Off The Shelf with Susannah Dellinger
Beauty is a $650 billion global industry — and it's still largely misunderstood. Off the Shelf with Susannah Dellinger goes beyond the product and into the power: the economics, the culture, the relationships, and the decisions that shape who wins and who doesn't. For beauty founders, executives, and anyone who knows this industry is worth taking seriously.
Episodes
19 episodes
018. The Worst Business Advice I Ever Got (And Why I'm So Glad I Ignored It)
Everyone's handing out business advice. Most of it is wrong. In this episode, Susannah Dellinger breaks down the four pieces of business advice she was given, ignored, and is so glad she did — from five-year business plans to the myth of removi...
017. Give Women Their Names Back: The Beauty Industry's Name Trap Nobody Is Talking About
When you sell your beauty brand, you might also be selling your name — forever. In this episode, Susannah Dellinger breaks down the Jo Malone lawsuit, the contracts that stripped female founders of the right to use their own names, and why the ...
016. Christine Morrison: The Calvin Klein VP Who Dismantled Everything to Figure Out Who She Really Was
She was a VP at Calvin Klein during one of fashion's most mythologized eras, left it all behind for marriage, twin babies, and a new city — and had to completely dismantle her identity to rebuild it. In this episode, Susannah Dellinger sits dow...
015. Beauty Retail Strategy: What Actually Moves Product Off the Shelf at Sephora and Ulta
Getting into Sephora or Ulta isn't the finish line — it's the starting gun. In this episode, Susannah Dellinger breaks down what actually moves product off the shelf, why most beauty brands get retail wrong from day one, and what it really take...
014. The Wharton Grad Who Rage Quit Wall Street to Build the Beauty Brand the Festival Generation Actually Needs
Jenny Qian spent three years on Wall Street, rage quit, landed at two of indie beauty's most talked-about startups, and then built a viral TikTok brand out of a personal problem — she just never learned how to do makeup. In this episode, Susann...
013. The 2026 Beauty Community Playbook: What Actually Builds Loyalty Beyond the Shelf
Everyone's talking about building community in beauty. Almost nobody is doing it right. In this episode, Susannah Dellinger breaks down exactly what she'd do right now to build real, lasting brand loyalty — from the simplest fix nobody's trying...
BONUS. Glinda Isn't Coming. The Power Was Always Ours.
Can beauty be a tool for feminism? It's the question Susannah Dellinger has been asking every guest, every LinkedIn essay, and even Gloria Steinem. In this bonus episode, recorded while traveling, she makes the case that it's completely the wro...
012. Pamela Anderson's Skincare CEO Built Her Career Fixing What Beauty Gets Wrong
She started a recycling club at 16, launched a clean beauty brand into Sephora, sold out her launch — and nearly went out of business because of it. In this episode, Susannah Dellinger sits down with Kailey Bradt, CEO of Sonsie Skin, to talk ab...
011. Who Really Owns the Beauty Industry? The Six Power Houses Behind Every Brand You Buy
You think you're choosing a product. You're actually choosing a power structure. In this episode, Susannah breaks down the six corporate houses that own the beauty industry — who's on their boards, how many women are actually in the room where ...
010. Beauty's Youth Obsession Has a Paper Trail
The beauty industry's obsession with youth didn't come from nowhere. In this episode, Susannah connects the dots between the Epstein files, the men who shaped beauty and fashion for decades, and the standards that got built on the backs of thos...
009. Off the Shelf Vol. 1: Stila
This show is called Off the Shelf for a reason! In this episode, Susannah Dellinger officially launches the mini-series at the heart of it all — taking iconic beauty brands off the shelf and examining the stories behind the story. Firs...
008. Making It Up: $10M Beauty Agency, No Plan, No Degree
She talked her way into her first beauty counter job with zero experience, memorized a poem in Japanese, and built a $10 million agency without a business plan. In this episode, Susannah Dellinger shares her story — and what "making it up" real...
007. Jennifer Walsh: Beauty Bar Founder on Amazon, Neuroscience and What She'd Build Differently
Before omnichannel was a buzzword, Jennifer Walsh was already doing it. The founder of Beauty Bar built one of the first beauty e-commerce platforms, pioneered indie brand distribution, and accidentally laid the groundwork for Amazon Beauty — a...
006. Why 3 Million People Showed Up for Ulta Beauty World... And What It Means for Beauty
3 million people logged on at the same time to buy a ticket to a beauty event. Only 3,000 were available. In this episode, Susannah Dellinger breaks down what Ulta Beauty World actually tells us about the beauty industry righ...
005. Is Beauty Holding Women Back... Or Setting Them Free?
Is beauty a tool for feminism, or has it been weaponized against women?Susannah Dellinger has spent two decades in the beauty industry and she's finally asking the question out loud. This is the episode she's been building toward....
004. The Time I Threw a Snickers Bar at Tyra Banks
Before she was a beauty executive, Susannah Dellinger was a semifinalist on Cycle 2 of America's Next Top Model... and she accidentally threw a Snickers bar at Tyra Banks. In this episode, she's finally telling the story.In thi...
003. Beauty, Power, and the Greenland Headline Nobody Talked About Enough
One week into recording a podcast about beauty as a political force, Susannah Dellinger woke up to a headline that proved her point. In this episode, she breaks down the Ronald Lauder–Greenland story… and what it says about beauty, power, an...
002. Beauty History 101: Madam C.J. Walker
Before she was a millionaire, she was orphaned, widowed, and a single mother. In this episode, Susannah Dellinger tells the story of Madam C.J. Walker — the first self-made millionaire in beauty history — and what her legacy reveals about the r...
001. Why Beauty: Behind the World's Most Underestimated Industry
Beauty gets dismissed as soft power. Susannah Dellinger disagrees, and she has the numbers to prove it. In this debut episode, she makes the case for why beauty deserves a seat at the serious table: economically, culturally, and globally...