WWD Beauty CEO Summit 2012

Jose Barra, Senior Vice President, Healthcare & Beauty for Target, believes the beauty industry is slow to embrace and accept the consumer's "new reality". "The Shops at Target" is taking a new approach to beauty by not partnering with designers, but instead specialty curators.

Shanghai Jahwa United Executive Vice President Joe Wang details the skepticism of consumers overcome by Chinese prestige brands expanding into western markets.

Ulta Beauty President and CEO Chuck Rubin extols the benefits of a meritocracy in business that rewards the contributions of employees who are hard-working and creative.

Jean Paul DeJoria, Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer, John Paul Mitchell Systems, discusses the charity work students at the Paul Mitchell Cosmetology Schools must commit, and how it raises the industry as a whole.

Elizabeth Arden Chairman, President, and CEO E. Scott Beattie reveals that women learn about brands through friends and family and online resources 70% of the time. Traditional advertising is increasing less effective, making customer engagement a challenge in the digital era.

Estée Lauder Companies Inc. Group President John Demsey calls building dreams the purpose of the beauty industry. He cautions against dictating what those dreams should be, however, and insists that companies should listen and respond to consumers' desires.

Vivek Bali, Vice President & Business Head, Cosmetics & Fragrances for Reliance Retail Ltd., introduces GEN-I, the new affluent Indian consumer.

Living Proof Inc. CEO Jill Beraud discusses how her work with Victoria's Secret took something that was taboo and made it accessible and empowering.

Iman expresses her dislike for Twitter and Facebook followers and fans. "I know the difference between a Facebook friend, a fan, and a customer," say Iman, "and what I want is a customer; I'm not looking for a fan."

MORE Magazine Editor-in-Chief Lesley Jane Seymour uses a photo of Madonna's Super Bowl halftime performance to illustrate that women today should no longer strive to look younger than they are. Seymour argues that they should instead look good for their age.

Chairman & Chief Executive Officer of L'Oreal Jean-Paul Agon discusses the strategy of brand 'universalization.' "With universalization, we certainly globalize our brand but we localize the formulas," says Agon. "In fact, universalization is the new approach to globalization." 

Marc Puig, Chairman and CEO of Puig, describes the moment when he decided that to revive Puig he would have to excite the consumer with engaging storytelling.

CEO and President of Revlon Alan Ennis believes China is past its prime when it comes to manufacturing. Ennis sees the USA as the future of expanding manufacturing.

Desiree Rogers, CEO of Johnson Publishing Company LLC, stresses the importance of Michelle Obama posing for Vogue Magazine for the image of black women.

Joseph C. Magnacca, President, Daily Living Products & Solutions discusses Walgreens' progressing commitment to evolving its beauty services from a "transactional experience to a shopping experience."

Wendy Liebmann, CEO of WSL Strategic Retail, lauds Amazon for it's established online portal and now physical store integration. "They really know their shoppers well," says Liebmann.

Associate editor for Beauty Inc. and WWD Jenny Fine explains the phenomenon of tourists traveling specifically for the purpose of shopping in cheaper markets.

Marigay McKee, Chief Merchant at Harrods, lists some of the ways Harrods accommodates the needs and desires of customers from other countries. Harrods values the international customer, who now makes up half of their clientele.

Macy's Executive Vice President of Cosmetics, Fragrance and Shoes Muriel Gonzalez explains that when individual stores tailor their messaging to the dominant cultures in the community, sales rise dramatically as a result.