The Body Shop rolls out £10m digital transformation strategy

By

Barbara Santamaria

Published
Apr 23, 2017

L’Oréal-owned cosmetics brand The Body Shop has launched a £10m, three-year digital transformation strategy in a bid to revamp its online appeal and boost the e-commerce channel.

As part of the strategy, the British retailer has launched in 11 countries a new mobile-first e-commerce site which integrates content and commerce. The countries where the site is now live include the UK, US, Canada, France, Germany, Brazil and Indonesia, with 20 further countries expected to be added throughout the year.

Given the scale of the business, The Body Shop has given regional variations to its new platform, which means its presence will be adapted to each relevant market according to consumer preferences for merchandising, payment and delivery fulfilment.

The new website has a live appointment booking service for in-store consultations and a personalised skincare diagnostic tool. A click & collect functionality is also expected to launch later in the year.

The Body Shop was founded in 1976 and quickly became a retail favourite with its colourful range of body butters, but in recent years it has struggled to remain relevant in a highly competitive market.

The £10m investment to expand its global e-commerce footprint comes after the retailer saw a 19% increase in online sales in 2016 – double than the prior year’s figure. The share is expected to reach 20% this year.

“With the successful launch of a responsive, content-rich digital platform, we have established a strong foundation to support our future innovation agenda and global rollout,” said chief digital officer Harriet Williams.

“The Body Shop is a big business, operating in a large number of countries with both franchise and non-franchise markets. The platform needed to strike the right balance between global brand consistency and local relevance, being flexible enough to meet the needs of each individual market.”

The Body Shop sells its nature-inspired products in more than 3,000 stores in 66 countries.