As the amorous Valentine’s Day approaches, China’s e-commerce retailer Tmall debuted fragrance consultation services on 13 February in a bid to assist consumers with finding out their signature scents during the season of love.
Currently, the service is only available at the official flagship stores of Prada, Yves Saint Laurent and Valentino on Tmall, with a plan to cover more domestic and foreign perfume brands after Valentine’s Day. Around 200 consumers came along with questions about choosing fragrances by the end of the first day, half of which were male shoppers who wished to gift perfume to their loved ones during the festival but felt uncomfortable shopping in the mall.
This explains how online consultation services came to be, as Tmall observed a consumer need for making choices online, especially amongst male shoppers, resulting in the launch of system training with fragrance brands to better equip online advisors with basic scent knowledge. To resonate with the Valentine’s Day vibe, personalised services have also been provided by Tmall, such as customised audio letters, photo printing and character carving.
Apart from satisfying fragrance shoppers’ selection demands, this service is also in line with consumers’ strong appetite towards fragrance items, with fragrances and scented candles experiencing a stable double-digit growth on Tmall over the past two years.
Notably, the fragrance industry has gained ground in China over the past decade with sales garnering 10.9 billion RMB ($1.6 billion) in 2021 and the figure is projected to reach 30 billion RMB ($4.4 billion) by 2025. The burgeoning interest in fragrance consumption is largely driven by an ever-strong desire to attain self-fulfilment and showcase individualities. Among the younger demographics, an increasing favourability for niche, in particular, oriental scents can be noticed, with homegrown brands endeavouring to integrate local elements into their products to gain traction.
By tapping into the fragrance hype and targeting consumers’ needs, Tmall has prepped online fragrance advisors in an attempt to resolve shoppers’ challenges when selecting fragrances. The approach not only further leverages the ongoing sensation towards fragrance but also achieve sales acceleration through professional assistance.
