Remember going to Bath and Body Works at the mall in the ‘90s? You could smell the store from all the way down at the food court. It was a magical wonderland of cucumber melon body spray, ridiculous buy-1-get-5-free Black Friday sales, and red gingham. It was always bustling, it was a mall centerpiece, and we were obsessed. Starting next year, though, fewer people may get that same Bath & Body Works classic mall experience. The company announced that it will begin selling its products on Amazon, opening up a whole new market of customers.
Here are all the details on how to get your Warm Vanilla Sugar lotion on Amazon.
Why Is Bath & Body Works Going to Sell on Amazon?
Amazon is the retail world’s goliath. Selling there opens a company up to millions of potential new customers. For Bath & Body Works, the company hopes to target a younger audience by selling directly on Amazon.
It’s all part of a new plan for the company to get with the times, essentially. In an earnings call this week, B&BW CEO Daniel Heaf said the company was “slow and inefficient.” They’re hoping that partnering with Amazon will allow shoppers to access their products more easily.
And if you’re thinking, hey, Bath & Body Works products are already available on Amazon, that’s because they are — but Bath & Body Works is not selling them. They’re being sold by third parties in what’s called the gray market. “We already know that we’re doing somewhere between $60 to $80 million of gray market sales in that channel,” said Heaf. He’s hoping that launching directly on Amazon will bring more sales and interest to the brand.
Why Would I Buy Bath & Body Works Stuff on Amazon?
If you love the in-store Bath & Body Works experience, by all means, keep going to your local store (how else would you smell new fragrances, anyway?). But there are a couple of advantages to buying it on Amazon instead.
If you have Amazon Prime, your free shipping perks would probably apply to Bath & Body Works products. That might actually make ordering on Amazon cheaper than on Bath & Body Works’ website.
The other advantage? Not having to set foot in a dying shopping mall. Sure, they were fun while they lasted, but many malls are depressing places these days, with empty storefronts everywhere. Chances are you might not even have a Bath & Body Works location near you anymore, thanks to a dead mall, so ordering on Amazon will be a welcome development for your tween daughter’s Warm Vanilla Sugar obsession.
Can I Order It Now for the Holidays?
Nope, unfortunately, Bath & Body Works’ partnership with Amazon isn’t happening until early next year. So if you need some hand soap stocking stuffers, you’ll have to go to a store or order on the company’s website for this Christmas.
Once the products are on Amazon, don’t expect to find a huge array of options, either. The company plans to pare down and simplify its offerings across the board to make for a less overwhelming shopping experience. There will be an assortment of popular products in classic scents first to gauge what works well on Amazon. You can bet it’ll probably include Cucumber Melon.
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