ESCADA BEAUTE WARMS UP FOR ANOTHER SEASONAL PITCH
Byline: Alev Aktar
PARIS — Escada Beaute is set to play the summer game again.
In April, the company will launch a women’s scent, Ocean Blue, with plans to sell it only through September. The scent will be the third in a series of limited edition eaux de toilette, Ocean Blue follows Chiffon Sorbet, sold in the summer of 1993, and Summer in Provence, last year’s version of what Escada calls “fashion fragrances.”
The seasonal brands are inspired by motifs in Escada’s apparel; Ocean Blue is a theme in this year’s spring-summer collection.
The new fragrance will be marketed internationally with two ancillary products and backed with advertising in Europe — a first for the summer-only scents, according to Sophie Rouet, international director of marketing at Escada Beaute.
In France, the line includes two sizes of eau de toilette — a 50-ml. spray for $43 (225 francs) and a 100-ml. version for $61 (315 francs) — as well as a bath gel, $19 (100 francs) for a 150 ml.-bottle, and body lotion, $22 (115 francs) for the same size. In some markets, including the U.S., Escada also will offer a 30-ml. eau de toilette for $35.
The company is planning an initial shipment of 800,000 units, according to Rouet. She noted a second order will follow if the first shipment sells out.
Claude Palatin, president of Escada Beaute, said Ocean Blue’s wholesale volume should hit $9.6 million to $11.5 million (50 million to 60 million francs), or 15 to 20 percent of the company’s worldwide sales.
In 1994, the company sold 650,000 units of Summer in Provence eau de toilette. Escada tested a Summer in Provence bath gel and body lotion in Germany and the U.S., but did not roll them out worldwide.
Ocean Blue’s light, fruity aquatic fragrance was developed by Creations Aromatiques. The bluish green bottle is housed in a carton patterned with sea horses, starfish and other sea dwellers.
In addition, Escada has developed new promotional products such as perfumed, plaster fish and other water creatures, used to scent clothing or car interiors, and soaps shaped like fish and shells. Both items will be given away solo or in groups of three.
These products join a wide assortment of other promotional items, including a beach umbrella, beach bag and a pareo patterned with the Ocean Blue design.