Lat 7 April, Victoria's Secret's owner L Brands reported a 3 percent increase in same-store sales for the month of March but also laid off around 200 employees in both its Columbus, Ohio, headquarters and New York office.
The company also announced it’s streamlining the business into three distinct units: lingerie, its Pink line and beauty. It will be shuttering its catalog, merchandise lines like its swimwear collection, including third-party retailers like Kenneth Cole, Vix, and Carmen Marc Valvo.
The news comes two months after Victoria’s Secret CEO Sharen Turney resigned and L Brands founder and CEO Lex Wexner would take on the top role at the company. The heads of each of the three departments will report to Wexner.
Though Victoria's Secret same-store sales grew 2 percent in March, the company's gross merchandise margin fell because it has been restructuring its beauty segment. The company has actively decided to focus on this area; it has 373 Victoria’s Secret Beauty locations, and opened 88 new stores last quarter alone.
Victoria's Secret Beauty appears to be replicating the physical format of Bath and Body Works, also owned by L Brands. With an affordable price point and aisles lined with colorful lotions and scents, Victoria's Secret Beauty stores have a distinct presence from its lingerie and apparel brands. Products include body mists, perfume, hair mousse, and a variety of gift sets. Prices range from US$ 5 to US$ 58.
An employee who was recently laid off said Wexner often emphasized the importance of building the beauty brand.
And he’s not the only one. Other big-name retailers are hoping their beauty bets pay off. During Walgreens Boots Alliance's earnings call, global CFO George Fairweather noted that it will be aggressively expanding its beauty department, which he considers a key destination category. "We're on track to roll out our differentiated beauty offering to an additional 1,600 stores beginning this summer. Our beauty product brands such as No7 and Soap & Glory are our key drivers," Fairweather said. This will boost the total number of stores with this offering to 2,000.
Macy's acquired luxury beauty chain BlueMercury last year for US$ 210 million, while LVMH's Sephora chain saw double-digit revenue growth and global market share gains in 2015.
Buying beauty products is a highly interactive and tactile experience, and expanding both its capital and physical footprint looks to be a core component for the future of Victoria’s Secret.
The company also announced it’s streamlining the business into three distinct units: lingerie, its Pink line and beauty. It will be shuttering its catalog, merchandise lines like its swimwear collection, including third-party retailers like Kenneth Cole, Vix, and Carmen Marc Valvo.
The news comes two months after Victoria’s Secret CEO Sharen Turney resigned and L Brands founder and CEO Lex Wexner would take on the top role at the company. The heads of each of the three departments will report to Wexner.
Though Victoria's Secret same-store sales grew 2 percent in March, the company's gross merchandise margin fell because it has been restructuring its beauty segment. The company has actively decided to focus on this area; it has 373 Victoria’s Secret Beauty locations, and opened 88 new stores last quarter alone.
Victoria's Secret Beauty appears to be replicating the physical format of Bath and Body Works, also owned by L Brands. With an affordable price point and aisles lined with colorful lotions and scents, Victoria's Secret Beauty stores have a distinct presence from its lingerie and apparel brands. Products include body mists, perfume, hair mousse, and a variety of gift sets. Prices range from US$ 5 to US$ 58.
An employee who was recently laid off said Wexner often emphasized the importance of building the beauty brand.
And he’s not the only one. Other big-name retailers are hoping their beauty bets pay off. During Walgreens Boots Alliance's earnings call, global CFO George Fairweather noted that it will be aggressively expanding its beauty department, which he considers a key destination category. "We're on track to roll out our differentiated beauty offering to an additional 1,600 stores beginning this summer. Our beauty product brands such as No7 and Soap & Glory are our key drivers," Fairweather said. This will boost the total number of stores with this offering to 2,000.
Macy's acquired luxury beauty chain BlueMercury last year for US$ 210 million, while LVMH's Sephora chain saw double-digit revenue growth and global market share gains in 2015.
Buying beauty products is a highly interactive and tactile experience, and expanding both its capital and physical footprint looks to be a core component for the future of Victoria’s Secret.
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