective this week.
“This decision is the result of his recent Instagram posts, which do not reflect the values of The Estée Lauder Companies, have caused widespread offense, are damaging to our efforts to drive inclusivity both inside and outside our walls, and do not reflect the judgment we expect of our leaders.
“Inclusion, diversity and equity are core to our company’s values and priorities globally. Furthermore, over the past two years, we have worked together as an organization to advance our approach to racial equity and have taken a hard look at where we can and should do better. Together we are making progress against our commitments to our employees, our partners, and consumers.
“Our employees, and especially our senior leaders, are accountable to continue driving our progress and to respect the values of this company for the long term.”
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