OPPORTUNITY SALES OF SEPHORA BASED KAT VON D BEAUTY PACKAGE IN THE UNITED KINGDOM

The Product

Kat Von D beauty package consists of a host of products that have been a reputation of originality and uniqueness. These attributes are probably linked to the creator of the make-up line Katherine von Drachenberg a tattoo artist and designer. These products include; Concealers, lip gross, Eye shadow, Palette, Fragrances and even Tattoo Liners. The package is a continuing line because the creator Kat Von D releases new products each year (beauty, 2014).

The nature of the product is that it is adhere to the Four Utilities of Customer Value (Pride, Hughes, & Kapoor, 2013; Sarin, 2013). This is shown under the following sub-headings.

• Time. The product is of value to the customers not a basis that can be defined but rather on demand. This factor allows that the product market is always open and high across the range of customers.
• Place: So as to capture this market, the product is sold by popular beauty store and is available for online shopping in the USA. This is expected to be carried forward to any target market that the company seeks to enter.
• Possession. Kat Von D products are unique in packaging and storage, a customer’s creativity with the products is highly expected. For instance the fragrance that the line has can be used on other surfaces other than the body like beddings.
• Form. Taking the fragrance or the lip gross as examples of the product, it is clear that a range of items have been used to come up with such confiscated concoctions. This is the genius of Kat Von D. The customers are attracted to the work put in to create these products.

Target Market

In the contemporary thinking, such products as those included in the Kat Von D line are for women specifically the young ones and middle aged females (Kapferer, 2012). However, this package also include item befitting male profiling such as fragrance and the tattoo equipment. However, the market has changed over time and now beauty products are available for men having been modified to get over the issue of safeness (Tarrant, 2013). The target market in the U.S is much the same to that of the United Kingdom. Therefore, the success of selling this product in the targeted market is expected to have much the same success as in U.S.

Competition Locally and in Target Market

Kat Von D is a relatively developing beauty line having been in the U.S beauty industry for less than 10 years. In the U.S, there are many founder names in the beauty industries such as Clinique which developed as makeup line on the layer that had been in existence since the 60’s. It is that people identify with old brands which have won their trust over a longer period. Kat Von D makeup products are promoted by the brand, Sephora whose entry into the U.S industry was not until late 90’s. This tightens the competition in favor of brands like Clinique.

Outside the U.S, the competition in this beauty line is not any better world renowned brands dominate this industry. These are the likes of Covergirl, Oley, Nivea, Dove and Estée Lauder whose brand is known across most nations in the world. In U.K however, the competition is relentless with the likes of MAC and Chanel makeup lines being among the most popular.

STP Marketing Approach

Segmentation of the beauty industry in the target market of the U.K realizes a range of areas that are specialized. For this case, the selected product is already specific on the sector of the market that it is about, makeup. According to Collins English Dictionary, makeup is described as any cosmetic or appliance that is used to enhance facial appearance. The Kat Von D products are makeup oriented and thus this sector is the most suitable to target while venturing in the U.K. introduction of the Kat Von D package in beauty shops will ensure that the products get noticed by the clients who go these stores seeking other related items.

Targeting is the most important step in the STP approach where an appropriate tool is used to get to the target market as suited by the environment. In this case, the makeup line is dominated by female clients whose demographic alignment lies between the teens and late Fifties. It is that the environments of these targets are either social, educational or business oriented. For the teens and young adults, the social media platform would prove an ideal place to mass market the products as well as beauty magazines. It is important to remember that the young adults being represented here are inclusive of a few young men who use the some products found in the package. Using new technologies, it is possible to reach at groups of individuals at the same time without as much as wasting an ounce of energy. For the older clientele, adverts on the newspapers, television, radio broadcasting and trendy business and life magazines is the path that will ensure a mass popularization of the Kat Von D products.

The third stage of this marketing approach is that of positioning in the target market arena. In this stage, the innovative representation of the brand in the target market will attract more customers to the products. This is by ensuring that the target market can easily identify with the product. The market identified in the previous step is that of teens, young adults and older citizens in the female category and young adults in the male category.

