Estée Lauder’s luxury brands no longer at Colruyt: “An abnormal situation”

The surprising appearance of the luxury brand Clinique—part of the Estée Lauder group—in a few Colruyt pilot stores earlier this year did not lead to anything further: the American cosmetics group is sticking to a strategy of selective distribution.

Not in the supermarket

Many observers were surprised when the luxury brand Clinique appeared in a few Colruyt Lowest Prices pilot stores earlier this year. That has since been rectified, says Franck Besnard, European CEO of the Estée Lauder Group, in an interview with RetailDetail. After all, the company opts for a selective retail strategy.

Besnard is clear about the Colruyt trial: “You may have seen Clinique at Colruyt, but that was not our decision. And it is absolutely not our strategy: we want to ensure that our brands remain in selective distribution. It was an abnormal situation over which we had no control, but which we have corrected. We are not changing our distribution strategy: we adhere to selective distribution.” The group’s brands will therefore not appear in supermarkets. Colruyt declined to comment.

You can read the full interview here.