The FINANCIAL — The popularity of the tan is growing day by day, frequent lovers of the tan are Paris Hilton, Britney Spears, Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise. According to Nino Nodia, PR Manager of the leading shop chain Voulez-Vous, tanning creams and sun protection factor (SPF) creams are fast becoming the best sellers of the summer period.
“Summer is the one of the four seasons which has the warmest and longest days. More people are on holiday and in the mood for getting a tan. The growing popularity of the tan may cause overexposure. To avoid sunburn or excessive exposure, staying out of direct sunlight is the primary defense. If long sun exposure cannot be avoided or is desired one may use sunscreen or various over-the-counter creams to reduce sun exposure. The SPF (Sun Protection Factor) number on a sunscreen product shows its rated effectiveness. Products with a higher SPF number are those designed to provide more defense for the skin against the effects of solar radiation,” Nodia declared to The FINANCIAL.
In Nodia’s words, tanning oils or creams, when applied, are usually thicker on some parts of skin than on others. This causes some parts of the skin to get more UVA and UVB rays than others and thus sunburns can occur.
“For those who choose to tan, some dermatologists recommend the following preventative measures: make sure the sunscreen blocks both UVA and UVB rays, sunscreen needs to be applied thickly enough to make a difference. People often do not put on enough sunscreen to get the full SPF protection. In case of uncertainty about how much of the product to use, or discomfort with the amount applied, switching to a sunscreen with a higher SPF may help. Be aware that reflective surfaces like snow and water can greatly increase the amount of UV radiation to which the skin is exposed,” Nodia said.
According to research, it has been shown that the best protection is achieved by application 15 to 30 minutes before exposure, followed by one reapplication 15 to 30 minutes after the sun exposure begins. Further reapplication is only necessary after activities such as swimming, sweating or rubbing of the skin.
In the leading perfume stores of the country the prices of sun protection creams range from GEL 22 to GEL 45. The price alteration depends on the brand of the producer. According to Nodia, Voulez-Vous is an official distributor of all the brands represented on the market and therefore the quality is doubtless.
Voulez-Vous’ shop net consists of 11 shops. The company has retail centres in Tbilisi and Batumi. Voulez-Vous will continue opening new stores in the central districts of Tbilisi, as for the regions of Georgia there are no concrete plans at this stage. Voulez-Vous plans to create loyalty cards for its faithful customers, these cards will be ready by the end of 2008 and will be different from its opponent’s loyalty cards.
“Voulez-Vous was the first perfume shop net in Georgia founded in 1995. The company’s retail shop net belongs to Company Style. Style is an official distributor of famous brands. Style is a Georgian-Dutch Distribution Company,” Nino noted.
Another leading Georgian perfume company Lutecia was founded 10 years ago.
According to the company in that period the market was already occupied by other companies. “However there was an assimilating segment which was interesting for Lutecia, so that’s why the new company got engaged in the perfume business at that time,” Lutecia says. “Lutecia decided to attract customers and to start business by distributing new products which were not offered by other perfume companies. These brands were Nina Ricci and Thierry Mugler,” Lutecia noted.
Each company has exclusively represented brands in their retail shop nets. The perfume distributing companies are in cooperation with each other.
“Voulez-Vous has exclusives with world brands but this isn’t our company’s only advantage and approval. The aim of the company is to represent a great product range in the retail shops, as the customers have the right to acquire the exact product they need. I think that it is a civilized view of business development,” declared Nodia.
Lutecia has exclusive distribution rights in the Georgian market of the following brands: Clarins; Azzaro; Thierry Mugler; Nina Ricci; Paco Rabanne; Salvatore Ferragamo; Ungaro; Darphin; Lalique; Angel Schlesser; Armand Basi; Mandarina Duck; Yves Rocher; Chantal Thomass; Alessandro; Isadora; Artdeco; Sarbec Cosmetics; Agent Provocateur; and Trussardi.
“These brands belong to Lutecia alone, but the company is actively cooperating with its competitors. Georgian distributing companies always make brand exchanges. To compete with competitors the most important thing is to have excellent service skills. Lutecia consultants have been well-trained in foreign companies,” Lutecia said.
“Brand exchange is acceptable for our company, we cooperate with our competitors: ICI Paris; and Lutecia. Voulez-Vous priority brands are: Christian Dior; Gerlain; Kenzo; and Givenchy. These brands are united under the LVH Company. Christian Dior is substituted into other brands to Lutecia and ICI-Paris by Voulez-Vous. However this was previously agreed with our French partners, as they have special requests that the Georgian companies must satisfy,” Nodia declared.
According to Lutecia, its retail shops are suited to the premium class customer as well as mass-market customers, as the company’s products are wide ranging and prices vary.
“Supposedly 80% of our residents are Voulez-Vous customers, although the luxury products are not only represented in Voulez-Vous retail shops,” Nodia said.
The most well sold brands according to Lutecia’s statistics are: Clarins; Chanel; Nina Ricci; Salvatore Ferragamo; Yves Rocher; and Isadora.
“However Nina Ricci is leader in the perfume line, monthly sales of Nina Ricci approximately consisted of 680-700 by retail,” the company said.
The approximate price of 50 ml brands sold in Georgian perfume retail shops vary from GEL 80 to GEL 100.
According to Nodia, the best sellers are whichever fragrances are arriving on the market at the moment.
“TV advertising and PR campaigns increase their popularity and so they show the best sales indexes, so for this period Dior may have a good sales indexes as well as the new fragrance Fuel for Life from Diesel,” commented Nodia.
Written by Natia Taktakishvili.
