On January 28th, Benefit officially closed its official flagship stores on Tmall, Douyin, and JD.com, retaining only its presence on Sephora’s platform. In less than a month, there have been rumors circulating among bloggers that Benefit will be exiting the Chinese market. If true, it would make Benefit the first high-end beauty brand to withdraw from the Chinese market this year.
In response to this news, CHAILEEDO immediately reached out to Sephora China and multiple Sephora stores across different locations to verify the situation. Several customer service representatives from Sephora stores have confirmed that Benefit is indeed planning to remove its selling points.
“This year, they will definitely remove their selling points“
For many consumers, mentioning Benefit brings to mind their eyebrow pencils and eyebrow shaping services. As a former leading brand in eyebrow makeup, Benefit once achieved the feat of selling one eyebrow product every 2 seconds and provided eyebrow shaping services to over 5 million customers annually during its peak.
In China, Benefit’s products, including the Pore Professional Series, eyebrow pencils, blush, and their eyebrow shaping services, have also attracted many consumers. However, rumors about Benefit’s exit from the Chinese market have been circulating since they withdrew from offline department stores two years ago.
Recently, bloggers have once again leaked information stating that Benefit will exit the Chinese market in mid-2024. Currently, brand members have started receiving relevant messages, and the brand will offer product exchanges of equal value to customers who were unable to use their eyebrow shaping cards by the end of June this year. Some netizens have also shared on social media that their eyebrow stylists informed them of Benefit’s exit from the Chinese market in June of this year.
The news of Benefit’s exit from the Chinese market has once again become a hot topic. In response to this, CHAILEEDO immediately sought confirmation from Sephora China but has not received a response at the time of writing.
CHAILEEDO subsequently contacted Sephora stores in Beijing, Shanghai, Hangzhou, Wuhan, and other cities to inquire about the situation. Several stores confirmed that eyebrow shaping services are currently still available. Two Sephora store employees stated, “They will indeed remove their selling points, but the timing is uncertain, and it is unclear if they will completely exit the Chinese market.” Another Sephora store employee mentioned, “They will definitely remove their selling points this year, and it seems they won’t continue operating in the future.”
It is worth noting that according to CHAILEEDO’s investigation, Benefit’s official accounts on Weibo, WeChat Official Accounts, and Xiaohongshu platforms have not posted any updates since 2023, and there have been no recent activities in 2024.
Entering the Chinese market for 18 years, Benefit has undergone several channel adjustments
From removing their selling points two years ago to recently closing their online stores, and now the rumors of their exit from the Chinese market, all indicate that Benefit’s situation in the Chinese market is not optimistic.
Analysis suggests that Benefit’s American retro image and quality appeal make it difficult to attract young consumers, and their product updates cannot keep up with the fast-changing preferences of Chinese consumers. The pricing of their products, neither too high nor too low, also leads to a blurred target audience.
In the eyes of many netizens, “Benefit is something you can’t afford when you don’t have money, and when you have money, you don’t find it appealing. When you have the economic ability, you would rather buy products from other well-known brands at the same price range.” Some users also express, “The cost-effectiveness of Benefit is too low. They no longer sell the good old products, and the new products are hard to describe. You can buy excellent domestic makeup products for around a hundred yuan.”
Industry insiders point out that, despite being a high-end cosmetics brand under LVMH, Benefit lacks recognition in China compared to other LVMH brands like Dior and Givenchy, indicating a relatively weaker brand awareness. In addition, the Chinese economy is still in a recovery phase, and the overall cosmetics market has been negatively affected, which is also a factor.
Apart from their awkward positioning, Benefit’s setbacks in the Chinese market may also be attributed to their lack of determination in the online channel, missing the golden window of opportunity. CHAILEEDO’s investigation found that Benefit actually started exploring online channels as early as 2011 but failed to persist. When they returned to Tmall in 2017, the competition landscape had changed significantly.
In recent years, Benefit has undergone another round of channel adjustments, from removing selling points in department stores to entering JD.com and Douyin (TikTok). However, this time, Benefit can be said to have “missed the boat.”
On January 28th of this year, Benefit closed its official flagship stores on Tmall, Douyin, and JD.com. As of the time of writing, CHAILEEDO discovered that Benefit products are no longer available on Vipshop and Kuaishou platforms, and only Sephora’s official flagship store on Douyin still sells Benefit products. Sephora, both online and offline, has become the only remaining channel for Benefit. Benefit’s withdrawal from Sephora implies their exit from the Chinese market.
While Benefit brand suffered setbacks in China, its global performance has been frequently praised by its parent company, LVMH Group
In January 2024, LVMH Group released its full-year financial report for 2023, showing a sales revenue of 671.026 billion RMB, a 9% year-on-year growth, and an organic growth of 13%. The Perfumes and Cosmetics division achieved sales revenue of over 8 billion euros for the first time in 2023, with a 7% year-on-year growth and an organic growth of 11%, reaching a new high in nearly five years.
LVMH stated that the growth of the Perfumes and Cosmetics division was mainly attributed to the scientific support from LVMH Research Center. Regarding Benefit, the group mentioned that Benefit launched new products, consolidating its leading position in the field of brow beauty and mascara. Additionally, “Benefit’s POREfessional skincare series boosted the brand’s performance.”
From this perspective, as a brand with decades of heritage and innovation, Benefit still retains its competitiveness in the global cosmetics market, especially in the field of brow makeup. For LVMH, the Chinese beauty market remains a top priority.
For example, in April 2023, LVMH’s largest research center in Asia officially opened in Pudong Jinqiao, Shanghai. In June of the same year, LVMH Group’s affiliated company, LVMH Perfumes & Cosmetics (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., expanded its business scope to include cosmetics production, which sparked speculation in the industry about the possibility of LVMH’s skincare products being localized.
Since the beginning of this year, major beauty brands under LVMH have increased their efforts in promoting new products and holding flash events, demonstrating their emphasis on the Chinese market. For instance, Dior created a limited-time store for high-end red lipsticks in Chengdu’s Taikoo Li, and Guerlain’s Creative Director of Makeup, Violette, collaborated with renowned artist Ryo Shinagawa to launch the new Guerlain Rouge G lipstick case in a golden cherry blossom design.
Despite setbacks, LVMH, with its multiple strengths and continuous investment in the beauty industry, has the potential to go further in the Chinese beauty market.
