Category: Cosmetics

This paper presents an assessment of Kylie Cosmetics’ rapid growth that happened within three years. It features a detailed analysis of the possible reasons for it and compares the history of the enterprise to the Estée Lauder Companies, a large business that was established in the middle of the 20th century. The report shows that the celebrity effect and the price advantage may be significant factors for quick development compared to the brand effect and customer loyalty.

Kylie Cosmetics

The small business that was chosen for analysis is Kylie Cosmetics, the eponymous brand of Kylie Jenner. Its story is notable as the young woman built one of the most popular makeup companies in the world within three years. Since its launch, the organization has sold more than $630 million worth of products (Robehmed, 2018). The estimated dividends excluding taxes reach $60 million, and the market value of the company is around $800 million. The young woman owns 100% of the organization (Robehmed, 2018). Notably, Jenner’s company can allow her to become a billionaire in her early 20s.

The primary reason for such a rapid growth of Jenner’s business is the celebrity effect. The young woman has an extensive fan base; her social media following is more than 110 million followers on Instagram and more than 25,5 million on Twitter (Robehmed, 2018). In addition, being a member of the famous Kardashian family, Jenner has a significant advantage compared to little-known brand owners.

As Jenner is a highly influential person in the media, it is evident that customers are likely to buy products featured in her posts. The young woman often wears the lipsticks in her pictures, which raises public interest in them. She also interacts with her followers online, which increases their loyalty to her brand. Moreover, it is necessary to mention that the celebrity has chosen one of the most profitable industries that have always been driven by role models (Robehmed, 2018). Thus, Jenner’s online and TV presence has contributed to the rapid development of her brand significantly.

Another reason for the rapid growth of Jenner’s enterprise is the price advantage. The average price for lip kits by Kylie Cosmetics is $29, which is reasonable compared to the costs of other high-end makeup products (Robehmed, 2018). Moreover, for less than $30 customers receive a set of two high-quality items; there is a broad variety of products available. It is possible to say that although Jenner’s lipsticks may not be as affordable as some of the regular ones, the young woman developed the strategy that would make them attractive to the customers.

Estee Lauder

Estée Lauder Companies Inc is the organization that manufactures and sells cosmetics, as well as fragrance, skincare, and hair products. It was established in 1946 in the United States (“#137 The Estée Lauder Companies,” 2018). The company presents more than 150 brands, and each of them has distinct features and history (“The Estee Lauder Companies,” 2019). Estée Lauder is one of the leading global personal care brands.

The primary reason for the Estée Lauder Companies’ growth is customer loyalty. The organization does not focus on particular segments of the market. Instead, it offers a variety of products of different price ranges and types. Moreover, the enterprise has loyalty programs that allow individuals to receive free products and shipping, early access to events, birthday gifts, and other benefits (“The Estée e-list loyalty”, n.d.). Such an approach to customer care along with an extensive product range allow for the establishment of clients’ allegiance to the brand.

One of the other reasons for the Estée Lauder Companies’ growth is the brand effect. The company has a broad variety of brand that belongs to the high-end and low-end segments. For example, the enterprise owns Michael Kors Beauty and Tommy Hilfiger that offer luxury products along with MAC, which presents more affordable items. It means that the Estée Lauder Companies designs and manufactures products that meet the needs of all groups of customers. In addition, the company’s brands are very different from each other in terms of design and values but are similar in their high quality.

Comparison

The example of Kylie Cosmetics is outstanding compared to other enterprises in the field. In 2017 alone, its sales reached more than $385 million (Mejia, 2017). In contrast, the Estée Lauder Companies Inc reached the goal of $500 million only after ten years of its establishment; its market value is $54,2 billion (“The Estee Lauder Companies,” 2019). The Estée Lauder Company owns over 150 brands, most of which had developed online and offline campaigns for many years before they achieved success. For instance, Clinique has been in the market since 1968, but its value is approximately $7,170 million (“Clinique,” 2019; “Brand value of the leading,” 2019). This comparison shows that Jenner’s company is significantly more profitable and can potentially reach higher market value within the next several years.

Conclusion

The report shows that Kylie Cosmetics is an example of outstandingly rapid growth compared to large businesses. It suggests that today, extensive online presence and influence may play a significant role in the company’s success. The comparison with the Estée Lauder Companies Inc reveals that customer loyalty along with a wide range of brands may allow the organization to become highly profitable but not in a short time.

References

#137 The Estée Lauder Companies. (2018). Web.

Brand value of the leading personal care brands worldwide in 2018 (in million U.S. dollars). (2019). Web.

Clinique. (2019). Web.

Mejia, Z. (2017). How Kylie Jenner turned her $29 lipstick business into a $420 million empire in 18 months. Web.

Robehmed, N. (2018). How 20-year-old Kylie Jenner built a $900 million fortune in less than 3 years. Web.

The Estée e-list loyalty program. (n.d.). Web.

