Shiseido Travel Retail partnered with China Duty Free Group last month to host an ‘iconic’ Nars animation at the Sanya International Duty Free Shopping Complex in Haitang Bay on Hainan island.
The Nars Icons animation ran from 2 to 29 June and was supported by a comprehensive 360° omnichannel marketing campaign.
Shiseido Travel Retail Vice President Marketing & Innovation Elisabeth Jouguelet commented, “Since its travel retail debut in China last year, Nars has grown its duty free footprint to five stores, with CDF Mall in Haitang Bay becoming a key strategic door for the brand. We are pleased to have brought the Nars Icons animation to this important market with China Duty Free Group. This collaboration marked our steadfast commitment to our retailer partner and our core Chinese traveller audience during these unprecedented times.”
An audacious takeover at Haitang bay
The Nars Icons outpost took inspiration from Nars Founder François Nars’ passion for photography and was designed as a modern take on a ‘camera obscura,’ the earliest predecessor of the photographic camera. The pop-up took customers through several interactive phygital elements, allowing them to discover the brand’s beauty icons and a series of NARS x CDF-exclusive sets.
These were the Aqua Glow Cushion Foundation Duo Set, Light Reflecting Setting Powder Loose Duo Set; and the Essential Set, which comprised the Nars Deep Throat Blush, the Light Reflecting Setting Pressed Powder, and the travel-sized concealer in Vanilla and Shanghai Express lipstick.
Customers began their journey by scanning a QR code and playing the Nars Icons augmented reality game. The game asks customers to virtually click on as many Nars lipsticks possible within a 25-second time limit and receive a free product sample for participating. Customers are then invited to explore various digital touchpoints in the outpost and discover five of Nars’s best-selling products. They can also watch makeup tutorials on iPads, and safely learn makeup artistry tips without the need for beauty demonstrations.
As an added element of engagement, customers could vote for their favourite Nars Icons products and receive exclusive gifts with purchase to conclude their experience.
Virtual meets reality: The Nars Icons O2O Experience
The NARS Icons outpost was supported by an O2O digital campaign which featured the brand’s first-ever travel retail celebrity engagement with Chinese actress Wang Ou.
The digital campaign was designed to drive online conversions within CDFG’s ecommerce platform and promote consumer footfall to the outpost. Nars utilised highly-targeted programmatic ads across Weibo, WeChat and Douyin social channels to digitally engage with consumers and drive traffic to the Nars dedicated page on CDFG’s website. Customers were able to make their purchases online and pick up at the popup.
Wang Ou has a 12.6 million following on Weibo and created exclusive video content showcasing the CDF-exclusive sets and animation. The extensive media and marketing campaign resulted in a combined online reach of 35.9 million and helped the brand outperform its sales targets by +26%.
The Nars outpost leveraged the brand’s growing popularity in China to drive further engagement as the momentum of the Chinese domestic travel market (and its related offshore duty free shopping channel) continues to grow.
“The animation was a bold expression of Nars’ modern, audacious and iconic style, and its engaging digital and in-store elements were a testament to our dedication to creating captivating and exciting experiences for the ever-changing consumer,” added Jouguelet.
“Together with CDFG, we implemented a thrilling online-to-offline (O2O) consumer journey for all visitors as they resumed their travel plans within China, and the results affirm the appeal of Nars and lay a blueprint of success for future initiatives.”
China Duty Free Group Vice President of Central Merchandising Division Terry Chua added, “We were very proud to host the Nars Icons campaign at CDF Mall Haitang Bay, our most premium mall in China. Shiseido Travel Retail is a longstanding partner with a strong track record in consumer experience, digital engagement and retailtainment, and this was reflected in our exclusive collaboration with Nars, which brought a high level of excitement as we welcomed consumers back to our stores.”
To celebrate the animation and our partnership with Shiseido Travel Retail, The Moodie Davitt Report received a special preview of the Nars Icons Augmented Reality game. Our exclusive Instagram story campaign reached a global audience of over 81,000 impressions in a 24-hour period.
Shiseido Travel Retail is a Platinum Partner for The Moodie Davitt Virtual Travel Retail Expo The unique 5-day ‘live’ event, followed by a 30-day showcase, begins on 12 October, just after the conclusion of the Chinese Golden Week holidays. It features a star-studded series of events across the five days, including a Symposium, category workshops and a new consumer research initiative. Registration is free for buyers, exhibitors and preferred media partners. (Click here to register)
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