How L’Oréal deepened its commitment to Hainan with Expo return

CHINA. French beauty powerhouse L’Oréal made a successful return to the recently concluded China International Consumer Products Expo (Hainan Expo), held in Haikou last week.

In its fifth consecutive year of participation, L’Oréal reinforced its commitment to Chinese and global consumers in Hainan, featuring new brands, products, beauty tech and sustainable innovations.

Hainan’s role in fuelling travel retail growth

As China’s largest free trade zone and home to the world’s biggest duty-free complex (cdf Haikou International Duty Free Shopping Complex), Hainan plays a central role in L’Oréal’s strategy to enhance the category in key travel retail and drive innovation across Asia Pacific.

The company highlighted its focus on curated retailtainment experiences designed to meet consumer demand, shaped by what it described as a “sense of service, sense of place, sense of time, sense of ultimate luxury and sense of gifting.”

L’Oréal Travel Retail President Emmanuel Goulin said: “L’Oréal reaffirms its commitment to Hainan, an international business destination and key travel retail hub. As a dynamic tourism and consumer centre, Hainan is an important area of interest for L’Oréal Travel Retail.

“L’Oréal has always been at the forefront of delivering powerful travel retail concepts that reinvent and push the boundaries. We are committed to partnering with Hainan and investing in innovative retail experiences and sustainable growth for the future.”

L’Oréal North Asia Zone President and L’Oréal China CEO Vincent Boinay added: “We’re poised to further embrace the vast opportunities brought by China’s high-quality development and high-level opening-up, with Hainan standing as a vivid testament.

“We’ll continue to strengthen our presence and investment in the China market, respond to savvy consumers’ evolving beauty aspirations, and co-create a more dynamic consumption ecosystem in China.”

L’Oréal Travel Retail Asia Pacific Managing Director Jesus Abia commented: “Travellers seek more than just products, they are increasingly seeking personalised and unforgettable moments to enhance their journey.

“We continually pioneer innovative shopper-tainment in Hainan, such as the launch of exciting new brands like Aesop’s first flagship store in Hainan; the world’s largest Lancôme flagship store Lancôme Domaine De La Rose; and immersive online and offline animations such as YSL Beauty Light Club.

“All these new brands, captivating new stores and immersive activations resonate with travellers on a deeper level, meeting the needs of the modern consumer.”

L’Oréal Travel Retail delivered an array of immersive brand experiences and advanced store concepts at the Hainan Expo, reflecting its commitment to setting new standards in retail animation. Below are some highlights:

YSL Beauty Light Club’s disruptive O+O concept  

This year’s L’Oréal pavilion at the Hainan Expo brought the YSL Beauty Light Club theme to life, featuring a vibrant heart installation that radiated like a disco ball at the centre of the dancefloor.

The concept echoed the YSL Beauty Light Club 2.0 activation held in March at Haitang Bay’s cdf Sanya International Duty Free Shopping Complex, blending 360-degree club vibes across online and offline touchpoints.

Key elements included pre-trip ad targeting and two mini club installations, which include the YSL Beauty Club Elevator and the YSL Beauty Fragrance Bar, each offering distinct experiences and driving traffic to the main pop-up.

The main retail space blended club energy with tech-driven experiences, featuring an AI DJ for personalised makeup advice and the Look Sur Mesure service, alongside the Silent Disco Fragrance Finder for instant fragrance try-ons.

Designed with a chic, playful aesthetic, the YSL Club Elevator offered an immersive journey tailored to Gen Z. Mechanical doors opened to a dynamic space of lights and music, where each button press unlocked a new ‘floor’, each showcasing a scent from YSL’s Le Vestiaire des Parfums collection.

PICTURE GALLERY: RECENT L’ORÉAL OPENINGS IN HAINAN PROVINCE 

Aesop’s debut flagship concept in Hainan

Aesop teamed up with  China Duty Free Group to open its first Hainan travel retail flagship store at the cdf Sanya International Duty Free Shopping Complex on 23 December.

In line with L’Oréal Travel Retail’s focus on redefining the traveller experience, Aesop’s new store delivers a sensorial experience, inspired by the island’s landscape and the memory of sunlight refracting through water.

The store offers personalised services, with tea, oshibori and an immersive space for discovering Aesop’s Eaux de Parfum.

Lancôme’s exclusive Domaine De La Rose flagship store

L’Oréal Travel Retail celebrated the grand opening of Lancôme’s Domaine de la Rose flagship store in Haitang Bay Block C in June last year.

The store is the brand’s largest globally, highlighting Lancôme’s deep connection to the history of French perfumery, which originated in Grasse, along with the rose distillery’s sustainable extraction methods.

The concept offers a premium in-store experience for visitors to explore the L’Extrait range and gifting options.

Maison Margiela Fragrances’ airport-themed pop-up in Hainan

Maison Margiela Fragrances created an airport-themed activation at the cdf Sanya International Duty Free Shopping Complex in Hainan in June last year.

Designed as a chic airport lounge, the pop-up invited shoppers to discover the brand’s perfumery portfolio and find their signature Replica scent.

The complete Replica fragrance collection was the star of the animation and offered fragrances, bath, body and home scents. A special focus was placed on the best-selling Lazy Sunday Morning Eau de Toilette and new release From The Garden.

The pop-up featured a digital kiosk where customers could check in to personalise a Replica boarding pass with their name and preferred travel dates. Read More