You are on page 1of 11

See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.

net/publication/284351393

Fighting the Giants: The Case of a New Player

Article  in  South Asian Journal of Business and Management Cases · December 2014


DOI: 10.1177/2277977914548344

CITATIONS READS
0 4,556

2 authors:

Herwina Rosnan Rosmimah Mohd Roslin


Universiti Teknologi MARA Universiti Teknologi MARA
47 PUBLICATIONS   74 CITATIONS    48 PUBLICATIONS   193 CITATIONS   

SEE PROFILE SEE PROFILE

Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects:

Applying Decomposed Theory of Planned Behavior (DTPB) in Predicting Individual's Intention to Purchase Halal Personal Care Products:
The Moderating Role of Spiritual Intelligenec (SQ) View project

Value Co-Creation Behaviour Among Members of Service Cooperative View project

All content following this page was uploaded by Herwina Rosnan on 19 April 2016.

The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.


Case

Fighting the Giants: The Case South Asian Journal of


Business and Management Cases
of a New Player1 3(2) 129–138
© 2014 Birla Institute of Management Technology
SAGE Publications
Los Angeles, London,
New Delhi, Singapore,
Washington DC
Herwina Rosnan DOI: 10.1177/2277977914548344
http://bmc.sagepub.com
Rosmimah Mohd Roslin

Abstract
Today’s business environment is dynamic and current business competition is characterized by some
authors as hyper-competition. For a new player, sustainable competitive advantage is a crucial indica-
tor of success. SimplySiti is a new brand in the beauty industry in Malaysia having being established in
2008 and launched in 2010. Amidst the presence of more established global competitors like L’Oreal,
Avon and Estee Lauder in the Malaysian market, SimplySiti has done fairly well. Much of its success
is attributed to fast acceptance by the market as the main target market for this brand are fans of
Dato’ Siti Nurhaliza, the most popular Malaysian singer with vast following not only in Malaysia but
across countries such as Indonesia, Singapore, Brunei and the Middle East. The brand itself is associ-
ated with Dato’ Siti Nurhaliza as she is the founder and the driver of this brand and she is involved in
marketing and promoting this brand directly. This case study highlights how a newly established local
business competes with the more established global players. Specifically, the article analyzes how
SimplySiti thrives in the midst of very strong and much-established competitors and the direction it
takes to steer the company in the next phase of its establishment.

Keywords
SimplySiti, Siti Nurhaliza, beauty industry, business sustainability, competitive advantage, brand strategy

Introduction
Products associated with beauty industry include fragrances, skin care products and colour cosmetics
which comprise of make-up and other products for face, eye, lips and nails. It is estimated that the world
consumers spend approximately US$ 330 billion a year on beauty products alone (Jones & De Pinho,
2007). The scale of global beauty industry is significant and it is one of the most profitable industries.
For example, in the United States (US), beauty industry is well behind its pharmaceutical and software
industry in terms of profitability. Whereby, compared to other industries, beauty industry’s profitability

Herwina Rosnan and Rosmimah Mohd Roslin have developed this case solely for class discussion for programmes in
management education. The authors do not intend to illustrate either effective or ineffective handling of a managerial
or an administrative situation. The case study does not represent or endorse the views of the management about
the issues in the case. The authors may have disguised certain names and other identifying information to protect
confidentiality where needed. The case has been compiled from secondary sources of information.
Downloaded from bmc.sagepub.com at Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) on April 18, 2016
130 Herwina Rosnan and Rosmimah Mohd Roslin

is far above average (Porter, 2008). Interestingly, Jones (2010) found out that beauty industry has
produced many prominent women business leaders and entrepreneurs.
The beauty industry is dominated by global brands like L’Oreal, Avon, Revlon and Estee Lauder, to
name a few. These companies have been in the market for ages with strong brand acknowledgement by
the market. Undoubtedly, beauty industry has posed promising opportunities and is a lucrative business.

