UK/UAE. YSL Travel Retail EMEAI is celebrating the success of successive pop-up activations with World Duty Free at London Heathrow Airport and Dubai Duty Free at Dubai International Airport (DXB) Terminal 1 to celebrate the launch of the revamped male fragrance Y Eau de Toilette (edt).
Y, originally launched in 2017, quickly became the masculine pillar of the brand and a key player in the masculine fragrance market. In 2021, it reached top #3 status in the US and top #8 worldwide.
Through April and May, YSL Travel Retail EMEAI partnered with World Duty Free owner Dufry in three interactive podium animations at Heathrow. That campaign was preceded by a month-long partnership with Dubai Duty Free (see below).
The Heathrow promotion included a first pop-up in T5 adjacent to the YSL store and two others in T3 and T5, each offering a key visibility extension for the brand.
These animations were the first to benefit from a new digital partnership. Dufry allied with YSL to implement the retailer’s new digital acceleration strategy dubbed ‘Emotion +’.
The strategy is a turnkey solution to leverage Dufry’s digital assets by maximising touchpoints across the customer journey.
The omnichannel campaign engaged travellers through multiple assets including in-store visibility, digital in-store, digital media, reserve & collect, social media and a forum.
Each pop-up podium offered YSL’s travelling consumers the opportunity to dive into a seamless O+O experience and enjoy a shopping moment combined with an entertaining journey.
YSL Travel Retail described Y as an image driver for the brand with its “unique rock ‘n’ roll positioning, creative & insightful territory, luxurious & iconic bottle, and aspirational & powerful ambassador: Lenny Kravitz”.
The standout feature of the T5 podium was a giant screen broadcasting the new campaign film, which invited travellers to dive into the freshness of a Caribbean seascape.
Besides aesthetic considerations, specific attention was paid to the retailtainment features, with the ‘Y Rock Game’ challenging travellers to catch music notes to the tune of the Y campaign track.
YSL Travel Retail dubbed the result “an entertaining & engaging rock ‘n’ roll experience”.
The relaunch of Y has been accompanied by a campaign designed to reflect a new chapter and one that captures a more intimate moment in the ‘saga of the Y man’ – one embodied by brand ambassador, singer-songwriter and actor Lenny Kravitz.
The film captures the star’s journey back to his roots in the Bahamas, while embracing a new motto, “To know where you’re going, you need to know where you’re from.”
Dazzling at Dubai Duty Free
At DXB, as reported, YSL Travel Retail EMEAI offered its consumers a similarly seamless O+O experience throughout March designed to accompany them throughout their consumer journey.
The engagement began pre-trip with teasers and information on social media regarding Y. An impactful podium & digital campaign at the airport geo-targeted consumers and drove then to the pop-up.
Once they reached the activation, travellers discovered a large immersive floor at its heart besides the film of the new campaign. As in Heathrow this allowed them to ‘deep dive’ into the freshness of Caribbean waters.
The podium also incorporated an olfactory wall that showcased the global franchise fragrances.
As with the World Duty Free promotion, the Dubai Duty Free campaign featured the ‘Y Rock Game’.
