Follett strives to meet Gen Z needs
What was once a destination for textbooks and school supplies, the college bookstore has evolved to a vibrant destination for students, faculty, and fans; and Follett Higher Education is meeting shopper needs by updating their store assortment — including adding beauty.
Adding a cosmetics section to their stores has been under consideration for some time. “We have been exploring the beauty category in response to feedback from our students, who expressed that it was a gap in our assortment offerings,” stated Angela Moses, vice president for hardlines and partnerships for Follett.
As more and more course materials move to digital formats and into programs that offer students day-one access to materials as part of tuition, campus stores now find themselves with additional retail space that can be used to offer in-demand products. “With new space available that was previously dedicated to textbooks, we capitalized on the opportunity to reimagine and transform it with requested product offerings.”
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Moses said their partners L&R Distributors and PM Plastics were integral in bringing the vision to life. “We relied on both partners as experts in their fields to bring this full circle.” The installation of the new beauty initiative was targeted to 30 of Follett’s stores across the country and included two- and four-year schools. Depending on the store size, the displays were either 12-, 18-, or 30-foot.
L&R, in partnership with the Follett team, was responsible for determining which brands to include in the assortments. Cassy Kehoe, vice president of category development at L&R, said, “We analyzed trend information for the demographic and the marketplace; we also researched brands that are currently trending. We focused on the Gen Z customer and what is important for them as they shop the category. We then used market performance data by brand to identify strong performers, and based our footage recommendation on that.
Cultural demographics for each school location were also applied to be sure we had the right assortments. We have great partnerships with these trusted companies and cosmetics brands, and they have been partnering in the strategy along the way.”
PM Plastics’ Universal Merchandising System is the fixture system used for the store displays. Larry Alper, sr. vice president of business development for PM Plastics said, “The system is very flexible for custom fixture installations. It looks high-end but doesn’t come with the cost of customized systems. They are fully lit, so it’s like a beacon in the stores.”
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PM Plastics utilized HRG’s category analyst experts to build the planograms and provide tools for use in-store to make installation go smoothly. Following space planning processes, the HRG team converted PSA files to ensure all products chosen would fit in the fixtures as planned. Planogram packets helped installers efficiently build and stock the displays.
Moses believes the addition of the beauty sections helps make the bookstores “exciting and purposeful” so students will want to visit. “I believe students will find the convenience and cost savings appealing, particularly since they can bypass shipping an online order in exchange for free pick up in store,“ said Moses. “College students are social savvy, budget savvy, and they do their research.”
“Brands are eager to connect with college-age consumers. This is an opportunity for them to establish a physical presence to reach and engage untapped markets.” Moses says they are also working on putting together a think tank, getting the brands, L&R, and students together to share feedback and ideas.
With 1,000 campus and virtual locations, Follett is being strategic about expansion plans. Thanks to L&R’s data, they can look at individual store performance, and combined with store team feedback, make informed decisions about where they could add beauty next. Meanwhile, the 30 test stores will be updated in January with the brands’ seasonal refresh. Due to the school year calendar, updates from the brands need to be available for installation earlier than traditional retail outlets.
Megan Moyer is a 20-year retail industry veteran and HRG’s corporate marketing manager. HRG is in the details of retail, working with product manufacturers, distributors, retailers, technology partners, and other industry organizations to provide data & analysis, shopper experience, brand development, fixture coordination, and retail communications solutions. HRG reviews new health, beauty, and wellness (HBW) items every month and assesses their potential for longevity in the monthly Products to Watch feature in Drug Store News as well as the annual Future 50 list.
