Marketing In Brief
This article was originally published in The Rose Sheet
Executive Summary
Cargo Cosmetics: Toronto, Ontario-based company says its LashActivator - launching this summer - was associated in clinical testing with "a 169% improvement over the natural rate at which lashes grow." The product contains marine algae extracts for increased lash density and growth, citrus-derived flavonoids "to promote microcirculation for optimal growth," and a peptide-biotin complex that slows the rate of lash loss, the company says, stressing that LashActivator "does not use irritation as a mechanism of action." Cargo founder Hana Zalzal states: "As we studied the eye category as a whole, we realized that there was no truly safe and efficacious lash-growing product on the market." Personal-care companies in the growing eyelash enhancement category have been faced with a new marketing challenge since Allergan's Latisse drug was approved by FDA in December 2008 for treating hypotrichosis of the eyelashes (1"The Rose Sheet" Jan. 12, 2009, p. 3). Cargo also is launching a 7 in 7 kit of "tried-and-true, must-have" makeup products "to get you out the door in no time flat." Rolling out in May to Sephora locations and Sephora.com, the kit comprises firm's OneBase concealer/foundation, Essential Palette, Eye Liner, BeachBlush, Reverse Lip Liner, new Classic Gloss with Timestrip technology "to monitor the freshness of your gloss," and the LashActivator. The 7 in 7 kit is priced at $59, versus a retail value of $170, Cargo says