The product pricing will be averagely fixed around the market trend in the U.K. It is that overpricing while trying to recover expenses of the venture will lose potential clients who are worried about price instability. The intended advertisements will introduce Kat Von D beauty products as a high quality parallel to other products in the market. Also, comparative advertising will help create attention for the Kat Von D products. This is just simple advertising where a dummy product will be superseded in effectiveness and other attributes by the Kat Von D products. However, there will be no mention particular competitor products to avoid conflicts or situations where bylaws of professionalism.

The STP approach is always concluded with the implementation of the strategies formulated during the entire process. This step involves the actual laying down of planned activities and setting them into motion with relevant authorizations from investors and administrators.

Environment Facts and Market Trend in The U.K That Affect Sales

In the U.K, the market environment is highly favorable for this product as will demonstrated in the following points.

The beauty and cosmetic market is among the largest in the country making it a good target for launching a beauty product. According to CPTA, it was worth almost 8.5milllin pounds in the year 2013. Such a large market is will produce high returns within a short time dictating that sales in this country shall be a good venture.

Also, the use of makeup products has risen in comparison to previous years where makeup was unpopular to the common folk. With the rise in technology, connectivity is enhanced to a level where being in a remote area does not warrant lack of information or access to products. Introduction of online shopping plus provision of delivery services enforces this point and therefore, the sales in the U.K will not only be based on physically but it will infiltrate the various platforms available. For this task, it will be a advisable to use internet marketing as well as provide online shopping services so as to capture a larger number of customers.

Notably, there are a few issues that will provide significant challenges to the sales of Kat Von D products in the U.K. The following are a few examples that have this effect on the sales of this product;

There is a host of over 4000 small medium-sized enterprises operating within the European Union region alone. Arguably, a large portion of these have access to the U.K market which is intended for sales. Also, it is a fact that more than a quarter of products being offered are renovated almost yearly thus creating a constant of new products for sales while maintain loyal customers to the various brands.

The beauty products in the U.K are subject to regular assessments by safety experts to ascertain their value to human safety while using them. This assessment can work in either way for the product. One, the standards that the assessors use might be above or below those of the U.S. Therefore the assessment might doom the product at the first inspection or reward it with certification of safety which shall relief the customers in the market.  To capture the advantages of this inspection, safety standards of the target market will be done and compared to those used in the United States. If any adjustments are required, they are minor details  if non are required which has higher probability than the previous assumption, the sales in the U.K will be satisfactory.

Product Campaign in Consideration of The Four P’s

 The Kat Von D package campaign will be developed according to the following specifications which shall ensure that there consideration of the product, price, promotion and place.

 The very first item to notice is that there will not be only one type of campaigning but rather a number of them, one for magazines, television and radio advertisements, and the social media platform.

Having identified the target audience in the STP approach to the product marketing, this step comes as an easy task. All that remains of knowing what this or that group will relate to and how best to get it to them. The process will be described loosely with respect to a specific target audience.

A thorough study will be conducted to create a visual thought of hoe a normal U.K family lifestyle is structure and the idea of the campaign will be put in place. The basic concepts that will be fitted into the structure created are that the product can be used by male customers, young adults and the adults.  For an easy setup, a typical family can be used to put in effect most of these ideas in the same frame. A family of three, consisting of a mother (single), a brother and sister will be created to capture the aspects of the product in campaign.

The daughter will be the main focus of the advertisement where she will be shown to give makeup advice to her mother who is a business woman trying to get back to the dating market. The mother is seen sifting through a popular magazine in the business ad section where Kat Von D package has been printed out at the middle having been placed on a highlighted platform. The background of the text is watermark of various products in the package. Obviously she is tempted to for the professional products and sterile business fragrances but her daughter intervenes after she has ordered the products through a hotline provided on the magazine page. The daughter helps sort her mother’s makeup by arranging them in a particular form labeling them; ‘business lady’ and ‘dating woman’.

