Cas pratiques marketing en anglais Luxury make-up

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Helene

The young mother

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She is 40 years old, and she leads a peaceful life with her husband and two kids. She has to pay attention to her spending and she makes a detailed budget of her expenditures every month. But she likes taking time for herself, and that is why she occasionally goes to the perfumery to buy some luxury makeup products. This is always a great moment for her, and she appreciates every second she can use these fabulous products.

By buying these products, consumers of these luxury makeup brands want to show that they have made a success of their life enough to be able to afford top-quality and luxury products. Yet, it is still difficult to know what is their first motive : is it the quality of the product OR is it the image it reflects ? Indeed, women plays on their own image : not only using luxury makeup is having the opportunity to use and wear the most famous and top brands, but it also gives a certain social image : image of elegance, of affluence. You are recognized as a woman who can afford expensive products, and who has a specific lifestyle. You feel more feminine.

Distribution channels : market share, positioning

In France and in the world, the biggest fashion house in parallel possess a range exclusively dedicated to makeup profits offering high quality used by professional high fashion. And just like in high fashion, makeup renews each new collection and has a muse or an evocative theme. For example in 2011, the red lip Dior Addict Lipstick was associated to Kate Moss.

Distribution :

Market share : It is estimated more than 425 billion euros sales price distributor (source: Euromonitor International, 2009). The current main centers of consumption in 2011 (Source: Euromonitor International, 2011):

- Europe, the world's largest market with € 72 billion;

- USA: € 37.8 billion,

- Japan: € 29.3 billion.

However, these markets are mature with growth rates capped at 2% and annual growth over the past five years is looming largely for export, especially to emerging countries (Brazil, Russia, India, Mexico and China) that record growth rates between 5% and 9% for the market perfumes and cosmetics.

Makeup products are mainly sold in perfumery stores that are dedicated to luxury beauty products. They can also be found in their own brand’s store, and on the Internet.

Positioning : we see that the market positioning of European groups is primarily focused on consumer markets for Germany and the UK, while France is characterized by a more premium positioning that is less sensitive to international competition and carried by the image of Paris, the capital of glamor.

Competitors : who, market share, prices

Who : luxury make up brands are first of all in competition between one another. They have to offer the best product, use the best communication, and be more attractive than one of their competitors. But, they are also in competition with cheap makeup brands, like L’Oreal or Gemey Maybelline, which are aiming at a huge part of the population. This second main competitor is the hardest to resist to.

Market share : In France and Korea, brands belonging to the union of Haute Couture have a stronger notoriety than the other makeup brands, especially because of the privileged position that they occupy, and notably France with Dior and Chanel in Korea. This is not verified in the USA where being a makeup artist (Mac, Bobbi Brown, Nars or Laura Mercier) is a way to resist to the haute couture brands. They enjoys the prestige and quality associated with their name, and have one distinct advantage over other brands. However, the Haute Couture label does not guarantee a higher market share in the make-up market in the USA due to the historical presence of the Clinique brand, leader in beauty but also in makeup. In conclusion, being a high fashion brand is definitely a competitive advantage and is a barrier to entry for other strong brands in the world of makeup. However, this is less proven in the USA, a market more open to diffuse competition "pure players" up on one side and skincare brands on the other.

Short and midterm outlook : key factors of evolution, key local/international trends

Key factor of evolution

Price-quality ratio : Even if the products are expensive, the customers buy an unquestionable quality. Indeed, the products last longer than cheaper makeup products : for example, a MAC foundation will be stronger than a cheap foundation in term of quality and living. To continue with the example of the foundation, the cheaper may leave a mark whereas the MAC will resist all day long without any retouch.

It's also a question of trend. Julia Roberts, Natalie Portman, Kate Moss have been muses for big luxury makeup companies : they appear on adds, on TV, on magazines or on Movies. So, women want to be as beautiful as them, and the price isn't a problem anymore, it's an investment : their beauty has no limit.

The socio-professional category is an important key of the evolution of the cosmetic market : not everybody can afford a luxury makeup. First of all, girls are influenced by their mother, their auntie, their friend and their reading to choose the makeup. Let's take an example to illustrate this idea. In one hand, a girl from comfortable family : we suppose that her relationships have the same situation : it seems to be natural for her to have a high quality of clothes, food, and so makeup because in her circle, they use the same products. She will buy MAC, Dior or Estée Lauder for example. On the other hand, a girl from modest family : we suppose that her relationships have the same situation. In relation with her incomes, she can't basically afford luxury makeup. However, as it is a question of trend, this girl who takes care of herself would like to have the high product level of makeup. A part of her incomes will be devoted to her personal beauty. So, we can talk about upward mobility. Though the luxury makeup isn't accessible for everybody, it's a need to have it.

The trends :

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According to the Huffington post, the favorite makeup of French women is Dior, Chanel and YSL. It confirms our previous ideas : French