How Many Products Your Beauty Brand Needs to Launch
The right number of products for a new beauty brand to launch with varies based on the resources available, but generally speaking, three to six items is the ideal range.
The goal is to validate your brand and learn from early customers before making a big investment in more products or packaging. Aiming for three to six products allows you to offer a complete collection made up of different product types and treatments, but it also keeps things simple and inexpensive.
That being said, single product brands have also been creating a buzz in the beauty industry. So, it can be confusing to determine which way you should be going. Let’s help simplify that decision for you, shall we?
Types of Product Launches
Soft Launch
A soft launch is a perfect way to build excitement around the product before it is officially launched. It is an “invite-only” event, where only a few select customers are given access to the product or service. This could be done through online platforms such as social media, online or offline communities, or seminars/webinars.
The idea behind this type of launch is to receive feedback from early users and make improvements based on their suggestions. It allows you the chance to gather data about how your product does in real-world conditions, which you can use to refine your product or to plan for future launches.
If your wellness, beauty, or self-care product business is ready to make more sales with a memorable brand, see our case studies here to see what Aventive Studio could do for your business.
Hard Launch
A hard launch is when you open your store and make it visible to the public with products available for purchase. No soft launch, no beta version. Just a straight-up “Here’s our store. Buy something!”
The most obvious advantage of this approach is that you don’t have to spend time or money on marketing or building up hype. You just get your store ready and go live.
Having said that, hard launches are notorious for being the most costly and risky method of introducing a new product to the market. This type of launch means that the company is putting all of its eggs in one basket and hoping that the consumer will be receptive to the product.
No test markets are used; instead, if a product does not sell well, it is quickly pulled from the shelves by the company and replaced with something else (or scrapped entirely).
For this reason, hard launches are usually reserved for large companies that have a lot of money to spend on advertising and marketing. Smaller companies usually stick with either soft launches or staged launches because they do not have the same resources to take similar risks.
Benefits of Launching:
One Product at a Time
Launching one product at a time can be a smart move. You can either launch three products in three months or one in six months, but you don’t have to do it all at once.
This gives you the ability to scale your marketing and sales efforts. It also allows you to focus your energy on one item instead of dividing your energy across multiple items.
That being said, there is more risk involved in launching one product at a time, simply because the success of your business relies on one single item. There is no way to cover your losses from elsewhere should the product fail.
So, unless you have mastered your marketing strategy and beauty branding effort and perfected the product itself, single-product launches aren’t always recommended.
A Range of Products at Once
The primary benefit of launching many products at the same time is mass appeal. Such launches allow you to attract the widest possible range of customers right out of the gate.
That means that at any given time, customers who have seen your brand will be able to purchase one or more products they can relate to, which can help increase sales.
Besides, launching multiple products at once can help you figure out what works and what doesn’t work as quickly as possible.
As part of our signature branding & design process, Aventive Studio will create a brand strategy for your beauty business to help you decide which launch style & marketing strategies best.
A Limited-Edition Line
Limited edition launches are an attractive option for both new and established businesses. If you are a startup, you might not be able to afford a big launch. But with a limited-edition launch, you can start small and expand as demand increases. If you are an established business, a limited-edition launch gives you a chance to test the market with something new without having to go all-in right away.
Moreover, such a launch can add urgency to your sales. When people know they can only get something for a short time, they are more likely to purchase it before it is gone. It can create a sense of scarcity that can motivate people who are on the fence about purchasing your products.
Finally, a limited-edition launch is also less risky than launching a full product because if there isn’t enough demand for it, you won’t have many unsold SKUs sitting around.
Examples of Successful Beauty Brand Launches
Let’s take a look at some case studies of beauty brands that successfully launched themselves in the market using different product ranges to determine the ideal number of products you should be launching with.
Charlotte Tilbury’s Magic Cream
Charlotte Tilbury launched her beauty brand with her Magic Cream, a moisturizer that the makeup artist developed for the runway and backstage. But getting the cult status for a moisturizer didn’t happen overnight.
Tilbury had to create makeup for other brands like Armani and Dior before launching her own beauty brand in 2013. The expertise she had gained during her collaborations helped her establish herself as an authority in the industry, which was reflected in her product. So, launching with a single product worked in her favor as she had already positioned herself as a credible source of beauty.
This means that you, too, can consider opting for a single-product launch if you believe you are perceived as an expert in your market.
Fenty Skin’s Modest Launch
You don’t always have to stick to one product to show your expertise. Sometimes, you can take your shot with three to six products.
Fenty Beauty was launched hard with 40 shades of foundation and concealer, setting a new benchmark for beauty brand launches. But Fenty Skin witnessed a more reserved launch in 2020.
Rihanna launched only three products – cleansing make-up remover (Total Cleans’r), hydrating toner (Fat Water), and an SPF cream (Hydra Vizor Invisible Moisturizer) – and tagged it as her complete skincare routine.
Even though Fenty Beauty was already a hit, Fenty Skin took time to validate the market before diving in. After garnering appreciation from all around the world, the brand gradually expanded its range with eye cream, night cream, body cream, and a hand mask, making it a complete beauty brand two years later in 2022.
Rare Beauty’s Conscious Product Line
Rare Beauty wasn’t as modest with its launch as Fenty Skin back in 2020, but it still entered the market with fewer products than usual. The brand started out with 48 shades of foundation and concealers and only 12 formulas.
Once the market received the brand with open arms and well, wallets, the brand began experimenting with eyeshadows, mists, and a range of tools.
Rare Beauty’s launch may not have been as soft as that of CT or Fenty, but it was still designed to test the market while offering a decent range of offerings. And it paid off.
Sugar Cosmetics’ One-Product Strategy
The India-based beauty brand, Sugar Cosmetics may not be a huge name in the global market but it was responsible for singlehandedly bruising Lakmé’s sales when it first launched. They figured out a product gap in the Indian market and capitalized on it.
Sugar Cosmetics was quick to recognize how no brand was selling matte gel liners in the market. As a result, it focused all its resources on developing and perfecting the liner and marketing it across India and Europe.
Sugar catered to an underserved market and built an entire brand based on a single product. And it has upheld this philosophy in all its subsequent launches because the brand’s co-founder, Vineeta Singh, lives by the belief that there is success in focusing on one product and one niche.
Storybook Cosmetics’ Niche Launches
Speaking of cashing in on niches, Beauty Bay launched Storybook Cosmetics in 2017 with a Harry Potter-themed eyeshadow palette to cater to the franchise’s huge fandom.
Ever since then, all their launches have been theme-based and highly targeted because they realize that that’s what their target audience is looking for.
From the Mean Girls Burn Book palette to the topical Little Women palette to their recent tribute to Van Gogh through their “The Starry Night” palette, every launch has catered to a specific niche of audience.
And going by how many times they have to restock their inventory, we can safely say that this model of niche launch is working for them.
The Most Important Thing to Know When Launching Your Beauty Brand
We are in an age of skepticism and information overload, so people need a reason to choose you. The way you communicate who you are and what values you stand for can set you apart from competitors and build trust with shoppers. So, as you prepare to take your product to market, it is important to remember that branding is key.
Branding isn’t just a pretty logo or beauty product packaging; it is an entire experience for your potential customers. It can be as simple as sharing your personality in social media posts or as complicated as identifying what your customers like and creating content based on the topics that interest them.
Whatever you do, make sure that it is strategic and well-thought-out. At Aventive Studio, we help wellness and beauty brands make important branding decisions every day. Get in touch with our experts to launch your brand on the right foot.