Shiseido and CDFG make powerful statement in Hainan with ‘The Living Red Art Show’

CHINA. Shiseido Travel Retail and China Duty Free Group (CDFG) have partnered to host ‘The Living Red Art Show’, a month-long activation at the Sanya International Duty Free Shopping Complex in Haitang Bay, Hainan.

The promotion, which ran throughout August, celebrated the Ultimune Power Infusing Concentrate III, the latest expression in the brand’s hero Ultimune series. The new serum has been enhanced by The Lifeblood research and technology and is part of Shiseido’s response to consumers’ heightened demand for high-quality skincare products amid the pandemic, said the brand owner.

Powering up at the CDF Mall: The activation centred around a striking light show and featured a skin analyser tool, gifting opportunities, product exclusivity and a powerful KOL-supported digital campaign
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The pop-up marked the third year that Shiseido Travel Retail and CDFG have partnered to host an animation at the premium atrium location at the CDF Mall. Inspired by the skin beauty benefits of improved blood circulation, the Living Red Art Show pop-up invited travellers to discover the world of Ultimune through an immersive consumer experience.

“We are proud to present Ultimune’s biggest innovation since its introduction in 2014,” commented Shiseido Travel Retail Asia Pacific Vice President Evelyne Ly-Wainer.

“At Shiseido Travel Retail, we are committed to creating unique and differentiated experiences for travellers. Through The Living Red Art Show we have delivered a compelling expression of the new Ultimune and engaged our key Chinese consumers with strong digital and interactive elements. We want to thank China Duty Free Group for their shared commitment and valuable support in helping us to bring the best of Shiseido and Japanese Beauty to Hainan.”

The Living Red Art Show journey began at the Ultimune Interactive Tester Stand, where travellers were encouraged to pick up an Ultimune bottle to receive a digital face scan and learn about the numerous skincare benefits of the new serum expression and Shiseido’s ImuGenerationRed Technology.

The heartbeat of Hainan: The immersive light installation was inspired by the rhythm of the heart. It took prominent space in the duty free complex. 
The best of Shiseido and Japanese Beauty: A digital face scan, light show, skin visualiser tool, and gift station were just some of the numerous beauty tech elements that featured in the activation

At the heart of the animation was the Living Red Heartbeat zone, a striking visual installation that connects a giant bottle of Ultimune to flowing light tubes to portray the vitality of beauty circulation. The art installation also featured a contactless Ultimune dispenser, with each drop triggering an immersive lightshow. The lightshow moved to the rhythm and sound of a heartbeat, offering a backdrop for photos.

Afterwards, customers could experience Shiseido’s Skin Visualiser tool, a touch-free device which leverages cutting-edge technology to offer in-depth skin analysis in a safe and contactless manner. The tool instantly visualises the beauty circulation of both the inner and outer skin without the need for makeup removal.

It measures all the metrics that contribute to Shiseido’s ‘healthy vibrant skin’ matrix, which scores for radiance, resilience and smoothness. Customers are then offered personalised product recommendations based on their results.

Powered and inspired by Lifeblood: The gifting station gave the traditional beauty vending machine an interactive, blood capillary-inspired twist

This was followed by the Light Gift Station, where customers could redeem Ultimune samples by inserting a token at the machine. A gift ball then rolled down a maze of red tracks, inspired by blood capillaries, while an onscreen video highlighted the benefits of Ultimune.

The activation also served as a product showcase for Shiseido’s best-sellers, travel retail-exclusive and CDF-exclusive products. The three product categories were each highlighted in dedicated display areas.

To celebrate the pop-up and its ongoing partnership with CDFG, Shiseido Travel Retail unveiled the CDF-exclusive Ultimune Defense & Firming Set at the pop-up. The set comprises the new Ultimune Power Infusing Concentrate 100ml in the travel retail-exclusive 100ml size, the Vital Perfection Wrinklespot Treatment Cream and Vital Perfection Uplifting and Firming Cream.

Pictured above are two travel retail exclusive sets available at the Living Red Art Show pop-up 

The Living Red Art Show pop-up was supported by the #PowerisYou 360-degree digital campaign, designed to drive awareness and traffic to CDFG’s ecommerce platform.

The campaign featured an extensive KOL engagement programme, livestream collaborations with popular Chinese KOLs influencers 狠毒女孩MONEY, 李铭泽 and Kakakaoo, targeted digital advertising and engagement with Chinese consumers via WeChat Mini Programme at every point of their travelling journey.

“We are thrilled to partner with Shiseido Travel Retail on another successful activation with ‘The Living Red Art Show’ this August,” commented China Duty Free Group General Manager of Perfume & Cosmetics, Central Merchandising Division Grace Wang. “The experiential concept immersed our shoppers in the world of Shiseido Ultimune and delivered retailtainment powered by an alluring light show in the heart of the animation space – truly elevating our summer festivities for travellers.

“We look forward to collaborating further with Shiseido Travel Retail to bring more creative concepts in the future, as we look to develop our business in Hainan and beyond.”

Powered by Lifeblood

The new Ultimune expression represents a scientific breakthrough in ‘beauty circulation,’ backed by Shiseido’s long-standing research into blood circulation and skin beauty. Shiseido Research discovered that good consistent blood flow is key to healthier looking skin. The Lifeblood technology promotes constant and improved blood flow which boosts circulation and skin vitality.

The Concentrate III is available in a 50ml bottle and a 100ml travel retail exclusive size. It was launched in Japan and other Asia Pacific travel retail markets on 1 July, with a rollout in EMEA travel retail planned in September and Americas travel retail in October.

The Living Red Art Show combined a multi-sensorial installation, and strong retailtainment elements to offer “a unique and differentiated experience for travellers” at the CDF Mall

The new expression is the latest addition to Shiseido’s popular Ultimune line, originally launched in 2014

The Lifeblood technology works in tandem with the Ultimune line’s ImuGenerationRED Technology. Combining heart leaf extract with fermented Roselle extract, Iris Root and Reishi Mushroom, ImuGenerationRED Technology reinforces the skin’s defensive power to reveal smooth, radiant and resilient skin.

The new formula retains Ultimune’s green floral scent and rich-yet-dewy texture that easily absorbs into the skin.

The Ultimune Power Infusing Concentrate III is Shiseido’s timely response to consumers’ ever-evolving skincare needs. As the COVID-19 pandemic crisis heightened consumer demand for skincare, Shiseido conducted a global survey which revealed that over 70% of consumers believed that blood circulation will enhance the skin. The respondents also said that ‘healthy vibrant skin’ was their ideal skin goal.

The Ultimune line was first introduced in 2014 and re-launched in 2018. The Shiseido Ultimune collection has gathered a loyal following of customers, growing to become one of the brand’s star products and winning over 200 global beauty awards.

Today, an Ultimune product is chosen every 6.8 seconds, said the brand owner.

Footnote (1): The Moodie Davitt Report has launched an e-newsletter, Beauty Curated, in association with Shiseido. It offers a curated selection of stories focused on the key beauty category in travel retail and beyond.

To subscribe free of charge please email Sinead@MoodieDavittReport.com headed ‘Curated Beauty’. All stories are permanently archived on this website. If you would like to be added to its mailing list (or to those for any other Moodie Davitt titles), please click here.

Footnote (2): Every fortnight The Moodie Davitt Report publishes Hainan Curated, in association with Foreo, a selection of all recent stories from the offshore duty free sector in Hainan province.

Click here to view all back issues. Please email Sinead@MoodieDavittReport.com to subscribe.

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