The Estee Lauder Companies Inc market cap. (2019). Web.

Introduction

Cosmetics market in Poland holds the promise of growth with a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 3.1% in 2007 (Pitman, 2006). The Polish cosmetics market has so far experienced steady growth. The cosmetics market is highly competitive with competition being based on price, quality, and brand recognition (Case Study). This is a case study analysis of the competitive situation of small and mid-sized cosmetic companies in Poland. The company studied is Dr. Eris. The main questions that will be answered in this case study analysis are – (1) if small and mid-sized cosmetics companies can survive the increased competition from big multinational companies, (2) the strategy Dr. Eris should adopt to sustain its leadership position in facial cosmetics segment, and (3) the process of internationalization of Dr. Eris in the US.

Main Body

Future of small and mid sized cosmetics companies in Poland

The first question that will be dealt with is what does the future hold for Polish small – and medium-sized cosmetics manufacturers? In order to answer this question it is necessary to do a competitive analysis of the cosmetic industry in Poland. For this Michal Porter’s five forces model is used. Here it must be noted that I do not agree to the statement of the Polish manager who states that the small and mid-sized manufacturers have no future in the cosmetics industry.

Strategy to sustain leadership position in facial cosmetics segment

Figure 1 presents the five forces competitive analysis. It shows that the cosmetics industry is highly fragmented with a large number of small and mid-sized cosmetics manufacturers and large multinational companies. This indicates that there exists a lot competitive pressure. As cosmetics are made by one company has a close substitutes made by a second company, therefore the substitutes also present competition. There are no barriers to entry. Therefore, with high profitability and stable growth rate, there are many new entrants in the industry. The suppliers too have low power and mostly the raw material is derived from chemical industry which to is highly fragmented.

The analysis shows that the requirement of industry is low. As the competition increases, there would be a large number of buyers and sellers operating. However as long as there is innovation and use of new technology in making quality products, which are, competitively prices, and the small firms too will retain their market share. The reason being the market value of the industry in 2001 was US$450 million in Poland itself. This shows that the market has the potential of expansion. Further, there is a lot of demand for the products in East European countries.

Internationalization in the US

The number of multinational companies who have entered the Polish market has increased. However, these companies sell their product only in the premium and luxury segment of the market. If we consider exhibit 1 (Case Study, p. 453), we will see that the imports of cosmetics in Poland have remained almost stable with marginal increases, whereas there has been a rather large rise of cosmetics manufactured domestically. Even the export of Polish cosmetics has increased substantially. This shows that the market for Polish small and mid-sized cosmetics companies is increasing as the geographical expanse of the market has increased due to inclusion in EU and their pricing strategy. Therefore, the view of the Polish manager may prove to be wrong.

According to the case study, the facial cream cosmetics market is dominated by Dr. Irene Eris with a market share of 16%. In order to sustain their leadership position, the company must follow a few strategic steps:

1. In order to retain its leadership in low cost segment, the company must continue to sell its products in this segment only. This will help the company to avoid competition with more recognized foreign brands that operate in the mid-and premium-prices segment.
2. Continuous research and development is the key, which will lead to product innovation. Due to high competition in the industry, product life cycle is low. Innovative products introduced in the market will make the company more sustainable in long run.
3. The company must take advantage of the ongoing process of EU expansion, which will provide the opportunity to the company to expand market in rest of Europe.
4. Increased brand awareness through promotional and other means is necessary to increase brand recall and loyalty.

For the internationalization process in the US, Dr. Eris took a very niche approach of targeting the Polish community in the US. Their strategy was to use personal contact in order to gain access to the stores in the US. However, the key to the growth process was personal contact, which was used to distribute products in 1000 retail stores in the US. For an initial expansion plan, this is all right. However, for a more grand entrance, the company did not do any brand awareness in the US, which is the key to entering a market in the cosmetics industry. Franchising is the mode of distribution that the company opts. However, the distribution through superstores and malls might provide a greater reach to the company.

Conclusion

Dr. Eris is a healthy cosmetics company with plans to expand into international market. It has expanded in countries within the EU and has also targeted the US market. However, of internationalization, most companies (irrespective of industries0 have targeted the developing countries with rising markets like China, and India. The company must target these markets in order to instil greater international presence and increased revenue.

Works Cited

Case Study. Dr. Eris: Cosmetics from Poland. In M. R. Czinkota, & I. A. Ronakainen, International Marketing (pp. 452-56).

Pitman, S. (2006). Polish cosmetics market set for steady growth. Web.

Every movie is aimed at impressing the viewers, touching their hearts, and conveying some ideas. Undoubtedly, makeup is one of the most significant tools in this task.

Makeup can be subtle or very evident, but in any case, it helps the characters be more bright and specific. This paper analyzes makeup techniques and their effect in The Wizard of Oz, a 1939 film.

