The beauty industry is rapidly evolving and offering new trends and opportunities for budding entrepreneurs. However, with the outbreak of COVID-19, the year 2020-21 is proving to be a tough one, especially for entrepreneurs who want to launch and build a new beauty brand. But everything said and done, nothing is impossible.
“As a new brand, there are a few things to keep in mind to build a good foundation for a beauty business. “Starting with excellent sanitization and hygiene policies, as COVID-19 has taught us that being cautious in essential. Comprehending the supply and demand demographics of the chosen industry and accordingly setting up a nominal price,” says Aditya Arya, Co-founder, Yes Madam. He adds, “For Yes Madam, the biggest factor in our initial stage branding was maintaining transparency and honesty. We believe that transparency enables customers to build trust and make informed decisions on the purchase of products or services.”
Startups have also concentrated on selection and finalisation of the product niche, as it makes it easier for brands to effectively run the business and stand out in the market. Ravi Mittal, Managing Director, Ekta Cosmetics, says, “The cosmetics industry is known to be highly competitive. A good idea or product can bring a customer to you, but without proper execution, it will be only one time. Therefore, my focus has always been on proper execution, rather than just market expansion. For start-ups to thrive in this industry, there must be a single-minded focus on your product and the experience it delivers to the consumers and strengthen the brand amongst the competition.”
Additionally, in today’s world, marketing the product and reaching the right target audience with the right punch, is of utmost importance. Hence, on one hand, the brands have to focus on social media marketing, which is the most influential, along with viral marketing techniques, and on the other side still stick to the traditional and old school marketing techniques via salon targeting. Yashesh Bharwada, Director, Absolute Beauty Concepts, states, “Key aspects would be to understand the consumer requirement and accordingly plan the go-to strategy for marketing. Post the advent of COVID in 2020, salons have taken a long time to see some normality in business. Staying safe and healthy is a priority for consumers – if this can be captured and addressed to salons and consumers alike, it would make for a successful launch and brand building story.”
While focusing on all the above aspects, one among the important aspects that a start-up brand must take into consideration is ‘finance’. The profit and loss statements, along with healthy and wise investments are of top priority in deciding the success or failure of the brand. Big, corporate beauty brands such as Godrej believes, “Metaphoric explanation for how you decide to choose the customer (small or big), you find the gap and explain how it is going to help them improve their profitability especially during the uncertain pandemic time (connect) and create the best suitable plan for the brand and customers to engage in and benefit from each other (play).”
Hence, start-up brands need to choose a focus and vision that is helpful when starting and building a beauty brand in 2021.
Text by PRIYANKA PARSHURAMI