A research report submitted to the Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management, University of the Witwatersrand, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Management in Strategic Marketing / The cosmetic industry over the years has proven to be one of the fastest growing and most profitable industries globally. In the male cosmetic industry, male grooming, metrosexual and dapper trends have rapidly expanded across global communities and, in recent years, have become a leading trend amongst South African men. These emerging trends subsequently shaped the way businesses and companies expanded product lines and developed marketing strategies. It is imperative that we understand what marketing capabilities companies require to stay abreast of local trends in order to gain a market share and strong brand presence in these expanding categories. Companies invest significant financial resources on marketing in order to have a compelling value proposition against competitors. Understanding the customer and what aspects of brand equity resonate with customers would ensure that companies have a streamlined customer centric marketing plan that meets the customers’ needs and addresses the accurate emotional touch points to capture the customer and encourage resilient repurchase intention. Four hypotheses are posited and in order to empirically test them a sample data set of 208 was collected in South Africa. The results indicate that brand loyalty, brand awareness, perceived quality and brand association positively influences repurchase intention of male branded cosmetic products in South Africa in a significant way. Drawing from the study’s findings, managerial implications are discussed and limitations and future research directions are suggested. / MT2017

The primary objective of this study is to determine the viability of opening a speciality top end, Ethnic cosmetic and toiletry retailer in the Greenacres Mall of Port Elizabeth, in order to meet the cosmetic and toiletry needs of Ethnic consumers, having moved from rural places of work and dwelling, to urban areas of work and dwelling. In order to achieve the above mentioned primary objective, the following secondary objectives will be pursued: • To investigate the current and forecast Ethnic cosmetic and toiletry trends in the United States of America, in order to serve as a benchmark in the development of a top end, speciality Ethnic cosmetic and toiletry retail store model, for the Greenacres Shopping Mall in Port Elizabeth, South Africa; • to identify whether a top end, speciality Ethnic cosmetic and toiletry store model for the Greenacres Shopping Mall in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, would be a viable business venture; • to investigate current and forecast Ethnic cosmetic and toiletry trends in South Africa, in order to reveal the shortfalls of retailers targeting this market segment; and • to identify the best business model for an organisation or individual wanting to grow their business through targeting the Ethnic cosmetic and toiletry consumer