Murad CEO Michelle Shigemasa on reaching 50% DTC 'in the next two years, max'

When Murad CEO Michelle Shigemasa turned the skin care company's focus to direct-to-consumer sales versus wholesale last year, it was with the goal of getting to 50% DTC within five years.

Now Shigemasa estimates a much faster timeline. "I think that'll happen in the next two years, max," Shigemasa said on the Glossy Beauty Podcast.

"We've seen digital sales that frankly surprised us. We knew that they would accelerate, but to this degree, I don't think we understood," she said. Sales on Amazon and Murad's own website have also at last doubled, Shigemasa added.

Like just about every company in the industry, the Unilever-owned brand is aiming to take as much customer engagement as it can online with the onset of Covid-19. Shigemasa called virtual events "One of the big challenges we have on our list that we're working on."

Virtual "skin check-ins," an effort that involved shifting personnel from frozen brick-and-mortar outlets -- including Sephora, Ulta, Macy’s and Nordstrom -- have led to 300-400 appointments a day, she said

Considering the uncertainty caused by the pandemic, Shigemasa sees no reason to look back. "When we look forward at brick-and-mortar, I'm not sure they'll ever be the same, to be frank."