Brand Analysis of the Body Shop - Assignment Example

Brand Analysis of the Body Shop The Body Shop was formed by Antia Roddick in 1976 as a small shop that produced beauty products for its customers in Brighton, England. Today, it has turned out to be amongst the most trusted cosmetic brands that operate in England and internationally. Over the years, the company has been successful in retaining large customer bases worldwide. It has been producing products from natural ingredients in an ethical manner. The company has established a few core values for its business operations such as prohibiting testing of its products on various animals to measure its effectiveness and engaging its business with community trade, fighting against women trafficking and many such issues. Due to such activities the company has been able to position its brand in a better way in comparison to its competitors. The brand characteristics with regard to the products were found to have greatly influenced the customers purchasing decisions for the products which have enabled the company to demand premium price for its products. Introduction The report would attempt to deal with “The Body Shop” values and its impacts on brand development. The Body Shop was first established by Antia Roddick in the year 1976 as one small shop in Brighton, England for selling beauty products. The company started its business with 25 products that were created with natural ingredients. It was able to attain rapid growth and expand itself in the European market as well as internationally inspite of pursuing the strategy of “no money spent on advertising”. The company opened its first United States (US) Shop in New York in 1988. In the year 2006, Antia Roddick sold her share of the company to L’Oreal and made the company a subsidiary of the L’Oreal Company. Presently, the company has 26000 stores located in 66 markets and sells 1200 and more products in England and internationally. The company mainly produces toiletries and cosmetic products internationally. It offers a wide assortment of beauty products such as body gels and oils, make up products, moisturizers baby care products, hair care products, massage products, skincare products, bath and body products and even fragrances (Carlson, 2011). The products are made from natural ingredients which are supposed to be ethical and environmental friendly such as banana shampoo and coconut milk body lotions. The company primarily aims at combining activism with marketing and encourages women to concentrate on self-esteem along with environmental and social causes. The company strongly criticizes the idea of testing products on animals and ensures that the ingredients used in its products have not been tested on animals in any possible way. In addition to this, the company also restricts the use of harmful chemicals in the form of ingredients for its products. Furthermore, it believes in the principle of producing eco-friendly products and wishes to establish its identity as an eco-conscious company. The company sells its products both through online and established shopping houses. The company strives to ensure greater degree of cooperation from its suppliers in order to boost its innovations for the development of new and ethical products. The company has been able to retain its customers even after it was taken over by the L’Oreal Company in 2006 (Carlson, 2011). The company’s aim always has been to expand its business by satisfying its customers’ needs with natural and ethical products. It further emphasizes to deliver superior quality beauty products at affordable prices to its loyal customers in contrast to its existing competitors (Fitness Health, 2012). It has been estimated that the company has more than 77 million customers who are spread globally. In addition to this, the company was also voted as one of the major trusted brands in England in the year 1999 by the consumer association. The company is known to witness competition from several similar companies among which Boots and Lush of Britain, Bath & Body Works, Nectar of Ireland, Aveda and Origins are identified to be few of the major competitors (Carlson, 2011). Brand Positioning and Values Brand positioning helps in establishing the target customers’ main reason to purchase the product, in preference to the other products of the competitors. It helps to ensure that all the brand related activities possess common objective and further makes certain of the fact that the functions are guided, directed as well as delivered by the brand’s reason to purchase the product. It makes attempts towards making the brand unique in comparison to the competitors. Brand positioning further strives to make sure that the product is considered to be suitable and adequate for the geographic markets as well as businesses. Branding is considered to be an important aspect of marketing in the presently changing business scenario. Every individual company strives to create a strong brand value for its products. Successful attainment of brand positioning enables a particular company to earn premium prices for its products as well as services (The Body Shop International PLC, 2011). The Body Shop brand is regarded as one of the most familiar cosmetic brands operating globally. It offers a wide range of beauty products to its loyal customers such as body cleansers, beautifying oil, deodorants, lip care, moisturizers, eye care, shampoo, brushes and combs, body mists and several other quality products. The company manufactures