Rhode’s ‘Lip Case’, a phone case designed specifically to hold the brand’s Peptide Lip Treatment, has successfully used several marketing efforts to create buzz. This has included using brand owner Hailey Bieber’s substantial Instagram following and the enduring mystery around the product’s launch.
In August 2023, Rhode reportedly sold its first million tubes of its Peptide Lip Treatment, a skin care-enhanced lip balm, consequently earning approximately $16 million in sales. The brand used a strategy to make the different variants feel like collectibles with flavors like unscented, watermelon, and salted caramel. This has been seen with other popular beauty brands as well, like Summer Fridays and its birthday cake flavored lip balm.
In recent weeks, anticipation has been building for the release of the $35 Lip Case, with Bieber intriguing her 51 million Instagram followers with previews. Speculations about the case’s additional benefits such as a heat barrier to protect the balm, among other features, have flooded TikTok.
The product’s simultaneous restocking with four tinted Peptide Lip Treatments suggests a marketing strategy to increase sales. While the case has drawn criticism for being iPhone 14 and 15 exclusive, some fans are contemplating buying a new iPhone just to utilize the Lip Case.
Other brands like Benefit Cosmetics have been playfully poking fun at the innovative concept. Yet, the possibility that Rhode’s case could start a trend is not outlandish. This is especially so as Gen Z consumers increasingly lean towards digital wallets, potentially taking to the ease of phone and lip balm combo.
The Lip Case could potentially successfully increase Rhode’s sales, according to investor and head of partnerships at investment firm RX3 Growth, Kira Jackson. She said, “For Rhode, it’s an incredible product for expanding cart size and driving retention for people who’ve been collecting these lip glosses.”
Despite this, there have been critiques about the product potentially being wasteful and a needless addition to the consumer market. Jackson emphasizes that the ultimate success of the Lip Case will be reliant on the quality of the product.
In conclusion, the maps are indicating a rhode filled with anticipation and potential success for the Lip Case and its associated products, fueled by the marketing efforts of its influential owner, Hailey Bieber.
Source: Glossy Pop Newsletter: Rhode’s ‘Lip Case’ offers TikTok a marketing masterclass }}.
