Mystic Man
Feb 23rd, 2005, 01:48 AM
Elizabeth Arden Bounces Back In Australia's Cosmetics Sector
SYDNEY, Feb 22 Asia Pulse - It may be a woman's world, but the cosmetics industry is far from a refuge for the faint-hearted.
In fact it's more like war, according to Elizabeth Arden Australia's managing director Jane McKellar.
"(A campaign) must have all the elements of a well-fought battle," Ms McKellar said.
"The element of surprise, speed, decisiveness...and above all - the important result is victory, not persistence."
The former director of marketing and sales for Microsoft Network Australia - one of three chosen to launch ninemsn - takes this philosophy so seriously she has based her Elizabeth Arden revamp campaign around Sun Tzu's "The Art of War".
Few would argue that her "Be Bold" approach has not garnered unprecedented success.
Once named in the Top 50 Most Powerful Women in Australia, McKellar was brought in by Elizabeth Arden 12 months ago to revamp the group's tired image and regain slipping market share.
Since then Arden has increased sales by 25 per cent and grown marketing support by 200 per cent.
EBIT (Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation) also experienced double digit growth, Ms McKellar told the American Chamber of Commerce in Australia in Sydney today.
More importantly though, Elizabeth Arden has re-established its visibility in the market, she said, with last year's launch of the Britney Spears "Curious" fragrance.
"It smashed every record for a fragrance launch in Australia, going straight to number one...and continues to break records on an almost regular basis," Ms McKellar said.
The highly-publicised success of Curious had a knock-on effect for Arden's other fragrances, with Red Door and Provocative Woman also making it into the Christmas sales top ten.
Ms McKellar said it was all about looking at business through a different prism, and executing quickly.
"If you have things 90 per cent right and you execute quickly, you actually have the advantage," she said.
http://au.news.yahoo.com/050222/3/t6hx.html
SYDNEY, Feb 22 Asia Pulse - It may be a woman's world, but the cosmetics industry is far from a refuge for the faint-hearted.
In fact it's more like war, according to Elizabeth Arden Australia's managing director Jane McKellar.
"(A campaign) must have all the elements of a well-fought battle," Ms McKellar said.
"The element of surprise, speed, decisiveness...and above all - the important result is victory, not persistence."
The former director of marketing and sales for Microsoft Network Australia - one of three chosen to launch ninemsn - takes this philosophy so seriously she has based her Elizabeth Arden revamp campaign around Sun Tzu's "The Art of War".
Few would argue that her "Be Bold" approach has not garnered unprecedented success.
Once named in the Top 50 Most Powerful Women in Australia, McKellar was brought in by Elizabeth Arden 12 months ago to revamp the group's tired image and regain slipping market share.
Since then Arden has increased sales by 25 per cent and grown marketing support by 200 per cent.
EBIT (Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation) also experienced double digit growth, Ms McKellar told the American Chamber of Commerce in Australia in Sydney today.
More importantly though, Elizabeth Arden has re-established its visibility in the market, she said, with last year's launch of the Britney Spears "Curious" fragrance.
"It smashed every record for a fragrance launch in Australia, going straight to number one...and continues to break records on an almost regular basis," Ms McKellar said.
The highly-publicised success of Curious had a knock-on effect for Arden's other fragrances, with Red Door and Provocative Woman also making it into the Christmas sales top ten.
Ms McKellar said it was all about looking at business through a different prism, and executing quickly.
"If you have things 90 per cent right and you execute quickly, you actually have the advantage," she said.
http://au.news.yahoo.com/050222/3/t6hx.html