By Jamie Matusow, Editor-in-Chief11.02.15
Update: L Brands ranks at #8 on our latest report Top 20 Global Beauty Companies 2021.
Columbus, Ohio
www.lb.com
Corporate Sales: $11.5 billion
Beauty Sales: $4 billion (Est. Bath & Body Works, VS beauty)
Key Personnel: Leslie H. Wexner, chairman and chief executive officer; Charles C. McGuigan, chief operating officer; Sharen J. Turney, president and chief executive officer, Victoria’s Secret; Nicholas Coe, president and chief executive officer, Bath & Body Works; Stuart B. Burgdoerfer, executive vice president and chief financial officer.
Major Products/Brands: Bath & Body Works home fragrances and personal care; Victoria’s Secret fragrances, lip and hair care.
New Products: Bath & Body Works Marshmallow Pumpkin Latte shower gel, Bath & Body Works Apple Harvest body lotion, Bath & Body Works Somoma Weekend Escape shower gel, Victoria’s Secret Heavenly Summer eau de parfum, Victoria’s Secret Forever Sexy fragrance, Victoria’s Secret Hair Flawless styling gel, Victoria’s Secret Beauty Rush flavored gloss.
Comments: Net sales increased 6%, $681 million, at L Brands—which includes Victoria’s Secret and Bath & Body Works— for recorded sales of $11.5 billion in 2014. Bath & Body Works net sales increased $232 million to $3.35 billion, and comparable store sales increased 6%. At both Bath & Body Works Stores and Bath & Body Works Direct, net sales increased across most categories including home.
L Brands is focused on speed to market, and in with its beauty, personal care and home fragrance businesses, has developed supplier facilities close to the company’s headquarters and distribution facilities in central Ohio, which it intends to expand as the business grows.
Bath & Body Works says it is one of the leading specialty retailers of home fragrance and personal care products including shower gels, lotions, soaps and sanitizers. BBW products are sold at more than 1,600 Bath & Body Works stores in the U.S. and Canada and online at BathandBodyWorks.com. The retailer also operates 80 stores in 23 other countries operating under franchise, license and wholesale arrangements.
At Victoria’s Secret, beauty sales declined due to the elimination of Victoria’s Secret makeup. L Brands says it still maintains its edge in fragrance, with Bombshell, Heavenly and Tease ranking among the top 10 scents in the U.S. Last year, the company added 101 Victoria’s Secret Beauty & Accessories (VSBA) stores, bringing the total to 299 at the end of fiscal 2014. This year, the plan calls for adding as many as 125 new VSBA stores, including nine in China.
News of Note
At the end of 2014, Leslie H. Wexner, the 77-year-old chairman and chief executive officer of L Brands, received Chief Executive magazine’s lifetime achievement award at the CEO2CEO Leadership Summit. Wexner is the longest-serving CEO of a Fortune 500 company. He started The Limited in 1963 with a $5,000 loan from his aunt.
In August 2015, the company reported net sales of $2.77 billion for the second quarter, an increase of 3% compared to sales of the same quarter in 2014. L Brands said its Victoria Secret unit delivered a 3% gain while Bath & Body Works rose 5%.
Columbus, Ohio
www.lb.com
Corporate Sales: $11.5 billion
Beauty Sales: $4 billion (Est. Bath & Body Works, VS beauty)
Key Personnel: Leslie H. Wexner, chairman and chief executive officer; Charles C. McGuigan, chief operating officer; Sharen J. Turney, president and chief executive officer, Victoria’s Secret; Nicholas Coe, president and chief executive officer, Bath & Body Works; Stuart B. Burgdoerfer, executive vice president and chief financial officer.
Major Products/Brands: Bath & Body Works home fragrances and personal care; Victoria’s Secret fragrances, lip and hair care.
New Products: Bath & Body Works Marshmallow Pumpkin Latte shower gel, Bath & Body Works Apple Harvest body lotion, Bath & Body Works Somoma Weekend Escape shower gel, Victoria’s Secret Heavenly Summer eau de parfum, Victoria’s Secret Forever Sexy fragrance, Victoria’s Secret Hair Flawless styling gel, Victoria’s Secret Beauty Rush flavored gloss.
Comments: Net sales increased 6%, $681 million, at L Brands—which includes Victoria’s Secret and Bath & Body Works— for recorded sales of $11.5 billion in 2014. Bath & Body Works net sales increased $232 million to $3.35 billion, and comparable store sales increased 6%. At both Bath & Body Works Stores and Bath & Body Works Direct, net sales increased across most categories including home.
Packaging for the new Victoria’s Secret Forever Sexy is inspired by seductive lingerie.
Bath & Body Works says it is one of the leading specialty retailers of home fragrance and personal care products including shower gels, lotions, soaps and sanitizers. BBW products are sold at more than 1,600 Bath & Body Works stores in the U.S. and Canada and online at BathandBodyWorks.com. The retailer also operates 80 stores in 23 other countries operating under franchise, license and wholesale arrangements.
At Victoria’s Secret, beauty sales declined due to the elimination of Victoria’s Secret makeup. L Brands says it still maintains its edge in fragrance, with Bombshell, Heavenly and Tease ranking among the top 10 scents in the U.S. Last year, the company added 101 Victoria’s Secret Beauty & Accessories (VSBA) stores, bringing the total to 299 at the end of fiscal 2014. This year, the plan calls for adding as many as 125 new VSBA stores, including nine in China.
News of Note
At the end of 2014, Leslie H. Wexner, the 77-year-old chairman and chief executive officer of L Brands, received Chief Executive magazine’s lifetime achievement award at the CEO2CEO Leadership Summit. Wexner is the longest-serving CEO of a Fortune 500 company. He started The Limited in 1963 with a $5,000 loan from his aunt.
In August 2015, the company reported net sales of $2.77 billion for the second quarter, an increase of 3% compared to sales of the same quarter in 2014. L Brands said its Victoria Secret unit delivered a 3% gain while Bath & Body Works rose 5%.
