Breaking Into the Beauty Industry
The beauty industry is valued at $532 billion and is still growing (Business Insider). Traditionally, the industry is driven by companies that tell consumers who they should be and how to achieve beauty. The companies and the products they sell supposedly hold the power to transform our looks to become the best and most presentable version of ourselves. High-end makeup brands set the tone and make beauty exclusive and unattainable–whether it is because of the values they market or the high product price points. Beauty is marketed as something to aspire to, rather than a quality one already possesses. The marketing from these companies was anything but real life as, according to a report on Glossier by Jumper Media,”Beauty brands lacked the context of real women and real experiences, focusing instead on the illusion of perfection” (Jumper Media). To be as profitable as it is, beauty has become a limited and exclusive commodity. Glossier, the skincare and makeup brand, dug into the market and democratized the beauty industry by building an affordable product with the consumer, not just for the consumer. Glossier revolutionized the industry by flipping the traditional beauty narrative and filled in the gaps where the beauty conglomerates were lacking.
Currently, 182 companies in the beauty industry are owned by 7 major leaders: L’Oreal, Unilever, Johnson & Johnson, Shiseido, Coty, Procter & Gamble, and Estée Lauder Companies (Business Insider). As a young and independent company, Glossier was provided the freedom and flexibility to reach its audience in a relevant and innovative manner, against the traditional business processes. Glossier used digital tools to create its brand, rather than communicate its brand. According to Megan Quinn, a partner at Glossier’s latest investor, Spark Capital, “Beauty consumers increasingly want to interact with brands and purchase products online. The industry’s conglomerates are ill-equipped to retrofit their businesses to this new reality” (Reuters). Born in the digital age, Glossier’s advantage was staying connected to its customers at every phase of the business process.
The rise of digitization increased access to information. People were able to share their opinions online and subsequently form niche communities. Beauty bloggers and vloggers filled in the gap of information between brands and consumers, and the conversation surrounding beauty expanded. The popularity of the “Get Ready With Me” vlog became the new model for advertising. In this style of vlog, influencers would take their viewers through their daily routine, and advertise the products they swore by in the process. Consumers learned about new products from their favorite vloggers and bloggers that they began to trust. The dispersion of information from other beauty lovers (rather than brands) began to give more power to the consumer rather than the brands. 75% of Americans look at reviews before making a purchase (Cave Social). Glossier created products based on the information from these independent communities and became the first beauty brand that people saw as a trusted friend.
The New Direct-to-Consumer Model
Glossier was raised alongside other direct to consumer brands like Warby Parker, Dollar Shave Club, and Casper. All of these companies found gaps in long-standing industries. They understood the pains that had developed within existing industries, and remedied them. These brands are also based on emotion, inclusivity, and accessibility. Warby Parker made trying on glasses at home accessible, and brought down the price of traditionally expensive prescriptions. The Dollar Shave Club changed the narrative of the homogenous razor blade ad, and captured vulnerability while selling a subscription to shaving razors. Casper took the tiresome experience of buying mattresses and turned it into a trendy brand by using marketing methods such as social media influencers and Twitter memes.
All of these brands capitalized on digitization to create a brand with and truly for the customer. The story and brand values are more important than the product itself. Businesses first turned to social media as a platform for marketing, but social media is as much for listening as it is for sharing. They used digitization to not only market their products, but to also capture the ethos of their products. Brands like Glossier sell consumers on their ideas, and from the start have an empowered relationship because of prioritizing the customer’s values. These new brands have used their independence to their success as they are able to find innovative ways to reach the customer rather than operating under the traditions of a conglomerate.
Marketing and Customer Acquisition
In the digital space, the best way to stand out is to fit in. Glossier does a phenomenal job of marketing itself as a best friend or older sister, passing down advice in the form of selling products. It’s approach to Instagram is to mimic the coolest it-girl, simultaneously chic, yet down-to-earth. Glossier changed the narrative on marketing make-up. Glossier contradicts the traditional makeup advertisement that projects a dark and sultry image. Weiss is driven by the value that, “Snobby isn’t cool, happy is cool” (Buzzfeed). The marketing of Glossier was not intended to intimidate people into trying its products, but rather appear as approachable as possible.
