(CbeautyMall official website)
In recent years, due to changes in the global economic environment, affordable retailers have become a partial solution for many financially struggling American households, helping them meet their actual consumption needs. This has made affordability and discounts key words in attracting American consumers to purchase goods. However, CHAILEEDO has noticed that beauty are an exception in this trend.
According to the latest report from Adobe Analytics, despite consumers cutting back on spending in multiple online shopping categories due to inflation pressures in the United States, the beauty market is thriving. In the first five months of 2024, online sales of cosmetics in the U.S. reached $16.3 billion, showing an 8.8% year-over-year increase, far surpassing the growth rates of electronics and clothing. In particular, perfume and lipstick have seen significant sales growth, becoming consumers’ preferred indulgences.
The “lipstick economy” seems to be truly playing out among American consumers. In a survey conducted by NPD Group of nearly 40,000 American beauty consumers, 70% of respondents said they are using more makeup products than before the pandemic, and they are also more daring with colors. In response to this trend, consumer behavior science analyst Jacquelyn Rogers, in an interview with the media, stated, “This involves two reasons: the psychological ‘rebound’ after a long period of suppression and the formation of makeup habits after the pandemic.”
Furthermore, the rise and popularity of social media have added fuel to the prosperity of the beauty market, especially platforms like TikTok playing a vital role in propelling product sales. The immense traffic has brought high exposure to beauty products and has fostered the habit of American consumers purchasing makeup online. Public data shows that in June, sales of the top 20 beauty and personal care products on TikTok in the U.S. increased by 19.8% compared to the previous month.
Among the many online beauty platforms, a beauty e-commerce called CBeautyMall stands out and is highly sought after by American consumers. CHAILEEDO found that unlike other beauty platforms that rely on selling well-known beauty brands to endorse their platform, CBM mainly focuses on niche and personalized makeup products, while offering both high-quality products and affordable prices.
Meanwhile, on social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram, CBeautyMall updates different product information daily. In the comments section of these platforms, many users inquire about purchasing links and exchange beauty information. So, what is CBeautyMall exactly? What unique beauty products does the platform offer? And how does the platform ensure the quality of its products?
With a series of consumer questions in mind, CHAILEEDO engaged in a deep conversation with Wendy, the founder of CBeautyMall.
CHAILEEDO: Why did you want to establish CBeautyMall?
CBeautyMall Founder Wendy: I have been involved in the beauty industry in the United States for many years and have interacted with numerous consumers. However, I noticed that the transactions of beauty in the United States is still primarily on offline channels.That makes a relatively long cycle from product production to market entry. This results in slow product updates and a relatively limited variety of products.
By chance, I had the opportunity to visit China for beauty market exchanges through the recommendation of three Chinese friends who have been deeply involved in the Chinese beauty market for fifteen years. I observed that people paid much attention on online platforms in beauty market of China, with a shorter product cycle from inception to market, leading to a richer variety of products and styles and a faster iteration. In the Chinese market, I discovered many promising and innovative cosmetic brands, such as Florasis, Proya, TIMAGE, Flower Knows, and others.
Through discussions with them, I learned that China has the most developed cosmetics supply chain worldwide, making it the most efficient market in terms of product development. Leveraging our rich experience in the beauty industry, I aimed to bring high-quality and trendy Chinese beauty to American and global consumers.
CHAILEEDO: Can you give us a brief introduction of CBeautyMall? Why did you choose makeup as the main category?
CBeautyMall Founder Wendy: CBeautyMall was established in 2022, and as a native of New Jersey, the company is registered there as well. The platform is positioned as a Chinese beauty bontique, dedicated to providing American consumers with faster, more up-to-date, and higher value-for-money cosmetics. Currently, CBeautyMall showcases trendy beauty products daily on TikTok and Instagram and collaborates with numerous American KOLs with millions of followers on Instagram and TikTok. Particularly on Instagram, hundreds of makeup products have been released, bringing the latest makeup trends to a wide range of subscribing followers.
