1. THE LITTLE SHOP AROUND THE...WORLD : A LOOK INTO GROWING GLOCAL BRAND
STRATEGIES
(MALIN + GOETZ)
Companies that seek global growth must simultaneously balance these global strategies with
local context. An internationally recognized name is not a rich enough brand experience for
today’s consumers. Technology has allowed for the inundation of brand exposure with companies
in traditional, top down marketing campaigns trying to engage with consumers through email
promotions, commercials, native ads, the list goes on. The only way companies could communicate
to consumers was to be “louder” than competitors, but they weren’t participating in a conversation.
Imagine if you were a guest at a party. When you arrived, you greeted the host, thanking them for the
invitation and complimenting the food. Would you think it was odd, if after making these comments
to the host, they turned and walked away without talking to you? This is the shortcoming in many
brand strategies. These strategies focus communicating the brand to consumers, but not enough
on completing the feedback loop, allowing the consumers to participate in telling the brand story.
Local brands, perhaps due to their scale, are more successful at folding the identity and personal
brand of their users into the larger brand identity. The research focuses on how leveraging glocal
strategies, social behaviors and sharing, and in combination with network communities can strengthen
the growth of company and be implemented into an organic but still designed marketing plan.
- Megan Zolnier

2. (MALIN + GOETZ)
Where are they?
In all the right places, at all the right times.
Launched March 2004, (MALIN+GOETZ)’s Chelsea
store. Matthew Malin and Andrew Goetz waited on
each customer themselves for the first three years and
still live in Chelsea around the corner from the store.
In 2007, wholesale operations moved to the
offices and warehouse on West 29th Street.
In 2010, they opened a second Manhattan apothecary
on the UWS at 455 Amsterdam Avenue at West
82nd Street. Third and fourth stores, located in 238
N. Larchmont Boulevard, Los Angeles, and 1270
Madison Avenue, NYC, opened in 2012 and 2013.
Latest locations, located in Downtown LA and
Santa Monica, will open their doors in early 2015.
They have grown into a global company with
over 800 distribution venues and key partners
such as Delta, Tumi, Barney’s and Bloomingdales.
A NEW YORK STORY, SHARED AROUND THE WORLD
Malin + Goetz as a research partner seemed to be the perfect match. It was the New York story that
grew into an international brand. Getting their start in Chelsea, Mathew Malin worked to develop
a quality product while his life and business partner created an authentic and inspired brand.
Through gorilla marketing tactics as well as an innate skill to navigate the market, they disrupted
the skincare industry by growing their local brick and mortar stores as well as focusing on travel and
hospitality. Partnering with Delta, Tumi, Barney’s and Bloomingdales they positioned themselves
as a global luxury brand without losing the local identity that gave their brand an exclusive feel.

3. GLOBALVS. LOCAL
So what’s the answer, Global or Local?
What are findings?
Inaskingtheinitialquestionofwhetherglobalbrandstrategies or local
brand strategies were more sustainable or successful,there seemed no
definiteconclusion.Oneargumentencouragedthatglobalizationunited
markets and cultures in common interests and behaviors. The local
perspective upheld that globalization was standardizing the product
and service, removing cultural context from the brand experience.
Throughout interviews with Andrew Goetz, he frequently commented
that ,“There is no right way to run a business. What works for one may
not work for the other.” This seemed to be evidently true throughout
my research and particularly for Malin + Goetz. Their company is a
global skincare brand, but there also seemed to be such an intimate
relationshipwiththeircustomersandstaff thatcontrasted manyglobal
strategies. While it is clear that Malin + Goetz has grown successfully
as a global company, with over 800 distribution partners globally , the
challenge was to identity how exactly they had done this.Much of their
growth can be attributed to leadership’s keen intuition and organic
growth. For future growth however,the research aimed to identify and
define these strategies to create a more deliberate and scalable plan.
GLOCALIZATION
The adaptation of international products around
the particulates of a local culture in which they are
sold. The term first appeared in the late 1980s
publication of the Harvard Business Review.
According to sociologist Roland Robertson,
who is credited with popularizing the term,
glocalization primarily encompasses how regional
tendencies intersect with the proliferation
of global corporations. At a 1997 conference
on “Globalization and Indigenous Culture,”
Robertson stated that glocalization “means
the simultaneity --- the co-presence --- of both
universalizing and particularizing tendencies.”