A different scenario is the daughter; out on a shopping spree with her two friends in a mall (the research will reveal an ideal mall, store to market the product in). They decide to try out the makeup section which cleverly is setup like a professional beauty spur but also has a shopping section. As they go through the various products, they each fall in love with a certain product that is unique to them. One of them with likes a fragrance, while another a lip gross and the last one an eye liner. They are only disappointed that the products might not work for them as they hope it will. Meanwhile, a ‘certain’ woman steps out of the spur looking very beautiful with having been given a makeup session evidently successful. The girls are amazed at how gorgeous she looks only to realize that the said woman is the mother to the one girl the ad focuses on.

The mother walks over and after pleasantries which they don’t fail to mention that she looks outstanding; she tells her daughter that she was overwhelmed and decide to let the professionals do it for her. As an afterthought, she winks at them and says it’s free and very informing. Coincidently a guy passes in a nearby section and whistles out loudly having spotted the made over woman. The girls laugh and say their byes halfway running to the spur to try out their products.

Once the girl gets home, she goes into her brothers room looking for him but he is not there so she helps herself to his drawer looking for a comb. Then she notices a bottle of fragrance that seems similar to one she at the store. She looks at the label and sees a male label across it so she shrugs and goes on her business.

This is the main advert that will run for the first couple months while introducing this line into the U.K market. Key things that will be introduced concurrently or prior to this these ads are;

• The ability of male customers to suggest names for products they think other male counterparts would use if not for the name labeled on them.
• Running ads on magazines of lifestyle, sports, News and business
• Showcasing of the free to try makeup section in the stores that sell the product plus availability of a hotline that one can order product through.
• Social media marketing and conveniently providing  a link for the gents to follow so get to the section of labeling the products.

U.S. And International Ethical Marketing Considerations

When in the marketing market of commodities, it is necessary to take into account a number of factors that come into play once the plans have been set in motion. One of the most important factors that is considered is the ethical marketing consideration which dictates the responsibilities of an individual entering into this industry.

The U.S is well structured to ensure the highest ethical professionalism in the marketing industry. For instance, the Security Act (1934) was put in place as a responsive act that would hinder recurrence of the crash of the stock market. Also, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (2002) which protects investors by enforcing policies that ensured financial openness of corporations to avoid related frauds. These considerations ensure that the marketing environment is safe for investors and entrepreneurs to venture into.

Fiduciary responsibility is applied both locally and internationally to ensure the trust, legal and ethical affiliation concerning two or more parties involved in a particular venture. This is applicable for the Kat von D package which intend to extend its sales tentacles to U.K. Relationship between companies and government agencies is governed by international ethical policies which dictate precise methods of establishment of working affiliations. The U.S has some policies that extend into the international markets such as the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (Delener, 1995). These policies paired up with those of target market as well as international ethical codes will be considered in this venture by Kat Von D.

References

Beauty, K. (2014). About. Retrieved May 18, 2015, from Kat Von D Beauty: http://katvondbeauty.com/about

Delener, N. (1995). Ethical Issues in International Marketing. New York: Interbational Business Press.

Kapferer, J.-N. (2012). The New Strategic Brand Management: Advanced Insights and Strategic Thinking. London: Kogan Page Limited.

Pride, W., Hughes, R., & Kapoor, J. (n.d.). Business. Cengage Learning.

Sarin, S. (2013). Business Marketing: Concepts and Cases. New Delhi: McGraw Hill Education (India) Private Limited.

Tarrant, S. (Ed.). (2013). Men Speak Out: Views on Gender, Sex, and Power. New York: Routledge.

Collins Dictionary. (2015). Collins Dictionary. Retrieved May 18. 2015, From Collins: http://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/make-up

CTPA. (2015).  Key facts.retrieved May 19, 2015. From CTPA: http://www.ctpa.org.uk/content.aspx?pagedid=295