An Overview of Malaysia’s Beauty Industry


In general, the beauty industry includes cosmetics, skin care, hair care and fragrance. Globally, the
beauty industry is a multi-billion dollar industry attracting many players, big and small, as they strive to
capture the lucrative market share. Global beauty industry is dominated by big players like the L’Oreal
Group, Estee Lauder Companies, Revlon Inc., Procter & Gamble and Unilever. Competition is profound
in the beauty industry, globally and in Malaysia itself. Despite a highly competitive business environ-
ment, there is vast potential especially in the Association of Southeast Nations (ASEAN) region where
regional economic integration is likely to boost the beauty industry in this region (Severino, 2012).
Changes in consumer demands are very profound in Malaysia, according to Country Market Insight
(2009). As disposable income has grown stronger for the past few years, Malaysian consumers are
spending more on beauty and grooming products. Consumers’ spending on beauty and personal care
product grew to RM1.9 billion in 2007 from RM1.4 billion in 2005. With good economic situation
and attractive business environment, Malaysian domestic market is inundated with foreign beauty and
toiletry manufacturers. Economic condition appears to be an important determinant to the growing
beauty industry in Malaysia.
In colour cosmetics segment, Euromonitor International (2012) reports that major players in the
Malaysian colour cosmetic industry include manufacturers such as L’Oreal, Avon, Estee Lauder, Shiseido
and Amway. This is presented in Table 1 where the top manufacturer, as indicated by its brand shares in

Table 1. Top 10 Colour Beauty Manufacturer Shares in Malaysia, 2009–2011

2009 2010 2011


Company (%) (%) (%)
L’Oreal (M) Sdn. Bhd. 20.6 20.7 20.7
AVON Beauty (M) Sdn. Bhd. 16.7 17.3 17.2
Estee Lauder Co. Inc. 15.7 15.4 15.2
Alliance Beauty (M) Sdn. Bhd. 8.3 8.2 8.4
Revlon Inc. 6.6 6.7 6.8
Shiseido Co. Ltd. 5.2 5.1 5.2
Amway (M) Sdn. Bhd. 3.6 3.7 3.7
Nu Skin (M) Sdn. Bhd. 2.9 2.7 2.7
Cosway (M) Sdn. Bhd. 2.9 2.7 2.6
Kosé (M) Sdn. Bhd. 2.8 2.7 2.5
Source: Euromonitor International (2012).

South Asian Journal of Business and Management Cases, 3, 2 (2014): 129–138


Downloaded from bmc.sagepub.com at Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) on April 18, 2016
Fighting the Giants 131

Table 2. Top 10 Colour Beauty Brand Shares in Malaysia, 2009–2011

2009 2010 2011


Brand Company (%) (%) (%)
AVON Colour AVON Beauty (M) Sdn. Bhd 16.7 17.3 17.2
Silkygirl. Alliance Beauty (M) Sdn. Bhd. 8.3 8.2 8.4
Maybelline L’Oreal (M) Sdn. Bhd. 8.2 8.2 8.1
L’Oreal Paris L’Oreal (M) Sdn. Bhd. 7.7 7.8 7.8
Revlon Revlon Inc 6.6 6.7 6.8
Estee Lauder Estee Lauder Co. Inc. 4.7 4.6 4.7
Mac. Estee Lauder Co. Inc. 3.9 3.9 4.0
Artistry Amway (M) Sdn. Bhd 3.6 3.7 3.7
Bobbi Brown Estee Lauder Co. Inc. 3.6 3.7 3.7
Lancôme L’Oreal (M) Sdn. Bhd 3.5 3.5 3.6
Source: Euromonitor International (2012).

2009–2011, is L’Oreal (M) Sdn. Bhd. with a 20.7 per cent share in 2011. The top 10 colour cosmetic
brand shares between 2009–2011 in Malaysia is dominated by Avon Colour, manufactured by Avon
Beauty (M) Sdn. Bhd, as shown in Table 2.
Although the available data on the competitors are specific to colour cosmetics segments, these
brands are also known for beauty products like skin care and fragrances. This is an indication of the
intense competition in the beauty industry in Malaysia with the participation of global players in
the domestic market. Hence, venturing into the beauty business may prove to be challenging as a new
company has to compete with more established global brands. This does not mean that the beauty
business is not a viable venture, but to successfully compete in this industry, two critical areas must be
satisfied: first, the decision on pricing; and second, product differentiation (Porter, 1980). Pricing reflects
the positioning of the product in the market, while product differentiation relates to the uniqueness of
the products as compared to the rivals.
The development of the beauty industry is also in line with the development of information technology
and the Internet. Many companies are now marketing and selling their products online. According to
Martin, Durme, Raulas and Merisavo (2003), the beauty industry worldwide seems to be continuously
developing, now more than ever, with the advent of the Internet. Based on their study on online marketing,
they found that online marketing with useful and informative content attracts and motivates consumers
to go to physical stores to test the beauty products.

