The Future of Retail: An Interview With Rituals' René Repko

We all know, selling products is not just about selling products. It’s about the experience, purpose – even meaning. We talked with cosmetics brand Ritual’s marketing director René Repko about the challenges that brands face in today’s retail environment.

Would you agree when I say that today the consumer buys more than just a product?

Yes, of course. Actually people never just buy a product, they buy into a brand. It might be any brand, a retail brand or dotcom. They establish a relationship with that specific brand and according to that relationship they will buy frequently or not. They are buying into service, into fulfillment, into price and the quality of a product. But it’s never only the product and in my opinion it never has been over the past 100 years. Obviously, if you’d bought something 50 years ago, you would buy it at the specialist store you trusted. Today we buy brands that we trust.

So “buying meaning” is not even a new concept?

No. I think today this is just being exaggerated. 50 years ago they’d buy from stores or brands they trusted. What has changed is probably the way we look at it. We talk about the “Why” of a brand. That has developed. Maybe the way we used to think about brands was more one-dimensional. But it was already about trust.

What other dimensions do you see?

That depends on the industry. For us it is service, by default it is price, product and quality. It is also positioning. We, for example, relate to old Asian history and traditions, so we derive our rituals from that specific basis which gives the consumer a specific advantage. All our products are categorized over specific rituals. And this is not just a fancy marketing story.

Another dimension is location in retail and I think the store concept for Rituals is really outstanding, a real differentiator, because of service, because of light, because of music, because of the staff’s clothes. The more we differentiate, the better.

You say at Rituals it’s not just about a fancy marketing story. How important is it for the customer today that their purchases reflect their own values?

I think it is vital. You and I would probably buy more or more frequently from brands with which’s values we can identify with. I will form a stronger relationship with that brand.

If you buy a product and you give it to someone as a present, it shows who you are. It shows that you cared to buy something special for someone special. If a brand does not reflect your values you're less likely to buy it or to give it as a present.

What does the term “new luxury” mean to you?

For us it's not new luxury, we call it affordable luxury. Chanel or Jo Malone have price points that are twice as high as ours or more. Our position is to offer comparable quality, frequently developed by the same perfumeries as the brands I have mentioned before. Sometimes we even use the same sources and production facilities. We're just far more affordable.

Is luxury about a high price or would you agree that today luxury can come from other attributes or values?

I still think that one of the most important drivers for a purchase is price and quality. You’re probably right, but I think this is very complex. Value, service, fulfillment, the complex domains brands offer to consumers, it has more dimensions than ten or 30 years ago.

What do you think are the most imminent changes in customer expectations?

There are several. But on top of our agenda is the omni-channel war game. Customers expect the same offerings on all channels, at the same speed, at a low price. We have four channels, retail, e-commerce, wholesale and travel lines of business and the customers expect all ranges at competitive prices, the same service, also in e-commerce. They expect free shipping, fast delivery, click & collect. They expect everything right here and right now.