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Every Tuesday on the CosmoFactory podcast: Discover the latest innovations along the cosmetics and personal care supply chain. Hear thought-provoking conversations with top beauty industry experts from around the world. Learn about next-level solutions and find inspiration to turn your own ideas into industry-changing innovations.
A PRODUCTION OF Cosmoprof Worldwide Bologna
CosmoFactory is the first podcast from Cosmoprof Worldwide Bologna—the most important beauty trade show in the world. Dedicated to all sectors of the industry, Cosmoprof Worldwide Bologna welcomes over 250,000 visitors from 150 countries and regions and nearly 3,000 exhibitors to Bologna, Italy, each year. It’s where our diverse and international industry comes together to build business relationships and to discover the best brands and newest innovations across consumer beauty, professional beauty, and the entire supply chain. The trade show includes a robust program of exclusive educational content, featuring executives and key opinion leaders from every sector of the cosmetics, fragrance, and personal care industry. Cosmoprof Worldwide Bologna is the most important event of the Cosmoprof international network, with exhibitions in Asia (Hong Kong), the US (Las Vegas and Miami), India (Mumbai) and Thailand (Bangkok). Thanks to its global exhibitions Cosmoprof connects a community of more than 500,000 beauty stakeholders and 10,000 companies from 190 countries and regions. Learn more today at Cosmoprof.com
CosmoFactory was co-developed in collaboration with supply-side expert Deanna Utroske, Host of the CosmoFactory podcast and Editor of the Beauty Insights newsletter.
This transcript is automatically generated and manually checked.
Deanna: [00:00:00] This episode is about originality and newness. It's about interpreting makeup. Product trends for a target consumer base about engaging consumers through a strategic launch calendar. And it's about the changing geography of our industry's most influential markets on the Cosmofactory Podcast. Today I am speaking with Isabelle Bui, global Director of Essence Cosmetics.
Isabel, welcome to Cosmo Factory.
Isabelle: So much for having me, [00:01:00] Deanna. It's so nice to talk to you.
Deanna: Yeah. No, I really appreciate your being here. I'm excited to speak with you also. Um, so I would like to start our conversation in a philosophical place, uh, just thinking about the idea of newness. So as best we can, let's forget about the cosmetics industry for just a moment. Uh, why is new so compelling?
Isabelle: I think new always excites us as human beings. I think it always has some sort of surprise element. It's the discovery of, you know, something new, something you haven't seen before. And I suppose also, if we take beauty out of the game, it's. Sort of widening your horizons. If you see something new, you maybe see new opportunities, other opportunities, and other points of perspectives.
Deanna: Oh, I love that. Thank you. Just getting a little closer to our industry, then how can we create something original when the consumer space is already inundated with options.[00:02:00]
Isabelle: I think if you look well for me, there's, there's sort of two, two sides to approach newness in beauty or especially in color cosmetics where we are.
Deanna: Yeah.
Isabelle: You know, uh, running our brand. And I think you can come from a very sens, sensorial perspective. And that's all about, you know, new textures, new experiences, new uh, yeah, sensor realities that, uh, you know, we are seeing strongly growing right now, especially, uh, you know, coming from, from Asia.
So it's all about research and development. It's, you know, what's coming out of the laboratories. So that's, that's let's say the technical and the playful side. And then on the other side, newness, especially for me, comes a lot from storytelling and identifying what the consumers are looking for. You know, sometimes we see.
The girls experimenting with products that you know and creating looks or using products for things that are not originally planned to use for. And then if [00:03:00] you understand which looks the, the girls want to create, then you can come up with the suitable product. And that in turn then excites the consumers because they have the feeling we really get them.
Deanna: Yes. Was there something else you wanted to say there?
Isabelle: No, it's, I just, uh, I was thinking about one, one example that I think looking at it right now at, let's say, you know, end of August in 25 is maybe not so super, uh, exciting anymore. But when we came up with it one and a half years ago, I think it was. Super interesting. We saw the girls using Hannah color to sort of outline their lip line, or we saw them using, uh, brow colors, uh, to do that because it had some sort of staining effect and coming up with something that then offers a solution, which is some sort of a staining but super thin liner, which at that back then, no one, no one had thought about.
Oh, at least it wasn't, uh, you know, available in the market. I think thi things like that, understanding what the consumers are trying to achieve and what. [00:04:00] What the looks is and what you know, what, what their end aim is then. Then you can try to offer fun solutions that are easy to use,
Deanna: No, that's an excellent example. I appreciate that. Now, essence Cosmetics, the brand where you work is owned by a company called Cos Nova out of Germany. Um, and this is a beauty company, I would have to say excels at newness. Um, I, I hope you'll give us a picture of the product portfolio that you oversee.
