I was an avid Lancôme fan for many years, for me it conjured up an image of affluent Parisian women. An image I desperately wanted to buy into. Sadly, it seems to have lost its way in recent years and I, like many of my friends have moved on...they seem to have forgotten about the middle youth market, who if are honest are the ones with the extra spend on luxury makeup.
I think it's an investment in their brand future. There are tons of girls from mid twenties downwards who LOVE Emma Watson, and lots of boys if he same age range who want to date her. If they can get into my generation's head that Lancôme will make you look like her, then guess what brand we'll be buying when we get that windfall?
I don't know. Spending time at MUA suggests that there are many women in their early 20s and younger who spend all their disposable income on high end makeup - hundreds of pounds a month. Mind you, Lancome doesn't get that much love with them - it's more likely to be Chanel, Dior, Guerlain and niche brands like RBR.
I'm 22 and I do buy things from Guerlain and Chanel but I make them an investment lipstick while I stick to cheap mascaras for example because I need to afford to replace them more often. I save up now I have finished uni or I would treat myself after a hand in with saved loan money. I wouldn't often look at Lancome though because I think it does have slightly older image to it. I think it is nice to see something a bit more playful but then I probably am the target customer!
When I initially looked at it, I just thought Emma Watson is a pretty girl and that the look was a bit YouTube. (I mean that in a more or less positive way - it's refreshingly modern looking for stuffy Lancôme, although it's a bit generic - it doesn't tell me much about the brand. If I couldn't see the Lancôme logo, I wouldn't know which brand it was).
But on reflection, I do find the image annoying and that's because of the bloody pink. I know it's for Spring make-up, which is a product aimed at women, but really, must everything always be sodding pink? Pink as shorthand for marketing aimed at women makes me want to vomit and Lancôme is exactly the kind of brand that would not understand that at all.
I love that blush palette and I will save this page to remind myself to look for it in 5 or 6 months when it comes out. I'm not sure how I feel about the pink and turqoise color combo. To me, that color eyeliner goes with bronze tones even if Emma Watson looks pretty good in the ad.
I think you may have an outdated view of what teenage girls buy. I don't about the UK market as I live in Canada (Vancouver and Toronto to be exact) but I'm guessing its probably similar. I'm in my 20s and I had Chanel, Estee Lauder, Clinique and Lancome products as a teenager and throughout college. In fact, I got into Nars, Bobbi Brown and Kiehls while in college because other girls used those brands. I admit that I had parents (mainly my mom) willing to pay for a lot of the purchases but these brands know that the youth today get lots of money from parents or aggressively work to attain material goods. I know I wasn't any different from most girls in my schools or social circle. [I'm not saying I don't like or own drugstore makeup. I do. I just bought plenty of the nicer stuff too.]
My sister is 17 and is probably the ideal target market for this ad campaign (she loves Emma Watson). She buys makeup at Sephora, most of which is priced similar to Lancome (like Dior mascara or Urban Decay eyeliners). Maybe Lancome wants to sway her from the "cooler" brands that she likes today. As an aside...Even in the 9 years between my sister and I, high school went from rich girls carrying Coach bags to carrying Prada bags...so yeah, its crazy now.
I don't think their sales are going to go up with this campain. The look is pretty, but that's it. The colors shown are not that wearable. I might go for the blush or the lipstick but would not wear both at the same time. By trying to appear more youthful I believe they will lose some of their customers to other high end brands with more toned down colors.
Being 22 myself I guess I would fall into the age category being targeted. Even for me it seems too young. It is the kind of thing I'd have been 'oh my, I want it' when I was 16 but frankly the ad as a whole is too bright and all way too over the top. I do wear bright turquoise eyeliner and bright pink lipstick but the ad just makes me feel slightly nauseous... Maybe that is just me.
Lancome, to me anyway, isn't a 'fun' brand. Fun brands tend to have a cheaper price point for a start... From brands like lancome I want glamour, actually most likely on older model. One of the ads I loved most recently was Monica Bellucci for the Dolce & Gabbana lipsticks. She's more heading on for 50 than just out of her teens yet that advert made me stop, look again and go 'gosh, she's stunning and I really like that lipstick'. I considered going and buying one.
On to peoples points about 20 somethings spending a lot on makeup. I know I do, I spend far too much. I earn my own money and am not in any way subsidised by my parents btw, I guess it is different when you are. I buy my handbags from accesorize and primark, prada is a hilarious pipe dream for when I'm 40. Even then I'd probably rather have a holiday than a handbag :P Also, I work in a school, in a pretty rich area of Hampshire. The kids there are over the moon when they manage to get a bag from urban outfitters... Just trying to put across a different side here, not everyone has that kind of money.
Back to the makeup. I enjoy experimenting with my makeup, I don't know what suits or doesn't suit me yet and I want to try everything. Hence, the most expensive brand I buy from on the whole is MAC. A lipstick for what £14 is quite a lot cheaper than upwards of £20, even better if it is £2 so most of my makeup is from the high street. Until I find what works and what colours I love I'm not going to be buying more expensive products.
Sorry for the stupidly long comment, feel free to delete/cut bits out. I just felt I had something to add. I completely agree with your post, get back the older, more glamorous models please! When I'm older I want there to be some sophisticated brands left. Even more importantly I want my mum to stop feeling 'old, disgusting and unloved' (her words) because every time she goes shopping she cannot find a single thing targeted at her that works for her.
12 comments:
Couldn't agree more, my initial reaction to the image without reading a word was exactly that.
Perhaps brands feel a young face epitomizes Spring? If so, then I want to see a beautiful older one for their Autumn/Winter campaigns.
