Estee Lauder Plans New Web Site

Estee Lauder Cos. said it will set up a Web site to offer all of its makeup brands and agreed to buy online beauty products retailer Gloss.com for an undisclosed amount of cash to hasten its move to the Internet. The maker of Clinique, Aveda and Estee Lauder cosmetics expects the site to be running by early next year. Existing sites for Estee Lauder brands Clinique, Origins and Bobbi Brown essentials products will have links to https://www.esteelauder.com. The New York-based company’s Internet strategy will dilute earnings by about 3 cents a share for the next two years, then add to earnings. It now expects fiscal 2001 earnings of $1.35 a share. Estee Lauder earned $272.9 million, or $1.03 a share, in the fiscal year ended June 30. The company will also set up marketing agreements with retailers it already has relationships with, such as Federated Department Stores Inc.’s Bloomingdale’s, to sell Estee Lauder cosmetics on their sites. Under these pacts, Estee Lauder will have control over the design and operation of its sites in the so-called stores-within-stores. The company’s Internet strategy will be implemented by its ELC Online division. Estee Lauder shares fell 6 cents to close at $51.31 on the New York Stock Exchange.