“The rules of hair care are simple and finite, any Cosmo girl would have known.” These are the immortal words of one Elle Woods, heroine of the film Legally Blonde. One has to suspend their disbelief slightly for the film’s lofty optimism, and most of us probably are not using hair care tips to win murder trials. Still, it speaks to the possible depth and utility of beauty knowledge.
One proponent of a more complex notion of beauty is Kathleen Hou, new beauty editor as of September 2013 for The Cut, one of New York magazine’s digital sisters. The print component has long been lauded for its ingenuity and uniqueness, and The Cut’s beauty coverage is no different. Hou is quick to point out that the site will not simply be listing the best nail polishes for fall or top ten red lipsticks. Rather, The Cut will offer a take compatible with New York magazine’s inimitable voice.
“What really interested me about The Cut is that the fact that their explanation of beauty, just as their treatment of fashion content, was not one dimensional. It was always well-reported and touched on the meaning of fashion, the meaning of beauty, beyond what people would think of at first glance,” Hou said.
Hou admitted she has a tough act to follow after the exit of The Cut’s first beauty editor, Christina Han, brought on board when the site revamped and expanded in August 2012. “[She] set a great foundation for beauty content, and established The Cut as a voice of beauty authority,” Hou explained.
While Han may have laid a firm groundwork, Hou, has her own take on beauty and it goes beyond the typical fare of this media milieu. Her original perspective is not at all surprising, considering she went to school for finance, and worked in the consulting space before deciding fashion and beauty writing was her calling.
“What’s unique about beauty is that it can cover so many things beyond just makeup. When people first think of beauty, they think of products: eye shadow, shampoo. What I have always found interesting is that beauty is a mixture of not just makeup, but also science, anthropology and a huge sense of self and wellness. It can embody so many more topics than just [makeup],” Hou explained.
Wellness is a topic that Hou plans to expand upon, hoping to further distinguish The Cut by linking wellness to the already established beauty niche. “Beauty and wellness are sister topics and there are not that many sites that really tackle beauty as well as wellness,” she said. “It will be interesting and a challenge, to figure out how to bring wellness to New York magazine and to The Cut and do it in a way that feels authentic to what we have so far.”
Hou is quick to trumpet the publication’s authenticity and noted, “I feel like The Cut’s voice and the nature of its reporting and feature writing sets it apart. All of the writers here have a great voice…it’s not mean or snarky, it’s just a clever take on things.”
The Cut’s intention is to truly capture the feel of a magazine. Hou described it as “blending that print mentality of beautiful images with the sharpness and quickness of story writing online,” and it is perhaps a true amalgam of the print and digital worlds journalism is straining to merge.
Hou is a proponent of this advancement, and does not choose to look into the media’s future with fear. “It’s about pushing the envelope further and learning about new ways to explore content in online,” she said.
“There’s room for growth in both industries . . . I think there are magazines and online media proving people wrong every day, and showing that media isn’t dying. It’s just a need to shift and adapt to what consumers want, what readers want, and reflect new technology and changing times,” she further explained.
New technology is certainly a useful tool in Hou’s position, as she related her professional usage of social media, enabling her to expand her awareness beyond products she might like, cognizant of the potential pitfalls of beauty coverage, and her duty as a curator, to make sure she’s serving her readers and not her own preferences.
“I think for beauty, Pinterest is huge. Beauty is visual in so many ways, and it’s a great gage to get an idea of consumers want and what users are interested in by going to the Pinterest boards and see what people are pinning. I see social media as a way to touch base with readers and users,” she said.
Hou’s journey from financial consultant to beauty editor required some serious gumption on her part. “A lot of it is being persistent, and always looking for ways to improve yourself. If there’s a writer you admire, taking the time to study and understand what you like about them, and realizing what you bring to your writing from your background that’s different.”
For Hou, perhaps it was her fresh set of eyes bereft of a weighty journalism background that enabled her to break into the media world by hustling as a freelance writer, not so unlike a certain UCLA fashion merchandising major who went on to become a class valedictorian at Harvard Law School. And as evinced by Hou in her own closer-to-actual-reality version of a career change, these possibilities are within reach for the truly dedicated.
Pitching Tips
Hou welcomes beauty and wellness targeted pitches and press materials, and prefers initial contact be made via email.
“If it’s something really quick, I don’t mind a phone call. But I prefer that it’s a follow up to an email. Sometimes messages can be hard to hear, especially if it’s someone I don’t know, so it’s easier for me to have an idea of the brand and who’s calling,” she said.
Hou notes that big attachments or large emails should be avoided, with large look books sent via mail.
With regard to content, Hou welcomes new ideas as well as more concrete information. “We’re always looking for new and upcoming brands, especially niche brands. That’s something we love to discover and that has always done well for us. Anything related to wellness, as we continue to build that, and also science. We love to hear about any scientific or technological advancements, as well as any kind of studies relating to health, nutrition, wellness or beauty,” she said.
Hou also points out the multi-faceted approach The Cut takes with beauty coverage, and noted that seemingly unrelated topics might make for good content. “Even things that people don’t necessarily think traditionally relate to beauty, like, I got a study once about selfies. It’s not necessarily a direct beauty link, but we see it as body image or self-esteem,” she said.
Follow The Cut at @TheCut and Hou at @kathleenhou.
