Staying on Top

In the fast-paced world of technology and e-commerce, innovation is imperative to staying on top. With companies like Amazon offering faster delivery and cheaper pricing, brick and mortar stores are having to come up with new ideas to keep their clients coming back. Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance, Inc. (better known as Ulta Beauty) is rising to the challenge, and its yearly sales is the proof.

Closing out the 2018 fiscal year with a 14.03% sales increase from the previous year, Ulta is dedicated to continued growth. Known for its unique merchandise, the company currently offers over 20,000 products and is open to trendy new products not yet on shelves. The company’s openness to new things, and staying one step ahead of the competition is what is keeping low-cost companies like Amazon from taking the lead. Ulta understands what its customers need, and gives it to them.

Recently the retailer started experimenting with AI technology to show consumers options before they purchase. An augmented reality tool, like GlamLab, allows salon technicians and brow experts to show their clients different style options. Testing for the new app was rolled out to six pilot stores starting the first quarter of 2019 and was initially only for iPhone users, but Ulta plans to roll out an Android version later this month.

According to CSG’s Drug Stores & HBC Chains Database, Ulta is a $6.7B company with 88.5% of sales contributed to retail purchases. There are currently 1,196 locations, a 1.87% increase from last year, with 80 projected openings for 2019. Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance, Inc. knows what it takes to stay on top.