Natural competition prompts Yves Rocher to reposition
The Yves Rocher group, which specialises in plant-based beauty care products, is to reposition its leading brand named after its founder because a strong competition in the natural and bio-products segment of the market has diminished some of the brand's modernity in the eyes of consumers. The Yves Rocher brand accounts for 60% of the group's sales which increased 3% last year to E2bn.
The Yves Rocher group, which specialises in plant-based beauty care products, is to reposition its leading brand named after its founder because a strong competition in the natural and bio-products segment of the market has diminished some of the brand's modernity in the eyes of consumers. The Yves Rocher brand accounts for 60% of the group's sales which increased 3% last year to E2bn.
Stephane Bianchi, director general, said the development of the brand had met with a number of difficulties. For a start, the brand had not succeeded in the US where sales were declining while it was difficult to increase market share in the mature European markets of France and Germany. Bianchi said that they had 7 million clients in France but they had to continue to gain more which they were doing in their shops at a rate of 1.2 million new consumers a year.
He added that on the other hand sales by correspondence had weakened though it continued to represent one of the main channels of distribution of the brand, accounting for 45% of sales compared with the internet at 5%. The remainder of the company's sales were achieved through the 1650 shops. Bianchi said the sales by correspondence were losing ground at the rate of 3% a year but this had been largely offset through sales in the boutiques. As the sales and distribution network had aged, the image of the brand had been affected and the aim of the present operation was to create a new concept to give the brand a fresh image. This would be piloted in the group's shops in 2008 and then expanded through 2009.