Rapidly growing skin care brand Naturium is expanding its retail footprint by launching its product line at beauty retailer Ulta Beauty. The move comes nine months after Naturium was acquired by e.l.f. Beauty for $355 million in a cash and stock deal, as reported by e.l.f.
According to the press release, Naturium skin and body care products "will be available in all 1,400 Ulta Beauty stores nationwide and will offer the largest assortment of skin, body and lip care in retail for the brand, to date."
Marketing & promotional initiatives
Tarang P. Amin, CEO of e.l.f. Beauty announced the expansion during the company's 2024 Q4 earnings call, stating, "From a distribution standpoint in the U.S., Naturium is currently available in Target, Amazon, and on Naturium.com," and "we're pleased to announce that we'll be launching Naturium in Ulta Beauty for the first time in summer 2024," the company reported. This strategic move is expected to leverage e.l.f. Beauty's existing strengths and enhance its market presence in the skin care segment, where it currently holds less than 2% market share compared to its 10.5% share in cosmetics, a press release from August 2023 confirmed.
The release further detailed that "the partnership between Naturium and Ulta Beauty stems from the brand's strategy of 'Skin care for Everywhere,'" designed to fill "a whitespace for offering clinically effective skin care at masstige, accessible price points." The joint effort between Naturium and Ulta Beauty will be promoted via "social and media content, events, influencer campaigns, and e-commerce as well as in-store touch points including displays and beauty advisor education," the release said.
Expansion details & strategic implications
Founded in 2019, Naturium has made significant strides in the beauty industry with its high-performance, affordable skin care products. As part of the partnership, Penny Coy, Senior Vice President of Merchandising, Ulta Beauty said in a press statement that "we look forward to introducing exclusive innovative launches, such as the The Glow Getter Body Oil, an extension of one of the brand's best selling body washes, and celebrating the like-minded mission of delivering high -performance and clinically-effective skin care for all, as the key partner in Naturium's next phase of growth."
Therefore, Naturium's expansion into Ulta Beauty is part of a larger initiative to increase its market share in the skin care segment. Amin emphasized in e.l.f. Beauty's 2024 Q4 earnings call that "we're also innovating in the industry's top segments, where we under-index on shares like skin care," adding that" while we've tripled our market share over the last five years, we remain significantly underpenetrated today."
As a result, this partnership marks a significant milestone for both Naturium and Ulta Beauty, providing greater accessibility to high-performance skin care products for consumers nationwide. As Susan Yara, founder of Naturium, shared in a media statement, "this partnership will give us the opportunity to offer a larger selection of products in store, so they're even more accessible and easy to purchase." This aligns with Ulta Beauty's commitment to offering diverse and innovative beauty solutions, further solidifying its position as a leading retailer in the beauty industry.
The release confirmed that Naturium will be available to shop in all 1,400 Ulta Beauty stores nationwide and on Ulta.com starting July 14. The assortment ranges from $10 to $32.
