The Outnet adds beauty to its roster

London - Net-a-Porter's discount sibling The Outnet is set to expand its current offering with the addition of beauty this autumn - although the category is unlikely to become a permanent addition to its line-up, unlike its luxury sister's site.

The Outset will launch its digital beauty campaign from October 25, which will include the roll out of 18 higher end beauty brands such as Lipstick Queen, Natura Bisse and By Terry. The discount site's decision to include luxe beauty products is a carefully thought out step, as even though the Outnet is an off-price online retailer, they certainly did not want to offer off-price beauty. "We wanted to see how can we be true to the DNA of everything we do and try and find something exclusive to us that no one else had," explained Andres Sosa, director of global sales and marketing to WWD.

His solution was simply: create a series of beauty kits that no other retailer currently offers. Each kit offer several full-size and current season products that are designed to complement each other. Prices for the beauty kits are set to range from 22 dollars to over 500 dollars, to ensure there is something to satisfy everyone's budget. Although none of the products sold in the kits will be availabe for individual purchase, the sets will retail between 20 and 30 percent less if all items would be purchased separetly.

According to Sosa, the decision to offer beauty was the brainchild of customer research, which included surveys and conversations with the Outner's panel of 10,000 customer, The Outnet Insiders. "[Of those surveyed] 88 percent say that they regularly purchase luxury beauty brands," said Sosa. "It was a no-brainer." No-brainer, The Outnet will first be testing its new beauty assortiment popularit with a holiday campaign,

Image: The Outnet