Natura has opened its first bricks and mortar presence in the US, according to a report published by WWD. The store was unveiled for a two-week preview last week, although the official opening won’t take place until late February.

The Brazilian beauty giant has cut the ribbon on a 960 sq ft space in New York. The Manhattan store is part of an over-arching strategy to open more freestanding stores, boosting retail’s contribution of revenue from 2 percent to 10 to 15 percent over the next five years and to expand the group’s international presence, which will see it concentrate on retail, rather than direct sales, in overseas markets.

“We are coming to the US with a different business model,” Andrea Alvares, Vice President of Marketing and Innovation told WWD. “Considering the development of the market, it made more sense for us to start with stores and e-commerce. The mixture of retail for the experience and the trial, with e-commerce so we can have widespread reach with an effective business model. We are prototyping this concept with the idea to scale it once we’ve got it nailed down.”