Brands
MIP London doubles down on creator economy for 2026 edition
PARIS: MIP London has unveiled an expanded creator economy programme for its second edition, sharpening its focus on digital creators, platforms and community-led IP as television and streaming recalibrate for attention-led growth.
The international content market will run from 22 to 24 February 2026 across The IET London and The Savoy, with creator-focused sessions spread across Monday and Tuesday. The expanded strand blends analysis, commissioning insight and monetisation strategy, alongside a stronger push on structured networking, including matchmaking and expert-led roundtables.
A headline moment will see media analyst Evan Shapiro deliver a mainstage keynote titled The year of change or die on 24 February, drawing on proprietary data to map where the global television business is heading. Shapiro will also record a live episode of The media odyssey, his industry podcast co-hosted with Marion Ranchet, examining shifts across television, streaming and digital platforms.
Creator-led growth will be further explored in a mainstage panel featuring Snap Inc, Spotify and pan-European digital studio We Are Era, examining how talent and community-led IP scale across platforms. A separate session will focus on how premium digital content is commissioned and expanded by established media groups and creator-first studios, including participation from MTV Entertainment Group International.
Networking is being elevated through a market-first Attention Economy Leadership Lunch & Mixer, staged in partnership with Tubefilter, with strategy insights from Allied Global Marketing chief strategy officer Adam Cunningham. An invitation-only, expert-led roundtable on sustainable creator-led growth will bring together executives from BBC Talentworks, Patreon, After Party Studios and We Are Era, among others.
The expanded creator economy focus forms part of a broader MIP London programme spanning documentary and factual, micro dramas, podcasting, streaming and AI, under the theme “Joining the dots: finding the value.”
The announcement comes as MIP London crosses 1,000 registered delegates a month ahead of the market, including more than 550 international buyers from major broadcasters, streamers and platforms spanning television, streaming, telecoms, manufacturing and publishing.
Brands
Estée Lauder to shed 10,000 jobs as new boss bets on digital shift
The cosmetics giant raises its profit outlook but stays silent on a possible merger with Spain’s Puig, as job cuts deepen and a three-year sales slump weighs on the turnaround
NEW YORK: Stéphane de La Faverie is not done cutting. Estée Lauder announced on Friday that it plans to eliminate as many as 3,000 additional jobs, taking its total redundancy programme to as many as 10,000 roles, up from a previous target of 7,000 announced a year ago. The company, which owns La Mer, The Ordinary, Tom Ford, and Aveda, employs roughly 57,000 people worldwide. The mathematics of what is now being contemplated is stark.
The fresh round of cuts is expected to generate a further $200 million in savings, bringing the total annual savings from the programme to as much as $1.2 billion before taxes. That money, De La Faverie has made clear, will be ploughed back into the turnaround.
A CEO in a hurry
De La Faverie, who took the helm in January 2025, inherited a company that had endured three consecutive years of annual sales declines. His response has been to move fast and cut deep. A significant portion of the latest redundancies reflects his push to reduce headcount at US department stores, long a cornerstone of Estée Lauder’s distribution model but now a channel in structural decline. In their place, he is accelerating the shift toward faster-growing online platforms, including Amazon.com and TikTok Shop, a pivot that is reshaping not just where Estée Lauder sells but how it thinks about its customers.
The numbers are moving in the right direction
Despite the pain, there are signs the medicine is working. Estée Lauder raised its profit outlook for the remainder of the fiscal year, guiding for adjusted earnings per share in the range of $2.35 to $2.45, above analyst estimates and a notable step up from the $2.05 to $2.25 range it had guided for in February. Organic net sales growth is expected to come in at 3 per cent, the company said, at the high end of the range it set out in February.
The share price tells a mixed story. After De La Faverie took charge, the stock surged nearly 60 per cent, buoyed by investor optimism that a longtime company insider could finally arrest the decline. But 2026 has been rougher: the shares have fallen 27 per cent this year, weighed down by disappointing February results and the overhang of unresolved merger talks with Spanish beauty giant Puig Brands SA. The company gave no additional details about those discussions on Friday, leaving the market to guess.
Silence on Puig
The proposed tie-up with Puig remains the most consequential unknown hanging over Estée Lauder. A deal with the Barcelona-based group, which owns brands including Carolina Herrera and Rabanne, would reshape the global luxury beauty landscape. But with nothing new to say and a turnaround still very much in progress, De La Faverie is asking investors to trust the process.
Three years of sales declines, 10,000 job cuts, and a merger that may or may not happen. At Estée Lauder, the overhaul has barely started.
