LTV Lab: We Bought From FENTY BEAUTY.

Brand Overview

Fenty Beauty is Rihanna’s globally recognized cosmetics brand, focusing on inclusive, high-quality products for every skin and hair type. Their audience skews younger and diverse—customers who value great ingredients, shade variety, and pop culture relevance. The brand leans heavily on inclusivity and Rihanna’s influence. Their product lineup spans skin, hair, and beauty, with bold branding and frequent new launches.

Customer Journey Breakdown

Website Experience:
The website is visually appealing, easy to browse, and filled with helpful product explanations. Kits and bundles make it simple for customers to try multiple hero items. Allure award call-outs help but could be more prominent to drive quicker buying decisions. However, there’s friction in the promo code process—fine print and exclusions create confusion, and international customers may struggle to find perks or feel valued. The checkout is straightforward, but splitting hair, skin, and beauty products into separate verticals for promo codes and subscriptions buries key benefits.

Email & SMS Marketing:
Fenty’s emails are visually striking thanks to product imagery but are overwhelming and sometimes miss segmentation—campaigns look the same for US and Canadian buyers, and sometimes push irrelevant promos. Transactional emails arrive in pairs (order + payment), followed by a barrage of promotional and campaign emails, often multiple in a day. There’s no SMS post-purchase, just order confirmations. Post-purchase campaigns frequently upsell before customers have time to try their products, and “welcome” flows and review requests lack smart timing and personal touch. The welcome series, campaign cadence, and volume are excessive—most customers would tune out after the first week.

Unboxing & Product Experience:
The unboxing is memorable—products smell distinctly good, with each bottle offering personalized instructions for regular and curly hair. Packaging is attractive, minimal, and avoids excess paper. Box deco and in-bottle instructions deliver key info without waste. No info cards are included, but everything you need is on the product. The product delivers immediate satisfaction: great lather, fragrance, and real quality. Hair feels smoother and gets compliments right away. Physical product and presentation reinforce the premium positioning and prompt positive word-of-mouth—even generating referrals organically.

Strengths (What Worked Well):

• Product delivers on quality and sensory appeal, winning over loyal customers and earning direct referrals.

• Website visuals, awards, and bundles encourage discovery and trial.

• Packaging and in-bottle instructions support diverse hair types—clear, accessible, and inclusive.

• Fast, visually-rich email content builds brand excitement—design and images support higher engagement rates.

Content, creative, or strategy examples to emulate:

• Leveraging Allure award icons and customer reviews to drive conversion (though make the awards more prominent).

• Minimal, eco-conscious packaging with info directly on products.

• Personalization for product usage (instructions for regular or curly hair).

Weaknesses (Opportunities Missed):

• Email cadence is overwhelming—high volume, repetitive campaigns, and poor timing risk opt-outs.

• Segmentation misses—international customers get US-centric offers (free shipping, rewards) that don’t apply.

• Subscription options and loyalty enrollment are buried or require extra effort post-purchase—no clear path or automatic opt-in.

• Cross-sell and upsell emails arrive too soon, before customers even try their product.

• Review requests aren’t personalized to hair type or usage, missing a chance for better insights and targeting.

• Marketing language is generic, and emails don’t showcase the brand’s premium Instagram aesthetic.

• Disconnect between in-store and direct perks, with many customers preferring to buy from retailers like Sephora for convenience and better rewards.

  
  

Key Lifecyle Marketing Lessons for Other Brands

• Product experience is the ultimate retention lever—great results create organic referrals and repeat sales, but don’t let weak email marketing blunt that success.

• Simplify your post-purchase messaging—time your upsells, segment by region, and avoid overwhelming customers with daily campaigns.

• Highlight awards and unique value propositions clearly and often; burying them in the footer or tiny images wastes opportunities for trust and conversion.

• Unify creative standards between website, email, and social—match your premium Instagram visuals in every touchpoint.

Above all, make it easy for fans to buy again, reward direct shoppers, and deliver key info where it matters most—from the inbox to the bottle on the shelf