Like how many SKUs do you have, how many new launches do you have? Maybe every season, quarter, whatever interval. Makes sense. Paint a little picture for us.
Isabelle: Yeah, I, I would, uh, totally agree with you. I think we have a huge, uh, newness, uh, factor because that's also how, you know, how our business model works and, and how we have grown as large as we are. Talking for Essence. I think right now we probably have around, I would assume 800 SKUs that are active and, and you really have to distinguish between what we [00:05:00] sell also online through our various channels and what you can see and find in the stores.
And the way we normally, uh, operate is that we have our point of sale, which is, you know, the piece of furniture that you can see if you walk into the drugstore markets or in the, in the supermarkets. That depends, you know, where, where you are in, in Germany, which is, let's say our home turf, we normally have a two meter module that holds around 450 products.
And our strategy is to. uh, and bring newness for around half of the assortment each year. So every six months we update around 25% of our assortment. So you can already see from the numbers that we are bringing hundreds of new products. Hundreds of new SKUs every year, and that is just, let's say for the, for the offline business, for brick and mortar.
We have, of course, also online channels. We have a lot of trend additions. Our trend and limited additions have an even [00:06:00] faster rotations. So while. Some of our standard products are the assortment for many, many years because they may be hero products or, you know, long established bestsellers. We have these, you know, more trend related products that sometimes are only in the assortment for one to two years, and then we exchange them with the next, uh, big thing.
But the trend editions, however they turn, uh, approximately every six weeks.
Deanna: Wow.
Isabelle: So there's always a collection that is dedicated to a specific theme. You know, sometimes it's the season, you know, a Christmas one, uh, one for Easter, one for summer. Sometimes it's a super trendy, uh. Texture, let's put it this way, or some sort of trend, fashion trend, uh, a specific color.
Sometimes we do collab and, and these turn really very, very quickly. So yeah, we have a, a big team
Deanna: Yeah, sure.
Isabelle: here at, at essence and we really, uh, bring a lot of newness. Absolutely.
Deanna: Fantastic. Tell us who your customer is [00:07:00] and, and maybe what is it about this newness that excites this particular customer?
Isabelle: Well, essence is a very, we catered to, let's say, the young consumers. So we always say our target group is the Gen Z. And now with, you know, also Gen Z, obviously growing, uh, and becoming a little bit older. Also, let's say the older part of the gen alpha, so to say. So the, the, the young teenagers are starting to.
You know, come to the age where you start experimenting with makeup, where you know, you try your first mascara. You, you, you, you try to, you first nail polish. And this is normally the age where the consumers and the girls are discovering us as a brand because we are very affordable. We are, you know, very accessible as well.
So this is where the young, the young girls also have it easy to find us. So this is, let's say our, our typical consumer, anywhere between the ages of. 13, 14, up to the end twenties. And I believe this is especially [00:08:00] an age where you sort of find yourself, where you experiment a lot, you know, where you're maybe not so sure which exact style you have by yourself.
You know, you look at your friends, you look at, you know, people in school or on the street, you try to imitate maybe a couple of things. So we, we really want to give our consumers the freedom to be able to try. And don't take itself too seriously, and, and you don't have to break the bank. You know, when you, when you want to try new looks.
And also, I believe it's, it's a generation that is very. Very open for newness, very open for trends, you know, very open for fashion, for looks, for beauty, for, you know, music, cultural movements. And that of obviously also helps. So we also have to make sure that we're not just bringing, let's say, the right products that fit the right trends, that fit the right looks, let's put it this way, but that we also meet our consumers where they are, you know, whether it's gaming or music or you [00:09:00] know, the social platforms that they.
That they like to, uh, also live in is, is super relevant for us.
Deanna: Yeah. Yeah. No, as as you're talking, it makes me think how fun it must be to work with that target market in mind all the time. I imagine it would keep your mind open to self discovery and, and like you suggested newness in other spaces, music and, yeah. That's so
Isabelle: can't, I can't tell you how grateful I am actually to. Be, because I also think it helps you to stay young to, to a certain extent. You know? And sometimes my kids are surprised that, you know, they tell me about things that they discuss in school or you know, the latest artist or the latest, you know, hip hop video, uh, TikTok video.
Sorry, that has gone viral, you know? And I'm saying, yeah, I know. And then they look at me go, what do you mean? You know? I go, 'cause I know that's my job. It's my job to know.
Deanna: Right. That's fantastic. That's fantastic. You mentioned the trend additions, um, from the brand, you know, to, I think it's fair to say that there's a lot of mimicry, uh, in the trend [00:10:00] space. Are you at times, essentially imitating maybe what higher price point brands are doing, or, or if not, how, how does your term manage to interpret trends for your particular customer?
