1. History
    Origins and expansion  Acquisition  Recent years  The Little Vegan Pop-Up Shop  Superdrug Mobile 

2. Products

3. Marketing
    Advertising  Dare Magazine  Loyalty card 

4. Controversies

5. References

6. External links

• Ronald Goldstein
• Peter Goldstein

Superdrug Stores plc (trading as Superdrug) is a health and beauty retailer in the United Kingdom, and the second largest behind Boots UK. The company has been a subsidiary of A.S. Watson Group since October 2002, itself part of the Hong Kong conglomerate CK Hutchison Holdings.

It trades from nearly 900 shops across the United Kingdom and Ireland. Superdrug employs over 14,000 people, ranging from minimum-wage jobs to some of the highest-paid within the industry. {{As of|2016||df=|since=}}, Superdrug was the United Kingdom's fastest growing health and beauty retailer, more than doubling its profit in 2015.{{citation needed|date=December 2016}}

Besides health and beauty products, the company also has pharmacies with consultation rooms in over 220 shops, and a further 19 contain nurse clinics, making it the fourth largest chemist chain in the United Kingdom. It maintains links with sister companies also owned by A.S. Watson Group: Savers and The Perfume Shop.

History

Origins and expansion

In 1964, Superdrug was incorporated under the name of Leading Supermarkets Limited by the Goldstein brothers in London, both of whom had experience working in the groceries retail industry. Later that year the business adopted the present name. The first Superdrug shop opened in Putney, London on 26 April 1966.{{citation needed|date=July 2017}}

By 1968, there were three shops trading in Putney, Croydon and Streatham. In the same year Superdrug acquired its first distribution centre, in Wimbledon. The chain grew rapidly, and expanded to a chain of forty shops by the beginning of the 1970s. In 1971, The Rite Aid Corporation, an American chemist chain, acquired 49% of the business.{{citation needed|date=July 2017}}

By 1981, there were three hundred Superdrug shops in the United Kingdom, and they opened their 11,148 m² (120,000 ft²) distribution centre and office complex at Beddington Lane in Croydon. This centre closed in July 2007, and the southern distribution operation moved to Dunstable, although the head office remains in Croydon. The northern distribution operates from Pontefract, West Yorkshire.{{citation needed|date=July 2017}}

In 1983, the business was floated on London's Unlisted Securities Market.^[2]

In March 1987, Superdrug was sold to Woolworth Holdings (now known as Kingfisher plc) for £57 million.^[2] The sale allowed accelerated growth of the brand through utilisation of Kingfisher's surplus high street property portfolio and substantial financial assets.

In January 1988, Superdrug acquired Tip-Top, a discount chemist chain which had a large presence in the north of England and Scotland, and Share Drug Stores plc, a southern-based chain. These acquisitions and an aggressive expansion programme saw the chain grow to six hundred outlets throughout the United Kingdom.

Superdrug continued to grow over the next eight years, increasing profitability and market share. In 1995, the company began a rebranding programme, which saw it leave behind its discount heritage and move upmarket, with a new corporate identity – under the banner "the real beauty is the price" – and new larger shops in prime retail locations.

This led to a marked increase in prices in order to fund a higher cost base, and left the chain vulnerable to attack from new discount chains such as Savers and Wilkinson, who were rapidly expanding at the time, and the supermarkets such as Tesco and Asda, who were growing their presence in the high-margin non-food sector.{{citation needed|date=December 2016}}

Acquisition

Facing increasing pressure from supermarkets and new discount chains, in July 2001, Superdrug was sold to Kruidvat, a chemist operator from continental Europe, to allow Kingfisher to focus on its DIY and electrical chains. Kruidvat was subsequently sold to AS Watson, the retail and manufacturing business of the Hong Kong conglomerate CK Hutchison Holdings, formally Hutchison Whampoa, in November 2002.

AS Watson is also the parent company of Savers, the United Kingdom's number three chemist chain. Subsequently, several of Superdrug's smaller shops were converted into Savers, and approximately three hundred Savers shops were converted into branches of Superdrug.

