Charlotte Tilbury MBE is a British makeup artist, founder, chairperson, president and chief creative officer of her makeup and skincare brand, Charlotte Tilbury Beauty Ltd, and is a British Vogue Contributing Beauty Editor and Global Ambassador for Women for Women International.
Charlotte Tilbury was born in London, England, to painter Lance Tilbury and fashion producer Patsy Dodd. She and her parents moved to Ibiza when she was nine months old. When she was 13, Charlotte moved back to London to attend boarding school, where she started experimenting with makeup.
She attended the Glauca Rossi School of Makeup, and began her career in makeup assisting Mary Greenwell, whom she had previously met aged 11 in Ibiza. She would later cite Greenwell as ‘an incredible mentor’.
Tilbury’s work can be seen in fashion magazines including Vogue, LOVE magazine, Vanity Fair, V magazine for cover shoots and editorial campaigns.
Tilbury has worked with photographers including Mario Testino and Mert and Marcus as well as celebrities such as Kate Moss, Kim Kardashian West, Gisele Bündchen and human rights lawyer Amal Clooney.
Tilbury also works Fashion Week in New York, Milan, Paris and London, acting as show makeup director for brands such as Prada, Miu Miu, McQueen, Cavalli, Lanvin and Chloé.
Before starting Charlotte Tilbury Beauty, Charlotte worked with industry leaders to create best-selling products and to launch entire beauty lines, leading creative product development for brands including Helena Rubenstein, MAC, Armani, Burberry and Tom Ford.
Charlotte Tilbury was awarded an MBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List 2018 for services to the beauty and cosmetics industry. In addition, she has been awarded Rodial Award for Best Makeup Artist 2012, CEW Achiever award in 2014, as well as being nominated for Veuve Clicquot Businesswoman of the Year 2016. Tilbury has also been featured in the Business of Fashion 500 since 2013.
In October 2012, Tilbury launched her own YouTube channel and blog providing makeup tutorials and tips and tricks, featuring celebrities including Kate Moss, Sara Sampaio, Olivia Culpo and Emily Ratajkowski.
In 2013, Charlotte Tilbury launched her own beauty brand with a line-up of skincare and makeup, Charlotte Tilbury Beauty Ltd. at Selfridges in London. This became the retailer’s biggest-ever beauty launch for turnover. The brand is now stocked in department stores such as Harvey Nichols, Harrods, Fenwick’s, as well as Bergdorf Goodman, Sephora, and Nordstrom in the US.
In November 2015, Tilbury’s flagship store opened in London’s Covent Garden. Since then, Tilbury has opened a further ten standalone stores–a second in London, one in Los Angeles, two in Hong Kong, two in Qatar, two in Dubai, one in Abu Dhabi and a two-story beauty wonderland in Kuwait, her largest store to date. As of 2020, Charlotte Tilbury is available in the UK, US, Canada, Hong Kong, Singapore, Netherlands, Germany, Spain, France, Italy, Ireland, Dubai, Kuwait and Qatar as well as online in 76 locations.
In June 2020, Charlotte Tilbury announced her partnership with Spanish fashion and fragrance powerhouse Puig. Puig acquired a majority stake in the business, with Charlotte continuing to retain a significant minority stake and remaining Chairman, President and Chief Creative Officer.
The company is based on The Strand, Central London. The CEO is Demetra Pinsent.
