Sephora Marketing

Marketing Plan Project

Topic Proposals

Group Members:

Shail Shah 5810536

Shahriar Soudian 5588157

Dimple Yarlagadda 5890724

Nicole Tracey 5772314

Ritika Jain 5883251

January 31st 2017

Group Member Name: Dimple Yarlagadda

1. Proposed Topic: Sephora and Urban Decay

Marketing issue(s) faced by the organization:

Sephora is a highly popular cosmetic store that carries other popular brands such as Urban Decay, Smashbox, BareMinerals, Huda beauty, Kat Von D, and etc. Urban decay decided to release a new eye shadow palette called AfterDark which contained a specific eye shadow color called Druggie. Many consumers were offended by this name choice since they thought it wasn’t an appropriate name to use especially during this era. Most consumers were offended because they knew a person that has lost their life to drug overuse and typically, these people were called “druggies.” This wasn’t the first product that Sephora has sold in their stores where the names were not appropriate or offended many consumers. Some consumers may also not think it is appropriate because of the specific era. There seem to be many teenagers and young adults who start to use drugs at an early age and have overdosed and eventually lost their life. Therefore, customers believe that the word, “druggie,” should not be used lightly or to “glamorize.” Sephora has also replied a to company called Facing Addiction on Twitter about their petition against the name. However, their response was only an apology and did not state that any action would be taken. Since this isn’t the first time Sephora or Urban Decay have used inappropriate names for their products, customers are starting to not use their newer products.

List of sources used in developing topic:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/sephora-urban-decays-dehumanizing-marketing-effort_us_587c030ae4b077a19d180f01

https://globalcosmeticsnews.com/north-america/3897/sephora-faces-consumer-backlash-over-urban-decay-druggie-eyeshadow

Group Member Name: Nicole Tracey
2. Proposed Topic: The Condiment Wars between Heinz and French’s

Heinz major cost cutting effort turned away countless loyal customers as some bad news broke out. H.J. Heinz Co gathered their employees together to shut down their plant ending over a century worth of ketchup making in Leamington, Ontario. The devastating loss of the towns Heinz plant cost 740 jobs to be cut. So many were shocked that such a big company could stop using Canadian ingredients. Highbury Canco Corporation took over the plant in June 2014 and later signed a contract with French’s. The French’s company has promised to use only local tomatoes in ketchup sold in Canada. Canadians like the move as they spread their passion for the local products to switch over to French’s ketchup. As they competed with lower-priced tomatoes from California there was potential French’s could buy triple the volume of tomato paste the next year. Orillia man, Brian Fernandez posted his support for the French’s ketchup on Facebook on Tuesday, along with the reasons he would pick it over Heinz. By Sunday evening, it had been shared more than 115,000 times. Days after his post, Fernandez went into an Orillia grocery store to stock up on milk. He walked past the ketchup display. Every bottle of French’s was sold out. French’s rolled out a new marketing campaign positioning themselves as the natural, local condiment alternative, free from additives, high fructose corn syrup and gluten.  Today’s consumers want things local. French’s Food Corporation best known for its mustard once struggled to challenge Heinz’s market. Little did Heinz know their Canadian success would slide right into the hands of one of their biggest competitors.

List of source(s) used in developing topic:

http://news.nationalpost.com/news/canada/bye-bye-heinz-frenchs-ketchup-sells-out-after-online-post-praising-it-and-its-ontario-grown-tomatoes

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/heinz-to-close-ontario-plant-cut-800-jobs/article15442338/

http://business.financialpost.com/news/retail-marketing/condiment-wars-how-canadian-nationalism-helped-a-u-k-owned-corporate-giants-quest-to-be-ketchup-king

Group Member Name: Shahriar Soudian

3. Proposed Topic: HMV

HMV, once an industry leader, have been put into state of receivership by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice. This news was announced on Saturday Jan, 28th, 2017, which did not receive much sympathy. HMV has been struggling in the past years yet simultaneously opened new stores in new locations with hopes of getting some revenue back. According to the court fillings, if HMV wants to pursue the business with their stores open, they need 2 million dollars now and 5 million dollars every year in financial support. The fact that the company has been losing 100,000 $ on a daily-basis, is primarily linked to customers switching to the online segment of the music industry. Giant companies such as Spotify and Tidal or live stream options like YouTube or Apple Music have taken the lead in past years. HMV’s wrong marketing approaches did not prevent any losses and in fact worsened the situation. For instance, a website that was created by HMV for customers to buy CDs or DVDs online could not compete with other venues in which customers could watch or listen to the same content online with the same cost. Lack of new and innovative trends and a major shift in customer needs may be the two of the reasons that music is physically is going to die on April 30th, 2017.