Previously, Dolce&Gabbana had been licenced with Coty, a partnership which ended when Coty announced its merger with Procter & Gamble at the start of this year. Since then, the global fashion and fragrance label has been looking for a new beauty partner, and Shiseido has now been named.
The agreement will see the Japanese beauty leader taking on the development, manufacturing and distribution of Dolce＆Gabbana’s fragrance division, and interestingly, Shiseido has stated it will also be investing in the development of D&G’s makeup and skincare lines.
"By making full use of Shiseido Group’s R&D ability, it is highly anticipated that Dolce＆Gabbana enhances its product lines not only in fragrance but also in makeup and even skincare business (around 400 million euros turnover in 2015, only in the beauty activities),” Shiseido confirmed in a statement.
“Shiseido Group will expand its position in the luxury beauty industry and will significantly increase international turnover.”
Vision 2020
Shiseido says the partnership will be another key step in the company’s move to its ‘Vision 2020’ strategic goals, with which it hopes to boost group sales above the 1 trillion yen mark through global expansion and a major focus on innovation.
"The license agreement is aimed at strengthening our brand portfolio for the sake of future top line growth, which is a part of my VISION 2020 for Shiseido Group,” Masahiko Uotani, CEO, confirms.
“The collaboration of our two companies, with their heritage rooted in such diverse cultures as Mediterranean and Japanese, opens excellent opportunities for creating new exciting values.”
'Unique, considerable synergy’
The negotiations were carried out by Shiseido Group EMEA, Shiseido Group Fragrance Center of Excellence, led by Louis Desazars, President and CEO of Shiseido Group EMEA.
“We expect considerable synergy effects from this alliance as it will take full advantage of the scale of the Shiseido Group EMEA HQ organization,” Desazars predicts of the partnership.
“For us it's a unique opportunity to collaborate with an extraordinary and inspiring brand in order to bring to life unique creativity and new product experiences.”