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Kylie Jenner, an 18-year-old entrepreneur and reality TV star, launched her latest Lip Kit this... [+]
The celebrity known for her pout is the name on make-up lovers’ lips this week. After Kylie Jenner released the latest color in her Lip Kit, the $29-product sold out in minutes, according to a tweet from Jenner. However, the item is now for sale on eBay for those with deep pockets.
It could cost Kylie Lip Kit fans $3,000 to sport the orange lip liner and matching lipstick "22." That's a 10,000% mark-up for a look that could be replicated with other beauty brands.
Experts told FORBES that this high premium isn’t surprising given the status that comes with the Lip Kit, the scarcity of it and the likelihood that teen consumers are chasing it.
“There are lots of substitutes if you want your lips to look a certain color, the problem is people aren’t buying functionality, they are buying desirability,” Z. John Zhang, a professor of marketing at the Wharton School, told FORBES. “You can keep up with the Kardashians and that kind of feeling is worth more than what goes into the lipstick.”
At time of writing, there were 326 listings on
“It’s this rare situation where you get a combination of scarcity and a status item.” Robert Phillips, a professor of professional practice at the Columbia Business School, told FORBES. “People are focused on it as something they need to have for some reason and would get pleasure out of buying it.”
Phillips compared the Lip Kit to Beanie Babies. He said the plush toy cost about $10, but on eBay bids would soar into the thousands of dollars back in the 1990s, when the items were popular. He added that if Lip Kits weren’t authenticatable, like the way Beanie Babies had the Ty tag, they wouldn’t go for anything more than a couple dollars.
Phillips said many things — like concert tickets — get a massive price uptick on the secondary market. However, he described Jenner's product as a unique experience.
Thank you guys for another record setting day for @kyliecosmetics sold out in about 7 minutes. We did it!
— Kylie Jenner (@KylieJenner) March 1, 2016
“This is a different phenomenon where there are close substitutes like with Beanie Babies,” Phillips said. “But where the brand becomes more valuable with scarcity, which may be artificial, to create this kind of mania.”
This isn't the first time the new lip color in her collection vanished quickly and hit a secondary market at a higher cost. On No. 30, 2015, the first three shades sold out in 30 seconds, according to Buzzfeed. Then the make-up appeared on eBay with a $250 pricetag.
The second batch that included three new colors, launched on Feb. 5, according to Elle Magazine. In less than 10 minutes, the items sold out and again hit eBay with a starting price of $225.
Despite the different timelines, every color sells out in a matter of moments. At the time of writing, there were 1,138 listings for all of Jenner’s Lip Kits on eBay. The reality TV star posted on her Instagram account that customers should “not trust any scammers supposedly reselling my kits for triple the amount.”
Hey guys. I feel confident saying for now we will try our hardest to get more kits to you guys every week if not every other week. Don't trust any scammers supposedly reselling my kits for triple the amount. Be patient & I promise they will come! I love you guys & for the people who got their hands on them.. You are going to love them xo kylie A photo posted by Kylie Cosmetics (@kyliecosmetics) on
“This is a very good piece of marketing, scarcity is really going to do wonders for you in the marketplace,” said Zhang. “With something that people desire in short supply, you’re going to generate that frenzy.”
Zhang added he expects the people gobbling up Lip Kits are teenagers, like Jenner, who is 18. He said these customers are impulsive, inpatient and anxious to show off the new color to friends.
Jenner, the younger of the two daughters between Kris and Caitlin Jenner, announced on Feb. 8 that the Lip Kits are part of a larger plan to a launch collection of products that will be part of the newly created Kylie Cosmetics.
