A Fresh Face on the Beauty Block
Its motto is: “It’s as sexy as makeup gets.” And that’s what Victoria’s Secret Cosmetics is all about. Don’t go looking for beige lipstick or even wrinkle cream.
This fall, the lingerie giant introduced a full line of cosmetics to 100 shops across the country, and it has been shaking the foundation of some circles ever since. Fashion magazines, as varied as Vogue and Cosmo, have issued breathless reviews.
The sales have exceeded even the parent company’s high expectations, says Budd Taylor, executive vice president and general manager of the line’s bath and fragrance division.
Part of the line’s great success is that the company stays loyal to its very specific definition of its customer. Says Taylor: “We have it literally down to a T. She’s a 26-year-old single female, living in Chicago, has a college degree, an MBA, works at an advertising agency, is a size 6, loves her body, works out, loves to travel and considers herself ‘a babe.’ ”
While most companies define their customers by an age range, Victoria’s Secret is adamant about this 26-year-old.
“If you start off with 18-to-30, I guarantee you by the time the telephone game is finished, the range will be 15-to-60 and we will have lost our focus,” Taylor says.
And if your 15-year-old niece or 72-year-old mother shops at Victoria’s Secret, it’s because their spirit is 26, he says.
That’s not to diminish the three years of research and product development.
The cosmetics business is a tossed salad, Taylor says. “Add a little bit of IBM, a little bit of Hollywood, a good dosage of Broadway and always think strategically. Cosmetics give the fun part and the people part and the ‘Wow!’ ”
It’s also a very saturated business, with everyone from makeup artists to perfume manufacturers fighting for a share.
“There’s so many new companies that pop up,” Taylor says. “Too many of them spend too much time on image. . . . Long-term, I’ve seen too many come and go.”
Taylor spent 21 years at cosmetic giant Estee Lauder (which also makes Clinique, Origins and Perscriptive products) and then a few at Freeman Cosmetics here in Southern California. By the time he got to Victoria’s Secret, the cosmetic line was in development.
The Columbus, Ohio-based company is best known for its lingerie and pink and gold shops that are almost as ubiquitous as Starbucks. It’s hard to believe that even as recently as 10 years ago, most women bought beige or white cotton bras and panties. Only a few women dared tread into a Frederick’s of Hollywood.
Which came first is up for grabs--fun underwear or Victoria’s Secret catalogs, Taylor admits. But somehow, Victoria’s Secret was able to tap into a core psyche that allows even “good” girls to wear exquisite undergarments. The lingerie giant, says Taylor, showed women they could be “sexy 24 hours a day.” And sexy for the sake of being sexy, not to please anyone else.
This cosmetic line is more of that philosophy. “This is a nonapologetic color line,” Taylor says.
Victoria’s Secret has a huge customer base, but most of these women already wear makeup. And even Taylor acknowledges that they are probably incredibly loyal to their original brands.
The Victoria’s Secret’s secret, says Taylor: “It’s about the product, stupid.”
“We spared no expense in the development of the product. We blind-tested every one of our formulations from lipstick to eye shadow to foundation.” (The two “must-win” categories in any line are mascara and foundation, Taylor says.)
The products were tested against mass lines--such as Revlon and Cover Girl--and prestige lines --such as Chanel and Estee Lauder.
Victoria’s Secret is also strategically priced to be similar to young women’s lines such as Clinique. (Foundation is $17.50, lipstick is $10 to $12.50, and mascara is $12.)
“We want people to be able to trade up from mass and trade down from prestige without feeling cheated,” Taylor says.
The company also has the luxury of being the manufacturer and retailer--allowing complete control from inception to retail.
The makeup is packaged in very sleek, silver boxes. And they’re made for women of all color.
The line stays true to the 26-year-old. “Our reputation could be tarnished if we came in with repair products, with a number of foundations that talk about wrinkle repair. You then get the perception of being older.”
Don’t worry about the 26-year-old turning 27, says Taylor. If she’s pleased, she’ll remain a customer. “Hopefully, she stays 26-year-old minded and we have pleased her and we have satisfied her. . . . In their heart and soul, they can always feel 26.”
