L’Oréal has unveiled a variety of initiatives in order to participate in Alibaba’s annual 11.11 Global Shopping Festival, adopting the ‘New Retail’ initiative for the Chinese market and working to merge both its online and offline shopping experiences.

As part of the festival, L’Oréal has developed its own New Retail experience for consumers, which included a 360 viewing of a Champs-Élysées fashion show, broadcast for consumers in China by Alibaba’s Tmall.com.

Meanwhile, the company utilised Alibaba’s augmented-reality technology and installed an interactive device in its Shanghai, Wuhan, and Changsha-based boutiques and some pop-up stores and its , where consumers can virtually try on looks without using the products, before being able to order from its flagship online Tmall store. The company also took part in the Catch The Cat AR mobile game developed by Alibaba, which is said to showcase the benefits of technology and entertainment within the retail world.

The company also innovated with its own vending machines within the pop-up stores, allowing consumers to bypass dealing with beauty sales assistants and simply need to scan a QR code to purchase on the spot. The machines hold items from Lancôme perfume, foundations and lipsticks.

The annual ‘Singles Day’ festival sees an array of multinational companies come together to offer consumers numerous promotional activities, engagement features and entertainment on 11th November, with the Chinese site teaming up with 60 ‘New Retail’ pop-up stores across China. Citigroup has estimated this year’s festival will generate approximately 158 billion yuan ($24 billion) of sales. 

Consumers are able to purchase cosmetics goods, among others, while immersing in an interactive experience such as facial recognition payment.