products for both men as well as women users. The company always made certain of delivering quality products to its valuable customers. Its ethical values continue to be an imperative issue while making selection of its target customer groups. The company makes products which are believed to be inspired by nature and are produced ethically. This particular factor has made the company competent of producing gorgeous, sweet smiling and innovative products which serve the exact purpose that they claim. Accordingly, the company supposes that the consumers often seeks for quality and luxurious products in order to maintain charming and beautiful looks for which such customers are believed to be willing enough to pay higher prices for such natural and ethical products (The Body Shop International PLC, 2011). Due to company’s approach with respect to its ethical and natural products, it has been able to get hold of and maintain a broad base of customers globally. The company’s products are designed and manufactured by considering natural and ethical aspects which further increases the demands of the products among different age group of customers (The Body Shop International PLC, 2011). The company’s values revolve round its principles namely: Against Animal Testing The company strictly complies with the Humane Cosmetics Standard. It restricts any kind of animal testing of its products and provides supports towards cruelty free products. The company creates products from naturally obtained ingredients and in an ethical way. For such reasons, in the year 2009, the company was awarded with Lifetime Achievement Award (The Body Shop International PLC, 2011). Support Community Fair Trade The company considers community fair trade program as one of its core values. The company aims to procure ingredients and other related materials as much as it can from small and local communities, particularly from the developing countries (The Body Shop International PLC, 2011). Activate Self Esteem The company believes that true beauty comes from vitality, confidence and inner wellbeing. It further strives to create products that enhances ones beauty naturally and expresses ones personality uniquely (The Body Shop International PLC, 2011). Defend Human Rights The company has always been fighting for betterment of the human kind and has launched numerous campaigns to trigger positive changes. In certain circumstances, the company even associated its products as the part of such social campaigns (The Body Shop International PLC, 2011). Protect the Planet Protect the planet is another core value which is considered by the company. The company seeks to promote products that are eco-friendly and exert efforts to reduce carbon footprints along with trimming down wastes as well as the usage of water in the company’s production processes (The Body Shop International PLC, 2011). Therefore, it can be observed that the company’s core values and their implementation in the process of business operations have tremendously benefitted the company to develop and sustain its brand position and value among its customers. Moreover, the company offers ethical and eco-friendly products at affordable prices than its competitors which greatly contributed towards positioning its brand successfully in the market (The Body Shop International PLC, 2011). Brand Characteristics Brand characteristics consist of personality, organizational associations, symbols, brand/cultural relationships, self expressions and emotional benefits, user imagery and country of origin. Conceptually, the Body Shop brand can be regarded as a trustworthy brand which manufactures or creates products not only for earning profit but also to satisfy its customers’ needs through ethical use of ingredients in its production process. The company is committed towards manufacturing products that are supposed to be eco-friendly and are produced with natural ingredients with minimum use of chemical in its production process. The company operates in quite a number of countries across the world and make uses of some of the best available technologies which is expected to benefit the company towards satisfying its wide spread customers’ requirements(Peters, 2012). The Body Shop brand has been used by millions of customers with utmost faith since 1976. The number of users is reasonably increasing with the passage of time. The brand has been constantly meeting the needs of its valuable customers since 35 years. Due to the company’s core values, it has been able to retain its valuable customers and their confidence. Customers are highly pleased with the company’s core values, and displays satisfaction on being a part of the company as users along with promoting the initiative undertaken by the company. Body Shop being a company of English origin makes the customers regard or acknowledge its products to be superior in quality than its competitors (Peters, 2012). Customers Benefits The company offers a wide range of product line to its customers according to the varied needs of its different discriminating customers. Moreover, the company’s products make use of natural ingredients, thus minimizing any chemical related side effects on the skin and hair. These natural products ensure several advantages to its users. The products are made ethically from natural ingredients which are made available by different suppliers from various parts of the world such as organic coconut, organic alcohol, banana, sugarcane, honey and numerous other natural products. When