Isabelle: I mean, if you're talking about trends, I, you know, trends is something that, let's say. The cultural movement, the social media, and you know, the music and everything is sort of moving forward. I don't think we are imitating trends with our trend editions. The trend editions are really an interpretation of a specific theme.
I think what you are referring to is maybe, you know, let's say prestige inspired products that, you know, the lower price brands are launching in the market, which is something that of course, has grown, I think in general across the industry in the last couple of years because the consumers are really looking for, let's say, affordable alternatives.
And I think they've all understood if you want to spend a lot of money on a lipstick from a prestige [00:11:00] brand. That's totally fine, you know, and it, and it, and it works. But a lot of the price you pay is of course, for the branding and for the, you know, luxurious, uh, feeling. If you're just looking for, let's say a similar effect or a similar product, uh, yeah.
Result. I believe that the younger generation now has understood that you don't have to pay so much money and this idea of. Democratization of beauty, you know, that is also very, um, on vogue right now. And I think a lot of brands have, uh, have, have claimed that now for themselves. It's just something that has become very acceptable.
Um, so I think the consumer is, is very educated and the consumer is comparing performances and, and products. So, yeah, of course we are, let's say, offer the assortment that our consumers are asking us to do. And some of those also might be prestige inspired because that's what they're looking for.
Deanna: Yeah. Yeah, no, [00:12:00] absolutely. That makes very good sense. I, I, I'm looking at my, um, questions and my notes that I've prepared for our interview, and I, I guess I'm, I'm very fascinated by this idea of continual newness. So forgive me as I, I keep asking around this topic, but I'm wondering if there are particular risks to being a brand that relies very intensely, if you will, on newness.
Isabelle: I see what you mean. I, I think the secret is, and, and maybe also why we've been so successful over the past 20 years. We've, we've actually turned, uh, uh, 20 years, uh, last year is because we, we are relying on Eunice, but it's not 100% of our assortment. We do have really very well established and long-term bestsellers in, in our assortment that, that have been around for many, many years.
We have many mascara ranges. Um. Foundations, concealers. Uh, our nail polish has been around for, you know, a long time. Of course, we make sure the textures are updated [00:13:00] and always, you know, very modern and, you know, a performing state of the art, but a, a, a big chunk of our business. And I think also that's, that's, that's why our consumers, I believe, are also staying with us.
Even if they, let's say, grow older. Once they found there's favorite uh, product and it's one of our bestsellers, then, then they can continue using that. And if you, let's say, spice it up continuously with newness, and if you can set the impulses and bring also newness and excitement and surprises, then that's, I believe what,
Deanna: Yeah.
Isabelle: makes a brand
Deanna: No, no. Yeah, I, I completely understand. Even as you were talking, I was thinking about consumer trust, um, you know, finding something that they know is reliable. And I, and I would imagine that consumer, like you said, once they find it, they stick with a particular product. But I would imagine that also makes them more inclined.
Uh, to feel comfortable discovering the newness [00:14:00] that does come from the brand or try something that is, you know, maybe not something that they've ever used before that, that your brand is one they might go to. That's, that's such an interesting way to think about it now. Um. Another topic here that we've covered previously on Cosmo Factory is this idea of the slow beauty movement.
Um, we've also heard about something called under consumption where consumers are intentionally buying less. I, I think I would be remiss if we didn't get into this a bit. Can you share your perspective on, um, ideas like consumer buying fatigue or what people might even describe as overproduction in our industry?
Isabelle: I think it's that, you know, there's no secret that there has been a huge beauty party over the last couple of years. I think the, the growth in the beauty, uh, segment specifically also in color was. Very impressive. Not just for us, but I believe for, for, for many of, uh, you know, uh, also our competitors and, and the fact that this sort of, [00:15:00] let's say beauty party is coming to an end eventually is not a surprise, at least to me.
I think we all expected this, let's say the music is not turned down totally, but it's, uh, you know, it's, it's becoming a little bit more softer, which is totally, uh, understandable and, and also. Fine. I don't believe the consumer is going to stop looking for newness and, and, and stop looking for innovation and for new impulses, especially in beauty.
I just think or she filters more. I really believe that we will probably have a cleanup of the brands in the next couple of years because there was a time when almost had a new brand launching every week and they were like popping out, you know, especially when brick and mortar is not. It's not the condition to launch a brand anymore.
And, and all you basically need is, let's say a website and an online shop to, to be able to launch your brand. And, you know, combined with social media, everyone [00:16:00] technically can, can do that. And I think a lot of brands came out in the last couple of years and, and of course that. Sort of overwhelms the consumer.
