Estée Lauder's 29 upscale beauty brands
have long been encouraged to maintain a fierce sibling rivalry. Freda, a 23-year Procter & Gamble veteran, wants to eliminate the inefficiencies inherent to that competition. "If we do market research
on how consumers are behaving in this economic environment, there is no reason to do this five times with five different brands," he says. He also intends to streamline back-office functions such as
purchasing and IT. There also are signs that he is implementing some of the rigorous research and measurement metrics for which P&G is famous.
Freda also is trying to lead a cultural
revolution within the beauty empire. One priority is to decrease the company's dependence on department stores in the U.S., which accounted for nearly one-third of sales in the fiscal year ended June
30, and he is accelerating expansion into emerging markets and across Asia.
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