Lauder said the firm will keep growing international sales with strategic initiatives, which in the first quarter included a continued investment in travel retail, where it allocated an additional $6 million to increase the visibility and assortment of its brands, and the opening of 34 stand-alone MAC Cosmetics doors, two-thirds of which are located in international markets. The company plans to open 20 more MAC Cosmetics stores in the second quarter. Lauder noted that travel retail sales gained 20 percent in the quarter.

"We strongly believe that the investments we've made in the last six months will start to pay off in the second-quarter results," said Lauder.

By region, first-quarter sales in the Americas dipped 0.5 percent to $898.9 million, while sales gained in Asia-Pacific, increasing 13.5 percent to $260 million, and in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, with sales rising 11.2 percent to $551.2 million.

Bear Stearns analyst Justin Hott said the firm's emphasis on its international business marks a step in the right direction. "You could argue that, like Avon and Procter & Gamble, the Estée Lauder Cos. could become an international story."

By category, makeup sales were essentially flat, dipping 0.4 percent to $663.1 million, dragged down by the shift in the U.S. retail calendar. Skin care sales gained 6.4 percent to $619.5 million, fragrance sales rose 5.5 percent to $313 million, and hair care increased 23.2 percent to $102.6 million, boosted by the acquisition of the Ojon brand.

The company forecast second-quarter sales growth of 10 to 12 percent. Lauder, responding to several analysts' bewilderment over his optimism given increasing economic challenges in the U.S., said, "Business outside North America is very strong and growing in high-single digits....Some analysts can't see beyond the U.S. They only look at NPD data."