The first character whom I would like to analyze from makeup is Dorothy Gale played by Judy Garland. Being a 17 years old girl, Judy had to play a little girl, and makeup certainly did help her to live the role. The skin of the actress is very pale, which creates an impression of tenderness.

Rosy cheeks and naive eyelashes, together with juicy fresh lips helped the girl obtain an innocent and childish facial expression.

The lips, by the way, are made rather plump, which is a typical feature of girls of tender age. Her eyebrows had a specific form as if she was wondering what was happening, which also contributed to her character.

Another character from the movie is the Tin Man. It is needless to say that, to turn into this character, the actor Jack Haley had to deal with makeup a lot. His face is covered with silver paint, which is glowing, making the man’s skin look like made of metal.

Special attention is paid to eyes; even the eyelid is covered with the paint, to prevent the eyes from looking “alive.” The actor also has a mole on his nose, which gives his nose a form of a metal detail and makes it different from the natural human nose.

The Tin Man’s eyebrows have a sharp angle form, which contributes to the stable expression of his face required by the role. It should also be mentioned that not only the man’s face but also his neck and hands needed a similar makeup, which made the character very realistic.

One more character from The Wizard of Oz who has an outstanding makeup is Scarecrow played by Ray Bolger. This character is very bright, for the most part, owing to his exceptional look. The first thing a viewer notices about this character is his mold chin.

Hanging on the man’s face, it looks flabby and slack, which is exactly what is needed for a scarecrow. Also, the color of his face is ochre, which reminds of sacking.

Another noticeable detail about this character is his nose, which is brown and looks flat; this reminds the noses of scarecrows, which are usually drawn on the sacking.

The last character to mention from the discussed movie is the Lion represented by Bert Lahr. This role demanded an animal-looking face, which could only be portrayed with the help of professional makeup.

The character has plated tissue on some parts of his face, which gives the actor lion-like features. The color of the face skin is similar to the color of the hair, which helps the lion look more realistic.

Another element is hair growing densely around the face oval. Also, the eyebrows give the actor an angry facial impression. Finally, the beard makes the whole character complete, as it is very thick. In general, Lion is a rather impressive character because of the makeup he has.

Watching a movie we pay attention to the most important aspects of composition of shot – makeup and costumes the actors wear. These two aspects help us to create overall look on a movie and a special mood. Sometimes makeup can change an actor’s appearance totally – from handsome blond man to fat an ugly dark-haired man.

To achieve this “transformation” visagistes resort to use of different types of makeup, wigs, false teeth or artificial parts of face (to make bigger nose or lips). To show specific features about character on stage (theatre) or on screen (movie industry) professionals use makeup (for example, to show the change of a character from a human to a strange creature or from ugly to pretty).

Nowadays, watching a movie you can notice that characters are portrayed fully and in details. For example, a well-known movie “Dorian Gray” (director Oliver Parker, 2009) tells to the audience the story of the lovely young man –Dorian Gray – who comes to London, as now he is rich; he has got a huge inheritance from his grandfather.

A painter Basil Hallward (Ben Chaplin) offers to paint Dorian for preserving his beauty forever. Becoming obsessed with maintaining his beauty, Gray offers his soul and wishes the portrait to weather the winds of time while he stays forever young. Albeit, after Gray’s wickednesses the painting starts to reveal his inner ugliness to others.

From the very beginning of the movie, Dorian (Ben Barnes) is young, handsome and has a lot of zing. On arriving home, after 25 years, his appearance did not changed as his beauty stayed immutable. He still is fine and lovely dark-haired young man with pretty smile. We can see the natural beauty of the actor (Ben Barnes), as he is shooting almost without any makeup.

However, other characters are getting older and their age can be noticeable. For example, Lady Victoria Wotton (Emilia Fox), an extremely beautiful and cute wife of Lord Henry Wotton. After 25 years Sybil has wrinkles, grey hair and eyes full of wisdom of old woman.

Lord Henry Wotton, a friend of Gray, who was leading Dorian astray, also got old. Now he looks as grandfather with a long grey beard, wrinkled forehead and manners of an old man. Basil Hallward’s beauty also met winds of time. When Gray meets him, Basil looks older, with features of mature man on his face.

Dorian’s appearance is not changing till the final scene of the movie, when Lord Henry reveals the secret of Cray’s eternal beauty – the painting, but now not with young sweet and handsome, but with old, ugly and frightening Dorian – and sets fire to the painting.

When portrait is “dying” Dorian is turning to that awful old man with wrinkles, old skin and sordid wounds on face; and the Dorian’s portrait becomes a painting of that young and good-looking man.

All in all, the importance of makeup in the movie industry is great. It is obvious that 30-year-old actor or actress cannot have appearance of a 70-year-old person, that is why visagistes use cosmetics, wigs and other methods to create specific features of characters, which will help the audience to define the character. Here comes the reason and significance of using makeup in movies.