RETAIL VIRTUAL STORES
the beauty landscape in order to give shoppers that ‘in-store’ feel that they have been deprived of during lockdowns. The new computer-generated craze is a touchpoint that has been developed as a one-stop-shop for consumers to discover and learn more about beauty brands, and instantly checkout their products, in order to give tech- savvy shoppers a seamless user experience. During the pandemic, Clinique launched a ‘holistic’ touchpoint for its Even Better Clinical Serum Foundation, Rihanna’s Fenty Skin hosted a virtual house party and Mary Kay opened the doors to its immersive Platform Suite 13 – to name but a few.
Aside from not being able to meet and greet, or shop, in real life, these platforms are able to host videos, virtual classes and take customers behind the scenes of a brand’s existence; this could be anything from the intimate details of product formulations to beauty tutorials with the rich and famous.
While some have opted for a temporary installation to keep customers entertained, others have chosen to make the virtual spaces a permanent feature of their retail strategy. NARS’ new global virtual flagship is said to be an in-store and online shopping hybrid, even taking design inspiration from its bricks-and- mortar black and white colour scheme, where shoppers can buy products directly, book one-to- one artistry sessions and dabble in the brand’s virtual technology.
Beyond its product discovery, there is a dedicated area to intimately meet the founder and Creative Director François Nars, albeit virtually. Here, visitors will find out more about his career and vision for beauty.
“The virtual store allows consumers to immerse themselves in the world of NARS, just as if they were visiting a bricks-and-mortar store,” Kristy Peschko, NARS’ Executive Director, Global Omnichannel Marketing, tells Cosmetics Business.
“The virtual store centralises the product line- up and digital innovations in one place, and helps the consumer feel like they are navigating a real store,” she adds.
When asked about consumer demands in the retail space, Peschko adds: “In the last 12 months, we have seen a significant shift towards e-commerce, and we recognised an opportunity to enhance the consumer journey. “It is important that we meet our consumers where they are: online, and give them a best-in- class experience from home. The new virtual flagship brings together innovative digital tools and the special NARS world to life, enabling us to engage our consumers in an even more impactful way.” Taking immersive shopping to a new meaning was Shiseido’s bareMinerals, which rolled out its
54 June 2021 ‘
It is important that we meet our consumers where they are: online, and give them a best-in-class experience from home
extravagant ‘Virtual Villa’ interactive shopping experience with frontwoman Hailey Bieber. The temporary space was accessible via its standalone site earlier this year, taking visitors through each room at the flamboyant ‘seaside’ destination to shop products in real time and learn more about the brand’s freshest product drops.
President Jill Scalamandre, who appeared in creative content for the virtual space alongside Bieber’s MUA Denika Bedrossia, tells Cosmetics Business that the virtual space enabled the team to offer a more intimate experience not capable via some in-store shopping spaces. “Many consumers would not have a chance to hear directly from our partners, like Hailey Bieber, and this event provided a unique opportunity to engage directly and personally with the brand,” she says. “We received a great response from customers who attended the event. They loved the unique virtual approach and really engaged with the exploratory and interactive elements of the experience.”
She adds: “I don’t see us necessarily going 100% back to live events. There’s going to be a new hybrid of things that we’ve learned during the pandemic and things that we used to do; there’s going to be a place for all of it.”
It seems these new spaces offer an experience shoppers did not know they were missing; a best of both worlds destination to shop their favourite products, but in what would be a beauty brand store.
But, according to some experts, the craving for human touch is not going to melt away so easily.
cosmeticsbusiness.com
NARS’ global virtual flagship is an in-store and online shopping hybrid, while bareMinerals’ ‘Virtual Villa’ provided an interactive shopping experience with frontwoman Hailey Bieber
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