2019 looks good on you... Estée Lauder's CEO was busy complimenting himself that it's been an "outstanding year” for the cosmetics legend. Micro Essence Revitalizing Cream and Le Labo fragrances helped sales pop 9% over the last 12 months. We jumped into the earnings report Snacks style and noticed 1 surprising theme: "travel retail".
- That term was dropped a cool 8 times in the report.
- And it was a key driver of the double-digit growth of plenty of products (you're welcome, Tom Ford Beauty).
Airport shopping is the most beautiful kind... It's where Estée's “global prestige beauty” (that's how it describes itself) is thriving. The next time you walk through a commercially-saturated terminal covered in MAC counters, you'll notice it — Global travel retail (including duty-free) has tripled sales over the last 15 years to $69B in 2017. And air travelers worldwide are projected to double by 2035.
A "captive" audience is a lucrative audience... And when you pass TSA for two hours of waiting to board, the airport terminal becomes your impulse-buy/last-minute-gift resource. That's why up to 90% of airport retail is after security — when you're stuck in a terminal that looks more like a mall sponsored by "prestige beauty" and Burberry coats. Your captivity is Estée Lauder's win.