The Case
SimplySiti is a new brand in the beauty industry in Malaysia having being established in 2008 and
launched in 2010. Siti Nurhaliza, a renowned singer with a melodious voice, is synonymous with the
entertainment industry in Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei. She is now a name that is rapidly growing in
the beauty industry in Malaysia. With a brand called SimplySiti, this range of beauty products has now

South Asian Journal of Business and Management Cases, 3, 2 (2014): 129–138


Downloaded from bmc.sagepub.com at Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) on April 18, 2016
132 Herwina Rosnan and Rosmimah Mohd Roslin

captured the hearts of many Malaysians, young and old, especially among the die-hard fans of Siti
Nurhaliza. This new brand in the beauty industry has taken a place amongst the giants of the industry like
L’Oreal, Avon, Revlon and Estee Lauder, to name a few. The beauty industry in Malaysia is a competitive
one, yet this new brand has found a niche which is definitely posing a challenge to the key players in the
industry.
From a humble beginning, Siti Nurhaliza has successfully grown to become a renowned household
name and has been Malaysia’s number one singer since the middle of the 1990s. After gaining popularity
in the local music scene, she has embarked into the international arena and has been widely accepted at
the regional level, as well as in Japan and the Middle East. Through her career, she has produced more
than 20 albums and has won more than 200 awards and accolades. She has also received more than 14
recognitions and honours. Siti Nurhaliza is a success story and with a charismatic personality, she creates
enormous interest towards her lifestyle. She is the epitome of the feminine oriental values which are
enchanting, full of elegance and charming. Indeed, as a singer with the biggest number of awards, Siti
Nurhaliza has been listed in the Malaysian Book of Records as the first Malaysian artist who has given
a solo concert performance at the Royal Albert Hall, London, in 2005. In addition, it has also been
recorded that she was ‘The Most Awarded Artiste’ in 2001, having won 112 awards till that year.
Hence, based on her popularity, Siti Nurhaliza has become a widely marketable name with a ready
and available huge customer base. This has led to the incorporation of SimplySiti Sdn. Bhd. in 2008,
where she ventured into the beauty business under the brand name SimplySiti. SimplySiti started as a
small business under the small and medium enterprises (SMEs) category with an initial investment of
RM1 million. The first few products were launched in March 2010, carrying the values and image
projected by Siti Nurhaliza which were highlighted strongly in the marketing of the brand and were
capitalized as strong selling factors. The products offer the sharing of Siti Nurhaliza’s lifestyle that will
satisfy the desires among the fans and followers. The brand name chosen was strongly associated with
Siti Nurhaliza as it brings her closer to the fans and she plays the role as the frontline marketing character.
The immediate target market for SimplySiti products upon launching was Siti Nurhaliza’s fan base,
which was estimated to be approximately 4 million people across the region.
SimplySiti was the brainchild of Siti Nurhaliza herself. She felt that after 15 years of a successful
career in the music industry, it was time that she shared her passion with her fans, which is her beauty
secret that is very much sought after by Siti Nurhaliza ‘wannabes’. Hence, SimplySiti is projected as a
gift by Siti Nurhaliza to her fans with a catchy tagline of ‘Rahsiaku Kini Milikmu’ which means: ‘It used
to be my secret, now it’s yours’. From a humble idea to share her beauty secret with the fans, SimplySiti
has grown to a business with vast and lucrative potential.
With Siti Nurhaliza’s projection of image as a competitive edge for the range of SimpliSiti’s products,
this case study analyzes how the company leverages on the stature of the founder as an iconic figure to
gain the following that it desires from the fan base initially, to a much larger market in the future. The
article analyzes how SimplySiti thrives in the midst of very strong and much-established competitors and
the direction it takes to steer the company in the next phase of its establishment. Specifically, the case
highlights the issue of sustainability in the marketing strategy of using the founder as the driving force
for the establishment of the brand and how changes are likely needed in order to meet the dynamic force
that the industry faces. Indeed, a business which depends on the founder’s image, where Siti Nurhaliza
is seen as one with the brand, can be a challenging step to take as this strategy is susceptible to the winds
of change of the fans. This case, therefore, presents an alternative perspective relating to the establishment
of brand and the sustainability of the marketing strategy.

