GEORGE TOWN: Who would put on lipstick while wearing face masks in public? A scarce few – a check with cosmetics sales people have revealed.

       But the need to make the eyes stand out has gained new importance in this era of mask-wearing, not to mention the dire need to ward off dreaded acne breakouts caused by hours of wearing masks daily.

       Retail sales of eyebrow pencils, eyeliners, mascara, foundation cream and concealers have begun climbing again as fully vaccinated shoppers find the confidence to do some physical shopping for cosmetics, said makeup consultant Jessie Yee, 40.

       But lipsticks and lip crayons have slipped far down the priority scale, with a 70% plunge in demand, said Yee.

       “All our products are sealed and customers are not allowed to use testers to reduce human contact.

       “However, we are thankful that business is slowly resuming,” she said.

       Yee said some retailers have completely stopped selling lipsticks except for a few.

       “We were allowed to sell skincare products such as toner, moisturiser and serum.

       “Many people want moisturisers as they developed acne after wearing masks all day,” she said.

       But face masks or not, some still dutifully apply lipstick, such as a freelancer who wished to be known as Rebecca, 55.

       “Although I have to put on a mask, I still make it a point to put on lipstick,” she said.

       Promoter Jessica Chew, 55, said customers are coming back to buy their regular perfumes as they were not allowed to do so previously.

       “We took all perfumery off the shelf previously, but customers need to smell the fragrances themselves, which they cannot do online,” she said.

       Meanwhile, Gama Supermarket and Departmental Store senior marketing manager Leong Hau Soon said customers are slowly greturning in Penang as the state enters Phase Three of the National Recovery Plan.

       “We are having our members’ day sales until tomorrow (Sunday).

       “We decided to arrange for four days instead of our usual two-day sales to spread out the crowd.

       “We adhere strictly to all standard operating procedures and only 50 customers are allowed in the supermarket at any one time.

       “Customers are provided with gloves and reminded to maintain a physical distance,” she said, adding that all employees are fully vaccinated.