New York Metropolis is lending its iconic I <3 NY brand to your lips.
For her first model marketing campaign since becoming a member of the corporate three months in the past, Glossier’s new chief marketing officer, Nicole Solórzano, is using an iconic Milton Glaser design on its new “I <3 NY” balm dotcom as a juicy ode to the model’s New York Metropolis roots. It’s additionally the inspiration for a broad marketing campaign rollout throughout retail, social, and the web site that pays tribute to the town, the place the corporate launched. However after years of lowering relevance and income, and a few inner restructuring over the previous a number of quarters, it additionally alerts the place the model is headed subsequent.
Glossier outlined the trendy “clear lady” magnificence model when it launched in 2014, and over the following near-decade rode that millennial pink wave to a 2021 collection E funding spherical that valued the corporate at near $2 billion in 2021, according to Puck. However after years of scaling, product dilution, and a jockeying for place in a crowded sector (hey, Rhode and Rare Beauty), it hasn’t since been able to maintain that market dominance.
The corporate laid off greater than 80 staff, or one-third of its workers, according to Forbes, in 2022. Its merchandise launched in Sephora in 2023—a coveted partnership in magnificence—however its valuation is now reportedly beneath $1 billion. It’s additionally closed nine of its 12 stores.
With new C-suite management together with Solórzano and CEO Colin Walsh, each from the haircare model Ouai, Glossier is in turnaround mode (hello, Gap), and the “Balmdega” marketing campaign is its first main advertising and marketing marketing campaign, which Solórzano describes as “trying again at our core to go ahead.”
Anatomy of a turnaround marketing campaign
The marketing campaign has just a few tiers. Its social campaign, “24 Hours With Glossier,” options day-in-the-life vlogs from creators Asmeret Berhe-Lumax, Coco Baudelle, Ariella Starkman, and Penda N’Diaye + Elena Howes—in addition to Glossier’s founder, Emily Weiss—set to launch subsequent week. The concept is to go with Glossier’s refined model with much less polished user-generated content material that the three million on-line followers of Glossier can comply with together with, even when they aren’t in NYC themselves.
“That is the primary time in a extremely very long time that we’ve been on the streets with a marketing campaign and having or not it’s somewhat bit extra grassroots model,” says Solórzano.
Then there’s the retail component at its Soho flagship, which is revamped as a New York Metropolis bodega or “Balmdega,” in a manner solely Glossier might. The entrance of retailer has cabinets of bodega snacks and New York Metropolis-themed unique merchandise, together with hats, tees, and crates stuffed with domestically harvested apples, bearing a “grown and packed by Glossier” stamp.
It’s going to host occasions over the following six weeks, together with partnerships with native favorites like La Cabra espresso and Elbow Bread bakery. Glossier additionally gave 10 bodegas a whole lot of the brand new balms to promote. Localization creates group constructing moments with model followers, but in addition FOMO-inducing on-line content material, very like Victoria’s Secret Pink’s retail strategy. Glossier intends to lean into this extra, with new key lead roles to develop localized activations in its three main markets with a remaining retail footprint: London, New York, and L.A. The model can be searching for a brand new artistic director.
“It feels greater than a balm,” says Solórzano. “I’ll put it that manner.” Outdoors of its Boy forehead, Balm Dotcom is the corporate’s most iconic SKU, and a becoming alternative for this second, she says.
“We would like this to be a model coming-of-age story for Glossier. New York is our dwelling. So it’s the origin piece of somewhat little bit of a glance again, and it ought to really feel form of nostalgic for the individuals which were on the journey with us. However then it’s positively a watch in direction of the way forward for the place we’re going,” Solórzano says, referring to deliberate model activations and marketing campaign touchpoints like its social vlogs.
The corporate plans to have fewer launches, with extra splash and impression. Its social content material is a chance to rebuild model loyalty. “That is, I believe, a extremely good indication of how all people can anticipate to begin to see Glossier begin to present up for these moments,” Solórzano says.
A brand new playbook
I spoke with just a few customers ready in line exterior Glossier’s SoHo flagship about what introduced them to the launch that day. The primary group acquired there at 6:30 a.m.—4 hours earlier than the shop opened to the general public. “I like Glossier, however I really feel prefer it’s totally different as a result of not less than with this [launch] I get to see one thing that I’ve by no means seen earlier than somewhere else,” Briana, 26, instructed me. A fan of the model’s fragrances, she commuted from Queens, including, “It takes me a very good two to a few hours to get right here.”
One other group arrived at 9:15. Kemisha, 28, was there each to expertise the in-person occasion and get the balm. “I haven’t used the Glossier balms shortly, however I believe it really works fairly effectively,” she mentioned. “That’s why I used to be like, ‘I don’t thoughts coming and seeing.’”
And that’s actually the aim of this marketing campaign. It’s seemingly too early for a brand new product launch beneath this C-suite, as a result of the manufacturing timeframe is commonly 12 to 18 months. So the intention is to reintroduce the model to customers, improve optimistic model notion, and provides it some early momentum, with—hopefully—some product innovation to comply with.
“We’ve all the time meant to be edited necessities” says Solórzano. “That’s all the time been Glossier’s philosophy. So we’re coming again to that. Sure, by way of product, but in addition by way of storytelling round these merchandise, [and] how they match extra importantly into individuals’s lives.”
Its core colour will proceed to be an vital a part of telling that story. “We reside and die for Glossier pink,” Solórzano says. “It’s actually not going wherever.” Contemplating the truth that the colour turned so ubiquitous it’s now visible shorthand for a technology, that may be plenty of model fairness to toss out with the trash. However Glossier does plan to herald extra secondary colours and design codes. These will “come into the fold in a extra distinguished manner as we glance forward, particularly into subsequent 12 months,” Solórzano says. One instance: Large Apple crimson.
