You’ve seen the black bullets. You’ve definitely smelled that vanilla-scented lipstick. Maybe you even remember the first time you walked past a MAC counter and felt slightly intimidated by the booming music and the artists dressed in head-to-toe black. But honestly, most people don't realize that the creator of MAC Cosmetics wasn't some giant corporate conglomerate or a boardroom of suits in Manhattan. It started in a kitchen.
Actually, it started because two guys in Toronto were annoyed.
Frank Toskan was a photographer and makeup artist who was tired of how makeup looked under hot studio lights. It was the 1980s. Everything was heavy, greasy, and photographed like a muddy mess. Frank Angelo, his partner, owned a hair salon chain. Together, they decided that if the industry wouldn't give them products that worked for professional photography, they’d just make them themselves. They literally began cooking up lipsticks in their kitchen and selling them to fellow stylists and models. That’s the "Makeup Art Cosmetics" (MAC) origin story. It wasn't about "lifestyle branding" back then. It was a utility for people who worked with their hands.
Why the Creator of MAC Cosmetics Changed Everything
Back in 1984, the beauty industry was still very much about "the look." You had the Lancôme woman or the Estée Lauder woman. It was very polished, very exclusive, and, frankly, very white. Toskan and Angelo didn't care about that. They launched MAC with a mandate that sounds like a modern marketing slogan but was actually a radical manifesto at the time: All Ages, All Races, All Sexes. They weren't just being nice. They were being practical.
As a photographer, Toskan knew that skin comes in a million different undertones. He needed colors that didn't go "ashy" on darker skin or "pink" on olive skin. This is why the creator of MAC Cosmetics is often credited with pioneering the inclusive shade ranges we now take for granted with brands like Fenty Beauty. Long before it was a "trend" to have 40 shades of foundation, MAC was doing it because the pros needed it.
The Kitchen Laboratory and the Black Pot
The packaging was a stroke of genius, though it was born out of a lack of money. They couldn't afford gold-plated, ornate tubes. They went with sleek, matte black. It looked like a tool. It looked like something a professional would carry in a kit, not something a socialite would keep in a gold clutch. That "pro" aesthetic became the brand's entire identity.
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They also realized that the people behind the counter were their best advertisement. Instead of hiring "beauty advisors" who looked like pageant queens, they hired actual makeup artists. Tattoos? Fine. Piercings? Whatever. Can you blend a smokey eye in under two minutes? That’s what mattered. This created a culture where the customer felt like they were getting a backstage pass to a fashion show.
The Viva Glam Revolution
You can't talk about the creator of MAC Cosmetics without talking about the AIDS crisis. In the early 90s, the epidemic was devastating the fashion and arts communities in New York and Toronto. While other brands were staying quiet, afraid that associating with HIV/AIDS would "tarnish" their image, Frank Toskan and Frank Angelo leaned in.
They created Viva Glam.
They decided that 100%—not a percentage of profits, but the entire selling price—of every Viva Glam lipstick would go to the MAC AIDS Fund. This was unheard of. It’s still pretty rare today. They chose RuPaul as the first spokesperson in 1994. Think about that. A major beauty brand putting a drag queen on a billboard in the mid-90s. It was a massive gamble that paid off because it was authentic. It wasn't a "social media campaign" for clout; it was two men trying to save their friends.
What Happened When Estée Lauder Moved In?
By the mid-90s, MAC was too big to stay indie. The demand was insane. You had people like Madonna wearing "Russian Red" on her Blond Ambition tour, and every girl in America wanted it. Estée Lauder bought a stake in 1994 and eventually took over the whole thing by 1998.
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Sadly, Frank Angelo passed away in 1997 due to complications from surgery. He was only 49. His death marked the end of an era for the brand. Frank Toskan stayed on for a bit but eventually left the company. When the original creator of MAC Cosmetics stepped away, many feared the soul of the brand would vanish.
Honestly, it did change. It became a global powerhouse. It started doing those weekly "limited edition" drops that drove collectors crazy. Some say it lost its "pro" edge in favor of mass-market appeal. But the core DNA—that matte black packaging and the commitment to diversity—stayed.
The Real Impact on Beauty Standards
If you look at the industry now, everyone is trying to be "disruptive." But Toskan and Angelo were the original disruptors. They didn't use focus groups. They used their eyes.
- Matte Textures: Before MAC, everything was shimmer and frost. MAC introduced "Matte" finishes that actually stayed on the lips.
- The Brush Revolution: They were one of the first brands to sell professional-grade brushes to the general public.
- Back-to-MAC: They pioneered recycling programs, giving away a free lipstick if you brought back six empty primary containers.
Common Misconceptions About the Founders
People often think MAC is an American brand. It’s not. It’s Canadian. It’s a product of the Toronto art scene. There’s also a misconception that they were just "businessmen" who saw a gap in the market. They were artists first. Toskan was obsessed with the technicality of light. He understood physics as much as he understood pigments.
Another thing? People think MAC was always expensive. In the early days, it was actually priced quite competitively compared to the high-end department store brands. They wanted people to be able to afford the "pro" look.
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Actionable Insights for the Modern Consumer
If you're looking to shop the brand today and want to honor the legacy of the creator of MAC Cosmetics, here’s how you do it like a pro:
- Invest in the "Old School" Classics: Products like Studio Fix Fluid, Ruby Woo lipstick, and Spice lip pencil are the ones that built the brand. They haven't changed much because they don't need to.
- Use the Back-to-MAC Program: Don't throw away those black tubes. Check the current terms on their website, as the program evolved recently to include a donation-based model in some regions, but it remains one of the best ways to keep plastic out of landfills.
- Support Viva Glam: Every cent of the purchase price of a Viva Glam lipstick still goes to organizations supporting health and rights for all ages, races, and genders. It is arguably the most effective "charity" product in the history of retail.
- Talk to the Artists: Don't just grab a product and go. The founders' vision was for the counters to be places of education. Ask them how to use the product. They are trained to teach you, not just sell to you.
The legacy of Frank Toskan and Frank Angelo isn't just a billion-dollar company. It’s the fact that today, a teenager of any skin tone can walk into a mall and find a foundation that actually matches their face. That didn't happen by accident. It happened because two guys in a kitchen decided that the status quo wasn't good enough.
They didn't just create a makeup brand. They created a culture where being different wasn't just "accepted"—it was the whole point.
Understanding the Roots
To truly appreciate MAC, you have to look at the era of its birth. The 1980s were a time of excess, but also a time of rigid boundaries. By breaking those boundaries, the founders paved the way for the "makeup for everyone" movement we see today. Whether you are a professional artist or someone who just wants to cover a blemish, you are using tools that were designed by people who actually understood the struggle of the craft. That is the lasting mark of the creators.