Beaute Prestige to expand India retail base

Beaute Prestige International S A (BPI), the fragrance arm of the world's largest cosmetic company, Shisiedo, is planning to throw open its retail doors for India. The owner of 10 best selling fragrance brands in the world, BPI has 12 retails outlets in cities like Mumbai, Bangalore, Delhi and Kolkata.

The company plans 23 more retail stores spreading across all major cities in the country, by the end of this year. The multinational company along with its Mumbai-based distributor, Baccarose Perfumes & Beauty Products Ltd, is currently holding talks with leading malls and department stores in various cities in the country.

BPI's Operational Marketing Group manager- Stephanie Fiederer, told  Business Standard that India and China are the two fast growing markets for the company in Asia after Japan.

"In order to concentrate more in these two markets, the company recently opened a direct marketing office in Singapore," she informed. Stephanie was in Mumbai to launch their largest selling brand - L'Eau Bleue d'Issey pour Homme by Issey Miyake, in India.

Speaking about the company's plans for India, Stephanie said: "since our products are falling under the premium segment, the company's main target customer group is the upper middle-class.

In India, this customer segment is expanding now with increased purchasing power. In addition, the customer awareness about global luxury brands in India is also on a rise. We want to tap these market opportunities by making the world's best brands available in India."

BPI SA, based in Paris, was formed by the leading Japanese cosmetics firm Shiseido.

In addition to being sole BPI shareholder, the Shiseido group is the number one cosmetics firm in Japan and Asia and is ranked number four worldwide.

Shiseido created BPI S A in order to diversify its business through a stronger presence in the luxury fragrance sector. Shiseido has assigned BPI for designing, manufacturing, and distributing fragrances signed by world-renowned fashion designers in international markets.

BPI currently has licenses for the Issey Miyake, Jean Paul Gaultier, and Narciso Rodriguez labels. Each product line echoes the unique style of the designer it represents.

BPI has currently over 100 agents throughout the world and enjoying 3 per cent market share in the $68 billion world fragarnce market. A BPI product is sold every second in the world.

"The mission of BPI is to make the spirit of top fashion designers a lasting legacy on the fragrance and cosmetics market and it has gained reputation on the market through its ability to understand and translate into fragrances the values, spirit and very essence of the designers it represents," said Stephanie.