Every woman knows that keeping up appearances can be expensive. As someone who is unable to resist the allure of Mecca Cosmetica, there’s no denial about where a large portion of my pay cheque is going. Plus, when you add in skincare, waxing, professional treatments and so on, these costs can feel never-ending.
We’re living in age where manicures, fake tan and blow dries have become the norm du jour, and a simple swipe of mascara and lip gloss just doesn’t seem to cut it anymore. Most notable is our ever-growing obsession with skincare, which is seen as essential for every woman, no matter what her age. This daily regimen often means completing skincare routines both morning and night, involving a myriad of products ranging from moisturisers, to serums, to eye creams.
Unsurprisingly, this can end up being very costly for many women. Research conducted by Mozo showed that Australians are spending $22 billion on their appearance per year, with skincare products and professional hair colouring being the splurges most likely to break the bank. This figure includes the $1.3 billion that Australian women spend per annum on manicures and pedicures alone.
It seems that we continuously invest our hard-earned money into looking good, instead of, well, actually investing it. Although perhaps not providing you with the instant gratification that a facial or massage does, investing even a portion of your beauty budget can provide one better: income and capital growth. These increased earnings don’t just result from cutting costs on cosmetics, but by allowing your money to grow through investments, instead of wearing it on your face.
Clearly looking good is expensive but it’s also extremely time consuming. Tracey Spicer, in her viral TEDx talk, ‘The Lady Stripped Bare,’ estimates that women spend an eye-watering 3,276 hours on their appearance over a lifetime. This time spent on beautification often eats into working hours, which means losing productivity and harming earning potential. As they say, time is money, and it’s clear that our daily rituals are costing us. Literally.
However, beauty is not a scam. For many women, it provides a boost to our confidence and self-esteem and generally makes us feel good.
It’s OK to want to look and feel you’re best, we all do. But it’s worth pausing to consider how much we are actually spending on our appearance and the consequences of this.
By tracking expenses on cosmetics and doing research on products before buying, it’s easy to implement small changes that ensure we are saving money, while still saving face. After all, striking the balance between reasonable and excessive spending on beauty can go a long way to ensuring financial freedom.
