Time for Beauty Brands to Get Physical?

An indulgent Christmas vacation means that many of us start the New Year with a vow to lose weight and get physically fit.  However, this year it would seem that we are not the only ones looking to get moving.  Society itself is being shaped by a need for more physical interaction in all aspects of daily life and therefore brands will also need to start considering what they offer physically.  Cosmetics are by their very nature interactive, and a means of physically interacting with and altering our appearance, which begs the question: what more can this sector be doing?  And what do we mean by “physical brands?”
    
Maybe we should start by looking at where this need for an even more physical relationship has actually come from. Consumers today are undoubtedly more empowered than at any other time in history and, through a combination of personal knowledge and experience, they have now moved from having an objective to a subjective view of their bodies. This means that they are more aware of the power of their bodies and the space their bodies inhabit.  The wider creative community seems to have already cottoned on to this interest and we have seen a sharp rise in the popularity of, for example, contemporary dance and physical theatre. However, to fully capture the attention of today’s consumer, brands also need to wise up and assess ways for their actual products to become more physical, adaptable and flexible, in line with the consumer desire to use their bodies, and their associated brands of choice, as more powerful tools for self-expression and interpretation.  But how do beauty brands get more physical without losing their core message and positioning?
    
We have seen more 3D brand design and innovative structural solutions, and brand design across the board has become even more focused on optimizing ergonomics. Additionally, there are more portable versions of products appearing on the market.  These are, of course, all valid ways of imbuing brands with a more physical presence and helping the consumer interact with them and adapt to the needs of a more physically-centered society.  However, these innovative routes are essentially expanding on previously tested brand solutions. We are actually looking for brands to provide a more holistic, individual and intrinsic sense of physicality to help us fulfill this need for self-expression and difference. So, what is happening specifically within the beauty arena?
    
Spas and oxygen bars were seen as providing a more interactive and experiential relationship with brands, but these have quickly become old news as consumers look for a more individual and intimate relationship.  
    
Therefore, brands such as Bliss Spa have decided to introduce a home spa equivalent that gives the consumer the freedom and opportunity to enjoy the spa experience in a more personal way.  Their Triple Oxygen Instant Energizing Mask is positioned as providing a “breath of fresh air for the face.”  Bliss has chosen to use language to conjure up a third-party presence and inject a notion of physicality.
    

Sephora teamed up with Monopoly to create a beauty-full edition of the classic board game where players Go to Jail for bad hair days, Advance to Go for winning a shopping spree and pay for products with Beauty Bucks.

Similarly, Sephora (as usual) is bang on trend and has been looking for ways for their own-brand projects to connect on a more physical level.  In fact, just prior to Christmas they teamed up with Hasbro to produce a new edition of the classic board game Monopoly, which sentences players to “Go to Jail” for a bad hair day and uses currency called “beauty bucks.”  Fun and interactive and, some may say, educational, but how convergent or synergistic is this with the master brand?  Indeed, we are not necessarily looking for weird and wacky innovations or to move the emphasis away from the actual product and brand expertise.
    
Beauty products based on the ancient Hindu system of Ayurveda, a holistic health and medicine system and set of beliefs, have become more and more favored in recent times.  Italian brand Lakshmi Ayurveda has brought out a new range of Kajal eye coloring pencils, which, because they contain no camphor, are suitable for use on both the eyelid and the inner eye.  However, the brand is not focusing on a USP of color or the natural factor, but is, in fact, promoting the “cooling” nature of the product, the physical sensation and effect, which is reinforced by the language and the name using variants such as “36 Night Blue—Cold.”
    
Newcomer Sheerin O’Kho has taken this approach one step further by not just using premium and active ingredients but by creating a four-strong moisturizing range that is “responsive to the environment.” The products are all contained in almost identical pump-action vials with gold filigree illustration (a design device in itself which promotes physicality) but the body of each vial uses a different color to match the gift box.  But it is the specific—and yet also generic—names that are creating the attention: “First Class Flight”, “Uptown/Downtown”, “Outdoor Meetings” and “Evening Dress.” Each name summons up an image or physical situation but is abstract enough to allow the consumer to interpret in a uniquely individual way.
    
Brands such as Sheerin O’Kho have totally embraced the notion of the subjective body and are projecting physicality by focusing the product on targeting both our bodies and our minds; providing a more holistic focus for our body and its surroundings.
    
This market sector is one of the greatest innovators and, as we have seen, brand owners are starting to consider new and different ways for their brands to get physical.  However, it is important to remember that the notion of physicality, like beauty itself, is seen as subjective and open to personal interpretation and, therefore, there is no right or wrong way to approach and create physicality.  We may be open to less tangible and specific ways of expressing physicality, through naming, as with Sheerin O’Kho or we may be looking for brands to provide a more fundamental and physical solution by sourcing and creating new packaging materials, which perhaps could perform a dual role and become part of the product itself by, for example, possessing moisturizing properties.
    

Kenzo’s highly touchable Kenzoamour fragrance bottle looks like a work of art.

Brands could also consider ways to inject a more tactile or ambient element into the product itself, or the individual’s environment, rather than focusing on the product’s retail environment.  Designed by renowned product, interiors and fashion designer, Karim Rashid, the packaging of the new fragrance from Kenzo, Kenzoamour, looks more like a piece of sculpture or a vase and the quality of teaming with the “designer’s designer” is not underestimated.  The difference, confidence and sheer beauty of the product means that it deserves to be touched and admired and the brand name almost becomes irrelevant compared to the physical presence and the multi-levels of product perception and personal interaction. Unlike Sephora’s Monopoly game, this fragrance is a true line extension for Kenzo.  Already held in high esteem for the exquisite and unique design of their perfume bottles, they have simply taken it to the next level without losing their brand focus and heritage.
    
The current climate dictates that brands certainly need to integrate physicality, but the key challenge will be to do it in a way that allows the consumer’s own individual interpretation and expression.
    
However, as always, when creating, refreshing or repositioning brands, brand owners need to remember to remain relevant to the brand truth and heritage to keep the brand, and products, focused and retain desirability. They need to look at the bigger holistic and sociological picture and think about which of the component parts of the brand, and its key messaging channels such as packaging, is most suited to a more physical expression of the brand.  In this way, physicality should become seamlessly integrated into the fabric of the brand and become a part of the brand’s shelf life in just the same way physicality, in all its forms, is infiltrating our daily lives.  

Sephora teamed up with Monopoly to create a beauty-full edition of the classic board game where players Go to Jail for bad hair days, Advance to Go for winning a shopping spree and pay for products with Beauty Bucks.

About the Author

Jonathan Ford is an award-winning designer and creative partner for Pearlfisher— a London and New York design consultancy.  Pearlfisher’s award winning work in the food, drink and luxury markets includes clients such as LVMH, ABSOLUT Vodka and Unilever. More information:
[email protected].