- Università: Em Lyon Business School
- Docenti:
Monica Grosso
- Studenti:
Clarisse Bonnay Thibaut Charbonnier Louis Zavaroni Charles Zito
Concept
La crème de la crème is a cosmetics shop located in Los Angeles, where your choices are facilitated thanks to technology. Each skin has its own particularities because we are all different from each other. Thanks to a high-tech machine that analyzes your skin, the perfect product for you in terms of color and function will be highlighted in the store. Choosing your foundation is not an obstacle anymore but become a real pleasure.
Market Analysis
Competitor Analysis
In the U.S. market, there are three main retailers that offer consumers cosmetics goods, the three of them together accounting for 20% of total sales in the US cosmetics market:
- Bath & Body Works (L Brands)
- Ulta Beauty
- Sephora (LVMH)
These three retailers are our main competitors.
In addition, we identified two types of indirect competitors: on the first hand, the HMSM retailers with Walmart and Target. On the other hands, the department stores with Macy’s and Kohl’s.
Our offer
Our offer is divided into three main categories:
- Skincare
- Make-Up
- Accessories
The skincare category consists of five subcategories based on cosmetics use and skin types.
The make-up category gathers three subcategories based on the face area.
We decided to choose our assortment and the brands which are composing it based on the criteria’s shoppers are looking for. Thus, we want to cover different types of cosmetics' brands.
In total, we would have around 300 brands and 20 000 products, to be more attractive than our competitors that are already quite big (Ulta, Sephora etc).
Our Store Location
We chose to set up the store in Los Angeles, a place gathering both technology and cosmetics.
More specifically, we want to be based in Venice Beach, the most touristic seaside resort, full of trendy shops and diversity.
Our technology
We decided to focus on offering a tailored offer to our customers. We want them to feel the value our store offers when visiting it: it is nor a random place to buy cosmetics, it is a customized experience to fill the needs of all. To apply this idea, we chose to implement a scanning machine delivering personal diagnostic, and a luminous system on shelves to help customers follow the diagnostics and buy the right products.
Communication & CRM plan
The communication plan of La Crème de la Crème is aimed at informing our customers on everything in store as well as telling the story of our brand and our motivations using very creative and engaging ways without compromising the core values of our brand. We plan to meet our target market where they are by using the power of social media to not only inform them about us but also form informal casual relationships with them which we believe is important for brand loyalty.
Our CRM is focused on maintaining while expanding the size of our loyal or repeat customer base. This we need by providing incentives in the form of discounts, to providing exclusive services like “first look” an exclusive service which gives subscribed members access to limited stock and timed promotions; as well as encouraging student shoppers by offering student discounts.
Feasibility analysis
Because of our sector and the competitors, we plan on facing, we decided to go big with our first store. Therefore, our finance part reflects this, dealing with great amounts and projections.
Our biggest expenditure is the staff with around 1,280k dollars per year (5 cashiers, 20 product consultants/advisors, 3 security agents, 1 store manager and 5 beauty consultants).
Our second biggest expense is the rent, about 980k dollars per year.
Another important cost will be the technology aspect, which is also the very heart of our retail concept.
Regarding our revenue, we plan on reaching a hundred customers each opened hour for the first year, knowing that the average basket should be around $65 (same as Sephora US).
We will have a marketplace online starting at year 2 (with a $40 basket). The website will have of course been built from Year 1 but the marketplace section will only be unlocked in Year 2.
We plan a 10% growth for year 2 and 10% again for year 3.
Expansion plan
We are starting the business with an only store in Los Angeles. This is just the beginning of our project. We plan to continue opening new stores all over the world, in cosmopolitan cities.
That is why we chose New-York as our second location, opening in 2023. We will benefit from the word-of-mouth marketing from our LA store.
In 2024 and 2025, we plan to open 2 other stores, respectively in Paris and Shanghai (China representing a real opportunity for the cosmetics industry).
