Richard Baker plans to shake up the 70-year-old beauty brand as Boots chases market share
Health and beauty retailer Boots is revamping its£100 million cosmetics brand No7 as part of its campaign to win back market share from the grocers.

The 70-year-old make-up range is one of the best known on the high street, and its facelift comes on the back of strong Christmas trading. Boots' sales of cosmetics and perfume surged 6 per cent and 9 per cent respectively in the third quarter.

Boots chief executive Richard Baker said the initiative is designed to drive beauty sales and footfall. 'No7 is our biggest brand,' he said. 'This is about making it even better and drawing more customers to our beauty counters.'

No7 was launched in 1935, when the influence of glamorous Hollywood actresses created a demand for make-up. It has been redesigned by celebrity make-up artist Lisa Eldridge with the help of boffins at Boots' Nottingham labs.

Almost two thirds of the 400-strong product offer has been reformulated as part of the makeover, with changes including a new logo and sleeker packaging. The revamped brand is being launched officially on February 7.

Now more than a year into his turnaround plan, Baker said he was pleased with the Christmas performance. He described it as a 'real team effort' and was happy with progress on pricing, availability, ranges and basic housekeeping.

Sales at core chain Boots the Chemists rose 4.2 per cent in the quarter to December 31, up 2.6 per cent on a like-for-like basis.

However, some analysts were critical of the Christmas gift offer, arguing it strayed too far from the core toiletries business. Evolution analyst Nick Bubb warned that dabbling in TVs and DVD players risked appearing downmarket. 'Baker needs to focus more on the store environments,' he said.

Baker promised the gift offer would be 'grouped more tightly' in future around Boots' mainstays. He also said comedian Harry Hill would not be fronting any more ads for the retailer, but said that the campaign had served its purpose.

  • Fellow legacy retailer WHSmith posted a like-for-like sales decline of 1 per cent over Christmas, better than many had feared. Group chief executive Kate Swann said: 'Customer response to increased product choice, better availability and improved store standards has been positive.'

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