Sampler Acquires Digital Sampling Platform Abeo
Abeo, the digital beauty sampling platform, has a new owner.
The company, which launched in 2020 as a part of Arcade Beauty, has been acquired by Sampler, which provides users with free, personalized samples across categories like food and beauty. The acquisition marks a push in the latter category.
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“We have historically done a lot of work across all of the CPG categories — food, personal care and baby,” said Marie Chevrier Schwartz, founder and chief executive officer of Sampler. “We had a roster of beauty brands, but it wasn’t our sole focus. Now, through this acquisition, we’re creating a dedicated beauty team to build customized solutions for the beauty category.”
Arcade Beauty will stay on as a minority shareholder. Other terms of the deal were not disclosed.
“They are the largest manufacturer of beauty product samples. It’s going straight to the source on manufacturing, helping brands from the creation of a product sample all the way to distribution is the big opportunity here,” Schwartz said.
The business has changed dramatically, especially given the pandemic. “Brands have come a tremendous way in understanding the importance of sampling and understanding it’s a strategic part of marketing, not an afterthought,” said Allie Sorensen, general manager, Abeo. “Brands can use sampling to replace the 15 to 20 percent [promotions] off to drive engagement.”
Abeo’s business — one that incorporates free beauty samples into digital campaigns across platforms, from social media to email — has been strong in Europe and North America, and needed a partner with digital infrastructure to foster global expansion, Sorensen said. “Arcade Beauty can remain focused on their core product and innovation of sampling at retail, and everyone can do what they’re best at,” she said.
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