Small Cosmetics Brands Make Over the Beauty Market by Targeting Millennials

Small cosmetic brands are taking a new approach to their marketing strategy that seems to be rapidly increasing their growth in the market by more than 20%. They are focusing on attracting millennials by promoting their products through influencers and social media. Their products are designed to attract this very specific niche because they know that millennial buyers are the ones who buy the most skincare products these days. Their products are often organic and personalized, and their branding is simple and modern. They also rely on online sales even though some have opened one or two physical stores. 

This strategy has been successful because these companies have shown how they understand their markets and customers despite being new and having less money to invest than bigger brands. In fact, global brands are even losing share because they are being replaced for the new "indie" brands. However, this big change is not only happening in the skincare industry, but also in the makeup industry, which had been led by giant corporations in the past and now is losing customers to smaller companies that are growing faster than them. As a result, big companies decided to keep their leadership in the market by buying stakes in small brands. 

The article describes the cases of three successful indie brands, True Botanicals, Glossier and The Ordinary, which now share their stakes with Unilever and Estee Lauder respectively. The decision of their owners of letting big companies acquire part of their stakes have brought negative and positive consequences. On one hand, some customers feel that they might stop using their natural ingredients and start using harmful chemicals that are known to be used by bigger brands. However, both the owner and representatives from Unilever have expressed that they plan on maintaining the brand's core value. On the other hand, the owners of small brands think that their corporate expertise is what they need to keep growing. 

To conclude, this article is very much related to the content that we have learned in the Principles of Marketing class. We can see how the indie brand really studied their market and develop a product based on the understanding that they got about their client’s needs, interests, and likes. Their marketing strategy was also created according to their target market, and that is how they got to attract so many customers in a short period of time. Also, their products successfully passed the Market Introduction phase of the Product Life Cycle and are now entering the Market Growth phase. On the other hand, the big brands are trying to acquire these indie brands under their “umbrella” so they can still be the leaders.

Link to article: https://www.wsj.com/articles/small-cosmetics-brands-make-over-the-beauty-market-by-targeting-millennials-11556296365

Written by: Adriana Chacon