Hair care brand Amika has a new retail partner.
The brand is expanding into all Ulta Beauty doors on Dec. 1, marking its second specialty retail partnership beyond its existing distribution with Sephora and in the professional channel.
It comes on the heels of a few key launches from the brand, including its most recent hair and body mist launch. “We’ve also had some amazing launches this year — a lot of incredible treatments, which we’re calling treatment-styling hybrid products,” said Chelsea Riggs, the brand’s chief executive officer. “Our other big launch was our frizz collection, which has been bananas ever since we launched it.”
Similarly, the brand’s growth in the pro channel has given it the confidence to further expand distribution. “We’re helping stylists create more of an emotional experience for their clients in salons,” said Nilofer Vahora, the brand’s chief marketing officer, particularly of the mist.
“For the brand’s first seven years, we were exclusive with our hair care line in salons, and we had a partnership with Sephora that dates back to 2011 with our hair tools. We always saw that connection, the push and pull of what’s happening with consumer awareness and the credibility that that partnership brings really halos and grows all other channels,” Riggs said. “Ulta has always had a very strong hair business because of the salon, and we’re a salon brand at the end of the day, it’s how we’ve built everything around us.
“Ulta came with an incredible opportunity as they were looking to invest in their special sauce, which is this blend of bringing a different retail experience with a salon point of view. We also meet all five of their Conscious Beauty pillars,” Riggs continued.
Ulta has had a slew of high-profile launches in the hair category this year, from Beyoncé Knowles-Carter’s Cécred to Shakira’s Isima and legacy players like Moroccanoil. “The category is absolutely thriving,” said Shianna Davey, vice president of merchandising at the retailer. “When you think about hair care, tools, color, the entire category is on fire and it’s a category our guests are extremely engaged in. We have a big piece of market share.”
Davey said demand for the brand had reached a fever pitch, and timing the launch to the holiday season was imperative. “It’s right after Black Friday, it’s going to get custom merchandising at the front of stores,” Davey said. “It’ll be in every single store, it’ll be customized with fun activations, window banners, front-of-store tables.”
Digital marketing, in addition to Ulta’s magazine, will also help amplify the launch. “We’re talking to the guests where they are, how they’re shopping, making sure it’s for everybody,” said Davey. “When we think about new brands we want to bring to Ulta, we think about growing the pie overall, growing alongside the brand. And we’re also getting new guests to come to Ulta.”
On the brand side, pro-level education will take the fore. “Our products are for all hair types, textures and styles,” said Vahora. “When [guests] have that moment of joyful discovery, that turns into a combination of trial and routines and immense amount of advocacy for us. A big part of the strategy is to focus on the beauty advisers and those salons to fuel the flywheel.”
The brand is spread across age groups, demographics, ethnicities and hairstyles, Vahora said, adding that it over-indexes in the Latin and Black communities. “We love that Ulta brings a diverse customer that’s there shopping for hair care. It gives us an opportunity to bring some of our broader breadth of products to that customer.”
