Often elusive, finding that perfect shade of lip color is like looking for a needle in a haystack. For generations, women have been buying and trying, and trying and buying lipsticks—and more often than they’d like to admit, tossing aside shade after shade, because they weren’t quite right. 
 
But Clinique contends it has the answer.
 
The firm has introduced Even Better Pop Lip Colour Foundation, a product that it says will help every woman—regardless of her skin color, undertone or age—find that perfect lip color match. Available in 28 shades, Even Better Pop Lip Colour Foundation will be a game-changer, according Clinique. 

We wanted to know more, so we checked in with Janet Pardo, senior vice president of product development.
 
HAPPI: This is a unique step for Clinique—can you share with us the back story behind the idea?
Pardo:We wanted to create a collection of lip shades to complement anyone’s unique complexion—and we thought, how wonderful would it be if we could take the subjectivity out of finding those shades? But we knew that it was tricky to identify the right neutral shade to complement your complexion, especially for women with deeper skin tones. To solve this problem, we created an algorithm to mathematically determine what those shades would be. We used a wealth of data on skin tone, available from when we were adding 26 new foundation shades to our Even Better Makeup, plus the 56 shades of Even Better Makeup we have now, to plot those shades on a 3D color wheel and generate a new data point that represents your perfect lip shade. By deepening the pigment on that shade, we get additional complementary lip shades. Out of 28 shades in our Even Better Pop Lip Color Foundation collection, everyone can be matched with three shades perfect for them.  
 

HAPPI: Can you walk us through the experience? Does it have to be done in a store only? 
Pardo: It’s very, very easy; simply visit a Clinique Counter, where our expert consultants will be able to match you with one of our 56 shades of Even Better Makeup SPF 15. Once you know your foundation shade, we have a beautiful Shade-Match Science color wheel that demonstrates what three lip shades go with your Even Better Makeup shade. Once we know your shade match, we’re able to use the wheel to provide you with the three Even Better Pop Lip Colour Foundation shades that are right for you, based on the following looks to fit your mood, Naked, Casual or Glam.
 
If you’re shopping online, you’ll be able to go to the Shade-Match Science page, which starts by matching you with your foundation shade. Once you have that, your three perfect lip shades will pop up. It’s a wonderful, very customized experience whether you go to a Clinique counter or are shopping from the comfort of your home. 
 
Happi:What has the brand most excited about this launch, and how does it signal that Clinique, one of the most venerable names in cosmetics, is a modern/forward thinker in the beauty space.
Pardo: Clinique was the original customizable beauty brand, from the day it launched. One of the original insights from the founding dermatologist behind Clinique, Dr. Norman Orentreich, was that different skin types needed to be cared for differently; the Clinique Computer and 3-Step System were designed to identify your skin type and match you with the right products for your skin. Clinique iD and Shade-Match Science are the modern evolution of that idea. Everyone’s beauty is unique and they want their products to reflect that; now we have the technology to scale it, and we’re very excited about what is coming in the future using this technology.