The main reasons for choosing makeup as the flagship category are as follows: first, makeup is the largest category in the American cosmetics market and provides the most immediate visible effects among all cosmetics categories. Second, the effects of skincare products require a longer period to manifest, and well-known brands in this sector are already very seasoned in terms of marketing and consumer education. In comparison, makeup has lower requirements regarding skin tone and is more inclusive. By focusing on makeup as the main category to enter the American market, American consumers can more intuitively experience the brands and products selected by CBeautyMall.
Furthermore, based on my observations, although the makeup market in the United States is large, it lacks variety, and the styles of most major makeup brands have remained unchanged for many years without innovation. In contrast, the makeup category in China is incredibly diverse. For instance, lipsticks are further divided into lipsticks, lip glosses, lip mud, lip balms, and more, catering comprehensively to the diverse makeup needs of various consumers.
CHAILEEDO: Currently, what kind of audiences following CBeautyMall? Which countries do they primarily come from? What type of products do they tend to prefer?
CBeautyMall Founder Wendy: At present, 70% of CBeautyMall’s consumers are from the United States, with the remaining 30% coming from English-speaking countries. The consumer base reached by CBeautyMall is diverse, including the LGBTQ community, goth enthusiasts, Lolita style lovers, and professional makeup artists, all of whom have higher standards for cosmetics quality. They lean towards fast-paced trend iterations and more personalized makeup displays.
Additionally, even before people removed their masks, they had already adopted the habit of using metallic eyeshadows and colorful geometric eyeliners to enhance their eye makeup. When most of the face is concealed by a mask, what sets you apart in a crowd is your dazzling eye makeup, a habit that many consumers have carried over post-pandemic. Within CBeautyMall’s consumer base, we have observed a preference for bold, vivid eyeshadows and products like lipsticks.
CHAILEEDO: What are the criteria and dimensions for selecting products at CBeautyMall? What types of products are prioritized?
CBeautyMall Founder Wendy: The team behind CBeautyMall hails from the United States, the United Kingdom, and China. We understand that knowing consumers is key to gaining their trust. Besides understanding consumers, content marketing is also crucial. Therefore, our operations director comes from Los Angeles, a global hub for content.
When it comes to product selection, the primary factor is ensuring product safety. For every brand we collaborate with, we conduct rigorous quality checks, and if any issues are found, we immediately cease cooperation. Furthermore, we sign authorization agreements with brands to guarantee the authenticity of our sources.
We have observed that in post-pandemic time, beauty consumers are inclined towards using bold, vibrant makeup shades to uplift their mood and spirits.
Based on this, CBeautyMall’s product selection leans towards niche personal IP brands, professional makeup brands, and brands that blend Eastern and Western characteristics, emphasizing inclusivity and diversity.
CHAILEEDO: Which brands does CBeautyMall currently partner with? Could you provide some excellent cases for us to learn about?
CBeautyMall Founder Wendy: Currently, we collaborate with many outstanding Chinese makeup brands, such as Florasis, Cheeryep, narimi, girl cult, colorrose, and more.
(Cheeryep)
(Colorrose)
(Narimi)
Among these collaborations, our partnership with Florasis has left a lasting impression on me. We had noticed that Florasis had garnered attention from numerous Western consumers due to its uniquely Chinese aesthetics and exquisite designs. In the backend of CBeautyMall, we received many consumer requests for Florasis products. Hence, we established a partnership with Florasis. Last year, we collaborated with Florasis to promote a Valentine’s Day gift box series, primarily focusing on collaborations with beauty and PR influencers. The video content included makeup tutorials, product reviews, and more.
