Celebrity vs Luxury beauty: A hidden opportunity awaits.
This article was originally written by Demi Karanikolaou in Greek for Harper’s Bazaar Greece. You can find it here.
The 2000s was definitely an interesting era for beauty and pop culture. Coming off the 90s where supermodels reigned supreme, celebrities eventually acquired more influence in culture and their marketing power skyrocketed. The newfound exposure that the internet, magazines and channels like MTV gave to stars from Paris Hilton to Madonna could suddenly be monetized in multiple new ways. More than ever before, celebrities started collaborating with brands to launch lines of almost every item (or service) imaginable. Traditionally, merchandise like t-shirts, was the obvious choice for fans who wanted a “piece” of that celebrity. However it was celebrity perfume that dominated, with stars launching multiple scents a year. Strong players of the perfume industry with years of experience, such as the Coty Group, reached out to public figures with massive publicity power and gave them the means to create their own lines at scale. This trend carried on for years and by the 2010s almost every celebrity from Britney Spears and Beyonce to Jessica Simpson was sure to have a perfume. Celebrity perfume was also seen as a less expensive and more approachable alternative to luxury lines, targeting mainly younger people.
As the saying goes however, nothing lasts forever. Despite the fact that celebrity perfume is still a well known offering, during the past few years we have seen a decline in sales and the creation of new perfume lines. Younger generations are discovering new, niche and environmentally conscious brands through social media, which are oftentimes much preferred over a celebrity product. The latter might also be perceived as “merch” products, much like a band T-shirt or keychain. Once a customer has one, they already feel like they have became part of the namesake celebrities story and there is no need to purchase further items in the future. So what is one to do? - A new segment had to be dominated. Despite the fact that few celebrities have had beauty lines for decades (Eg: Iman’s revolutionary make-up line) beauty and skincare lines came to replace the fragrance craze, creating a new trend in the industry. In 2021 it is quite difficult to name a major celebrity that does not started a line. From Drew Barrymore’s Flower Beauty line to Rihanna’s Fenty Beauty and Selena Gomez’ Rare Beauty, they seem to have dominated the industry. This has been enabled by the so called “Incubators” aka companies that have the experience & resources to build a company from the ground up, and looking specifically for celebrities to partner with for branding and exposure.
History, however, repeats itself and clouds are slowly appearing on the celebrity beauty sky despite the fact that the segment is still performing exceptionally well. Little whispers are saying a lot and customers have started to feel overwhelmed by the immense amount of offerings. Lines are oftentimes coming across as dishonest or as a pure business decision, lacking the true essence of a passion project. As an example, fans have recently accused Jennifer Lopez for not being completely honest with her skincare line, when she claimed that olive oil (her line’s main ingredient) has solely contributed to her youthfulness instead of any botox or cosmetic procedure. As these brands grow in the market, acquisitions are also causing issues. Seed Beauty, the well known incubator behind Kylie Cosmetics, Kim Kardashian’s KKW and Tati Beauty, has recently sued Coty for exposing their formula secrets to Coty’s other brands following Coty’s recent acquisition of a 51% stake at Kylie Cosmetics for 600 Million dollars. As a result, all Kylie Cosmetics products are currently heavily discounted, with rumours circulating around the future of the brand. Another factor of uncertainty seems to be the “merchandise curse” of celebrity beauty. Just like with perfumes or t-shirts, once consumers have bought an eyeshadow palette or lipstick, their need to be part of that celebrity's image has been met. This might explain why celebrity lines not named after the celebrity themselves eg: Flower Beauty, Rare Beauty etc. seem to have a more stable and independent brand identity compared to a line solely focused around the name & image of the celebrity. The latter is obviously also heavily dependent on the public perception of the namesake celebrity, their scandals and popularity.
However, this uncertainty might also be opening a big new opportunity for luxury brands. The latter can jump in and capitalize on the inevitable demise of celebrity beauty and skincare, whenever that happens. Young generations seem to be interested in clean beauty, sustainability and ethics, all of which can be addressed by new and established luxury players. Upscale sustainable beauty can be the perfect option when customers decide that they have been let down, bored of or completely overwhelmed by the brands they used to navigate towards. Even though a new big opportunity is being outlined, this will not be an easy or short term plan for brands like Chanel or Lancome. The luxury narrative is notoriously time consuming and may require years of building the “dream” around a certain brand before a customer decides to start splurging on certain products. Digital technologies and social media can offer the perfect solution and strategic business plan to this issue. The smartest of Luxury beauty & skincare brands have already started investing in creating an honest, deep relationship with the customers that are now obsessed with celebrity brands early on. These consumers are the perfect canvas to work on, since they are already demonstrating a need to buy into a brand, an identity and a lifestyle (that of the celebrity). If nurtured correctly and over time, they can be turned into luxury affectionados in the future. Platforms like TikTok can be the perfect place to build that relationship, and further digital innovations or offerings can also build trust and excitement around the brand.
We can all agree that the celeb beauty ship has not sailed yet. If anything, we are at the very peak of it and we might even see it being pushed further. However, just like every trend it would be fair to assume that it will come to an end eventually, perhaps sooner than later. Unlike trends, luxury is eternal and can fully leverage the eventual gap that will be created. Digital will be the Trojan horse that will facilitate, establish and ground this beautiful opportunity if brands realize this immense opportunity and start preparing as soon as possible.
