AllThingsD » makeup

Vipshop Bags $20M To Bring Flash Sales To Chinese Consumers

Jonathan Shieber — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 21:19:51 +0000

Chinese venture capitalists are buying into the country’s “flash sales” membership-based retail websites, as online shoppers in the country get a taste of steep discounts on the gilded life through offerings from retailers like newly funded start-up Vipshop.

The Beijing-based company has raised $20 million from DCM and Sequoia Capital China in its first round of venture funding. The capital will enable the company to expand its business offering brand-name clothes, accessories, makeup and home furnishings through time-sensitive online discounted offers.

The company has 1.5 million members across China and is one of a handful of start-ups taking the model popularized in the U.S. by companies such as Groupon Inc. and Gilt Groupe Inc., European companies like Spanish internet retailers BuyVip GmbH and Privalia Venta Directa S.L., or the French site Vente Privee, which is backed by Summit Partners LLC.

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Electronic Mirrors Sell Lipstick and a Makeover

Christina Passariello — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 12:00:40 +0000

Cosmetics aisles in supermarkets and drugstores are adding electronic makeover specialists with the help of an Israeli start-up.
Retailers including Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT), France’s Carrefour SA and Superdrug Stores PLC in Britain are testing EZface Inc.’s “virtual mirrors” in their stores to simulate what makeup and hair dye would look like on shoppers. Faced with stiff competition from specialist cosmetics stores including Sephora, where shoppers get to try on products before buying them, retailers are looking for new ways to boost sales and reduce damaged inventory from opened packaging by consumers experimenting with products.

The virtual mirror kiosks are designed to be easy to use. A person stands in front of the screen and an internal camera takes a picture. Then the person scans the bar codes of various cosmetics—such as mascara, foundation, eye shadow, blush and lip gloss—and each automatically appears on the appropriate part of the face. A list on the right side of the screen reminds the person what products she is virtually testing. The user can print out the image, send it by email, or post it on Facebook.

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Bartz's (S)mash Note to Ballmer: The Photographic Proof

Kara Swisher — Fri, 29 May 2009 22:07:51 +0000

If a search and advertising partnership between Yahoo and Microsoft is ever struck, perhaps a little CEO-to-CEO note-passing should get some credit.

Yesterday, we wrote about the purple Post-It that Bartz passed to Ballmer via the makeup person in the D: All Things Digital Green Room.

Both Bartz and Ballmer were interviewed onstage at D7 this past week, and were asked about the talks, which ended yesterday in Carlsbad, Calif.

BoomTown also reported that Ballmer and Bartz, as well as key deal execs at both Yahoo (YHOO) and Microsoft (MSFT), had met in person once again about such a partnership at the conference.

Onstage, Ballmer dodged the question about meeting, joking about the sticky note Bartz had left for him.

That Post-It was stuck in a D7 program book that is kept by Dawn Griffith, our most excellent makeup person for all seven of the conferences.

Over the years, Griffith has asked all D7 speakers to sign programs next to their bios and Wall Street Journal-style dot drawings.

This year, Bartz and Ballmer shared a page in the book.

Bartz spoke on Wednesday morning and put the note below Ballmer’s picture, knowing he’d sign the program when getting his makeup done for his Thursday morning appearance.

And, not surprisingly for Bartz, it was a tough-love poem–although, thankfully, there is no cursing.

Here’s the image of the note (click on it once to make it larger), which reads:

“Steve,
Forget it
Won’t help
Ha
Carol”