Help me, I cannot stop buying skincare and the internet knows it! I have always been more inclined to the skincare realm of the beauty world as opposed to the makeup side, but being at home for weeks on end, with nothing better to do but notice my makeup-less skin has amped up the skincare obsession. I stopped wearing sunscreen religiously once I stopped leaving the house religiously, and a few weeks back, my skin felt kind of burnt and I noticed some sunspots. A quick google search revealed that YES, you can get sunburnt indoors (WHAT?!), and thus began my spiral into the skincare spending spree. A preliminary search into a miracle sun burn dark spot cure, triggering targeted ads that will haunt me and my wallet forever, led to my first of many skin care purchases. Everywhere I scroll, there’s a new blogger or company hawking a different face mask, serum, essence, skincare fridge (DO I NEED THIS?!) etc. And while makeup relies on your ability to test out a product, skincare relies on blind faith that after using it for a few weeks you will see results, making it quite adaptable to a more digital world. While makeup often falls under the impulse purchase category, usually after being enticed into a quick consultation where a product is applied on you and is something tough to replicate online, skincare is often more researched into, leading it to be a perfect category to ramp up e-commerce engagement through online sessions, tutorials, consultations, and even AR.
Even pre-coronavirus, skincare companies were beginning to adapt to enticing consumers online. Now that we are all in quarantine, companies are becoming more creative with how they can reach out and entice customers. Glow Recipe, a skincare line sold at Sephora, launched a digital sampling program this last week, using their new private community they have created on Instagram called Glow Gang. Originally solely e-commerce brand, Glow Recipe gained some attention and found its way onto the shelves at Sephora. However, this crisis has led the company to tap back into their e-commerce roots. Glow Recipe has assigned community managers, unpaid micro-influencers, to their virtual communities, and sent their managers samples before the launch of their latest product. Another 600 samples were sent to their community members, and 2500 mini versions were sent to influencer reviewers. By the time the product launched this week, there were hundreds of video reviews and testimonials to support the digital launch and sales of their new product. To further sales of their new product, glow recipe also offered free zoom video consolations, increasing engagement. If a customer purchases within the first 48 hours of the launch, they also were given access to another zoom seminar. Co-founder, Sarah Lee, says that “over the last four weeks, the brand has seen a “huge” increase in the brand’s DTC e-commerce sales, as the website absorbs customers who could have shopped through Sephora in-stores”.
Interestingly enough, while other retailers continue to take a hit, beauty companies are showing some good news. Loreal stated that their first-quarter sales in china increased this year vs last year despite the country being shut down in quarantine over that time period. The two categories that increased during the lockdown; skincare and haircare. As the country began to reopen, they saw a slow uptick in makeup products. Other companies are looking at this data as a predictor for their own companies, and feel optimistic that they will be able to bounce back. However, beauty companies do believe that this crisis will create a new mindset in customers leading to different consumption habits. CEO Jean-Paul Agon spoke about how overall, “I think personal care and beauty products will be stronger after the crisis because people will realize even more how important it is to take care of yourself”.
