Premium Beauty News - The first sample in all categories, used to be the packet. Is this still the case?
Maxime d’Haussy - The packet remains very popular! It can be found in many fields, from hygiene products to skin care and cosmetics, make-up and perfume. Although in the latter category, mini-sprays are really the most popular sample packaging with consumers.
Coming back to cosmetics, we must not forget the mini-tubes and also the thermoformed samples. The former allows for a quick response because they are very standard packaging, the latter allows for development of replicas faithful to the sales models and offer many possibilities in make-up (foundation, lipstick, mascara, gloss).
However, if we think in terms of volume, I think that it is the scented labels (scent seal) and their derivatives in cosmetics and make-up (beauty seal and scent seal) that represent the largest quantities of samples distributed.
The main thing to remember is that there is a solution and an answer to each challenge presented by the brands and that samples remain one of the first triggers of the purchasing decision.
Premium Beauty News - According to you, what is the value of this market?
Maxime d’Haussy - It is very difficult to estimate this market. There are no statistics and we have a rather limited vision of emerging countries such as India or China. The sample market remains a niche market that I estimate at around US $1.5 billion. But considering that a sample costs only a few cents, you have a better idea of what this market represents in volume.
The supplier market is dominated by a large international group, but there are many other suppliers who are excellent both in the quality of their products and in the services they provide to their customers. They should not be underestimated. The key to success is based on creativity, service and quality.
Premium Beauty News - What will be the standard sample of tomorrow?
Maxime d’Haussy - In recent years, we have seen attempts to develop connected samples (USB key delivering a fragrance, among others). These are prototypes because, although they are interesting, they have not yet really found their way. These new products come at a high cost and are an unreliable final product. But I’m quite convinced that the “ideal” connected sample will soon be on the market. The question remains when.
On the other hand, it is a fact that purchasing behavior has evolved and is constantly evolving with new technologies, applications of all kinds and the hyper-connectivity of consumers. This induces a profound change not in the sample as an object but in the way, it is distributed. Consumers are demanding (and they are right to be) and expect brands to provide them with samples in an ever-shorter period of time and without necessarily having to go to the store. In short, the sample of tomorrow (and today, already) must above all meet a logistical challenge.
But that is not the only challenge. The other major challenge remains the environment and the absolute need to work on concepts that will reduce the ecological footprint of packaging without compromising the quality of protective products and taking into account the logistical impact on the carbon footprint. A beautiful equation!
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Maxime d’Haussy Maxime d’Haussy began his career in the beauty packaging industry in 1992 at Seaquist Closures (Aptar Group). He immediately became passionate about this business sector. He discovered a very dynamic and creative universe, in constant search of innovation and quality. In 1995, he seized an opportunity and joined SOFAB (now part of the Albéa Group). This company, originally created by the BIC Group for the launch of the "bare perfume", has successfully converted its manufacturing base to become the inventor and world leader in mini-perfume sprayers known as Sophistic’s and Sofilux. He took his first steps in the field of samples. Exactly seven years later, Socoplan (now part of the Arcade Beauty group) offered him the opportunity to work as Sales and Marketing Director in a company exclusively dedicated to samples and mini-products. That was all it took to convince him to expand his knowledge in the fields of sachets and thermoformed packaging (blisters). In 2007, the group acquired Biopack, the European leader in perfume sampling, and took over its general management in January 2008. After having learned much in the field of care, hygiene and make-up products, he enriched his knowledge in the field of alcoholic products while encountering his first experience as a general manager with what this entails in terms of responsibilities and requirements. In 2013, seeking new horizons, he left for Brazil to take over the direction of Arcade Beauty Mappel. |