South Asian Journal of Business and Management Cases, 3, 2 (2014): 129–138


Downloaded from bmc.sagepub.com at Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) on April 18, 2016
Fighting the Giants 133

SimplySiti’s Present Outlook


SimplySiti launched its first range of products in March 2010. The products encompass the various
ranges of skin care, cosmetics and fragrances, well accepted by local market which is measured through
its sales. SimplySiti recorded an increasing sales trend where the first year sales were recorded at RM21
million,2 followed by RM27.7 million in the second year and an estimated of RM32 million in the third
year. The growth rate of SimplySiti’s turnover is between 20 and 30 per cent per annum. Relatively, the
sales figures achieved by SimplySiti are highly commendable by Malaysian standards considering the
SME status of the company. The overall sales are projected to go further with bigger product range and
market expansion to foreign countries.
As evidenced by local acceptance of the products, although SimplySiti is a new player in the market
and still in its infancy stage, it has managed to achieve several accolades and awards such as the Halal
Awards for Best Halal Product and The Brandlaureate—SME’s Chapter Awards for Most Promising
Brands. Table 3 shows the awards obtained by SimplySiti.
In addition, the founder herself has been conferred with The Brandlaureate Tun Dr Siti Hasmah
SME’s Women of the Year Award in 2011 for her entrepreneurial involvement. Considering its current
performance, there is indeed a bright potential for SimplySiti. However, much needs to be addressed in
the face of more established and aggressive competitors that have made a mark globally. There is a need
to address and review SimplySiti’s competitive edge and its direction that will lead to sustainability.

Competitive Advantage
The core competitive advantage of SimplySiti’s is often stipulated to the founder herself, Siti Nurhaliza.
At present, SimplySiti’s products are inseparable of her image. Siti Nurhaliza has created an image in
such a way that the way she projects herself has become the inspiration to others, and which many people
would like to emulate. It cannot be denied that her charming image and reputation has led to her
exceptional success in the music industry. Siti Nurhaliza was a model and spokesperson for the global

Table 3. Awards Achieved

No. Year Name of Award Award Category


1. 2010 Halal Journal Award Best Halal Product
2. 2010 Watson’s Health Wellness & Beauty Award 1.  The Best Halal Launch
2.  The Best BB-Cream
3.  The Best Coverage Face Powder
4.  The Best Exclusive Brand Launch
3. 2011 Brandlaureate—SMEs Chapter Award Most Promising Brand
4. 2011 UDC Business Awards UDC Best Upcoming Cosmetic Products
5. 2012 Kecantikan Untukmu Cosmopolitan Award Best Packaging
6. 2012 Halfest Award Best Packaging
Source: SimplySiti Sdn. Bhd.

South Asian Journal of Business and Management Cases, 3, 2 (2014): 129–138


Downloaded from bmc.sagepub.com at Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) on April 18, 2016
134 Herwina Rosnan and Rosmimah Mohd Roslin

colour cosmetic brand, Maybelline, for five consecutive years from 1999 to 2003 prior to establishing
her own beauty business. Leveraging on her own reputation as Malaysia’s sweetheart, SimplySiti products
are well positioned among the renowned and well-established brands in the market. Indeed, this is
heavily driven by the market perception towards SimplySiti products as reflected by the image and
personality of Siti Nurhaliza.
Furthermore, being the number one singer in the country, Siti Nurhaliza has a strong rapport with
the media at all levels and she is always sought after for media coverage. Hence, SimplySiti’s activities
such as product launchings and promotional events have always been given wide media coverage and
publicity. At the same time, SimplySiti always places great emphasis on its product development and
improvement. Its dedicated product development team collaborates strategically with the manufacturer
on continuous product research and development (R&D) in order to create new innovative product
range in the line of skin care products, beauty and fragrances.
In addition, the halal certification is a boost for the brand in this predominantly Muslim market. Halal
means lawful or Shariah compliance in Islamic context. Today, there is a growing demand for halal
products worldwide. This is due to the growing numbers of Muslims worldwide and increasing awareness
among Muslims of the importance to consume and use only Shariah-compliance products which include
beauty products. Halal Industry Development (2009) estimated the halal market to value at US$ 2 trillion
annually. Creating a business with Muslim consumers in mind, SimplySiti goes to a great length to ensure
the products are halal by getting the accredited certification for halal products. All SimplySiti products
are certified by the Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (JAKIM). In 2010, SimplySiti was
awarded the ‘Best Halal Product’ by The Halal Journal.