In April 2006, Superdrug entered the Republic of Ireland, and began rolling out its "next generation" shops, the first of which opened in Uxbridge. These focused on cosmetics and fragrance above all else and used plasma screens throughout the shop. Superdrug announced their intention to create 150 more next generation shops in 2008.^[3]

Recent years

In February 2010, Superdrug became a BUAV approved retailer,^[4] joining several other high street chains in pledging its own brand products will be free from animal testing. All Superdrug own-label products carry the leaping bunny cruelty-free logo. This does not, however, cover products made by other brands that are sold in the shop.

During 2010, Superdrug went into partnership with sister company The Perfume Shop by trialling shop-in-shop concessions. The partnership was tried in eleven shops of Superdrug, including; Aylesbury, Milton Keynes, Bury, Glasgow, Westfield London and Kensington High Street.^[5] In January 2018, Superdrug were recognised by the Institute of Customer Service, placing fourth in the United Kingdom for Customer Satisfaction (UKCSI), with Yorkshire Bank in third, First Direct second, and Amazon first.

The Little Vegan Pop-Up Shop

On 22 March 2018, Superdrug opened their first vegan-only pop-up shop at Shoreditch’s Boxpark. Superdrug said it was in response to increased demand for plant-based and cruelty-free beauty products. The shop showcases Superdrug own-brand beauty and cosmetic products, and also exclusive branded products that are friendly to vegans.^[6]

Superdrug Mobile

In June 2018, Superdrug Mobile was launched. The mobile network is operated as an MVNO on the back of sister company Three and is exclusive to members of Superdrug's "Health & Beautycard" loyalty scheme.^[7]

Products

In February 2012, Superdrug went into partnership with Pro Skin Clinics, which has enabled Superdrug to offer specialist skincare clinics in-shop. Treatments on offer range from laser hair removal to facials.

Superdrug planned to have fifty clinics by the end of 2013, starting with shops on Kensington High Street and Oxford Street, and then concentrating on recently refurbished shops.^[8]

In February 2013, Superdrug ventured into the premium skincare market, by launching a new and exclusive brand called “B”. The brand offers both skincare and make-up, and was launched during January to February 2013, accompanied by a multimillion-pound advertising campaign including television advertising, magazine promotion, blogger reviews and a pop up tour around the United Kingdom's largest shopping centres.^[9]

It became first high street retailer to offer chickenpox vaccination in 58 of its shops, at a cost of £65 per dose, two doses being required, in July 2017.^[10]

Marketing

Advertising

On 1 October 2010, the campaign Take Another Look was launched by Superdrug to encourage customers to "Take Another Look" at the company.^[11]

On 7 February 2013, Superdrug launched a new marketing and advertising campaign, "That Superdrug Feeling", featuring staff from their shops.^[12]

Dare Magazine

Superdrug's Dare Magazine underwent a major makeover, to bring it in line with the company's "Take Another Look" campaign. The Magazine is distributed in-shop and on the streets of London for free. On 10 February 2011, Superdrug announced that the magazine would be the first customer magazine to use digital watermarking technology. Readers will be able to use their smartphone to view interactive video content, and access exclusive news and tips by scanning digital watermarks embedded in the magazine.^[13]

Loyalty card

On 11 May 2011, Superdrug launched their first reward card called The Beautycard.^[14] The card was launched as part of the Take Another Look campaign, which has been at the heart of the company's marketing strategy since October 2010. On 27 May 2011, Superdrug announced they had signed up one million customers to the scheme.^[15]

In 2015, Superdrug adapted their loyalty card in order to appeal to more of a mass market, renaming it Health and Beautycard. The concept of the card containing a mirror remained but it was redesigned to give a more mature look and feel.

Controversies

In December 2007, Superdrug was forced to withdraw a women's punch bag following complaints from anti-domestic violence campaigners. The man-shaped product encouraged women to insert a photo of a male in the punch bag's face and had an arrow pointing at the groin stating – "kick him here". The ManKind Initiative, a domestic violence charity, said it was disgraceful that a national retailer like Superdrug should be openly selling products encouraging domestic violence against men. Following the complaints, the retailer withdrew the product and promised to donate any profits from sales of the item to the charity.^[16][17]

In August 2018, Superdrug was the subject of a blackmail attempt using data obtained from its website via credential stuffing.^[18]

References

External links

• {{commons category-inline|Superdrug}}
• {{official website|http://www.superdrug.com/}}

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