4. 1:1
Interviewing was less about questions and answers
and more about participating in conversations.
Interviewing Andrew Goetz and getting to know
him as a person was a lens into understanding the
company. The values of the founders of Malin+
Goetz are the values reflected in their company.
Excerpt from Interview 11.10.2015
“Matthew and I place a good deal of value in being
the face of the brand, but that cannot be the defining
attribute. We are spokes persons that can bring an
authentic human relationship to the brand, but we
always feel that the brand should always be more
important to us. We want there always to be a brand,
with or without us. Clearly Oprah and Martha have
created incredibly powerful and successful brands
around their persona. It would be next to impossible
to argue that this is not a successful model. It also
comes down to ego. The thought of being a celebrity
is not appealing to us. We always prefer to sit on the
sideline of the brands success. We are not judgmental,
they have found a Machiavellian plan to make their
brands enormously successful - we do not have the
personalities or interest in such an endeavor.”

5. DON’T GET OFF THE MERRY -GO -ROUND.
JUST ENJOYTHE RIDE!
Abductive reasoning typically begins with an incomplete set of
observations and proceeds to the likeliest possible explanation
for the set. Abductive reasoning yields the kind of daily decision-
making that does its best with the information at hand.
Throughout the research, embrace all the observations , opinions,
and facts. You will find that in order to understand the information,
it can’t be oversimplified. At first, it won’t be an organized
system where all questions have a clear yes or no answer.
Categorization is limiting. Enjoy the chaos it allows for opportunity.
GLOBAL, LOCAL, GLOCAL? ...AND AROUND WE GO
The company wasn’t customizing their product for different markets,
similar to other glocal strategies, ie. the McDonald’s strategy, but as
Goetz described, the secret to their success was to “learn the language
of the market you are trying to reach.” Not literally, although that
helps, but he made a very distinguished point between the difference
of “knowing “ your market and being open to “learning” the market.
We all have different backgrounds and experiences that shape our
beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors. It would be naive and even arrogant
to assume that a company can “know” all of their customers’ needs.
Where Malin + Goetz succeeds, is a level of humbleness in their
leadership. They rely on their brand ambassadors and distribution
partners to translate and interpret the benefits of their product to
consumer. In Korea, where skincare is almost ritualistic , the Malin +
Goetzproductline,thatinurbanmarketsappealstoconsumersbecause
of its simplicity, has been translated into a multi layered routine.

6. (MALIN + GOETZ) KEY PARTNER
BRAND
DEVELOPMENT
GROWTH
GROWTH
BRAND
DEVELOPMENT
HOW DOES THIS ALL WORK?
Both Mathew Malin and Andrew Goetz have
great vision and have been able to implement
this vision to grow their company. They both
not only worked developing the business
strategy but also worked packing products
in boxes. The company’s success is a direct
reflection of the efforts of its leaders. Andrew
describes of starting out, “We initially started
planning the business in our apartment, which
is of relatively modest square footage. We
got the business off the ground by working
extremely long hours, seven days a week.“
Through observation and interviews with
Andrew, from the company’s initial startup,
Malin + Goetz has grown in large part due
to the intuition of leadership in the industry
and forging strong partnerships. They built
their brand and they know what they “are”
and what they “aren’t”. Andrew says of
positioning, “We are not everywhere, but we
are in all the right places at the right time”.
VISION

7. ORGANIC GROWTH
HEAVY HITTERS / KEY PARTNERS
STRONG LEADERSHIP
QUALITY PRODUCT / ACCOUNTABILITY
CLEAR PRODUCT BRAND
NETWORK GROWTH
TRAVEL & PERSONALTIME INVESTMENT
INTUITION NOT IMPLEMENTED INTO A PLAN
STRENGTHEN DEMOGRAPHIC IDENTITY
REACH & ENGAGEMENT
DEMOGRAPHIC GROWTH
CONSUMER FEEDBACK
CHANGE IN TRAVELTRENDS
VARIETY IN THE SKINCARE INDUSTRY
CULTURALTRADITIONS IN SKINCARE
BIG SKINCARE CO. - GLOBALTRUST
S W
TO

8. PEOPLE ARE TALKING ABOUT & WITH
GLOSSIER
WhereGlossierhassucceeded,is thatitisacompany
born from social following and engagement. The
company is a product of years of blogging and
collecting insight into the product, not just that they
were selling, but that the consumer wanted. Instead
of designing or conceiving of a product and then
askingfor feedbackandmarketresearch,theproduct
was conceived from dialogue and conversations
with the users to understand real pain points.
The companies value proposition is as much the
story they are telling as it is the products they sell.
While the company’s packaging and brand vision
are strong, it is made stronger because the users are
engaged in sharing the brand story with friends and
giving feedback and brand content back to company.
GLOSSIER : A CASE STUDY
“You know we ‘get it’ because you ‘get it.’ “
Into The Gloss. ITG was created by Emily Weiss in her apartment with a notebook, a
computer, and a passion for beauty.Armed with a camera, she set out to interview the
models, makeup artists, and strong women she admired about the products they use
and why.
The blog quickly gained a worldwide following and Emily quit her day job.Today,
Into The Gloss is a successful resource and creative think-tank with a loyal, influential
readership—and a team that’s developed a sixth sense for what’s relevant (and what
works) when it comes to beauty.