Glossier was so spot on with the branding and creating products for its target audience because it listened to what the customers had to say. Glossier employs 150 of its most active customers on a Slack channel for quick focus group feedback (Quartz). Glossier posted the question, “what’s your ideal face wash?”, to the internet and 382 comments and a year of development later–Milky Jelly was released (Buzzfeed). Glossier’s social-media marketing strategy was not just to share and promote content, but to also listen to and engage with its following.
Glossier and its cult following established a mutual loyalty to one another. For as long as Glossier vows to give them what they want, its followers will continue to be brand evangelists. Glossier created a brand that people were excited and proud to represent. Engaging with Glossier on Instagram is like getting recognized by your favorite celebrity on the internet. People upload their photos using the products or tag Glossier in their selfies–to be recognized by the brand, but also to let their following know that they are a part of this “It-Girl” cult.
By fostering this sense of community, Weiss somehow convinced millions to purchase cosmetics without even trying it on–further revolutionizing the traditional makeup shopping experience. From readers to followers, followers to product advisers, advisers to the community, community to a customer, customer to a promoter (Buzzfeed), Glossier’s growth is attributed to their relationship with their audience.
Glossier’s commitment to the consumer is so strong that instead of selling through larger channels like department stores, it sells direct to consumers–only ever online or at one of the few stores. Glossier pop-up stores are not to be experienced without a line that wraps around the block. Once you enter the store, Glossier’s Instagram comes to life in the form of a playroom. Customers are encouraged to try on the product and snap a selfie–for some free marketing of course–before making a purchase.
The future of e-commerce is emotional commerce. Technology not only allows businesses to access consumers, but their thoughts and minds as well. While all of these companies utilize social media to reach their customers, the brands that will truly reach their customers are the ones built with them. Glossier disrupted the market and is an example for many companies to follow. It put the customer above the product and catered to the beliefs of a generation. It was innovative because it valued emotion and connectivity, and built a community instead of a business hierarchy.
Glossier’s Story
While the conglomerates are pivoting to catch up to the new e-commerce model, Glossier was born from the internet. Glossier sprung from a blog called Into The Gloss. The founder of the two brands, Emily Weiss, was working as a fashion assistant at Vogue when she founded Into The Gloss in 2010 and focused on sharing beauty tips and tricks online. In her featured column “The Top Shelf” she sat down with celebrities like Kim Kardashian and Karli Kloss and interview them on their routines, favorite products, and would learn more about their insecurities. These moments led her to find gaps in the beauty industry where people felt let down, and also what they couldn’t live without. She read every response that came through Into The Gloss’s blog and Instagram to understand what it was that people loved, and what they felt they were missing. Into The Gloss became her focus group for customer discovery, and from that community, Glossier was born.
In 2014, Glossier launched with four products– a cleaner, priming moisturizer, lip balm, and misting spray. The brand intention was to create products for the everyday girl–not the creative makeup artists as other brands such as MAC cater to. The brand has now developed into a line of 40 products ranging from fragrance, skin and body care, and a thorough makeup line. As the range of products grow, Glossier returns to the idea of producing a brand and product based on the needs and opinions of its customers.
Economic Impact
During the Series D funding round in March 2019, Glossier raised $100 million from investors led by Sequoia Capital (Bloomberg). The company was then valued at 1.2 Billion, earning its status as a Unicorn. From 2014-2019, over 5 rounds of investment Glossier has raised $186.4 million in funding (Crunchbase). In 2019 they raised the most money following a year in which their sales had doubled. At the end of 2018, the company had grown to $100 million a year in sales, which was double the revenue from 2017 (Forbes). With the rapid expansion of its product line, and the additional $100 million in funding from 2019, Glossier expects unprecedented growth in the coming years.