Breaking Industry Rules

If brands want to follow the successful trend of appealing to women on an individual basis, they need to break out of the mold and try something new.

By Jonathan Ford, Pearlfisher

Back in 1938, Elizabeth Arden stated: “If I were asked to describe the really smart woman, it would be the woman who was most completely herself.” The comment from the doyenne of cosmetics was quite ironic considering that in the 1930s, makeup was used to create a mask. But Arden’s words certainly ring true today as we strip back and pare down to uncover and celebrate the rise of the real woman with her own shape, size, color and imperfections.

The industry itself—the media, advertising professionals, models and celebrities—has started to expose the tricks of the fashion and beauty trade and to berate the pressure placed upon women to conform to an airbrushed tiny, toned body and flawless, dewy skin. Women are starting to appreciate that uniform perfection is not realistic, and are being supported and applauded by the very industry that promulgated the message in the first place. We are seeing reality TV shows looking for normal sized models and celebrities with braces on their teeth. Tilda Swinton’s recent makeup-free appearance at the Oscars probably generated more headlines, and more positive debate, than the usual top of the frocks/frock shock articles.

Although the trend for natural and “no makeup makeup” has been huge, women are not necessarily asking cosmetic brands to help them maximize their natural-looking selves. They are, however, looking to, and expecting, cosmetic brands to help them to be whom they want to be and to find a way to communicate with them on this level.

Dove was the trailblazer in the personal care sector, using cross-generational and real, off-the-street women in its advertising, but this only took the communication with—and to—real women so far. We believe the opportunity exists for insightful designers and inspired clients to harness the power of packaging to create new ways to communicate off the shelf. Yes, it means breaking all the rules, but rules are made to be broken, particularly when they have become conventions that generate uniformity.

Not Just Black and White

If we did a blind testing, could loyal brand aficionados distinguish between say Lancôme and Chanel? The design vocabulary of cosmetics, especially at the luxury end of the spectrum, has not changed for decades. Black, gold and shiny rule. Some newcomers have adopted this formula, using recognized cosmetic cues while giving their brands a more contemporary spin, for instance Bobbi Brown and Nars opting for black and white and matte. These are all great brands in their own right, but arranged side by side on beauty shelves and counters, can be perceived as quite “samey” and interchangeable.

Although not afforded the same space, the newer and more entrepreneurial brands look very different on shelf and have started to answer women’s search for something that reflects these new beliefs and values to engage them in a less rigid and more all-encompassing way.

Balmshell (shown above) hit U.S. shelves last summer, a new lipgloss designed to promote awareness of breast cancer but inspired by and packaged like the popular float art pen of the ’70s. Like every woman, each Balmshell gloss has a unique personality—“Yummy Mummy,” “Weekend in the Hamptons” and “Shopaholic” to name but a few—and each personality comes in a distinctively packaged tube that contains a moving illustration unique to each shade and story line. When the lipgloss is done, the handle can be unscrewed and re-attached to the keychain provided with the product.

We could argue that although Balmshell is claiming to target each and every woman, not all will fit into the eight types on offer. It may also be a slightly gimmicky execution. Co-creator identical twin sisters Jennifer and Fiona Lees had no cosmetic experience, just a love of lipgloss, and wanted to put on shelf what they wanted to buy. They have injected their product with color, humor, flexibility, style and movement, and for this direct, human and woman-to-woman approach, we can only salute them.

Other brands have dared to be different by trying to establish their own cues and visual language. The new Auto-Pilot range, from leading Australian make-up artist Napoleon Perdis, uses sharp black and white graphic imagery more akin to the male grooming or hair care sectors, with the focus on a retro image of an Amelia Earhart type female aviator character—a strong and iconic female figure with potentially universal appeal. It doesn’t have Napoleon’s name stamped all over it and it doesn’t look like a makeup brand. Perhaps this is what makes it intriguing.

New brands such as Balmshell and Napoleon Perdis have bravely tried to shift the axis the cosmetics world turns on and are benefiting as a result. The established brands from the major cosmetics houses need to take a leaf from their books if they, too, wish to keep abreast of the changing dynamics and pressures being brought to bear by the wider industry as mentioned above.

Perfect Imperfection

We can draw a parallel with the rise of organics to show how receptive today’s consumer is to change and the new face of brands that consumers are now happily buying into.

Organic food was presented to us as perfect in its imperfection. This helped change consumer perception and expectation about how products and brands could be presented, and has translated into the organic beauty sector. Ojan Tawaka, an organic “wild-crafted” brand with ingredients derived from the rainforests, has recently launched its latest product: Ojan Tribal Rejuvenating Cream. The cream comes in a plain white pot with black scripted name but rather than a throwaway box, the pot comes in a drawstring hemp bag. People will buy into it because product and packaging values are perfectly married, but more than this it is using texture, innovation and irregularity, rather than cardboard, straight lines and conformity. This brings us to the dynamic, sometimes unexpected and often chaotic landscape of the fragrance sector.

Fragrant Form

Fragrance has always broken, or rather set, its own rules particularly when it comes to materials, shape and structure. Jean-Paul Gaultier’s fragrance in a can really broke the mold to blatantly celebrate the curvy female form as did Karim Rashid’s design for Kenzo Amour; a colorful and sensuous “objet d’art,” unbranded and open to subjective interpretation. Similarly, recent launches such as DKNY’s Be Delicious Night (shown here) celebrate form and touch, play to all the senses and allow for both the impact of the first impression and a deeper and more appreciative relationship. Above all, the fragrance sector embraces the three-dimensional over the two-dimensional, and cosmetic brands should look and learn from their nearest and dearest.

Living Doll

Essentially, today’s consumer is open to change, design savvy and, in terms of how she looks and how the products she uses look, is embracing difference, irregularity and imperfection. It’s time for all cosmetic brands to acknowledge this and work with designers to craft this into their packaging. At the risk of eating my earlier words, Givenchy has recently broken away from its resolutely classic look. The company’s artistic director Nicolas Degennes was inspired by the relationship every woman has with a favorite pair of jeans— the pair that she loves so much they carry the marks of her life—for the new Spring/Summer ’08 Denim Fetiche Collection. Including the “Captiv’Eyes” mascara and eyeshadow palettes, the new collection is packaged in a dark “indigo denim” blue with the brand name highlighted in a lighter “true denim” blue with orange stitching outlining the palettes and mascara tube. In addition, the new season Rouge Interdit Satin Lipsticks have a jean belt loop tag as a design extra.

The jury may be out on this break from the norm, but it is a radical move for the brand in terms of attempting to tap into the lifestyle and mindset of each and every woman—a ready-to-wear collection with infinite possibilities for customization.

Maybe Givenchy isn’t being radical enough, but it’s a step in the right direction in terms of disrupting the look and feel of this sector and borrowing, or introducing, new design cues. To really connect with today’s woman, with all her complexities, this sector needs to start constructing a new visual language that moves away from the uniform and structured and revels in the asymmetrical, the imperfect and the tactile.

We are about to see a new type of cosmetic surgery emerge. Not a tightening and straightening of lines but a more fluid and amorphous way of shaping a brand’s look and personality. Make sure that you are not left behind and don’t come under the knife for the wrong reasons.

About the Author
Jonathan Ford is an award-winning designer and creative partner for Pearlfisher — a London and New York design consultancy. Pearlfisher’s award winning work in the luxury, food and drink markets includes clients such as LVMH, Absolut Vodka and Unilever. More info: jonathan@pearlfisher.com.