Clean Beauty Mart Travels From Beverly Hills To Laguna Beach For Second Outpost

Three months after opening its first location in Beverly Hills, Clean Beauty Mart has graduated to a second outpost in Laguna Beach, Calif.

The fast-moving retailer founded by Oliver Ifergan and Laurent Saint-Cricq, the hairstylists behind Oliver Laurent Salon, has installed an in-store shop at Laguna Active Wear with around 30 of its bestselling brands, including From Molly With Love, Schmidt’s Naturals, Graydon Skincare, Noto Botanics, CocoRoo, Kindred Skincare Co. and Zabana Essentials. The in-store shop illustrates Clean Beauty Mart’s strategy to expand by introducing its assortment to existing stores frequented by customers interested in green beauty.

“The clientele at Laguna Active Wear is our clientele. It’s active women who take care of themselves, and they want these types of products,” says Ifergan. “There’s been nothing like this in Laguna Beach. We are a one-stop shop for these women. We made sure we have face, body, makeup, bath, deodorant and toothpaste. We’ve covered all the basics they’d want.”

Gila Leibovitch, owner of Laguna Active Wear and a regular at OliverLaurent Salon, was bullish on the Clean Beauty Mart concept the second Ifergan informed her about it. She reports shoppers at 1,500-square-foot Laguna Active Wear were requesting organic deodorant, face washes and sunscreens long before Clean Beauty Mart arrived on the beauty scene. The active wear store had already pushed into incense, body oils, meditation pillows and candles to complement apparel, and Leibovitch views beauty as a fitting next step.

“I wanted to be part of this clean beauty movement that is happening everywhere,” she says. “We are so much more aware of what we put in our bodies, why not be part of what we put on our bodies, too? As an animal activist, this is another way I can play a role in ending animal cruelty. Nothing feels better than using natural products.”

At Laguna Active Wear, Clean Beauty Mart has erected reclaimed barn wood shelving mimicking the interior of its Beverly Hills store. The merchandise selection is more limited as the 600-square-foot Beverly Hills store and its affiliated e-commerce site stock some 55 brands, but Leibovitch emphasizes a lot of beauty products can be squeezed into a small space along one wall at Laguna Active Wear. The beauty merchandise inside the Laguna Beach store will be refreshed seasonally, according to Ifergan. He estimates the majority of Clean Beauty Mart customers spend $60 to $65 per purchase on roughly three products.

“When you see the wall in Laguna or come into our store in Beverly Hills, you are in a place where everything feels natural. The design draws people in,” says Ifergan. “Once people interact with the products, they see all of the amazing packaging the products have. Then, they read the ingredients and try the products, and it closes the deal. Most people are buying stuff that contains harsh ingredients, but they completely buy into these products once they experience them.”

Ifergan anticipates Clean Beauty Mart will plant two to three permanent pop-ups this year in stores and eateries where natural beauty products make sense. Coffee houses and juice bars are possibilities for the pop-ups. “Somebody that spends $7 for a coffee is somebody that is willing to spend $25 to $27 for an amazing serum,” reasons Ifergan. “It’s a customer looking for quality.”

Clean Beauty Mart strikes revenue share deals with store owners agreeing to allot square footage to its format within their stores. The in-store shops provide incremental sales for the store owner and present Clean Beauty Mart to a new audience without it having to take care of rent or staffing expenses. “It’s a smart way to grow instead of opening stores,” says Ifergan, noting that Clean Beauty Mart trains store associates on its selection at pop-up locations.

Leibovitch is a big proponent of spas, salons and boutiques linking with Clean Beauty Mart. “I love the idea of sharing space. It’s a great way to test product and bring awareness to a brand,” she says. “By partnering with Clean Beauty Mart, I don’t need to figure out what works or which product to bring. They did all the work on that, and I get to have it come [in] all ready to sell.”