A little less than two years after launching, direct-to-consumer skin-care brand Fig.1 announced its debut at more than 3,200 CVS stores nationwide on Monday.
A key focus for the brand, the launch, which greatly expands the brand’s presence, is about accessibility.
“The whole premise behind building the brand was democratizing access to the potent skin care the consumer deserves — products that will change your skin and not break the bank,” said co-founder Kimmy Scotti, who’s also known for her VC background. But she acknowledged that there’s more to accessibility than affordability. “It’s [also about] how you explain products, so [the customer can] understand their effects, and how you distribute them. … CVS is about access; they’re America’s health-care front door. And I wanted to be on a shelf where you could just grab and go while doing other errands.”
Scotti said she and her team were introduced to CVS executives by a mutual connection, and that the two companies quickly found they were well aligned. Both brands cater to the “skintellectual” consumer, who is educated on skin care and ingredients.
Fig.1 launched at the retailer with six products priced between $22-$42, with most around $30. The brand’s Retinol Night Cream No. 1, which contains 0.15% retinol, is the highest-priced option. “When you’re graduating from Neutrogena and Olay, you’ll be walking into a Fig.1 price point,” Scotti said. She noted that products in Olay’s Regenerist line carry similar price points — the Regenerist Retinol 24 + Peptide Night Facial Moisturizer, for example, is $35.
To herald the major retail launch, the brand will embark on its largest ever influencer campaign. Scotti declined to share numbers, but said the overall marketing supporting the CVS partnership represents the brand’s biggest campaign budget to date.
Called “The Change Up,” the campaign includes partnerships with 10-15 micro-influencers in three key states: New York, California and Florida. Each will encourage their followers to “‘change up’ their everyday, generic skin-care products, in favor of adding Fig.1 to their routines,” said Diana Markman, Fig. 1’s gm. The brand is still finalizing its influencer selects for the campaign. Their content will go live later this month and throughout April.
“To select influencers, Fig.1 identified creators ages 20-40 who are relatable, passionate about skin care and have different types of skin, including acne-prone or mature. We also looked for influencers who are already conscious of and able to speak to Fig.1’s three key tenets of affordable, refillable and dermatologist-developed [products]” Markman said. The creators’ content will live across TikTok, Instagram Reels and Instagram Stories. The campaign will put money behind the content via paid social ads from Fig.1’s social handles and will also pay to boost posts from partner influencers’ handles.
Awareness is, of course, a key goal, Scotti said.
“The best skin care is the is skin care you’ll use. It may be something you already have in your bathroom — you’ll never catch us saying something negative about another brand,” Scotti said. “The hope is that if you see one of these [social] posts or you follow one of these creators, you’ll consider us at CVS when you need a [product] refill.”
