After making cosmetics available to the general public through cyberspace last year, Beautyjungle.com wants to get a piece of the more glamorous – and potentially more lucrative – business-to-business market.
As a first step, the Indianapolis-based concern formed an alliance with the Chain Drugstore Marketing Association (CDMA), which helps 5,500 small and medium-sized drugstores procure products.
Early this summer, Beautyjungle will develop and operate a B-to-B commercial Web site providing information and access to more than 5,000 cosmetic items. Stores will be able to place orders of any size that can be processed and delivered, often in 24 hours. The company will fulfill orders and provide customer service from its distribution center in Indianapolis and through partnerships with existing distributors in the beauty industry, says Ed LaHood, Beautyjungle’s CEO.
“For many small-to-midsize drugstores, the cosmetics department is continually plagued by high out-of-stock levels and limited access to new products and information,” says LaHood. “This e-market will simplify their ordering process, deliver a wide array of products and help them make more informed decisions for their cosmetics category.” It will also “help CDMA members enhance their return on investment by improving revenue and inventory turnover levels,” he adds.
Until Beautyjungle’s new site goes live, CDMA members will have 24-hour access to customer service and be able to place orders by phone or fax. The e-marketplace will link to the CDMA community Web site (www.chaindrug.com).
To promote the new service, the firm plans to run ads in beauty trade magazines, send out prospecting direct mail and exhibit at trade shows. And it will use telemarketing to help scout out more partnerships.
LaHood declines to project revenue from the venture except to say the firm wants to get a piece of the $34 billion annual market in wholesale cosmetics. At the same time, it isn’t ignoring its consumer side. It’s preparing to kick off a linking arrangement with a teen-oriented Web site in the near future.
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