Purpose
Why do we do what we do? What are our intentions? The Purpose Pillar focuses on the vision, mission, and values of a brand. These factors build the foundation that convey the 5 W’s to the customers – why they exist, where they are, where they are going, what their future ambitions are, what is important to them, how they want to operate (Van Volkinburg, 2023). Having a core story links these factors and portrays the aims and goals in a comprehensive way develops an identity for the brand.
Rare Beauty is a cosmetic company by Selena Gomez that “believes in the power of beauty and self-care.” (Rare Beauty Brands, 2021). It aims to “help people feel good, build confidence, find their community, and simply enjoy a few minutes to themselves.” (Rare Beauty Brands, 2021). Their mission is to promote positivity by focusing on “products that delight, communities that empower, brands that inspire.” (Rare Beauty Brands, 2021). The brand is about appreciating imperfections and uniqueness by being comfortable with yourself instead of using makeup as a mask. The brand website and Instagram page reemphasize their vision mission and values on beauty standards and mental health through their choice of models, names of individual products, and resources to the associated causes.
The purpose of Rare Beauty revolves around various relevant issues like mental health awareness and the importance of authenticity. The founder of the company sets an example of transparency by being open about her personal struggles and has a diverse group of women come and talk about their experiences as well. The company website has helplines, and articles to raise awareness (Castro, 2023). Besides being proactive on the front lines, the brand is open about the ethically sourced materials for their high-quality products and their team members (Rare Beauty Brands, 2023), giving the customers behind-the-scenes information. Being proactive about its purpose and transparent through its sourcing, production, marketing, and products, the brand attracts customers by making them feel informed, involved, represented, and understood.
“The internet and social media have profoundly altered the relationship between creators and consumers.” (Corner, 2014). Selena Gomez, the founder, is the most followed woman on Instagram with 430 million followers (Valby, 2023). Being an influential woman in the music, acting, fashion, and makeup industry, her audience outreach is vast. Her brand uses TikTok and Instagram as their main modes of publicity to Gen Z customers.
Bibliography
Castro, M. (2023). Rare impact. Rare Beauty. https://www.rarebeauty.com/blogs/news/rare-impact
Corner, F. (2014) The Creative Consumer. In Why fashion matters (pp. 60-62). London: Thames & Hudson
Rare Beauty Brands. (2021). Culture – rare beauty brands. Rare Beauty Brands – We’re All Kinds of Beautiful. https://rarebeautybrands.com/culture/#:~:text=Our%20Mission,-To%20Delight%2C&text=We%20believe%20in%20the%20power,a%20few%20minutes%20to%20themselves
Rare Beauty Brands. (2023). People – rare beauty brands. Rare Beauty Brands – We’re All Kinds of Beautiful. https://rarebeautybrands.com/people/
Valby, K. (2023). How Selena Gomez’s Rare beauty became a powerful gen Z brand – fast company. Inside Selena Gomez’s beauty juggernaut: The Rare Beauty founder on makeup, Gen Z, and navigating social media. https://www.fastcompany.com/90951624/selena-gomez-rare-beauty-cosmetics-industry-juggernaut-gen-z
Van Volkinburg N. (2023). Intro to…Purpose [PowerPoint slides]. Moodle@UAL https://moodle.arts.ac.uk/mod/resource/view.php?id=1126878