Beauty Contact has been synonymous with bringing international products to the region, CEO Alwyn Stephen tells us what the future holds for the prestigious distribution firm.
Alwyn Stephen forayed into the world of fragrances in 1989, and from that point there was no turning back.” I began my career with the Al Tayer Group, as a sales executive for perfumes and was promoted to the role of Brand Manager. After seven years with them, I took over the management of Rivoli Perfumes as General Manager for three years. In 1999, I set up an affiliate company for Paris Gallery, called Gulf Beauty International which was a distribution company for fragrances in the UAE. In 2001, I felt the need to have my own enterprise, and thus formed Beauty Contact” explains the Chief Executive Officer. Stephen recognised the requirement to bring international brands to the region “We initially started as U.A.E based distributors, and then became master distributors for the MENA region, followed by the Indian subcontinent which included India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bangladesh. We appointed distributors in twenty-two countries, with our portfolio including the launch of the Paris Hilton fragrance, watches and handbags, HUMMER perfume, Alfred Sung, Cynthia Rowley, Jessica Simpson, Kim Kardashian, One Direction etc. We decided to venture into licensing in 2006 with our first ever global license with General Motors wherein we designed, developed, manufactured and marketed the Cadillac perfume range globally” he says.
Being a Dubai based business presented opportunities for Beauty Contact – “In Dubai we have access to the best ports, buildings and most importantly the facilities. From my office, I could reach any part of the world, as a distributor. Our distribution of Cadillac perfumes has reached South, Central & Latin America, North America, Europe, Asia and Africa. After Cadillac, I took over the existing license of Madonna Nudes 1979, known as MN79 and ran it until this year. Amidst these ventures we took on another brand called ‘Whatever it takes’, which is a charity initiative where celebrities donated artwork and this artwork is used to make products, ranging from watches to accessories. We signed the license agreement with the 21st Century Leaders for fragrances globally and designed, developed, produced and marketed fragrances with artwork donated by George Clooney, Daniel Craig, Lucy Liu, Kanye West and Pink from 2012 to 2016. I was then approached to launch the famous Indian cricket captain M S Dhoni’s line of fragrances and deodorants in 2013, which was called 7 by M S Dhoni” states the CEO.
Bringing popular products to different markets grew the ambition for Stephen to explore other arenas” We have delved into cosmetics, skincare and nailcare by introducing Kinetics in 2005-2006 in the region, a brand in nail acrylics and gels. After launching various cosmetic products, the direction we have decided to steer forth in is perfumes. The new line of fragrances we are launching, Pierre Precieuse, is a French brand for which we have taken on the rights for global distribution. Every fragrance is a treasure, and has been developed with attention to quality and detail. Our unique selling point is to be exclusive and Pierre Precieuse is luxury that is to be valued and treasured for ever. There is a bevy of niche products in the market, which are mostly oriental based and in contrast we have created something with a global appeal. After twenty-seven years in the business, we understand aspects of design, notes and concepts, so we could give inputs to the manufacturers. Therefore, our aim was to assist them to develop a line that is not solely catering towards the Middle East Market, but with our experience and expertise of opening markets worldwide, we wanted an entire collection of fragrances that would have a global appeal” he comments.
Pierre Precieuse is a line of unique and luxurious fragrances which have already received a positive response from many countries. “We showcased the collection in October in Cannes, France, where one of the biggest trade fairs in the world takes place. We have been exhibiting at the fair since 2007, and we are proud, as a Dubai based company to be exhibiting in such a prestigious event. The presentation of this line is vital, even before you reach the bottle, the packaging oozes luxury. The Diamond collection namely Black Diamond, White Diamond and Pure Diamond are the first out of the five collections we will be rolling out by end January 2017. We aim to launch in the Month of March 2017, a limited edition Red and Blue diamond range, which comes encased in luxurious wooden boxes. There will be only 3,000 numbered pieces of each fragrance, and with a retail price of just 298 US Dollars, it stands out among other niche products in the market.” Stephen has not limited his endeavours to the fragrance industry, but has recently partnered with the reputable Wings Brand to turn his passion for events into a professional prospect. “Wings Brand Activations has been in the industry since 1994, with currently a team strength of 5,500 across India with offices in every major city of the country. Wings has its operational personal across all smaller markets in India and global registered offices in Singapore, Vietnam, USA and Sri Lanka. They are now expanding to the UAE to cater to their GCC clients. Wings and Beauty Contact are two separate entities, and both forces have joined together to create a momentum that will equal, if not, surpass what Wings achieved in India. With eight verticals, which include Promotions, Events, Trade Fairs, CRM, Retail, Rural, Audit and Digital. Their other units include Wings Biz Pro – Manpower outsourcing & Callcenter, Wings Infrastructure- Finding and Building retail stores, Wings Facility Management- Taking up the running of the entire facility management for office and Brand stores and Wings School of Music – training children to play instruments.” Their focus in Dubai would be Promotions, Events, Exhibitions, Digital services and Visual merchandising, brand building and helping brands reach the end customer. Wings and Beauty Contact envisage a great partnership going forward with the expertise of the Wings India team and our experience in the region. “Going forward all our marketing and advertising budgets for the region will be routed through Wings thus giving us maximum returns for every dollar spent. In fact, our very first major event will be in January, we have signed the American Country Western group, Bellamy Brothers who will perform live in Dubai on the 20th of January 2017, at the Emirates Golf Club. This will be their first ever performance in the U.A.E, and we have partnered with Those Guys Events for this concert” concludes the CEO
