Final answer:
Helena Rubinstein transformed cosmetics into luxury items by crafting marketing narratives that redefined beauty products as essentials for the modern woman, thereby shifting public perception and making makeup a symbol of style and affluence.
Step-by-step explanation:
Helena Rubinstein revolutionized the cosmetics industry by weaving tall tales and luxury narratives into her marketing strategy, thus transforming cosmetics from mere grooming necessities into symbols of affluence and style. The beauty industry, propelled by savvy marketers, pivoted away from just offering products to creating a compelling story of transformation and desirability, directly contributing to the burgeoning clutch of beauty products that women began to carry.
Marketers, including Rubinstein's brand, worked to alter the public's perception of makeup, once associated with negative connotations, and elevated it to a daily essential for the modern woman. This repositioning relied heavily on creating an aspirational lifestyle that beauty products were claimed to enable, effectively making cosmetics a luxury product that promised to enhance not just beauty, but one's life.