Website Closers® presents an established, international Beauty brand making waves with its eyelash products and accessories. The brand has become very well known in the growing eyelash segment and has been featured in Vanity Fair, Cosmopolitan, Extra and Glamour magazines. They also have a large following on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok.
Consumers are becoming increasingly beauty conscious and concerned with appearing more presentable. Lash extensions help them accomplish this by giving natural eyelashes more volume and thickness. Increasing the application of makeup to enhance looks during wedding functions, fashion shows, and festive occasions has fueled the usage of these products, and projections indicate no signs of the trend slowing down.
Operations
This company’s primary market is the US, accounting for over half of sales, followed by Canada, the UK, Australia, and Europe. The products are sourced from suppliers in Asia with whom the owners have developed excellent relationships.
The business makes use of a 100% stock inventory model and maintains between $200,000 and $250,000 on hand throughout the year. Inventory turnover varies between products but is typically kept below six months for non-cosmetic products and three months for cosmetics with an expiry date. Orders are placed every four to twelve weeks, and the owners have negotiated favorable payment terms with the supplier of their best-selling SKUs.
Ninety percent of merchandise is stocked at 3PL facilities in the US, UK, Australia, and the Netherlands, while the remainder is in Amazon facilities. The logistics companies pack products for FBA, negating the need for the business to warehouse any stock personally. These companies are familiar with the products and advise management of any issues. Fortunately, there rarely are, given the reliable suppliers and product quality. Around 200 orders are shipped to customers daily.
Marketing
The digital marketing strategy is diverse and encompasses various methods, targeting the typical female customer between 20 and 40. Traffic is driven to the Shopify-built website from Facebook and Instagram ads, emails, organic social media posts, SMS marketing, affiliates, and SEO. Subscriptions, referral, and rewards programs, as well as TikTok, YouTube, and Pinterest ads, complete the picture. Amazon listings rely chiefly on Sponsored Ads.
The company’s head of marketing and head ad buyer manage the company’s marketing efforts. In addition to them, the company has an agency perform SEO, website management (development) and Google ads. Another agency manages emails. And the company is in the middle of the hiring process for a new contractor to manage Amazon FBA sales and marketing.
The company is also in the process of looking for a wholesale rep who will be hired to continue to grow that side of the business. After having a large retailer approach the company and take them on board as a supplier (JC Penney), they realized that wholesale is a very big potential (as well as having very profitable margins).
The business enjoys robust sales throughout the year without depending on seasonality but does enjoy a healthy peak in Q4 due to Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and Christmas shopping.
Human Resources
The owners endure a light workload of around eight hours combined weekly. One focuses primarily on meeting with the head of marketing and general admin, while the other handles financials. A proficient team is in place, most of whom have been with the brand for many years. They work in the following capacities:
- The Head of Marketing and Operations
- The Head of Product Development also manages influencers and sources content
- A Social Media Manager controls organic social media and films content
- A Media Buyer
- A Graphic Designer
- Three Customer Service and Admin staff
All employees and contractors are very capable and/or have been with the company for a long time, so have a lot of autonomy. Employee 1 is the central hub and coordinates pretty much everything. She plans & coordinates all media activities, promotions, product launches, emails, website, etc. She does weekly calls with Employee 2, 3, and 4, the email agency and the agency managing the website, SEO and Google ads. Most tasks are managed in Asana.
The Customer Service team (Outsourced contractors) work in shifts to cover 24/7 customer service. The company prides itself on providing amazing, timely and customized customer service. This staff has been with the company for years and need next to no management for things to run smoothly.
One of our contractors also handles stock. She maintains stock levels across the 4 3PL’s and alerts ownership to when stock needs to be ordered. Once approved, she handles the ordering with suppliers. She also coordinates stock delivery into the warehouses. Most communication with suppliers is done through Whatsapp.
The Future
The focus on continually improving and refining the business does not stop there. Management constantly reviews and updates everything on the website. The next noteworthy project, which has been in development for eight months, is expected to be launched soon. It is an AI virtual lash try-on that will be a game-changer for the customer shopping experience and undoubtedly boost conversions.
The company also has products in development that will not influence the value of the business being sold. A buyer can continue to launch these products at their discretion.
This acquisition opportunity is ideal for a new owner to step into an established brand and continue to build upon its success.
