Last May, QVC and HSN launched a pitch competition for entrepreneurs in beauty, jewelry, accessories, apparel, and footwear, as Cosmetics Design reported.
For 2020, The Big Find has been reinvented as a digital event and expanded to nine categories with the addition of home décor, home innovation, electronics, and culinary (which includes foods).
QVC and HSN adapt to meet founder and consumer needs during the Coronavirus pandemic
“During the current Coronavirus crisis, Qurate [the company that owns QVC and HSN] has adjusted operation across the board to keep employees safe, consumers satisfied, and brands in business. This has, among other things, meant a change in the product mix and programming on QVC,” as this publication noted in April in an article about the Adesse New York brand’s QVC debut, featuring the Intensive Nail Defense trio.
And now, the decision to shift The Big Find from a live pitch competition to a virtual one, as well as the addition of four new pitch categories are a direct response to the virus crisis as well.
“The Big Find pitch panel experience has been reimagined as an entirely virtual event to allow for safe and convenient engagement between vendors and QVC and HSN judges,” explains this month’s press release about The Big Find.
And the release goes on to say that the, “expansion into the four new categories is due, in part, to extraordinary growth in these categories. Shoppers’ buying habits shifted during the last several months of restricted activities and products in the category of ‘home essentials’ including home office, food and storage, tech resources and beautification of home have become shoppers’ primary interest.”
QVC and HSN offer big retail opportunities to beauty brands
In 2019, The Big Find competition attracted over 650 entries from across the US and around the world. And some 65 brands were chosen to debut their products on air. Beauty brands that won last year’s competition include Alkaglam, Mented Cosmetics, Follain, and Dabble and Dollop. The 2020, edition of The Big Find is, according to the press release, expected to discover even more brands.
“Our business has always been rooted in discovering and nurturing authentic, emerging brands, and our customers have really enjoyed getting to know the many inspiring entrepreneurs and products we discovered through last year’s Big Find,” says Mary Campbell, Chief Merchandising Officer at Qurate Retail Group and the Chief Commerce Officer for QVC US.
“We’re excited,” she says in the release, “about building on that success with this year’s search. By adding new categories, we look forward to creating even more opportunities for entrepreneurs with unique products and compelling stories to work with us in curating differentiated product experiences for our customers.”
What beauty brand’s need to know before applying to The Big Find
According to QVC.com, the beauty categories that this year’s panelists will be looking for include skin care and skin care tools, color cosmetics, nail care, lash products, bath and body care, hair care, hair tools, and fragrance.
This year’s application deadline is August 19. A video (2 minutes or less) is required with each application. Qualifying applicants will pitch a panel of QVC and HSN experts via video conference in September. And Big Ticket winners will proceed with meetings and quality assurance checks before being selected (or rejected) for an on-air product launch. Learn more about The Big Find and find a link apply here on QVC.com.