9. WHAT’S THE WORD ON THE STREET?
SURVEYS
https://youtu.be/SUnQVNsVvuA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-0wp-TLmP0A
After showing two cosmetic/skincare commercials,
I asked people what they thought of the ads. What
did they like? What did they engage with? Would
either of these encourage further brand exploration?
While most surveyed were vocal about their personal
opinions of the model in second ad, 19 of 35 polled
prefered the second ad. The exercise aimed to not
only determine what people like about commercials,
but what worked to encourage further discovery.
The old adage of “leave them wanting more” did
not prove as successful as the ad that portrayed a
relatable clear story of the company and product.
“Even if you don’t like Kendell Jenner, you get her
story and I guess you know what ES is about as
company..they want to be with you as you grow up.”
“There was dignity to the Keihl’s commercial that the
ES commercial lacked. Can’t it feel distinguished and
tell a story?
“It was more engaging listening to her discuss the
brands even when parts of it felt cheesy/fake.”
“Has more connection with the audience and it tells a
story, more passionate.”

10. THE BIGGER PICTURE
Where Glossier shows great success is in understanding
their social value. They have a brand aesthetic and
image that has been co-created with their users. Emily
Weiss says of the business, “This is a company built just
as much around our community as it is by us.” Glossier’s
brand has been built utilising the benefits of Instagram
and was the natural and strategic choice for the founder.
“I’m on Instagram more than any other social platform,”
she said. Over 90 percent of those on Instagram are
under 35, and nearly two-thirds of that group skews
female. Customers and “followers” of Glossier are not just
listening and buying the brand story, they are actually
creating it themselves. After Into the Gloss introduced
their product brand Glossier, their social media following
increased 45%. Just in strategy this is revolutionary. For
many companies, they look to social media as a tool to
increase sales of product. For Glossier they leveraged
their social value to bring brand value to the product.
In order for a company’s brand to continue to grow
organically it must understand the larger concept
behind social media. It isn’t just about visibility on a
site, it is the benefit of organic growth through social
communitiesthatwillcreateasustainablemarketingplan.

11. IT’S NOTABOUTTHE DESTINATION
So where does all this research lead?
How do you make sense of varying interviews, surveys,
encounters, and discussions?
The most difficult research technique during the
process was interviewing. Interviewing requires
a level finesse. The best interviews were not
performed with direct questions and direct answers.
The knowledge gained was richer and more robust
when engaged in a dialogue, not just around
the focused topic. Values and beliefs were better
understood when the conversation was open ended.
The consideration that can be easily overlooked in
academic research is that many times it deals with
unbiased,outside parties. However,in the workplace,
very often information and insight is gleamed from
clients or users with great stake in the research.
When studying internal values and processes
these open ended conversations were the best
way to understand the character of the company
and leadership. The difficulty with open ended
conversations is that they are left to interpretation.
As the researcher, you will inevitably impose
perspective and bias to your conclusion.
In the journey that takes place trying to organize
information, it is important not to sacrifice the
experience of discovery because you trying to reach a
defined conclusion.

12. THE LITTLE SHOP AROUND THE...WORLD?
How do large global companies connect to local
cultures? How does a company grow without
sacrificing the closeness they feel with their
customers?
Malin + Goetz is leveraging glocalization in a
unique way. Many glocal strategies focus on the
product. Malin + Goetz utilizes key partners
and ambassadors around the world to grow their
community . While consumers are shopping a
globalproduct,theyexperiencethebrandatalocal
level.The real findings in my research and the shift
in approach occurred when it became clear that
the idea of global and glocal aren’t dependent
on the region or product but on the community
that engages with the brand. If globalization
united cultures by creating a mass market for
products, services, and interests as its benefit,
then even in its repercussions it encouraged a
sub-culture of local loyalty. The insight was not
to create one large mass market, but to connect
smaller local markets , creating a global network.
While so many companies are focused on
customizing the product and brand for the
customer, it is the company that designs with the
customer, building a community, that will be truly
successful.

