Despite being a dominant player in the cosmetics and personal care products industry, Bath & Body faces significant competition from other major players such as Sephora USA, The Body Shop International PLC and The Esteel Lauder Companies Inc. nevertheless, the company has employed a number of strategies including corporate social responsibility engagements and business diversification to wade off the stiff competition and continuously command a significantly market share as compared to its competitors (Jones, 2011).
The Estée Lauder Company offers similar products as Bath & Body. The company controls a significantly large share of the total market in America and has been severally ranked second after Body & Bath in the same industry. The company has employed corporate social responsibility as its major competitive advantage over its competitors. For instance, the pink ribbon used worldwide for cancer awareness campaigns was an idea of Estée's daughter in law. Since then The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. has been the official sponsor of cancer awareness campaigns in America. The major selling message for the company is that it really cares for the health of its customers and as a result, it has been in the forefront to manufacture, distribute and sell cancer-free cosmetics and skin care products (Malkan, 2007). Throughout the numerous cancer campaigns, the company has managed to sell its name and its 18 brands far and beyond thus winning a significant fraction of the market share. The company has also been a corporate sponsor for most beauty pageant competitions. Recently, The Estée Lauder Company was among a fleet of companies that sponsored Miss World at the Crown of Beauty Theatre in Sanya, China.
Sephora is the latest entrant in the United States cosmetics industry. The company’s first store in the United States was opened in 1998 alongside its first Canadian store in Toronto in 2004. The major competition strategy employed by the company is partnerships. For instance, Sephora stocks and distributes products from various companies among them NARS Cosmetics, Make Up For Ever and Urban Decay companies (Jones, 2011). Partnerships help the company to drastically cut down on the general operational expenses. Similarly, by forming partnerships with already established companies implies that fewer resources are spent on market penetration as the company sails on already established names. Similarly, the company has introduced a subscription service which has subsequently given it an edge over its competitors. The subscription, Play! By Sephora, goes for $10 every month and consist of boxes containing five products. This is slightly cheaper as compared to purchasing individual products from Sephora.
The Body Shop has the least market share as compared to Sephora and The Estée Lauder Company. The company operates franchised shops in over 61 countries offering a range of about 1200 products. For instance, the company insists of a better and healthy skin rather than just beauty. The company has a strict policy against animal products; it doesn’t stock, distribute or sell products tested on animals (Malkan, 2007). As a result therefore, most customers who feel the need to have a healthier skin rather than beauty would rather pay an extra coin and purchase The Body Shop products.
Generally, the cosmetics market in the United States is quite dynamic and stiff. As a result therefore, most leading companies often change from one strategy to another as they seek to own a large market share of the available customer. Currently, The Estée Lauder Company remains the leasing manufacturer and producer of cosmetics, beauty and skin care products.
References
Jones, G. (2011). Beauty imagined: A history of the global beauty industry. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Malkan, S. (2007). Not just a pretty face: The ugly side of the beauty industry. Gabriola, B.C: New Society Publishers.
