Salamander will become closer to the body
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Munz Group, which bought the rights to the German shoe brand Salamander in Russia and neighboring countries in 2023, has found an unexpected use for the brand. The group may launch a line of body care cosmetics of the same name and is already looking for top management to lead the direction. Experts warn that difficulties may arise with the positioning of Salamander cosmetics, and competition in the market is extremely intense.
Major shoe retailer Munz Group may launch a line of body care cosmetics under the Salamander brand. This follows from the job description for a project manager for the development of a relevant area, published by Munz Group on HeadHunter in February. The candidate’s responsibilities include assembling a team to manage the project, searching and negotiating with production companies, building sales, including in such chains as Golden Apple, Letual and Rive Gauche. The Munz Group declined to comment.
The main owner of the Munz Group is the president and founder of the Zenden shoe holding Andrey Pavlov. The group manages the Thomas Munz chain, and in 2020 received a master license for the brand in Russia from the German Salamander. Last year, the group became the owner of trademarks associated with Salamander in the Russian Federation and a number of neighboring countries, which allows them to look for new options for using the brand (see “Kommersant” dated December 1, 2023).
The owner of the Kaufman brand agency, Stanislav Kaufman, says that Salamander as a shoe brand is designed for middle-aged and older consumers with average incomes, and it is logical if the brand targets this group in the cosmetics market. But, the expert points out, a new conservative brand may lose in competition to “young” brands that can afford to experiment.
The executive director of the Association of Manufacturers of Perfumery, Cosmetics, Household Chemicals and Hygiene Products, Petr Bobrovsky, warns that the Munz Group will require significant investments in marketing to interest consumers. Synergetic Commercial Director Alexey Konovalov notes that it is not necessary to invest in your own production to enter the market, since there are enough enterprises that produce products on a contract basis. Finding such an enterprise is unlikely to be difficult, although the capacities of these companies are now well utilized, Mr. Bobrovsky adds.
Interest in the cosmetics market among non-core players has recently increased. The 2MOOD and Econika networks established the Glow Beauty company, which began selling Glow Law body care products. Samokat began selling cosmetics under its Arive Makeup brand, including in specialized retail. And the structure of Melon Fashion Group (Zarina, Befree, Love Republic, Sela) submitted an application to register the Love Republic Beauty brand in the classes of perfumes and cosmetics, Shopper’s wrote. The trend may be associated with a reduction in the activity of some global companies. After the outbreak of hostilities in Ukraine, players such as L’Oreal, Estee Lauder and Lush abandoned investments in the Russian Federation and direct sales. And Procter & Gamble and Colgate-Palmolive reported product line cuts.
According to NielsenIQ, at the end of 2023, the range of body care products in retail chains decreased by 3%. But, analysts note, a year earlier, the assortment in non-food product groups decreased by about 20% year on year. Cosmetics store chains interviewed by Kommersant talk about restoring the assortment through new brands. In the Golden Apple, according to its own data, the number of brands in the body care cosmetics category increased by 40% in 2023. Letual said it added several hundred new products to its range during the same period. Petr Bobrovsky notes that competition in the market is “colossal.” Alexey Konovalov adds that consumers are becoming more discerning, so cosmetic brands need to stand out from their competitors.
The demand for cosmetics in large chains is growing. Letual reported that sales of body cosmetics grew by more than 90% in 2023, and by 22% year-on-year at Golden Apple. The NielsenIQ national retail audit at the end of 2023 notes an increase in sales of all body care products in monetary terms by 4.4% year-on-year. Sales of shower gels and bath foams, according to analysts, increased in value by 5.6%, and skin care products by 8.3%.
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