US. The Aramis and Designer Fragrances division of the Estée Lauder Companies has seriously high hopes for the new DKNY fragrance masterbrand Be Delicious (The Moodie Report.com, 19 October).
Initial results for the women’s version, which is spearheading the launch, have been “beyond expectations”, according to Executive Director of Marketing for Aramis & Designer Fragrances, Origins, Stila, Bobbi Brown, Jo Malone and La Mer travel retailing worldwide Israel Assa.
The masculine counterpart will be introduced next spring.
The US domestic launch began in earnest in October, and the scent shot straight to the number one slot in doors such as Bloomingdales and Marshall Fields Chicago. The fragrance was presented to the travel retail channel at a high-profile cocktail event (pictured above) in Cannes.
“We believe this is a concept that can cut through the clutter,” explains Assa. “It will have real legs in the long term; we expect it to do more [business] in year two, than year one.”
“WE BELIEVE THIS IS A CONCEPT THAT CAN CUT THROUGH THE CLUTTER. IT WILL HAVE REAL LEGS IN THE LONG TERM.” – ISRAEL ASSA
The name of the fragrance duo is of course designed to pay homage to, and capture the emotion of, New York City. Accordingly, there is a “˜Big Apple’ theme to both fragrances, in terms of shape, juice and packaging.
Be Delicious is available as a 1.7oz and 3.4oz edp spray and a 0.2oz edp rollerball. Ancillaries include a 5oz body lotion, a 5oz shower gel, a 0.5 oz lip gloss and a wooden crate of six apple-shaped guest soaps.
Looking ahead, another key fragrance focus will be Sean John (the Lauder group signed an exclusive, multi-year worldwide licensing agreement with the star earlier this year, see The Moodie Report.com, 23 May).
“This project is in development,” comments Assa. “The first fragrance will be launched on the US domestic market in 2006.”
But, despite its commitment to increased innovation, there will be no rush to roll out internationally the new men’s fragrance from Donald Trump. “You have to have newness to compete, but we have different philosophies for different brands,” Assa explains.
“Donald Trump is very much a US phenomenon. The fragrance will go into North American travel retail next spring, and we will look hard at locations where American people are travelling, but this is not necessarily something we will be looking to export.”
Is Assa at all concerned at the recent spate of celebrity signings? Is the business still only scratching the surface or is there a danger of “icon overload”?
“EVERYONE IS PLAYING THE CELEBRITY GAME RIGHT NOW, BUT THE IMPORTANT THING IS TO JOIN UP WITH THE RIGHT PEOPLE.”
“Everyone is playing the celebrity game right now, but the important thing is to join up with the right people,” Assa responds.
“I’m not saying that you need a celebrity in order to compete. But if you do go down that road you have to match your brand to the right spokesperson. There have been a lot of partnerships recently, but I don’t know if we’ve reached saturation yet. There are plenty of celebrities without a contract still left on the “˜A’ list.”
Meanwhile, one of the Lauder group’s cosmetics star performers, La Mer, continues to advance. Regarded as a “jewel” in the group’s portfolio, the brand was recently launched into Amsterdam Schiphol Airport in conjunction with Kappé International.
“We are very excited about this launch; Kappé is such a supportive retail partner,” said Assa. “We have a great space right in the middle of the store. In terms of traffic and sales potential, this could be one of La Mer’s biggest travel retail doors within the Europe/Middle East/Africa region.”
But the opening does not herald a change in La Mer’s ultra-selective distribution strategy. “Our objective in terms of overall presence remains the same,” confirms Assa, “namely a total of 10 to 15 doors in each region.
“In certain areas we are close to that; in other we aren’t. We are still waiting for the right opportunity to arise in some strategic airports.”
He added: “This fiscal year [which began in July] we will open approximately five to seven doors. Two months ago we opened in Los Angeles (Tom Bradley International Terminal) with DFS Group, and we are extremely pleased. We always have rather lofty expectations for the brand but it always manages to surpass them.”
On the domestic market, particularly in the US, the super-premium sector is being further segmented by the rise of dermatologist/cosmeceutical brands such as DDF (Doctor’s Dermatologic Formula), StriVectin-SD, Dr. Brandt, Cellex-C, Ré Vive and Dr Perricone.
The latter has recently broken into travel retail in conjunction with Brasif – might the Lauder group consider introducing its own dermatologist brand Rodan + Fields into the channel soon?
Or will the group more likely test the waters next year with the wellness-focused product line that Origins (which already enjoys a notable travel retail presence) will create in conjunction with Andrew Weil M.D?
[Note: Weil, M.D. has devoted the past thirty years to developing, practicing, and teaching others about the principles of integrative medicine. The founder of Weil Lifestyle, LLC – described as the leading resource for integrative medicine education, information, products, and services – Weil combines a Harvard education and a lifetime of practicing natural and preventive medicine to provide a unique approach to health care which encompasses body, mind, and spirit. Origins has signed a licensing deal with Weil, whose first task will be with to develop an “innovative wellness product line”, which is scheduled to launch in late 2005.]
“The Origins project has only just been announced, so it is premature to be talking about travel retail at this stage,” responds Assa. “But this development is viewed very much as a natural synergy for Origins.”
“THE ORIGINS PROJECT [WITH DR ANDREW WEIL] HAS ONLY JUST BEEN ANNOUNCED, SO IT IS PREMATURE TO BE TALKING ABOUT TRAVEL RETAIL AT THIS STAGE. BUT THIS DEVELOPMENT IS VIEWED VERY MUCH AS A NATURAL SYNERGY FOR ORIGINS.”
Meanwhile, travel retail is set to become more of a focus for the group’s Bobbi Brown brand (pictured above).
A specialist Bobbi Brown boutique covering about 250sq ft opened this month in London Heathrow airport terminal three in conjunction with World Duty Free.
“We will be expanding the brand’s presence inflight, and looking to open a few more duty free doors,” concluded Assa.
MORE STORIES ON THE ESTEE LAUDER COMPANIES
Estée Lauder offers more Stress Relief – 29/11/04
Crème de la Mer enters Amsterdam Schiphol – 26/11/04
The Lauder group appoints Desiree Reid to head Sean John Toiletries – 17/11/04
Estée Lauder Companies take a bite out of life with new DKNY masterbrand fragrance – 19/10/04
