As consumer attitudes towards buying beauty products begins to normalize, brands are forging onwards. Subsequently, CEW Beauty News reached out to four beauty brands to discuss the how, the why and the challenges behind launching product during a pandemic. Here, our final story in this series, featuring Charlotte Cho, co-founder of Soko Glam, a digital curator and retailer for all things K-beauty, and the founder of indie skin care brand Then I Met You. Here, Charlotte discusses how the team at Then I Met You has evolved their selling strategies for new launches; online sales trends; supply chain disruptions; budgets; changes in customer engagement; and how she thinks COVID-19 will affect the beauty industry.

On Shifting Selling Strategies for New Launches…

“D2C brands Then I Met You and Soko Glam are sold on our own online platform and not reliant on retail partnerships, so our focus and launches have always been digital. For example, with the launch of our Calming Tide Gel Cream on March 27 and our Honey Dew Lip Mask on May 1, we utilized digital tools and social media to continue pulsing out news rather than delaying. Initially we thought about delaying the announcements but we wanted to share what we’ve been working so hard on, in the hopes of inspiring our community to push through, as well.⁠ The feedback has been great, with many people sharing their excitement in the launch and how news of our launches has brought joy to their day.

Instead of a in-real-life event we had planned for April in New York, we’ve introduced “Time With Then I Met You” a dedicated virtual meet-up with our community to discuss the concept of jeong, which is a deep and emotional connection you can have with someone and is the ethos of our brand. We received hundreds of RSVP’s so we had to split the groups into dozens of sessions in order to maintain the intimacy we had envisioned. As the founder of the brand, I hosted every single one and it was a great opportunity to connect with people personally, especially with our international community who may not get the opportunity to engage with us in real life. From sharing poems to expressing how we are each getting through this time, it was a unique moment to share stories, encourage each other and lift each other up. I felt this was a much more powerful channel than Instagram Live, which often focuses on the influencer or single person sharing their thoughts, and not a collective moment to hear stories from everyone.

For the launch of the Honey Dew Lip Mask, we also wanted to take this moment to go one step further to show jeong especially as it relates to the pandemic we are facing. With several of our own family members serving as essential non-healthcare workers, we wanted to show empathy and support for them during this pandemic. We donated 100 percent of proceeds from the product to the Amalgamated Foundation’s Families and Workers Funds. Through this initiative, we hope to provide some relief to low income workers and their families that are on the frontlines.”

On Online Sales Trends…

“We’re exceeding our goals, and business is growing due to the rising interest in skin care and consumer behavior shifting to shop solely online for skin care solutions and rituals. The trends in this new world we are experiencing will be centered on fulfilling absolute needs and not something fleeting or trendy that doesn’t serve a purpose. Now is not the time to be overwhelmed with choices, but instead, we want to be given thoughtful and intentional rituals and routines that bring comfort to our lives at home in this ‘new normal.’”

On Supply Chain Disruptions…

“We have always owned and controlled our own online platform that does not rely on brick and mortar sales or partnerships with other retailers, so we are still able to service and continue to build relationships with our community directly without minimal negative impact to supply chain or revenue.”

On How Covid Has Affected Budgets…

“Brands we curate are still optimistic in continuing conversations forward, but are definitely exercising caution. We’ve always believed in building and investing in our digital platform and community by providing skin care education through our skin care guide, The Klog, and Skin Concierge, our digital skin consultation service, which we started providing years ago. We knew that this long-term investment would give us the ability to pivot quickly and adapt to a world that is changing daily, and even hourly.”

On Changes in Customer Engagement…

“Our community has given us direct feedback that Calming Tide Gel Cream and Honey Dew Lip Mask have lifted their spirits. Our Time with Then I Met You’meet-ups provided our community a place to connect with others and share raw stories about our experiences while quarantining. On Instagram, we hosted a Mother’s Day giveaway encouraging our community to share a #jeongmoment that they have experienced in a relationship with their mom or another family figure and we received beautiful stories as a result. It’s important to Then I Met You that we live up to our ethos of jeong, and we’re so thankful to have this emotional connection with our community.”

On How Covid Will Affect the Beauty Industry…

“I believe there will be less focus on makeup, and more focus on skin care. With the changing requirements and the new normal of wearing masks and less face-to-face interactions, there will be more of a focus on eye and brow makeup, rather than lipstick. As a whole, there will be a greater commitment and interest in skin care rituals, as it will be linked to self-care and wellness and used as a moment of daily meditation and comfort.

Behaviors will change all across the board, as we will be more cautious about entering retailers and using testers, and may not find shopping in aisles at physical stores with a mask on an enjoyable experience. The experience of shopping for beauty bought in-store, will frankly never be the same. All signs point to a surge in discovery and exploration of products online, rather than in-store.”