When it comes to fashion and beauty trends, magazine editors still wield considerable influence. They help determine which shades, styles, and trends will be in season, then show readers how to make those looks work. Such influences can powerfully determine what consumers buy, which suggests a seemingly obvious notion: Why not develop a retail concept that only sells what these experts recommend?

The new stores being opened by the publisher of Allure magazine reflect just that idea. Conde Nast already is an extensive conglomerate, but it is branching out into physical retail, starting with a 2,900-square-foot store in Manhattan. The store design will reflect the beauty magazine’s layout, featuring sections for hair care, cosmetics, and skin care, along with a dedicated section for winners of Allure’s “Best of Beauty Awards.” The in-store retail assortment will be determined and curated by Allure’s beauty editors, who also will make personal appearances to host tutorials and special events.

This expansion to a brick-and-mortar store also might be seen as an expansion to Allure’s existing retail efforts, including a popular subscription box service. With this offering, its editors already gained experience curating offerings for interested readers and consumers. The subscriptions have proved highly effective, earning 20 percent revenue increases compared with previous year sales.

Allure’s website also has experienced greater traffic, mainly linked to people seeking beauty advice and recommendations. These increasing numbers of visitors also spend more time on the site, compared with previous annual measures. In this sense, the magazine already knows how to interact with consumers to provide them with the insights they seek.

Linking all these factors together, the new physical location also will feature smart mirrors and augmented reality features, to help shoppers experiment with various looks and share them with friends. In this way, the influence exerted by the expert beauty editors can be spread and extended by consumers who seek to gain their own influence among their friends or social media followers. In this growing flow of influence, a recommendation by a single Allure editor, shared in the magazine, website, subscription box, and store, might rapidly become a purchasing trend for millions of beauty consumers.

Discussion Question:

1. Is Allure’s retail location likely to be as successful as its subscription box? Why or why not?
2. Why did Allure choose to open its first store in Manhattan?

Source: Tom Ryan, “Will Allure Editors Outdo Other Beauty Merchandisers with a New Store Concept?” Retail Wire, February 2, 2021