Luxasia to bring in more brands

By Zsarlene B. Chua
Reporter

SINGAPORE-BASED beauty distribution company, Luxasia Pte. Ltd., has named the Philippines as a potential “growth pillar in the Asia Pacific region in terms of global beauty sales,” according to the company’s chief executive as the company unveils regional expansion plans and introduces more brands to its Philippine portfolio.

“The Philippine luxury market grew by 40% between 2013 and 2018 and most of them belonged to domestic sales,” Wolfgang Baier, Group CEO, told the media during a roundtable on June 11 at the Manila House, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig.

“The country is growing overall, the beauty market is growing overall. I mean it’s socially and digitally-driven so I think that the sky’s the limit… I know it’s only growth ahead… [the luxury beauty market in the Philippines] is posed to explode and I think it’s ripe for both luxury and edgy brands,” he explained.

NEW BRANDS COMING IN
Luxasia currently distributes 140 brands to 15 countries in the Asia Pacific region, but only a third of the company’s brands are available in the Philippines because while the country is posed for consistent growth, it is “a difficult market with complex regulations and a very fragmented consumer landscape and it needs a very localized approach,” Mr. Baier said in a press release.

The Asia Pacific region, which accounts for 51% of global beauty sales, has been growing at 6% annually since 2014 and is projected to outpace the rest of the world, according to Mr. Baier.

Luxasia pegged the Philippines’ premium beauty market to be worth P11.5 billion currently.

Among the brands the company distributes here are Bvlgari, PeterThomasRoth. Shiseido, Calvin Klein, Chloe, Dolce & Gabbana, and, more recently, Korean beauty brands like Clio and Goodal.

Last year, the company brought in Jeffree Star Cosmetics and is looking to bring Manic Panic hair color to the country in the near future because “hair color, especially do-it-yourself hair color, is big in the Philippines,” according to Ma. Cristina M. Sabarre, country manager of Luxasia Philippines, during the roundtable.

Much of the company’s sales comes from fragrances and color cosmetics as Ms. Sabarre noted that these are usually the first luxury buys for people who want to step into the luxury segment, though they are seeing “exponential growth” from the skin care segment as well now that consumers are becoming aware of how important it is to take care of one’s skin.

YOUNGER CUSTOMERS
Mr. Baier noted that in recent years purchase behavior also changed as customers now opt to eschew brand loyalty and tailor-fit their purchases — especially skin care — to products that they like from different brands instead of purchasing entire lines.

The luxury target market is also getting younger, said Ms. Sabarre, as they have observed customers as young as 25 purchasing from luxury brands.

“In skincare, because of the phenomena of them picking and choosing instead of buying an entire range, we are now able to see that we are bringing in a much younger consumer base,” said Ms. Sabarre.

But beyond bringing more brands in the country, the company is looking to expand its reach regionally as Mr. Baier said Luxasia is considering opening brick-and-mortar stores in areas like Cebu, Davao, and Pampanga.

“Though physically we are not there yet, were able to reach consumers outside Metro Manila through e-commerce. We are seeing that there is growth outside Metro Manila… we are looking at geographical expansion now because we are encouraged by the numbers we are seeing through e-commerce,” said Ms. Sabarre.

Among the company’s e-commerce partners are Lazada and Zalora, though last year it also opened its own e-commerce channel, Freyja.

“Fragrances will go first on brick-and-mortar and we’re going to be working on that with our channel partners and maybe some sub-distributors here and there, and once we have established that [category] then we will go with skincare because skincare is much more fragile [in terms of expiry dates],” Mr. Baier said of the regional expansion plans.