Being an entrepreneur is not easy and setting up an independent cosmetics brand made in Spain is no exception. How do newcomers make their way into a market dominated by multinationals?
Cosmetics with natural, sustainable and quality ingredients is a growing field. Many entrepreneurs see trade between essential oils and exclusive botanicals. However, before conquering the consumer, they have to face other problems. Financing is one of them, but not always the most difficult to save. We analyzed with nine niche brands what difficulties they had to overcome to succeed with their project.
Asturian and passionate about cosmetics, Patricia Paredes opened a niche cosmetic store in Gijón in 2007. “At that time these spaces were counted on the fingers of one hand in Spain. We became national pioneers and were very successful. With the boom of social networks, many businesses emerged that sold the same firms like us.
What used to be difficult to find was no longer so, ”he recalls. To differentiate itself from the competition, in 2017 she rolled the blanket over her head and launched her own brand, Elle Est Belle Beauty.
His first reference, Sensual Skin Cleanser, worked well. With the income from the store and sales, more referrals were launched. “The covid pandemic was a catalyst for us. It led us to focus all our efforts on Elle Est Belle Beauty, leaving behind the brands we had been working with ”. With sales soaring, each new reference to add to the catalog was a pain if you wanted to make it special.
“It was not difficult for me to find a laboratory that made small batches. The complicated thing was to design a specific container or a slightly special cap because the suppliers required minimum orders of thousands and thousands of units ”.
The brand grew so much that it decided to close the multi-brand store and go online with its own brand. “We only sell in physical trade internationally. In Spain everything is online. Social networks are essential for us as they allow us to contact and maintain close relationships with customers.
We constantly update them with quality content and we also do some advertising campaigns ”. Now they pamper their customers through social media. “We grew up through word of mouth and we made an effort to give very personalized attention. Every satisfied customer is our best ambassador ”.
Steve Bullion had been working for several cosmetic brands for years: Yves Saint Laurent, Stella McCartney, Boucheron, Alexander McQueen, But he could not find a beauty routine that would fit him. "If I was looking for organic, vegan cosmetics that are committed to the beauty of the skin and the planet, I assumed that other people like me might also be interested in using them," he explains.
He pulled in his savings and rode Scenes. “It was easier than I imagined. I suppose that the quality of our formulas and our philosophy immediately convinced laboratories and suppliers to reduce their minimum quantities and offer us the possibility of starting the project with few restrictions ”.
At a time of the online boom, they chose to go against the tide and sell only in luxury spas and beauty centers. “We have the best beauty prescribers, the beauticians.
We let them try our line of cosmetics and the result exceeded our expectations. They did not hesitate to add our treatments to their service menu and recommend our products for skincare at home ”.
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