compared with other beauty products of its competitors, the products of Body Shop ensure greater degree of safety to its customers as these products are made from natural ingredients and are assured to be free from any chemical additives. Since these products are made from natural ingredients, the customers need to worry less about developing rashes or experiencing itchiness on their skin. Moreover, the natural cosmetics are considered to be a suitable choice for all skin types of different customers (The new ecologist, 2012). The customers can use the products without worrying about their skin conditions. It is worth mentioning in this regard that the natural products are less expensive than those products that are produced with the combination of chemicals. Thus, the customers of the company can make use of the products without any worry regarding product side effects on the skin. The natural products made by the company are tested by experts in laboratories in order to ensure that the products are safe and effective to use rather than testing them on animal for its effectiveness. The customers tend to attain a greater degree of satisfaction while using products which have been made from natural ingredients and refrain the use of animals for testing (The new ecologist, 2012). Brand Community The company has been able to create and sustain its brand since 1976. The company’s customers are greatly influenced by the values established by it along with its implementation while making products. The company provides a broad range of natural products to its numerous customers and has been greatly successful in satisfying their need and creating strong relationship with them. Furthermore, the company with its naturally derived ingredients has been able to create strong customer base for its products (Muniz & O’Guinn, 2001). The company’s established values has also been able to strike an emotional chord with the customers makes them revere the company for its effort towards not just concentrating on earning exclusive revenues but also for fighting for human rights and protecting the environment from harmful chemicals. The company’s engagement in community fair trade on a constant basis has also impressed its customer and has greatly helped to boost its sales. The company has efficiently discharged its corporate social responsibilities and enhanced its brand image with its participation in activities such as community trade, healthcare and education (The Body Shop International PLC, 2011). Brand Equity In the recent times the aspect of strong brand equity has become an essential factor which influences the consumer’s views and perceptions regarding a particular brand. Basic elements of brand equity include brand awareness, brand image, brand loyalty and perceived quality (Sinclair, n. d.). All these elements of brand equity greatly influence the buying decisions of the customers. However, the creation of brand equity is considered to be an uphill task as, it requires years of efforts to create and develop a brand which will be benefitting the company to charge premium rates for its manufactured products (Keller, 2001). Accordingly, Body Shop was established in 1976 and has been found to engage 35 years in creating and developing its brand equity. The superior brand value triggers the willingness in the customers to pay comparatively higher prices for the products. The company offers products that are found to be relatively distinct from its competitors’ products. The company creates products that are ethically made from natural ingredients such as organic alcohol, aloe vera, banana, blue corn, Brazil nut, cocoa butter, coconut oil, honey olive oil, peppermint, seaweed, sesame, sugarcane and various other natural ingredients while another specialty of the brand involves manufacturing products on the basis of the feedback of the customers and also in accordance with the results of extensive market research (The Body Shop International, 2012). Moreover, the company involves considerable time in understanding the recent trends before creating any of its products, thus ensuring that its customers are provided with the best and ethical products for their use. In addition to this, the company not only makes certain that its products are ethical but it also assures that the packaging of the products are also performed in accordance with the company’s values and ethical guidelines. Additionally, the company offers a broad variety of products for complete beauty solutions which is considered to possess greater value than the competitors. The company with its distinct marketing mix had always focused on building and protecting its valuable brand equity. The company’s policy has always been directed against the practice of animal testing and the company ensures that the ingredients used in the production process are not tested on animals (Burns, 2012). The company has also been supporting community fair trade and has been engaged with scores of such fairs since its establishment. The underlying values of the company such as fair treatment to all human beings, protecting the planet and trading fairly have substantially added a considerable advantage towards its brand equity development. Thus, it can be stated that the company has been able to build quite strong brand equity by indulging in community fair trade and other ethical activities. The customers believe that the Body Shop products are made in an untreated and increasingly ethical method than the other existing