Is Beauty’s Subscription Era Finally Here?
Think surprise boxes, exclusive beauty finds, or even niche collaborations.
Imagine a world where your favourite beauty brands surprise you every month with exclusive finds, experimental products, and trendy must-haves, like Netflix, but for your makeup bag, delivered straight to your door.
Subscription services are doing well in food, there’s the obvious ones like HelloFresh, or the POC-owned startup Simmer that’s taking over our TikTok timelines.
But in fashion and beauty, the jury’s still out.
No one’s really jumping on the idea just yet.
I think it could work for some brands, like MAC or even Sephora.
They could focus on experimentation, giving customers the chance to try something new and exciting, rather than locking them into a permanent product.
Think surprise boxes, exclusive beauty finds, or even niche collaborations.
Brands like Sephora could really lead the charge here, tapping into the growing demand for discovery and novelty.
For this to work, the key would be flexibility, giving customers variety and the thrill of the unknown, not forcing them to commit to the same product month after month.
The downside:
But if these brands, or any others, want to give this idea a go, they’ll need to address one big problem: trends move too fast.
Was it not just yesterday we were all screaming "very demure," and now… we're not?
Fast fashion brands like Shein can replicate a hot look in hours.
So why would anyone pay for a subscription to get something a month after it was trending? By that time, it’s already out of style.
In the world of fashion and beauty, it’s not just about offering products, it’s about staying ahead of the curve, understanding what’s trending, and keeping things fresh and exciting.
That’s where brands will need to get creative.
One trend that seems to not be dying, though, is sustainability.
Sustainability has become the buzzword of the moment, but it’s more complicated than slapping a recycling logo on your product.
Consumers are waking up to greenwashing tactics, and brands will need to prove their commitment by taking real action.
I digress, but that’s what we need to do as marketers and brands: challenge the norms, explore new ideas, and keep evolving.
After all, curiosity is key, not just to understanding what’s next, but to staying ahead of it.
I’d love to get your thoughts
Until next time, keep listening, keep learning, and keep evolving.
And make sure you digress often. Curiosity is key to winning in this game.
Charlotte
For those who missed last week’s edition check it out here:
