SWITZERLAND. Luxury cosmetics brand La Prairie will expand its Cellular skincare franchise with a key new treatment next spring.
Available now on the US domestic market, Anti-Aging Complex Cellular Intervention Cream will begin rolling out in travel retail from March.
“This will be a big focus for 2006,” confirmed International PR Manager Louise Richards. “The Complex helps to slow down the ageing process by combating chronic silent inflammation, which happens deep within the skin. This inflammation causes carbonylation, which in turn breaks down proteins, and damages collagen and elastin.”
She continued: “Cellular Intervention Cream contains a mix of ingredients to combat carbonylation, thereby helping to improve skin texture and the appearance of lines, for visible results.”
The new Complex targets a younger consumer for La Prairie, aged from 30 upwards. Described as “mid-range”, it will retail at about €178 for 50ml.
The launch will be supported with tube testers and luxury mini samples. And as a cross-promotion, a sample of La Prairie’s Cellular Eye Contour Cream will be included with each jar of Anti-Aging Complex Cellular Intervention Cream.
Also launching next year, in February, is Skin Caviar Luxe Body Emulsion (above). “The line already includes a body cream, but following customer feedback we have created a lighter formulation,” explained Richards.
Described as luxuriously rich yet light, the lotion is said to gently exfoliate, improve the skin’s firmness and tone, stimulate its own natural repair system and add a healthy luminescence. It is also claimed to discourage the formation of unsightly cellulite.
Key ingredients include caviar extract and soy protein, plus La Prairie’s exclusive Cellular Complex.
Skin Caviar Luxe Body Emulsion will retail domestically at €158 for 200ml.
Also launching in first-quarter 2006 is a new sun care range, called Swiss Sun Care. This will replace La Prairie’s existing sun care collection.
The range will comprise four skus. These are two SPF30 sun creams – one for the face and one for the body; an SPF15 Lip Balm; and a Self Tan for Face.
Meanwhile, La Prairie Vice President Brand Development International Nadia Miller professed herself pleased with the performance of this year’s key launch, the high-end feminine fragrance Silver Rain (The Moodie Report.com, 28 October 2004). The scent (pictured above right) began rolling out in March.
“This will be the first Christmas for Silver Rain, and we have high expectations for it,” Miller noted.
Another key development last year was the opening of La Prairie’s first stand-alone store in travel retail, at Zurich airport’s Airside Centre, in conjunction with The Nuance Group (The Moodie Report.com, 13 April 2004).
“We are really pleased with our performance there,” Miller commented. “We have just learned that we are the number one skincare brand [at the location], and the number two brand overall for the entire airport. And as Zurich is the fourth largest airport in Europe, that’s a meaningful achievement.”
She continued: “Regarding the next such opening, we are on waiting lists. We have to have the right sort of space. Key hubs around the world are of course the primary target.”
To deliver future growth, the company will look to develop its US and Asian travel retail presence.
“We will continue to improve our space and locations,” said Miller. “We have bigger brand awareness now. In past years we have enjoyed steady double-digit growth, but we have built a solid base and are no longer little, so it’s more of a challenge to maintain that growth rate.
“But we are having a great year. For example, at Dubai Duty Free, we hit sales of SF1 million in the first nine months.”
Miller concluded: “Excluding Silver Rain, we hope the finish the year +7.5%. Overall, our growth rate should be close to +14%.”
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