Premium Beauty News - You became the Director of Feelunique.com in January 2014 to contribute to its development in Europe, and in particular in France. What made you decide to take control of the company?
Joël Palix - Feelunique was created in 2005 in Jersey and counts ten million subscribers today. E-commerce represents 4% of the market in France, 8% in the UK, and 10% in Germany. It is estimated to reach 20% in 2020. Feelunique’s website is one of the pioneers in this sector, and it has a huge potential.
Premium Beauty News - What are the advantages of the site?
Joël Palix - The diversity of the brands, the service quality, the fact that different segments are represented – makeup, hair care, perfumery –, our international presence in 100 countries in Europe and the rest of the world… We have approximately 500 brands and over 17,000 products referenced, we cover all European countries, but also the United States, China, and Russia, and we even offer free delivery on orders over €15. In addition, customers can get personal help throughout the process, thanks to our beauty questionnaire or their history records. We will also launch our Try Me application before the end of the year, so they can be reassured when making choices. If they order a new product, they can receive a sample to test it, and then keep it or return it if they do not like it. It is important to be able to try the product, especially perfumes. As for their favourite products, our Subscription offer makes it possible to have them sent on a regular basis depending on the frequency of use, without having to order them. We are very keen to make the purchasing act as simple as possible.
Premium Beauty News - What does the French website add to the English version?
Joël Palix - The French version has been operational for two years, but right now deliveries are sent from the UK. We are hoping to open a subsidiary in France at the beginning of 2016. For this dedicated version, we have tailored our offering to the market: it does feature French brands, but the very trendy theme of British beauty has also been highlighted, with a selection of 55 So British! niche brands, including Nailsinc, Thisworks, bagsy, Miller Harris, TIGI, Topshop Beauty, Elemis, Sarah Chapman, Cowshed… With a turnover of €100 million expected in 2015, we aim for France to become our second market, after the UK.
Premium Beauty News - What is Feelunique.com’s target?
Joël Palix - We target a generation of hyper-connected women under 30. They usually favour online shopping, as it is faster and it corresponds to their own culture. They often know more about products than sales assistants in stores. Beauty is a topic that is widely discussed online. So of course, we are very present on social networks. As a matter of fact, we have just launched – it is an exclusivity – the makeup brand founded by Fleur de Force, a beauty blogger and YouTuber that is extremely popular in the UK, with 4 million views a month.
