Beauty
Boohoo had an evaluation of £4 billion in 2022, but two years later, it has seen a decline of value of OVER 90%. The clothes are still the same, the difference is that the story behind the brand has changed, and when a fashion brand’s story stops working, the brand goes down with it.
The brand perception story is a perfect example of the UK fashion market and what makes it unique. In this industry, perception means more than the actual product. Timing is more important than talent, and the distance between a cultural moment and a commercial collapse is just a few months. Within this industry there is also incredible talent, and there is a lot of history to it, from 19-year-olds on TikTok building seven figure brands with no stockist to Savile Row tailors still hand-cutting.
Fashion
In 2013 Charlotte Tilbury had 50,000 people on the waitlist for her first standalone product, without spending a single penny on advertising. The waitlist showcases the demand for her product, illustrating the gaps in the UK beauty industry, and that’s the kind of story we want to tell. The UK beauty market is worth over £13 billion, and is one of the most watched consumer markets in the world. It is not because British woman are buying up all the mascara, but instead what happens in this market tends to happen in other markets 18 months down the line. Emerging independent brands from kitchen tables are now outselling brands that have had their products on shelves in boots for decades.
Brand Strategy
In 2012, Gymshark was a screen printing company operated by a teen in his parent’s house in Solihull. By 2020, this company grew to a billion-pound brand. The leggings worked because their products appealed to a target audience — but so did dozens of competitors and none of them saw the same success. What was the difference? The competition focused their marketing efforts and advertising on the product, while Gymshark focused their advertising on the strategy. Specifically, the choice to invest early marketing dollars into YouTube fitness influencers while other competitors were stuck in the past and buying ad space in magazines.
In hindsight, that choice seems like an obvious choice. At the time, it was not. That’s what this section is about. These are the choices that, once they are successful, everyone believes are obvious. They understand the mechanism that made the choice successful, and it helps them make other decisions in the future.
Brand Strategy at Brand Stories focuses on the factors that lie at the points of brand success and brand failure. These can be pricing strategy, channel strategy, when to go DTC and when to go wholesale, why some brand collaborations create equity and why some destroy equity, what the M&S turnaround really required other than better buying, why Burberry has an identity issue that is harder to resolve than it appears.
The authors here bring experience in brand consulting, retail, and marketing. We’re not selling frameworks or motivational posters. We work with actual brands, real choices, and actual results because that’s the only way to teach something that can be useful. If you work in marketing, own a business or you’re just curious about the brands around you, this is your section. We write for people who want to comprehend the mechanics, not the people who want to only know the outcomes.
From the blog
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THE TOP 5 BEAUTY BRANDS IN THE UK
A look at the business sector reveals that the UK Beauty market is becoming increasingly popular and competitive. The best is always sought after. The following is a list of the top UK beauty brands with a brief look into each as to why they reign supreme: 1. Benefit CosmeticsThis brand has managed to remain…
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Top Uk Fashion Brands You Need To Look Up
Missguided is another shopping haven for modern day shopping lovers. Their unique and trendy collection is for all ages of fashion loving people. Along with their stylish quality and reasonable price, they deliver their product within shortest possible times to the customers. Miss Selfridge: If you are shopping person, Miss Selfridge can be your shopping…