Moodie Davitt snapshot: The Shilla Duty Free at Incheon International Airport T2 – 6 stores, spread over 2,105 sq m – Pop-up store to feature a new brand every six months; First up is MAC – In-house design concept called ‘Shop Palette’, linking stores’ vivid colours and moods to those of make-up palettes. – Dual focus on interactive technology and customer experience – Digital beauty bar to maximise engagement – 110 brands on offer – 360sq m flagship store zone to feature Chanel, Dior, Lancôme, Estée Lauder, SK-II and Sulwhasoo boutiques – Nine newcomer brands (Korean and international) Source: The Moodie Davitt Report |
SOUTH KOREA. The Shilla Duty Free has promised that its cosmetics & fragrances stores at Incheon International Airport’s Terminal 2, which opens this Thursday, 18 January will be a ‘Beauty Paradise’.
The Shilla Duty Free President Ingyu Han commented, “The Shilla Duty Free’s new perfumes and cosmetics stores at Incheon International Airport Terminal 2 represent the very essence of Shilla’s successful business over more than three decades. All the best Shilla could come up with in terms of store plan, design, merchandising and service, is actualised at the new Terminal 2.
“The Shilla Duty Free will provide the most pleasant shopping experience to our customers at Incheon Terminal 2. Shilla is looking forward to being a part of Incheon International Airport’s T2 duty free offer and will gladly contribute to improving customer service to help the airport become a major global hub.”
As first revealed by The Moodie Davitt Report, The Shilla Duty Free was awarded the terminal’s perfumes & cosmetics contract after an open tender last year. The travel retailer offered KW100 billion (US$87.9 million) in first-year guarantees for the five-year contract, which covers six stores and 2,105sq m of space.
A pop-up store will welcome different beauty brands every six months, starting with MAC this week, to keep the area fresh and interesting. Brands will be selected by The Shilla Duty Free based on changing customer trends. The store will feature exclusive items and high-profile promotions.
A quantum leap for mankind
The Incheon T2 stores are based on an in-house design concept called ‘Shop Palette’, a name which links the stores’ vivid colours and moods to those of make-up palettes.
The concept features “futuristic and dynamic” curves, inspired by T2’ architecture to visualise an image described as ‘Quantum Leap’. This symbolises a new beginning and a challenge to the future, Shilla said. In functional terms, the design concept allows more open store space and enhanced brand visibility, the company added.
Each of the six stores’ exteriors features a unified design. The same applies for all digital signage at the store entrances.
Triple whammy in airport beauty category
The Shilla Duty Free emphasised that it is the first travel retailer to manage the beauty category at Incheon, Changi and Hong Kong airports simultaneously.
“This makes the company a powerful beauty retailer on a global level,” Shilla said. “With the experiences at those airports, the company is applying the very essence of its learnings from past airport perfumes and cosmetics store operations to the Terminal 2 stores to actualise a ‘Beauty Paradise’ at the new terminal.”
As reported, cosmetics & fragrances was the best-selling category at Incheon International Airport last year. Sales edged ahead of 2016 by +0.5% to US$774 million, a 38% share of total revenue. Liquor & tobacco (21.9%) and leathergoods (14.3%) followed.
Six of the best
As reported, Chanel, Dior, Lancôme, Estée Lauder, SK-II and Sulwhasoo all have flagship stores in a dedicated beauty boutique zone. These allow each house to deliver its brand experience in a “uniquely conceptualised section”, Shilla said. The flagships are three times larger than the brands’ existing shops at Incheon International.
Highlights include:
Chanel: “Brand new skincare experience”, featuring in-store product demonstrations and new product awareness using VR technology. “Chanel pushes product display to another level with brand new ICT (Information and communication technology),” Shilla said.
Dior: Features professional make-up artists’ product recommendations and demonstrations. Digital beauty tools include skin type analyser and lip test tablet. “With digital devices such as the lip tablet, customers don’t have to go through the hassle of removing make-up after testing,” Shilla commented.
Lancôme: Virtual make-up mirror to showcase popular items and new arrivals; digital screen covering entire store interior (across all three walls) for video demonstrations. “The virtual make-up mirror will allow trial experiences of best-selling items and new arrivals,” Shilla said.
Estée Lauder: In-store engraving for various products, including fragrances and lipsticks. “Engraving service is usually done by fashion brands to create personalised products for a unique product experience,” Shilla said. “However, Estée Lauder has brought such a service into beauty industry for a better beauty shopping experience at Incheon.”
SK-Ⅱ: Skin type analysis for personal counselling and product recommendation. “An in-store skin type analyser will offer skincare counselling and a product recommendation service with the analyser’s quick three-minute diagnosis,” Shilla noted. “The device’s camera scans customers’ skin and checks skin condition and age.”
Sulwhasoo: Hands & eyes massages; skin analysis and related product recommendation service with in-store moisture-measuring device. “Sulwhasoo emphasises the brand’s heritage of Korean traditional medicine,” said Shilla. “Ingredients of Korean traditional medicine decorate the store interior under a unified theme.”
Technology to the fore
The Shilla Duty Free is introducing several technological elements to enhance the T2 beauty experience.
Interactive elements include a ‘Digital Beauty Bar’, powered by what Shilla described as “cutting-edge display and information & communication technology”. It provides a combination of information services, in-store promotions and virtual make-up previews, using a giant LED screen and interactive kiosk.
A ‘Beauty Mirror’ offers virtual product experiences via a 3D make-up simulation programme. The Personal Beauty Bar provides product demonstrations and a skin consultation service.
The Shilla Duty Free is also promising nine “trendy and new-to-Incheon” brand newcomers. Five are Korean – Primera, Too Cool for School, Cell Fusion C and Atopalm – and four imported – Caudalie, Foreo, Santa Maria Novella, Acqua di Parma and Atelier Cologne
Consumer research key to store lay-out
The Shilla Duty Free said that it has devised an optimal store arrangement to create the best passenger shopping experience. This is based on the company’s intensive research into consumer behaviour at Incheon, where it has run the perfumes & cosmetics category at T1 since 2008.
During this time Shilla has gained important insight into passenger volumes, routes and behaviour, it noted. In particular, research showed that time pressures meant that shops and corners need to be efficiently arranged to speed up and enhance the shopping experience. The Shilla Duty Free has deployed each brands’ logo on the store façade without any overlapping to maximise visibility, the company pointed out.
“This helps passengers navigate faster to their desired brand’s corner. In addition, the stores are equipped with several promotional and experience sections to maximise passenger traffic and duration of stay.” For example, the round ‘Beauty Bar’ highlights the shopping experience and allows customer access from all directions.
Wide in-store aisles make life easier for passengers with trolleys and suitcases, while merchandising and promotional signage is also prominently located to aid visibility.
