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▼ Department Stores Try New Approach to Selling High-end Cosmetics
- Category:Shopping
Department stores and supermarkets are taking new steps to make shoppers feel more at ease purchasing high-end cosmetics, such as having expert staff provide advice on multiple brands and displaying items from different brands side by side on the same rack.
This approach of putting friendly service before luxury appears to be attracting new customers.
Seibu department store’s Ikebukuro flagship in Toshima Ward, Tokyo, has set up a section called Makeup Station on its cosmetics sales floor. It includes items such as foundations, blush and lipsticks from about 40 brands, including foundations as expensive as ¥10,000.
Customers can choose products with help from specialized clerks who have taken training programs at various cosmetics brands. The service is popular because customers can get tips on applying makeup like their favorite celebrities, or learn the right makeup for particular places and occasions.
“More and more women are working, so some customers are seeking detailed advice. They say things like, ‘Please show me makeup that’s appropriate for when I have to give a presentation at work,’” said Yuri Kato at Sogo & Seibu Co.’s product department, who came up with the idea of creating the Makeup Station.
Kato said many women visit the section with their daughters before the young women enter university.
This approach of putting friendly service before luxury appears to be attracting new customers.
Seibu department store’s Ikebukuro flagship in Toshima Ward, Tokyo, has set up a section called Makeup Station on its cosmetics sales floor. It includes items such as foundations, blush and lipsticks from about 40 brands, including foundations as expensive as ¥10,000.
Customers can choose products with help from specialized clerks who have taken training programs at various cosmetics brands. The service is popular because customers can get tips on applying makeup like their favorite celebrities, or learn the right makeup for particular places and occasions.
“More and more women are working, so some customers are seeking detailed advice. They say things like, ‘Please show me makeup that’s appropriate for when I have to give a presentation at work,’” said Yuri Kato at Sogo & Seibu Co.’s product department, who came up with the idea of creating the Makeup Station.
Kato said many women visit the section with their daughters before the young women enter university.
The cosmetics sales floor also has a booth for customers to receive advice on how to find suitable lotions, creams and other basic skin care items.
“I’m usually reluctant to go to specific brand counters because I feel like I have to buy something,” said a 28-year-old company employee from Toshima Ward. “But I feel comfortable choosing cosmetics for myself [at the Makeup Station].”
Cosmetics sales floors at department stores usually set up different counters for different brands. This allows customers to spend time consulting with staff and getting advice, while at the same time making them reluctant to visit other brands’ counters or stop frequenting certain brands.
Another example is the counter-free Isetan Mirror Make & Cosmetics, which allows shoppers to browse and pick up their favorite items. Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings Ltd. operates the business at 14 stores, mainly in Tokyo including Lumine station complexes.
Even though the section features high-end cosmetics such as Chanel and Dior, the clerks do not specialize in any particular brands. Instead they have been trained to have expertise in all the brands to help customers.
An Isetan Mirror section that opened in September at the Lumine complex next to Ogikubo Station in Tokyo includes items from about 25 cosmetics brands, while about 300 kinds of lipsticks are on the same display rack, called the “Lip Bar.” The outlet is popular among women in their 20s and 30s.
“We’re attracting younger customers who used to shy away from shopping at department stores,” said a spokesperson at Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings.
Daily shopping
Supermarkets are also encouraging grocery shoppers to purchase high-end cosmetics.
Cosmeme Co., run by Chiba-based Aeon Co.’s affiliate, operates about 10 sales locations nationwide, many of which were set up at Aeon Malls in the suburbs.
A Cosmeme section at Aeon Mall’s Makuhari Shintoshin complex in Chiba features more than 30 brands, which shoppers are free to try. Cosmetics to prevent dry skin are now on display for winter.
“The key is that shoppers can try cosmetics from high-end brands at places closer to their homes,” Cosmeme President Kikuko Fujita said.
The Cosmeme section also offers a welcoming atmosphere for men, and many couples can be seen in the store. About 2,000 customers visit per month.
Saori Jogo, a cosmetics adviser at the All About website, said even though cosmetics from luxury brands are available online, many people are eager to try them before making a costly purchase. “These new kinds of services and outlets are trying to meet such needs by adding casual touches to their sales floors,” she added.
“I’m usually reluctant to go to specific brand counters because I feel like I have to buy something,” said a 28-year-old company employee from Toshima Ward. “But I feel comfortable choosing cosmetics for myself [at the Makeup Station].”
Cosmetics sales floors at department stores usually set up different counters for different brands. This allows customers to spend time consulting with staff and getting advice, while at the same time making them reluctant to visit other brands’ counters or stop frequenting certain brands.
Another example is the counter-free Isetan Mirror Make & Cosmetics, which allows shoppers to browse and pick up their favorite items. Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings Ltd. operates the business at 14 stores, mainly in Tokyo including Lumine station complexes.
Even though the section features high-end cosmetics such as Chanel and Dior, the clerks do not specialize in any particular brands. Instead they have been trained to have expertise in all the brands to help customers.
An Isetan Mirror section that opened in September at the Lumine complex next to Ogikubo Station in Tokyo includes items from about 25 cosmetics brands, while about 300 kinds of lipsticks are on the same display rack, called the “Lip Bar.” The outlet is popular among women in their 20s and 30s.
“We’re attracting younger customers who used to shy away from shopping at department stores,” said a spokesperson at Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings.
Daily shopping
Supermarkets are also encouraging grocery shoppers to purchase high-end cosmetics.
Cosmeme Co., run by Chiba-based Aeon Co.’s affiliate, operates about 10 sales locations nationwide, many of which were set up at Aeon Malls in the suburbs.
A Cosmeme section at Aeon Mall’s Makuhari Shintoshin complex in Chiba features more than 30 brands, which shoppers are free to try. Cosmetics to prevent dry skin are now on display for winter.
“The key is that shoppers can try cosmetics from high-end brands at places closer to their homes,” Cosmeme President Kikuko Fujita said.
The Cosmeme section also offers a welcoming atmosphere for men, and many couples can be seen in the store. About 2,000 customers visit per month.
Saori Jogo, a cosmetics adviser at the All About website, said even though cosmetics from luxury brands are available online, many people are eager to try them before making a costly purchase. “These new kinds of services and outlets are trying to meet such needs by adding casual touches to their sales floors,” she added.
- November 22, 2016
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