Through extensive promotion on social media platforms by American beauty influencers like Elena Costantini (with 576,300 TikTok followers and 136,000 Instagram followers) and ARCHES Vanina (with 435,100 followers), videos related to Florasis attracted significant attention and engagement from consumers. As of May 2023, the total followers of the beauty influencers involved in that collaboration reached 20 million, with an overall short video view count of 2.7 million and over 240,000 likes.
(Florasis)
(Florasis)
CHAILEEDO: What marketing strategies does CBeautyMall employ?
CBeautyMall Founder Wendy: CBeautyMall currently utilizes three main marketing strategies. Firstly, we collaborate with renowned beauty influencers on TikTok and Instagram, inviting them to join our “TikTok Alliance.” These influencers appear in person to recommend products and provide makeup tutorials, leveraging their influence and fan base to enhance product credibility and visibility.
If you search for @cbeautymall on TikTok, you can see many cases of beauty influencers collaborating with us, with content mainly consisting of makeup tutorials, product recommendations, product reviews, unboxing videos, lifestyle vlogs, and more. These influencers we collaborated with is built on trust, and if they feel a product compromises their followers’ experience, they immediately cease cooperation.
Secondly, CBeautyMall partners with Meta and Google for advertising, and focuses on optimizing website content and Search Engine Optimization (SEO) to improve search engine rankings, attracting more organic traffic. Through these initiatives, we aim to showcase the brand strength and product quality of premium brands to American consumers.
Thirdly, we maintain brand accounts on major social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok, updating original product information daily and disseminating various beauty product details such as product tutorials, makeup tips, brand stories, and more. Furthermore, CBeautyMall places great emphasis on fostering customer loyalty by engaging with followers regularly to increase brand exposure and consumer retention.
CHAILEEDO: As a new beauty e-commerce shopping platform, how does CBeautyMall ensure a clear supply chain and stable logistics?
CBeautyMall Founder Wendy: CBeautyMall’s product sourcing primarily involves three methods:
Firstly, we proactively procure the top 20 best-selling products on CBeautyMall in advance and store them in local warehouses in the United States to ensure faster product delivery to customers, typically within 3-5 days.
Secondly, we have warehouses specifically dedicated to fulfilling TikTok orders. CBeautyMall is present on the TikTok store, and products ordered on TikTok are dispatched from specialized warehouses. TikTok mandates stocking in the U.S. with official brand authorization to sell on its platform, ensuring products ordered on the app reach consumers’ doorsteps smoothly. Warehouse management entails stricter quality control to ensure all listed products meet specified standards, significantly enhancing overall product quality and improving the shopping experience for consumers.
Thirdly, products are directly sourced from China through authorized brands. My three partners are based in mainland China, with extensive resources in the beauty industry. They assist in selecting reputable brands in China, obtaining brand authorizations. These brands ship their products to CBeautyMall’s headquarters in China, where staff repackages them before sending them to customers in the U.S.
CHAILEEDO: What commitments does CBeautyMall make to consumers?
CBeautyMall Founder Wendy: Firstly, we offer convenient return and exchange services to ensure a worry-free shopping experience for consumers. We have detailed return and exchange policies in place, allowing customers to exchange damaged or faulty items due to logistics reasons for equivalent value items within a specified period or apply for a refund directly.
Additionally, within the CBeautyMall website, we introduce a variety of in-store discount activities such as multi-item discounts.
Moreover, we value feedback from every customer and have dedicated customer service positions to continuously improve our products and services, providing a superior shopping experience.
CBeautyMall advocates inclusivity and diversity, actively aligning with global fashion and beauty trends to offer consumers the latest, most fashionable beauty products. Through innovation and design, we aim to break cultural and racial barriers, enabling everyone to find their own beauty.
CHAILEEDO: What is your vision for CBeautyMall in the future?
CBeautyMall Founder Wendy: Currently, CBeautyMall remains focused on serving American and European consumers. In the future, we aspire to introduce trendier, higher-quality products to more countries. While the current product offerings on the website primarily focus on makeup, we plan to expand into categories like body care and beauty tools.