I mean, I'm overwhelmed myself. I have, you know, to be honest, it's so hard to keep track on what's going on. So I, I do believe there will be a natural cleanup and the consumer will be able to, you know, filter more. And if we are in a position and, and if we get it right and we offer exciting, cool concepts that our consumers and the girls are looking for, I'm not worried.
Deanna: Yeah. Yeah. No, that's a, that's a nice nuance. Absolutely. And it's interesting, you know, you talk about being sort of overwhelmed with all the launches in recent years. The episode we had on slow. Beauty with Katie Becker. She, um, stepped away from her work in a formal editorial role, partly because of that sense of overwhelm.
There was so much to cover and I have to say, I personally sort of find it validating to hear both of you speak to that because there just, there had been just such a flood of, [00:17:00] of stuff, if you will, to pay attention
Isabelle: You can't keep up.
Deanna: Yeah.
Isabelle: You can't keep up. And, and I think even now with the everything that's that's going on in the world and the fact that every industry is becoming more and more global, it's not anymore just to be able to understand, you know, what's going on in the German market, what's going on in the European market, you know, then of course, for many, many, many years it has been the us Okay.
So what's going on in the US market? You know, which brands are coming? If you ask me now, but that's not nearly enough. You also have to understand what's going on in in Asia. You have to understand which Korean brands are popping up because they're now taking over, so it's impossible to keep up
Deanna: Mm-hmm.
Isabelle: and I think that's, that's one of the reasons why the.
You can understand the, the launches and, and you know, the, the, the trends coming from everywhere in the world, and you have to, of course, have an understanding of the, the new technologies and the sort of product launches. But in the end of the day, you have to find your [00:18:00] own way and you have to come up with your own innovation because if you always just rely on what other people are doing, then you have a lot to rely on,
Deanna: Right, right.
Isabelle: you have to understand first.
Deanna: Yeah. You, you lose your decision making process. I, I, I'm glad you shared this idea of watching trends, though. I think there is something, um, to the idea of finding inspiration. Um, and certainly, you know, suppliers as well as brands look outward and track what's happening in beauty worldwide. I guess, can you say more about when you know it's appropriate to watch another market for inspiration or, um, you know, sort of are there particular markets you pay attention to and, and how much has that changed over the course of your career now that, now that we are so global, are you, are you sort of refocusing on, on the German market in particular, or, or where are you looking?
Isabelle: Yeah, interesting [00:19:00] question. It's, it's actually quite the opposite. We are not focusing on, uh, Germany. We are actually expanding very, uh, largely and, and moving more and more into, uh, more countries in the world. So for us also here, uh, let's say at the headquarter, it's very important to understand. Globally what the trends are and to try to identify the global trends that hopefully land in as many countries as possible.
And then of course we have the, let's say, local needs from our markets and our regions that we are very closely in touch with. And they also let us know what, you know, what's going on in the market and what they need. So. To be honest, we, we have to sort of, we, we, we have to have a global understanding on the, on the product trends that we see, especially in beauty, which for the past years, the US has always been the center of that, you know, has always been the, the epicenter and, and driving the trends.
You know, the, the new brands [00:20:00] that, that have launched over the last couple of years, especially celebrity driven, were the ones, uh, you know, I think, as we all know, who have, uh, sort of been the boss of the playground, uh, uh, I like to say. And, and what we see right now is a, a shift from the influence. So I think the US will continue to play a role, definitely, especially when it comes to looks and, you know, the celebrities and the, the, uh. The individuals that, that the consumers aspire to. But if you look from a technical perspective or a a texture perspective, it's actually more the other side of the world. So the, the influence from Asia, specifically from Korea, at least from my perspective, has gained and accelerated in speed dramatically.
Uh, it's not a, a totally new development, but I believe if you look at the last. Even one, one and a half years, I, I see the speed, uh, has accelerated [00:21:00] really, really, really strongly. And my assumption would be that, you know, the brands that are able to bring those two together will probably win the consumers side.
I mean, everyone knows everything, so to say. Yeah. So, so I mean, with, you know, with TikTok and Insta and, and everything that, you know, we have at our finger points. The girls also have that at, at their finger points. So if there's a hot Korean brand, they know, of course they do. And then that's what they wanna have, you know, and so we, we have to be aware a little bit of everything.
As I said, we try our best to, to keep, to keep up, but we also have to come up with our own. As I said, what, what is it that the consumers want in, in the markets? What, what are the looks that the girls are trying to achieve? How can we support them? You know, what, what are they wishing for? And if you combine all these things, you hopefully have a nice flower bouquet that everyone can find something [00:22:00] nice.
Deanna: Yes. Yeah, so that's very interesting. We have to leave it there. Isabelle, you have a wonderful energy for your work. This was a good conversation. I thank you for being a guest today on the Cosmo Factory Podcast.
Isabelle: It was a pleasure. Thank you so much.