Beauty / news
Wella Company chases travel retail growth with haircare and O.P.I. nails
Wella Company is pushing deeper into travel retail behind Wella Professionals and premium nail label O.P.I., with haircare outpacing the wider perfumes and cosmetics category. The company says it has booked triple-digit growth with some retail partners as shoppers trade up from mass products to premium treatments.
Luis Blanco Álvarez, Wella Company's head of global travel retail and visual merchandising, describes the company as a relative newcomer to the channel but an ambitious one, pointing to the pace of its growth in recent years as reason for confidence.
Haircare, he says, has been growing faster than the broader perfumes and cosmetics category in travel retail, as shoppers upgrade their routines with higher-performing treatments and shift from mass-market lines into premium offers.
That shift is showing up in the company's own numbers, with Wella Company reporting triple-digit growth with some of its retail partners in the channel.
The growth plan rests on three pillars: product innovation, travel retail exclusives and experiential retail, including a motorsport-inspired shopping concept designed to draw travellers in and lift engagement at the point of sale.
The portfolio pitched at travelling shoppers spans Wella Professionals premium hair treatments and O.P.I., which Wella Company positions as a premium nail brand.
Blanco Álvarez sees substantial headroom remaining in travel retail, framing category growth and shopper engagement as the centre of the company's agenda for the channel.