Specialist
Senior executive at Olaplex LLC
Agenda
- Key trends and developments in the prestige beauty industry
- Coronavirus impact on volumes and pricing
- Competitive dynamics – Estée Lauder (NYSE: EL), L'Oréal (PAR: OR) and Coty (NYSE: COTY)
- Prestige beauty growth prospects and recovery trajectory from recent Q2 2020 declines
Questions
1.
Could you share some key trends you’ve been monitoring in the prestige beauty market?
2.
Could you comment on the pandemic’s impact on the industry and share your views on the different pockets that were most to least impacted?
3.
Could you elaborate on the brands that you view as most favourably positioned?
4.
Is there reason to believe any significant recovery of premium/prestige beauty sales at airport retail? If not, how long will this sales channel continue to be challenged?
5.
What conclusions could we draw for North America from what we’re seeing in Asia’s recovery trajectory?
6.
To clarify, has prestige beauty rebounded in China? Is that segment still down YoY to today?
7.
Are there any prestige segment players you would call out as most or least resilient through the pandemic?
8.
You mentioned Coty’s heavy legacy exposure to the fragrance category. What are your thoughts on the remaining prestige fragrance business at Coty? How viable is it?
9.
What’s your take on Coty’s recent transaction? Could this create a new M&A platform in the haircare business on the prestige or mass side?
10.
What are your thoughts on Interparfums within prestige fragrances and how it’s positioned?
11.
Could you elaborate on Estée Lauder and why they’d never leverage Amazon as a channel? How could Estée Lauder’s significant exposure to the department store channel change in a post-coronavirus world, and how does this come into play with Amazon in the space?
12.
How do you think about Ulta and Sephora as a sales channel? How are these players positioned?
13.
What might be some potential outcomes for the Revlon/Elizabeth Arden business?
14.
You mentioned Revlon and Elizabeth Arden’s business in China – L’Oréal has commented on positive signs for its Luxe division in the region. How would you say L’Oréal’s prestige beauty portfolio is positioned in China vs North America, to contrast with what Revlon and Elizabeth Arden are experiencing in these markets?
15.
Coty’s new CEO, Sue Nabi, bring experience from L’Oréal. What are your thoughts on her at the helm of Coty, having experience from L’Oréal and Lancôme?
16.
Coty recently announced its plans to sell or close the majority of its factories. What’s your take on this announcement?
17.
How might relying more on contract manufacturing vs becoming less vertically integrated be a risk for Coty?
18.
Could you summarize your thought on the recovery trajectory for the prestige beauty industry? When might it return to 2019 levels?
