Parisian anti-aging skincare line Carita under the umbrella of the French beauty label L’Oréal is set to make their debut in China on 1 August, with its first Asian boutique installed in Deji Plaza, an upscale office and shopping complex in the new first-tier city of Nanjing. Concurrently, the brand will also start to welcome visitors at their cosmetic counter in Beijing SKP, the world’s most profitable shopping mall which is also a hub for global luxury brands.
The landing of Carita is deemed a further step by L’Oréal to expand into China’s luxury beauty salons, which has seen increasing consumer interest as the effect of the pandemic on people’s mental and physical health has made the practice of self-care a favoured solution to not only skincare but also stress management amongst the health-conscious generations.
Alongside the physical footprints, Carita has also completed a series of digital openings by launching official accounts on major Chinese social media platforms including Weibo, Xiaohongshu, and WeChat as well as its mini program.
It is understood that to pave the way for its entry into China, the brand already started creating buzz in local areas through art exhibitions and experience pop-up events. Included was a preview exhibit at Deji Art Museum in the middle of July and a subsequent salon show held at Beijing MOCA Art Centre, where the brand invited Chinese social media influencers to experience on-site.
The brand has also bet on luxury spas by bringing the service to several deluxe hotels in cities including Beijing, Shenzhen and Shanghai on the eve of its official debut. The series of installations closely follows the move by Dior, who brought its first-ever luxury beauty retreat to Shanghai IFC Mall in June, providing a customised ultra-luxurious beauty experience.
Although the beauty salon industry in China is still premature, the sector is believed to bear huge potential with the market expected to grow to more than 837 billion RMB ($124 billion) by 2025, according to the 2020 China Life Beauty Industry Development Report published jointly by China’s lifestyle e-commerce platform Meituan and the China General Chamber of Commerce. And the lingering impacts of COVID could also be an accelerator for the industry’s growth in China.
