Embracing multiculturalism, Ulta Beauty plans to expand into the black market

Ulta Beauty, a well-known American cosmetics and fragrance retailer, announced on Tuesday a new plan to expand its product categories and marketing features to better reflect the cultural diversity of the United States . Ulta plans to invest more than $25 million in the plan .

The specific contents of Ulta 's new plan include doubling the number of brands launched for black people by the end of 2021 , strengthening employee training so that stores can provide high-quality services to all customers , investing approximately US$20 million in media investment on cross-cultural platforms to cover black and Hispanic communities, and producing TV commercials with black women as the theme.

To better implement this vision, Ulta has also hired Tracee Ellis Ross , an actress and founder and CEO of hair care brand Pattern Beauty, as the company's diversity and inclusion consultant.

Ulta 's beauty peer, LVMH -owned Sephora , announced a similar plan in mid-January. Companies like Macy 's and Gap have also signed on to the "15% Pledge," which aims to have black-only products on shelves proportional to the black population in the U.S.

Over the past year, many companies have been reflecting on whether their business practices , including hiring employees, selecting advertising models and choosing products to showcase, support or combat the spread of racism . The George Floyd incident and the " Black Lives Matter " protests in the United States have also further pushed entrepreneurs to make more commitments to address racial inequality.

Mary Dillon, CEO of Ulta , believes that the beauty industry should set an example , after all, it can shape society's perception of beauty to a certain extent. In addition, from the perspective of the company itself, given that more than 50% of babies born in the United States are non- Caucasian , the number of black customers in the future will definitely be greater than it is now, and companies must see this trend in advance and take the initiative to adapt to the times.

Mary Dillon also said that this is not only an opportunity for companies , but also an obligation that they should be aware of . Trying their best to meet the needs of consumers of any age, race, and skin color is Ulta's   The core of the company 's business.

In addition to the companies themselves, consumers are also paying more and more attention to the social values ​​of companies, such as whether they have adopted sustainable development strategies, whether they promote multiculturalism and abandon racism, etc.

And there is a very straightforward truth: consumers will " vote with their money ", which is closely related to the operation and survival of the company. Therefore, sellers should also realize that making efforts to diversify and include products and brands has become a top priority for companies today , and it is by no means just a gesture of goodwill .

Ulta Beauty

Multiculturalism