Nance Hastings looks to fashion and art as inspiration for her work in the luxe beauty world—and to CEW Beauty Insider for the latest news in beauty. As Senior Vice President, General Manager, Ultra Prestige Fragrance Portfolio North America, Tom Ford Beauty at The Estée Lauder Cos., Nance has some sound advice for the next generation of marketers, as well as how she encourages her team to think out-of-the box. Below, see what she has to say about her career trajectory.



CEW Beauty Insider: Who has been a valuable mentor to you and what has been their most valuable advice?

Nance Hastings: Thia Breen, who has shared two of the most valuable pieces of wisdom. The first is to surround yourself with talented individuals. The second is to demonstrate accountability for all aspects of your business.

BI: In heading up a luxe brand, where do you seek inspiration from outside of the beauty world?


NH: Definitely fashion and art—both worlds change rapidly like beauty.

BI: How do you encourage your team to think outside the box and generate creativity?


NH: I encourage my team to take risks and test new ideas. In order for most people to feel comfortable taking risks, you have to create a safe environment. When an idea is successful, I give credit and if it isn’t, I ask what was the lesson learned and what can be done differently next time.

BI: What is your relationship with CEW; do you recall your main motivation for joining?


NH: Many of the women that I admired and respected were CEW members. I wanted to emulate them by joining CEW. I also wanted to learn more about the cosmetics industry and CEW filled that need.

BI: How has being a member helped your career?


NH: CEW has helped make me a smarter, better informed executive. For example, the online articles that CEW publishes on Beauty Insider, provide insights that I can’t get anywhere else.

BI: What three pieces of advice would you give to new marketers in the beauty industry?


NH: I would say to first learn as much as you can about digital marketing—all aspects—digital, social, etc. Secondly, I would say to not get too comfortable with what you know—technology keeps evolving and you need to evolve with it. Then I would say to always do a postmortem after a campaign—what worked well, what didn’t, what would you change for next time.

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