Ali
I was an avid Lancôme fan for many years, for me it conjured up an image of affluent Parisian women. An image I desperately wanted to buy into. Sadly, it seems to have lost its way in recent years and I, like many of my friends have moved on...they seem to have forgotten about the middle youth market, who if are honest are the ones with the extra spend on luxury makeup.
I totally agree, but equally I think in this day and age, girls in their early twenties actually have the most disposable income.
I think it's an investment in their brand future. There are tons of girls from mid twenties downwards who LOVE Emma Watson, and lots of boys if he same age range who want to date her. If they can get into my generation's head that Lancôme will make you look like her, then guess what brand we'll be buying when we get that windfall?
I don't know. Spending time at MUA suggests that there are many women in their early 20s and younger who spend all their disposable income on high end makeup - hundreds of pounds a month. Mind you, Lancome doesn't get that much love with them - it's more likely to be Chanel, Dior, Guerlain and niche brands like RBR.
I'm 22 and I do buy things from Guerlain and Chanel but I make them an investment lipstick while I stick to cheap mascaras for example because I need to afford to replace them more often. I save up now I have finished uni or I would treat myself after a hand in with saved loan money. I wouldn't often look at Lancome though because I think it does have slightly older image to it. I think it is nice to see something a bit more playful but then I probably am the target customer!
When I initially looked at it, I just thought Emma Watson is a pretty girl and that the look was a bit YouTube. (I mean that in a more or less positive way - it's refreshingly modern looking for stuffy Lancôme, although it's a bit generic - it doesn't tell me much about the brand. If I couldn't see the Lancôme logo, I wouldn't know which brand it was).
But on reflection, I do find the image annoying and that's because of the bloody pink. I know it's for Spring make-up, which is a product aimed at women, but really, must everything always be sodding pink? Pink as shorthand for marketing aimed at women makes me want to vomit and Lancôme is exactly the kind of brand that would not understand that at all.
I love that blush palette and I will save this page to remind myself to look for it in 5 or 6 months when it comes out. I'm not sure how I feel about the pink and turqoise color combo. To me, that color eyeliner goes with bronze tones even if Emma Watson looks pretty good in the ad.
I think you may have an outdated view of what teenage girls buy. I don't about the UK market as I live in Canada (Vancouver and Toronto to be exact) but I'm guessing its probably similar. I'm in my 20s and I had Chanel, Estee Lauder, Clinique and Lancome products as a teenager and throughout college. In fact, I got into Nars, Bobbi Brown and Kiehls while in college because other girls used those brands. I admit that I had parents (mainly my mom) willing to pay for a lot of the purchases but these brands know that the youth today get lots of money from parents or aggressively work to attain material goods. I know I wasn't any different from most girls in my schools or social circle. [I'm not saying I don't like or own drugstore makeup. I do. I just bought plenty of the nicer stuff too.]
My sister is 17 and is probably the ideal target market for this ad campaign (she loves Emma Watson). She buys makeup at Sephora, most of which is priced similar to Lancome (like Dior mascara or Urban Decay eyeliners). Maybe Lancome wants to sway her from the "cooler" brands that she likes today. As an aside...Even in the 9 years between my sister and I, high school went from rich girls carrying Coach bags to carrying Prada bags...so yeah, its crazy now.
I don't think their sales are going to go up with this campain. The look is pretty, but that's it. The colors shown are not that wearable. I might go for the blush or the lipstick but would not wear both at the same time. By trying to appear more youthful I believe they will lose some of their customers to other high end brands with more toned down colors.
Being 22 myself I guess I would fall into the age category being targeted. Even for me it seems too young. It is the kind of thing I'd have been 'oh my, I want it' when I was 16 but frankly the ad as a whole is too bright and all way too over the top. I do wear bright turquoise eyeliner and bright pink lipstick but the ad just makes me feel slightly nauseous... Maybe that is just me.
Lancome, to me anyway, isn't a 'fun' brand. Fun brands tend to have a cheaper price point for a start... From brands like lancome I want glamour, actually most likely on older model. One of the ads I loved most recently was Monica Bellucci for the Dolce & Gabbana lipsticks. She's more heading on for 50 than just out of her teens yet that advert made me stop, look again and go 'gosh, she's stunning and I really like that lipstick'. I considered going and buying one.
On to peoples points about 20 somethings spending a lot on makeup. I know I do, I spend far too much. I earn my own money and am not in any way subsidised by my parents btw, I guess it is different when you are. I buy my handbags from accesorize and primark, prada is a hilarious pipe dream for when I'm 40. Even then I'd probably rather have a holiday than a handbag :P Also, I work in a school, in a pretty rich area of Hampshire. The kids there are over the moon when they manage to get a bag from urban outfitters... Just trying to put across a different side here, not everyone has that kind of money.
Back to the makeup. I enjoy experimenting with my makeup, I don't know what suits or doesn't suit me yet and I want to try everything. Hence, the most expensive brand I buy from on the whole is MAC. A lipstick for what £14 is quite a lot cheaper than upwards of £20, even better if it is £2 so most of my makeup is from the high street. Until I find what works and what colours I love I'm not going to be buying more expensive products.
Sorry for the stupidly long comment, feel free to delete/cut bits out. I just felt I had something to add. I completely agree with your post, get back the older, more glamorous models please! When I'm older I want there to be some sophisticated brands left. Even more importantly I want my mum to stop feeling 'old, disgusting and unloved' (her words) because every time she goes shopping she cannot find a single thing targeted at her that works for her.
Nice colours. But I really don't like Emma Watson for this brand, it doesn't make sense for me.
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