Clarins Brand | brandchannel.com

Clarins
no pout about it
by Ian Cocoran
April 16, 2001

If beauty is only skin deep, then why do we spend millions of dollars each year on expensive cosmetics whose prophetic ability to enhance our appearance can be after all, only a matter of opinion? Well you may just find the answer at Clarins.com, where the hedonistic aura that encapsulates the website almost drowns the casual surfer in a flood of self-indulgence.

Never let it be said that premium priced brands find it difficult to transfer their offer to the web, as Clarins’ deliciously luxuriant home page oozes class from every pore and doesn’t try to hide behind layers of technological make-up to seduce the average user. The simplicity of Clarins layout makes navigation a pleasure and from the very first click you know you are looking at a quality company that is firmly positioned at the top end of its market.

Of the three portals on offer, the international site provides an abundance of information on everything from products to personal care, as well as information about the Clarins Group, printable Beauty fact sheets, the facility to subscribe to Clarins E-News, a dedicated area for research and ecology, and a quaint little section that will prescribe the best Clarins products for you upon completion of an online form. The US and European sites have all of the pages described in the international site, but also have some market specific information such as new product offers and what free demonstrations are available at your nearest Clarins stockist.

If there is a downside to the site, it’s that there is no obvious facility to order products online and that you’ve got to trail into town when you find something you want. Mind you, the men of the world may feel that this is no bad thing given the price of the Clarins range whereas the company itself would no doubt cite the “purchasing experience” for its lack of an E-tail offer.

Ian Cocoran is an Operations Director with one of the world's largest chemical distributors. He has an MBA in Marketing from the Buckinghamshire Business School and lives in Glasgow, Scotland, with his wife Kate and daughter Lucy.

*Due to the constantly changing environment of websites, some reviews may no longer reflect the current website for this brand.


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