British Beauty Council Ambassador, Marcia Kilgore, has carved a unique space in the beauty industry and beyond. Here’s her advice for keeping business alive
From taking the plunge and giving facials to her personal training clients whilst at university to undermining beauty mark-ups with Beauty Pie, you could say Kilgore’s rise has been meteoric. However, what’s clear is that it’s a product of unmatched drive – and knowing her customer – that’s brought her to the top.
Opening the Financial Times Women in Business Summit, Kilgore took to the stage for a keynote interview that uncovered her unique entrepreneurship, and agility in business. Here were the key takeaways:
Don’t be pushy, and always have the customer’s interest at heart
Kilgore admits to always searching for how to enhance the customer experience even when she was babysitting at a young age. And, making sure the customer comes first is key to building success.
‘So many people take our eye off that in the quest for profits or cost-cutting sometimes we remove quality. I would always stay half an hour longer, or bring something thoughtful to those early facials. I was always thinking about the customer and I could extend their experience beyond the service that it was,’ she said.
Be ready for competition and find your USP
We all know how crowded the beauty market has become with new launches, celebrity-endorsed brands, and innovative ingredients. So, what’s Marcia’s pearl of wisdom when it comes to launching into the space?
‘It’s pretty crowded out there… so you have to have a unique selling point to go in. You have to also remember that people have less and less time these days. So, that splintering of attention has made it even harder for a lot of companies.
‘It’s so much work, anyone in the beauty industry knows it’s exhausting to compete in such a crowded field. So, if you aren’t ready to do that, and everything that comes along with it, you will just have to give up.’
Be fluid and test marketing budgets all of the time
One of the biggest challenges facing beauty businesses today is social media and the inherent, and increasing, cost that comes with it. Kilgore grapples with the ever-changing world of influencers by staying agile.
‘Beauty Pie’s marketing budget is fluid, we have a certain amount but we test all of the time how we place it. We always say, fire a bullet before you fire a cannon ball. If you test something, and it works, you just have to be ready to move and change.
‘There is no wait and see – you have to be flexible, or you die.’
Image: Financial Times Live
