Why sunscreen brand Habit is going all in on TikTok
Glossy | 4 March 2021
Young brands are continuing to invest in TikTok. As the video sharing app builds out its e-commerce capabilities, startups are finding it to be a friendlier alternative to traditional social feeds like Instagram and Facebook. One recent example is sunscreen company Habit, which launched last summer. Compared to other platforms, Habit has found TikTok to be a cheaper, more effective channel to drive sales. Habit began investing in TikTok marketing this past fall, and is already seeing healthy results. Habit said its revenue has increased by 300% month-over-month since it first started dabbling with paid TikTok advertising.
The power of TikTok cancel culture
Glossy | 5 March 2021
While once under-the-radar drugstore brand CeraVe seemingly gained celebrity-level hype on the app overnight (initially thanks to Yarbro), St. Ives’ reputation was demolished in about the same amount of time and for the same reasons. Yarbro bashed the Unilever-owned brand for its “harsh” scrub ingredients, overuse of fragrance and low formulation of “good ingredients” in its products. In his accompanying “The Truth About St. Ives“ YouTube video, with more than 1.2 million views, he declared he’ll “never, ever, ever want to support St. Ives—ever,” pointing out that the walnut shell-infused apricot scrub is “a perfect embodiment and representation of everything I dislike about skin care.”
Why Target is investing billions to remodel its stores
Modern Retail | 5 March 2021
To build on its pandemic momentum, Target is once again focusing on its stores. After having a record year in sales — fourth-quarter revenue hit $28.34 billion, growing 21% year-over-year — the big box retailer is looking at a long term store strategy. Despite beating earnings estimates this week, the retailer didn’t provide guidance on the upcoming year. It did, however, preview plans to modernize its stores to feature more automated restocking. The concept is to have employees focus more on pick and packing and improved customer service. Target said it will invest about $4 billion annually to modernize the existing locations, including optimizing them for online order fulfillment and customer pickup. The move will build on a similar investment of about $2.65 billion that Target made in 2020.
Ulta Beauty Earnings: What to Watch
The Motley Fool | March 2021
Looking out to 2021 – The ongoing pandemic might convince management to hold off on issuing its usual fiscal-year outlook, which it withdrew almost exactly a year ago. Still, investors will get some hints at Ulta Beauty’s potential in this report. A second straight quarter of improving growth might imply a big rebound in the fiscal first quarter. Strong margins and a flexible inventory position, meanwhile, should allow earnings to jump in 2021 compared to last year’s depressed result. The big question is whether there will be any lasting negative impact on Ulta’s makeup business due to increased work-from-home trends. It’s also unclear when most shoppers will feel confident enough to linger in its salons again. That in-person creative experience was a core competitive asset for the company before COVID-19 removed it last year. The pandemic’s impact isn’t over yet, and so investors might not hear a detailed outlook from Ulta Beauty this week. But the good news is that 2021 is almost sure to look much better than 2020 did.