Business Sustainability through Brand Building


The hyper-competitive environment of global business today dictates the need to be different. Davis
(2002) talks about a new way of managing brands and he argues that brands, together with the people in
an organization, help build the strategic foundation of marketing. ‘There is growing support for viewing
and managing the brand as an asset and thus having the brand drive every strategic and investment
decision’ (Davis & Dunn, 2002, p. 15). This becomes relevant given that the top three strategic goals for
brand strategy today are: increasing customer loyalty; differentiating from the competition; and
establishing market leadership. These are steps that are distinctively present in SimplySiti. The dependence
on the iconic figure as both the brand ambassador and the founder of the brand may imply a narrow focus
on the competitive edge elements. As much as Siti Nurhaliza is a valuable asset for the brand, her
presence is critical for sustainability. For as long as the fans adore her, the brand will sustain itself.
However, such attraction may diminish as time passes by and therefore, there is a need to re-evaluate the
strategic direction of the brand.
SimplySiti cannot run away from the fact that the name Siti Nurhaliza has led to its initial fast market
acceptance. However, understanding the fact that it cannot rely only on the popularity of its founder,
SimplySiti has moved towards establishing the business to achieve sustainable competitive advantage.
The major areas given emphasis to ensure sustainability are: the product itself; advertising and promotion
(A&P); strengthening its channel distribution and its operations, mainly on its supply chain, and human
capital, management teams as well as the leadership.

South Asian Journal of Business and Management Cases, 3, 2 (2014): 129–138


Downloaded from bmc.sagepub.com at Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) on April 18, 2016
Fighting the Giants 135

The products: SimplySiti has developed various ranges of products comprising skin care, cosmetics
and fragrances to cater for different market needs. Its product development team put in endless efforts in
R&D and has always been innovative in product development in order to fulfil the market needs and
trend. They have to keep abreast with latest technology like nanotechnology; at the same time, they have
to be creative in the areas of product merchandizing, packaging, etc.
Advertising and promotion: Competitors like L’Oreal and Avon are known for investing heavily in
A&P. In this Internet era, beauty companies must be innovative in their marketing and advertising strat-
egy and look for new marketing channels to reach a wide audience through online interaction. Avon, for
example, has been able to raise its image and brand name after participating in numerous promotional
activities through television advertisements, radio announcements and magazine advertisements
(Kumar, Massie & Dumonceaux, 2006). SimplySiti has been investing in both above-the-line and
below-the-line advertising. These include television, radio, online, magazine and newspaper advertise-
ments. SimplySiti is constantly involved in other promotional activities through campaigns, product
launching, meet & greet promotional activities, loyalty programmes, and through its corporate social
responsibility activities.
Channel distribution: Collaborations with partners in the areas of distribution seem inevitable in
order to strengthen and widen the distribution channels. SimplySiti has so far developed partnership
with seven strategic partners covering major retail outlets in the country.
Operations: product availability is highly crucial for fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) products.
Hence, SimplySiti management always assure an effective management of its supply chain, with great
emphasis on its inventory level, considering its production lead time and delivery requirements.
Leadership, management team and human capital: Profound and direct involvement of its leadership
is indeed another success factor of SimplySiti. This is supported by strong commitment from the
management team and subordinates in implementing well-orchestrated efforts towards achieving its
common goals. Human capital is the essence of a successful organization, hence SimplySiti believes in
investing in its human capital through its recruitment scheme.