companies. These customers greatly enjoys being associated with the company and promote the products among their friends and relatives which emphasizes more on ethical production with organic ingredients’ collected from various parts of the world. The customers are known to believe in the fact that the usage of the brand not only satisfies their needs but they being regular customers also contribute towards the social and environmental causes either directly or indirectly (Burns, 2012). The brand primarily aims to establish itself distinctly from the other competitive brands by creating products ethically and with natural ingredients. Moreover, the values established by the company such as saving the planet, opposing against animal testing, promoting self-esteem, defending human rights and supporting community fair trade has greatly influenced the customers preference towards the products and further encourages them to endorse values established by the company by being its loyal customers (Burns, 2012). Conclusion The Body Shop was formed by Antia Roddick in the year 1976 as a small shop initially which sold beauty products in Brighton, England. Later, the company was able to expand its business rapidly in England and internationally. The company steadily focuses on its core values which include defending human rights, supporting community trade, protecting the planet, triggering self-esteem and opposing animal testing. These values of the company have been widely appreciated by the global customers which have greatly assisted the company in creating a reliable brand for its products which positions it differently among its competitors. Moreover, the company makes products from natural ingredients and in a just and moral way thus ensuring safety of the products usage along with fulfilling the corporate social responsibilities. The company has always made sure that superior quality products are offered for the purpose of satisfying the customer’s needs. In addition to this, its activities are designed to earn profits by meeting customers’ requirements along with discharging its responsibility towards the environment and social communities. The company has been found to make investment towards discharging its responsibilities in the form of providing education, clean water and healthcare facilities which has enormously helped the company to build a large customer base for its brand. Moreover, its customers have been enjoying quality products that ensure safety of their health and skin and are also environmental friendly. The customers consider it as a privilege to use these products which satisfy their needs and also work towards social and environmental causes. Reflection From the above learning, I believe that company’s participation in corporate social responsibilities can greatly help to enhance its brand image and sustain its business for a longer time period. In addition to this, I think that customers are emotionally attached to their environment as well as social communities and regard it as an opportunity to promote and use such products that support and work for the environmental and social causes. Moreover, customers readily agree to pay high price for those products which are made or created ethically. Body Shop which manufactures products from natural ingredients assists it to enjoy strong brand equity and presence merely because of its core values. I would like to state that it would be difficult for the company to position its brand among the global customers by just using management tools but rather it should focus on both management principles and should also contribute a certain amount that it earns from its products toward community development. I strongly believe that such activities will not only help the company to create and develop a strong brand but will even ensure greater sales along with retaining its customers for a longer time span. Therefore, I believe that such activities will enable the company to enjoy greater competitive advantage over its competitors. References Burns, P. (2012). Entrepreneurship and small business. Retrieved from http://www.palgrave.com/business/burns/students/pdf/06%20Body%20Shop.pdf Carlson, P. K. L. (2011). The body shop redesign. Retrieved from http://www.aigaminnesota.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Kate_Carlson_2011_Larsen_Design_Scholarship_process_book.pdf Fitness Health. (2012). The body shop skin care review. Retrieved from http://www.fitnesshealth101.com/review/skin-beauty/the-body-shop Keller, K. L. (2001). Building customer-based brand equity: A blue print for creating strong brands. Marketing Science Institute, pp. 3-16. Muniz, A. M. & O’Guinn, T. C. (2001). Brand Community. Journal of Consumer Research, Inc, 27. Peters, T. (2012). Eight characteristics of great brands. Retrieved from http://timpeters.org/general/eight-characteristics-of-great-brands/ Sinclair, R. (n. d). The importance of brand equity in creating firm value. Introduction, pp. 1-6. The Body Shop International. (2012). Ingredients. Retrieved from http://www.thebodyshop-usa.com/values-campaigns/community-trade-ingredients.aspx The new ecologist. (2012). Advantages of using natural cosmetics. Retrieved from http://www.thenewecologist.com/2010/05/top-7-advantages-of-using-natural-cosmetics/ The Body Shop International PLC. (2011). The body shop striving to be a force for good the body. Value report 2011, pp. 2-57. Bibliography Keller, K. (2008). Strategic brand management. New Jersey: Prentice Hall. Read More