Estee Lauder 2003 Annual Report Download - page 7

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06
Dear Fellow Stockholders:
In preparing this year’s annual report, I reviewed the seven reports that have been issued since The Estée
Lauder Companies went public in 1995. Each annual report is a chapter in the story of this thriving Company.
This year, we’ve turned a significant page in the history of the Company as we’ve
reached our highest level of sales ever.
What is the glue that binds each chapter to the next and keeps us on a successful
course? I believe the secret to our success as a 57-year old Company is staying true to
the clear vision that launched this Company in 1946— to offer the finest quality
products in the best stores in the world.
Mrs. Estée Lauder’s original vision— of who we are and what we stand for — has proven
to be resilient and timeless. Over the years, our Company has grown because
we’ve remained true to those early core philosophies. We come into work each day with a passion to
keep that vision vibrant.
DEFINING WHO WE ARE
From the beginning, we have understood what prestige means. A prestige business defines itself as much by
what it doesn’t do, as by what it does. Similarly, we are defined by where we don’t advertise, as much as
by where we do advertise, and by where we don’t sell, as much as by where we do sell. Throughout our
history, we have refined the delicate role of being a prestige player.
CHAIRMAN’S MESSAGE
LEONARD A. LAUDER