Alumni Story｜Jeremy JIANG: Passionate, Curious, Walk the Talk

“Passionate. Curious. Walk the talk.” These are the three qualities that Jeremy always considers as his guidelines in both daily life and career path. After graduating from university, he started his career in the FMCG industry. He has always been curious to explore this highly competitive and ever-changing industry, especially in the cosmetics sector. From Unilever to L'Oréal, and now LVMH, Jeremy grows together with the brands he has been in charge of - better brands come along with a better self. In the face of the challenges brought by domestic brands and the pandemic, he takes an attitude of emphasizing on consistency and courage towards possible risks, keeping a dynamic dialogue with innovation and challenges. 

Career choice: get motivated by challenges and changes

Jeremy graduated from Shanghai International Studies University with a bachelor’s degree in management (majored in accounting & English). With offers from Big Four accounting firms, he chose to work in a more creative and demanding industry instead of a standardized one. That's why he joined Unilever, the "Whampoa Military Academy" of marketing. There, he obtained systematic management training, and laid a solid foundation in brand positioning, strategy, products, and advertising.

"I love the fast pace and the variety of marketing strategies brought about by the highly competitive FMCG industry (especially cosmetics). It keeps getting me inspired and motivated, allowing me to make the most of my creativity and leadership."

Speaking of the successful cases in his early work life, Jeremy introduced his experiences in promoting Clear and Armani Beauty. Although the two brands were in different life cycles, followed completely different sales channels, and sold products of different categories, Jeremy put emphasis on three critical marketing aspects. 

The first is clear brand positioning and maximum market differentiation. Clear positions itself as a young and counter-traditional anti-dandruff shampoo challenger, while Armani Beauty is committed to passing on the Italian casual, personalized elegant lifestyle to consumers. A clear brand positioning guides all of the brand's product marketing strategies and consumer experiences, allowing consumers to perceive the brand's unique appeal. 

Secondly, both brands, through their products, show respect to the China market and value the Chinese consumers to the greatest extent. When Clear went public in the Chinese market, it chose a spokesperson, and launched products for the different scalp care needs of men and women in China for the first time; Armani Beauty, on the other hand, went through a selection process to customize the lightest foundation for Chinese consumers, adding Prussian blue particles to create foundation shades suitable for Asian skin tones.

Thirdly, by doing these right things consistently, brands keep conveying their values over the years. It helps to build up solid brand images in the minds of consumers. 

From Unilever to L'Oréal, and now LVMH, Jeremy grows together with the brands he has been in charge of. Better brands come along with a rapid career advancement.

MBA Study: develop an overall perspective and improve personal leadership

Along with his promotions, Jeremy started to see beyond the marketing department. In 2016, after more than half a year as Marketing Director for Benefit at LVMH, he realized that the work of marketing department is more of an executive level for the brand. Without optimizing the business model and improving the channels, marketing activities would only get half the result with twice the effort. Hence, he came up with the idea of pursuing further studies, hoping to get an insight into business models and channels and build on his strengths to develop a more distinctive leadership. 

After some researches, Jeremy applied for the SJTU-KEDGE Global MBA programme. In the selection of programmes, he found his requirements perfectly targeted by this Global MBA. It provided a comprehensive curriculum, an international faculty well-experienced in business practice and a time-honored campus with pleasant surroundings. Finally, taking advice from many colleagues who graduated from KEDGE Business School, he chose to start his MBA journey there.

"The MBA experience is excellent. It brings you back to school and introduces you to lots of interesting souls. They come from different industries and are frank and lovely, bringing new ideas and perspectives. As elites in their fields, everyone can find a course they are good at in such an integrated study, showing their values while being able to make up efficiently for what they are lacking in." Jeremy said in recalling the study experience.

For those who are about to start their MBA study, Jeremy’s advice is to maintain a positive state of mind. MBA means commitment, dedication and out of the comfort zone. When under the pressure from both work and study, it is important to 'stretch' yourself a bit and you will definitely get something out of it.

Address the challenge: get the brand back on track through innovations

During the MBA study, Jeremy has been promoted from Benefit’s Marketing Director to the brand’s General Manager in China. When he first joined Benefit, the brand was facing huge challenges, but Jeremy, who refused to admit defeat, regarded it as an opportunity. 

“When I got involved at the beginning, the brand’s business was unsatisfactory. The first thing to do was to find out the problems. At that time, the main concerns included the lack of brand recognition, the rare launching of new products and the nonmatched sales channels. In response to these issues, I began to actively communicate with the headquarters and take targeted measures." 

In view of the low brand awareness and the "disconnection" with young consumers (especially the Generation Z), the team, after much communication with the head office, decided to appoint YANG Zi as the brand's first global spokesperson and invite influential young male celebrities for campaign collaborations, while strengthening marketing investment in digital platforms (more than 10 marketing campaigns from 2017-2019) and taking the lead in highly relevant media platforms for young people such as Xiaohongshu, Bilibili and Tiktok.

When products were not updated quickly enough, the team continued to communicate with the U.S. headquarters to develop targeted products for China market and its consumers, such as the Red Pink Agent Pore Primer, a product that became the number one product in its category the first year it was launched. As for the sales channels, the team put emphasis on Sephora and e-commerce channels such as Tmall, Vipshop instead of department stores.

Through the development of a series of growth strategies for China market, coupled with Jeremy's own improved management and leadership levels, the brand returned to profitability in 2018 and 2019. Under Jeremy's leadership, the importance and the influence of his young team keeps growing worldwide.

Future development: stay true to oneself and dare to take risks 

The pandemic sweeping the world in 2019 is a major challenge for beauty products. Jeremy admitted that he did feel a lot of pressure to complete a digital transformation in the early days of the pandemic. The good thing is that the team is young and open to new knowledge, and quickly developed solutions and got them implemented. From February to March 2020, the training team started to move offline courses online; the sale team opened a dedicated WeChat group for VIP customers to do regular live broadcasts; and as the brand's General Manager, Jeremy himself participated in the webcasting, getting used to his new role and creative forms of marketing.

On the other hand, the strong competition triggered by domestic beauty brands in recent years has generated a great impact on the market, reconstructing the consumers' understanding of beauty products. In this regard, Jeremy’s attitude is that while the Brand continues to have dynamic dialogues with young consumers, it must still adhere to its positioning, instead of trying to do something inappropriate. Instead of distracting themselves, they should find the categories where they have the most strengths and do their best. Obviously, brands must dare to innovate. There are many different ways to play on the same platform, so they should be willing to take risks when they have the opportunity to be the "daredevil".

In terms of personal development, Jeremy said that he is still interested in the beauty industry. If there is an expansion of job responsibilities or the management of other brands, he is also very willing to try. To ensure a good working condition, he will also continue to exercise, not only for his body and beauty needs, but also to help him manage his energy, relieve stress at the right time and enjoy his work better.

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