13. (MALIN + GOETZ) KEY PARTNER
BRAND
DEVELOPMENT
GROWTH
GROWTH
BRAND
DEVELOPMENT
visionusers
sharing / social
HOW COULD THIS ALL WORK?
24% of people believe in ads.
50% of people believe their friends and
recommendations from those they know.
Welcome to the Conversation Economy! In this
economy of Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and
other social media platforms, individuals as well
as companies must find a way to engage and to
stand out amongst the millions of voices and
opinions. The only way to capture consumers is
to start a conversation. “If before, one had to be
online to exist,and then later on,one had to have
a loud voice to exist,now,one needs to be able to
holdaconversationtoexist.”(Vallez,01/05/2015)
Malin+Goetz, as a global company maintaining
local context, can leverage the benefits of
the Conversation Economy through not
only developing their brand, but telling the
story of their brand. They can harness the
technologies to make the stories they share
more meaningful, powerful, and beautiful.
The story of the brand must be able to grow
based on the stories they receive and mutual
feedback loops. It isn’t a conversation unless
company and consumer are both talking.
brand image

14. LOOKING FORWARD
The network economy is the emerging economic
order within the information society. The name
stems from a key attribute - products and services
are created and value is added through social
networks operating on large or global scales.
The benefits of the network economy are that
growth spreads collectively from within or
“bottom up”. Leveraging glocal solutions with
the benefits of the network economy, local
communities play crucial roles in developing and
sustaining brand loyalty. Marketing, funding and
infrastructure behind a product may come from
a global corporation, but the local network level
dictates what finished form that product will take.
MORE THAN VISION
Designing with a network community, instead of for the consumer or market.
Malin + Goetz has a unified brand vision with creative delivery that
respects local nuances and empowers consumers in varying locales.
They have created an organizational architecture, including their corporate culture,
partnerships, and dedicated resources, that emphasizes and facilitate dynamic
collaboration between their own global growth and local strategists and implementers.
With clear vision, their weakness is brand image. In order to develop network growth,
growth that could sustain and even potentially grow stronger with eased effort
from upper leadership, they must work with communities to define their image.

15. SKINCARE (+)
Today’s consumers seek more than aesthetic or visual
identity, they want to know the story.
More than a skincare company, Malin + Goetz can be
a co-created network. Aculturally and contextually rich
community, participating in growing more than brand
value, but social value. When this is created with the
people using the product , the success becomes a
shared victory = JOY! They collectively hold a stake
in maintaining value, because they were a part of
shaping the identity. With value and a hand in the
process, comes fulfillment and loyalty. The brand
becomes naturally folded into the life of the users.
Adding social value,not limited to social media,to the
brand strategy allows for the network to grow itself, as
opposed to the company expanding its market reach.
Skincare,formany,isverypersonalchoice. Notonlydo
users want results,they want to know that the products
they are using are environmentally conscious,animal
friendly, healthy, cool, etc., they want their skincare
products to do more and be more. The products and
brands don’t define them, their behaviors define how
the products and brand must perform. These products
become an extension of how they live their lives.
More than knowing the story, they want to be a part
of the set of decisions, relationships, behaviors and
actions that holistically tell the brand narrative
...
The brand no longer is a story of the company, but a
story of the people who use the product.

16. SOURCES
Andrew Goetz. In Person Interviews . September - December
2015.
Sara Arnell. In Person Interviews.June - December 2015.
Sara Arnell. 2015. “Truth in Advertising” (Lecture,Truth in
Advertising and the Conversation Economy.The New School, NY,
NY).
Buhr, Sara. “Glossier’s Emily Weiss Talks About Building The
Modern Cosmetics Brand With Content”. Disrupt NY,TechCrunch
2015. (May 2015). http://techcrunch.com/2015/05/04/
glossiers-emily-weiss-talks-about-building-the-modern-
cosmetics-brand-with-content/
Holt, Douglas B. and John Quelch, Earl L.Taylor. “How Global
Brands Compete”. Harvard Business Review. (September 2004).
https://hbr.org/2004/09/how-global-brands-compete
Sherman, Lauren. “Emily Weiss: Blogger to Social Brand
Builder”. Business of Fashion. (September 2015). http://www.
businessoffashion.com/articles/intelligence/glossier-into-the-
gloss-beauty-brand-emily-weiss
Vallez, Christian. “The Birth of the Conversation Economy”.
(January 2015). https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/birth-
conversation-economy-christian-vallez
Wind,Jerry and Stan Sthanunathan and Rob Malcolm. “Great
Advertising Is Both Local and Global”. Harvard Business Review.
(March 2013).