International Market Penetration


Capturing the local market has always been the main agenda of SimplySiti. Establishing and securing its
presence in the local market is essential prior to venturing abroad as experience would lessen the risks of
doing business abroad. SimplySiti established channel distribution with local pharmaceutical outlet,
Watson, and later with Guardian and AEON, big retail names in Malaysia. At present, the products are
available at outlets such as Watson, Guardian, AEON Big, SOGO and Tesco. From 200 outlets in its
initial start-up, SimplySiti has grown to about 600 outlets within a short span of three years.
In penetrating the foreign market, there are a few strategies that a company can pursue, namely,
through greenfield, alliance and joint venture, merger and acquisition, licensing and franchising. All
these alternatives have their pros and cons and based on SimplySiti’s resources and capabilities, green-
field strategy is perhaps not a viable option for the company. As part of its expansion plan, SimplySiti
is working hard on penetrating foreign markets, especially in countries where Siti Nurhaliza is
well accepted by her fans, like Singapore, Brunei and Indonesia. The aim is now to look at Indonesian
market. Indonesia is an attractive market not only because of the huge population of approximately
280 million people but also as Siti Nurhaliza has established her fan base here and has always received
overwhelming response from her Indonesian fans. Based on study done by SimplySiti, in 2011, the

South Asian Journal of Business and Management Cases, 3, 2 (2014): 129–138


Downloaded from bmc.sagepub.com at Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) on April 18, 2016
136 Herwina Rosnan and Rosmimah Mohd Roslin

market for skin care products was estimated at US$ 500 million and this poses opportunities for
SimplySiti to venture into.

Key Challenges
It has been established that SimplySiti is not without its challenges. Despite the overwhelming response
from the current market in Malaysia which is predominantly Siti Nurhaliza’s fans, the future is still
uncertain with the presence of more-established global competitors in the industry. As reiterated earlier,
some of SimplySiti’s major challenges are its dependency on the popularity of the founder where there is
high market responsiveness towards personal issues, intense competition in the beauty industry as well
as financial challenges. These challenges are described in the following discussion.

Reputation and Popularity


The brand SimplySiti is synonymous with Dato’ Siti Nurhaliza and as such, the acceptance of the brand
is very much dependent on her popularity. On one hand, this has actually contributed to SimplySiti’s
success over its three years of operations. But on the other hand, popularity is not endless and hence,
strong association with the founder itself may not guarantee business sustainability. Being a celebrity,
the personal life and any issue pertaining to Siti Nurhaliza may affect the sales performance. Hence,
Siti Nurhaliza must maintain a good image and positive reputation as, if the image is compromised, it
might adversely affect the sales. This is the downside to the image and branding association. Hence, the
management must look into ways on how to establish the brand and the products by slowly but surely
disassociating these from the founder, and therefore reducing the dependency on the popularity of
Siti Nurhaliza, in order to be assured of sustainability and long-term success.

Increasing Competition
Competition in beauty industry is very intense with big global players entering domestic Malaysian
market. Competition comes from both the existing players, mostly bigger players, as well as the new
entrants. With the availability of original equipment manufacturer (OEM) for beauty products, new
market entrants do not need to develop their own manufacturing plants and, hence, find it easier to enter
the market. This has continuously led to the creation of new players sharing the same market, although
some of the new players may not survive that long in the industry. Hence, the more resilient a company,
the more likely it will stay ahead in the industry. This form of resilience and endurance must be well
internalized into SimplySiti if it wants to stay long in the industry.

Financial Challenges
Fund is one of the most important resource for any business. Consistent market presence and product
awareness is important for SimplySiti, and this can only be achieved through a continuous injection of

South Asian Journal of Business and Management Cases, 3, 2 (2014): 129–138


Downloaded from bmc.sagepub.com at Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) on April 18, 2016
Fighting the Giants 137

A&P investment. The other established competitors see A&P as crucial and are willing and able to
spend extensively. In this context, it has been a challenge for SimplySiti to keep abreast with competitors’
A&P budget considering the size of the company. However, understanding the importance of branding,
SimplySiti has been allocating a substantial amount of investment to A&P.

