SEVEN
QUESTIONS
WITH...
Lucy Beresford, Chief Commercial Officer
at SLG Brands .
SLG is a family-run business, with phenomenal global presence.
It was formed in Gloucester almost 35 years ago and is now the creator of some of the high street's most fashionable beauty brands including COLAB Dry Shampoo, Johnny’s Chop Shop, Velvotan, Superdry Performance Grooming, and Skinnydip Bath and Body.
The company's portfolio covers cosmetics, bath and body, fragrance, haircare, beauty accessory and lifestyle categories.
Lucy Beresford, its Chief Commercial Officer tells us more:
1. Has SLG found a change in buying habits through online and bricks and mortar retailers recently?
It’s clear to see from the ongoing news around store closures and the loss of the high street, that online has affected our buying habits significantly and it is certainly impacting industries like fashion more than others.
In beauty, the majority of sales are still sold through bricks and mortar but there is no doubt that online and social is an important and essential component in the mix these days and there is an ongoing shift toward it.
Online has principally changed two things for us all.
As consumers, online has enabled us to integrate our shopping needs into our busy lives 24 hrs a day. It gives us the ability to source a wide variety of items, shop for deals, compare prices and try before we buy at the click of a button. Brands have the opportunity to entice consumers with new offers, looks and trends on a constant basis, whilst offering convenience and a value price point.
But for the big retailers, their challenge has been that online has brought down the barriers to entry for new and emerging start-ups. There is now a significantly broader choice available to consumers from smaller niche operations who can offer distinct or unique targeted assortments.
In years gone by, to try to scale a brand through bricks and mortar was a costly and risky business and required high levels of resource and investment which ultimately protected market share for the bigger retailers. These days, geography doesn’t limit, so with a clearly targeted offer and compelling marketing, brands can appeal to consumers across the world, so the big properties, long leases, high business rates and cost to operate, have quickly become the traditional retailers biggest Achilles heel.
2. We love the new SLG office, what are the best parts of it and why?
Our office and work environment has always been an exceptionally important part of our DNA. Studio 19 is certainly the realisation of our ultimate vision and has been undoubtedly led by our insanely creative CEO, Miles Dunkley.
The office space is a visual reminder to our brilliant team and all of our customers and suppliers, of SLG’s unique and highly creative culture and progressive, youthful soul. It’s hard to define the best bit other than to say that it’s inspiring our team to achieve brilliance from within it and it’s fostered an immense sense of team purpose and collaboration.
Not a day goes by where I don’t see meetings occurring and the sharing of ideas in every part of the space. I really love to see that sense of ‘team culture’ play out in front of me; it makes me immensely proud. But perhaps the hammocks, skateboards and chilli bean room have been the highlights, not to mention Pay-Day Friday drinks and our recently introduced Yoga sessions. All of which have been a great way for us to underscore our desire to give back to our team. It’s fair to say the take up has been exceptional!
3. What trends have you noticed with beauty products over the last five-ish years
Oh gosh, so many to mention. The beauty industry, ( similar to fashion ), is one that is so dynamic and ever evolving. Technology has undoubtedly changed the way consumers now experience beauty. The ability to be part of a community, share tips and advice, obtain peer reviews and watch tutorials around product application has meant consumers have never been more confident and experimental.
Gen Z consumers are in many respects, highly capable make up artists in their own right! I’ve enjoyed seeing consumers use our LMX by Little Mix cosmetics to create some incredible looks! Men are now ever more invested in their own personal care too and this feels like a very different change across the generations.
Our men’s styling brand Johnnys Chop Shop, together with Superdry’s performance grooming has seen significant growth as a result. But social conscience is rising rapidly in our industry, like many others. We are all; as consumers and professionals, demanding that packaging waste is reduced, that sourcing is sustainable and ethical, vegan and cruelty free products are key, and that businesses operate with a principled soul. This should be a big focus for all caring and progressive businesses in the industry.
4. Is there a big difference when creating products for different generations?
There are definitely big differences between generations albeit we all probably aspire to similar things – healthy glossy hair, youthful radiant skin etc. The differences extend pass the products and packaging and through to the communication style, marketing and distribution strategy of a brand, so it’s so important to really understand and flex with your consumer and communicate with them authentically to make sure you stay relevant.
At SLG, we work in close partnership with our retailers however we lead on all matters relating to product innovation, packaging and marketing and do so from a very tailored and unique approach that we have within our business. SLG is entirely integrated from the brand research, conceptualisation, formulation development, design,packaging development and marketing, so we can constantly learn and evolve to ensure we move with and lead the times!
5. Are you able to use feedback from users to tweak products at all? Does social media help with this?
Absolutely. Having feedback is essential to improving and progressing. It’s really important to us that we remain at the forefront of the consumer narrative. We use social media to communicate with our audiences and hear directly from them, what’s important.
We also use research with focus groups, and sales insight to tell us about our performance, which helps to guide us. But actually, we set the internal bar pretty high ourselves and we are probably our own biggest critics!! Within the building is a team of passionate beauty junkies who really care about the quality of our products, so we only ever want to work on the development of products and brands that we love and want to use ourselves. It might sound like hyperbole, but our brands are passion projects and we are all so excited to see them launch and be loved!
6. Are new generations demanding more natural/ sustainable products or have you not seen much of a change? Is it easy to incorporate any changes?
I think all generations are beginning to understand the impact we are having to the natural world. As consumers and therefore in our work place as professional and in all industries. There is certainly going to be more change to come and whilst it’s not always easy to incorporate and will require effort, throughout the supply chain, within retail operations and in our own personal consumer habits, but I’ve no doubt improvements will be made.
As a dynamic and smaller entity we can move quickly but big Global players certainly will have a big task on their hands to respond. I saw an article only recently where a handful of market leading food, drinks and beauty manufacturers such as Coca Cola and McDonalds published their annual plastic packaging waste, and it highlighted just how important it is that the lens is placed on this issue.
Here at SLG for example, we spent a great deal of time this year on a particular brand development to eliminate every piece of plastic from the collection and reduce the tertiary packaging to its absolute lowest level and even that being made from recycled materials. It’s been a delight to have the retailer on board with all of these changes and it maps a path for many future changes. We are lucky to be able to employ packaging technologists and product specialists to help us make these improvements and its high on our agenda to improve our impact on the environment wherever we can.
7. What new brands and trends should retailers be looking out for in beauty?
They should certainly be looking no further than SLG for new and exciting brands! With an ever greater focus now on the development of global brands here at our Cheltenham- based HQ; Studio 19, we are working on some fantastic new innovations created from our in-house laboratory and exceptional team of scientists, brand developers and creatives . We have five incredible new brand concepts in development here which we can’t wait to launch to the world.
Watch this space, and as we always say here at SLG, the best is yet to come!