Conclusion
SimplySiti is a new player in the beauty industry in Malaysia. Despite having to compete in a very
competitive industry environment, it is evidenced that SimplySiti is doing well at present and is moving
towards a better future judging from positive beauty industry outlook. The article highlights SimplySiti’s
present outlook as well as future challenges facing the business. One of the biggest challenges is to
ensure business sustainability in the long run as players in the beauty industry are unique and innovative
in the product line offerings and aggressive in marketing strategy and distribution channels. SimplySiti
has to keep abreast with the fast-changing trends in the beauty industry and constantly innovate. Indeed,
the biggest challenge of all is to establish a well-accepted brand name, one that is not directly linked
to the founder only but has its strength in the quality and innovative offerings. There is a need to ensure
that the brand and the product range are able to sustain themselves even beyond the popularity of
Siti Nurhaliza.

Acknowledgements
The authors are very thankful to the management team of SimplySiti Sdn. Bhd. Special thanks are expressed to
Mohamad Yuzaime Yusoff, Vice President, Business Development, SimplySiti Sdn. Bhd., for his kind assistance
and approval in completing the case study.

Notes
1. The case study is a revised and updated version of the case study, titled ‘Business Sustainability of SimplySiti
Sdn. Bhd’, presented at International Conference on Management Cases 2013, organized on 6–7 December 2013
at Birla Institute of Management Technology, Greater Noida, India, and included in the conference publication
of title, Strategic Initiatives for Competitive Advantage in the Knowledge Society, edited by G.D. Sardana and
Tojo Thatchenkery, published by Bloomsbury India, 2014.
2. Approximate value of Ringgit Malaysia (RM) is: US$ 1 = RM3.

References
Country Market Insight (2009). Beauty and toiletries in Malaysia. Retrieved 13 February 2013, from http://www.
giiresearch.com/report/eo91881-cosme-toilet-malaysia.html
Davis, C.M. (2002). Brand asset management: Driving profitable growth through your brands. San Francisco:
Jossey-Bass.
Davis, C.M. & Dunn, M. (2002). Building the brand driven business: Operationalize your brand to drive profitable
growth. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Euromonitor International (2012). Official statistics, trade associations, trade press company research, store checks,
trade interviews and trade sources. Retrieved 20 April 2013, from www.euromonitor.com
Halal Industry Development. (2009). The halal industry: The new source of economic growth. Retrieved 2 May
2013, from http://www.hdcglobal.com

South Asian Journal of Business and Management Cases, 3, 2 (2014): 129–138


Downloaded from bmc.sagepub.com at Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) on April 18, 2016
138 Herwina Rosnan and Rosmimah Mohd Roslin

Jones, G. (2010). Beauty imagined: A history of the global beauty industry. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Jones, G. & De Pinho, R.R. (2007). Natura: Global beauty made in Brazil. Harvard Business School Case
No. 9-807-029.
Kumar, S., Massie, C. & Dumonceaux, M.D. (2006). Comparative innovative business strategies of major players
in cosmetic industry. Industrial Management & Data Systems, 106(3), 285–306.
Martin, B.S., Durme, J.V., Raulas, M. & Merisavo, M. (2003). E-mail advertising: Exploring insights from Finland.
Journal of Advertising Research, 43(3), 293–300.
Porter, M.E. (1980). Competitive strategy, New York: The Free Press.
———. (2008). Competitive forces that shape strategy. Harvard Business Review, 86(1), 79–93.
Severi no, R.C. (2002). The beauty industry and regional economic integration. Manila: The Philippine Chamber
of Beauty Industry. Retrieved 12 June 2013, from http://www.aseansec.org/2840.htm

Herwina Rosnan is Senior Lecturer at Arshad Ayub Graduate Business School, UiTM Shah Alam,
Malaysia. She obtained her Ph.D. degree in International Business from University of Malaya, Malaysia.
Her major areas of interests include international business and strategic management.
[E-mail: herwina@salam.uitm.edu.my]

Rosmimah Mohd Roslin is Professor of Marketing at Arshad Ayub Graduate Business School,
Universiti Teknologi MARA 40450 Shah Alam, Malaysia. Her research interests are in areas of marketing
channels, channel relationships, relationship marketing, qualitative research and retail development.
[E-mail: rosmimah@salam.uitm.edu.my]

South Asian Journal of Business and Management Cases, 3, 2 (2014): 129–138


Downloaded from bmc.sagepub.com at Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) on April 18, 2016

View publication stats

You might also like