Lancôme partners with China Duty Free Group in flagship store opening
Lancôme Travel Retail Asia Pacific – part of L’Oréal Group – and China Duty Free Group (CDFG) are underlining the success of the Domaine de la Rose by Lancôme store in Haitang Bay Block C.
The store was opened officially on June 30 this year, marking the world’s largest Lancôme flagship store and bringing the world’s finest fragrance capital of Grasse – the birthplace of Lancôme’s rose estates – to Hainan.
The Lancôme Domaine de la Rose flagship offers an immersive experience centered on the story of the rose. The store blends Lancôme’s heritage and elegance with cutting-edge green sciences that highlight the sustainability of the rose distillery’s extraction processes and technology. It provides a luxurious, consumer-focused environment where visitors can explore the brand’s premium L’Extrait range, exceptional service and gifting.
The Domaine de la Rose by Lancôme is said to embody the backstory of the eponymous rose domain acquired by Lancôme in 2020. The estate is home to 250 species of fauna and flora that Lancôme serves to protect, cultivate, innovate, and educate to the wider public in line with its brand mission.
Now reproduced as an exclusive retail concept in collaboration with its Paris Headquarters, the Domaine de la Rose by Lancôme flagship store brings the world’s finest fragrance capital of Grasse all the way to Hainan, which is set to be the #1 tourist hotspot of the Asia Pacific region.
Linda Wang, Lancôme Travel Retail Asia Pacific, commented, “We are thrilled to unveil the Lancôme Domaine de la Rose flagship in Hainan, a space that truly reflects our brand’s heritage and commitment to sustainability. This store offers a unique, immersive experience where consumers can discover the essence of Lancôme in its most luxurious form.”
Jesus Abia, Managing Director of L'Oréal Travel Retail Asia Pacific, commented, “The grand opening of Domaine de la Rose by Lancôme brings the mission of L'Oréal Travel Retail to life. We are constantly pioneering and innovating trailblazing windows of exclusive and elevated travel retail experiences that are deeply meaningful and memorable for the consumer. This brand show window could only be possible with L'Oréal Travel Retail’s strong collaboration with CDFG,”
Dorothy, Liu, CDFG Vice President Merchandising, Perfume and Cosmetics, said, “Hainan is a strategic location for travel retail as the Hainan Free Trade Port (FTP) will be implemented by 2025. We are proud to be a part of this promising growth, with Hainan positioned to take lead as the #1 tourist hotspot of the Asia Pacific region, and ecstatic that the first Domaine de la Rose by Lancôme flagship boutique has taken root here.”
A synergistic collaboration: Lancôme global vision manifested
Following their work on the pink villa at Lancôme Domaine de la Rose in Grasse, renowned French architect studio NeM Architectes brings their high expertise and visionary design to the Hainan flagship, creating a space that embodies Lancôme’s heritage and elegance.
Lucie Niney and Thibault Marca, founding architects of NeM Architectes, stated, “This project allowed us to distil the essence of the work done at the Lancôme Domaine de la Rose in Grasse, much like extracting the purest form of the rose itself. Our aim was to craft an experiential space that transcends the conventional boutique format, closer to an artistic installation, immersing visitors in a sensory journey that reflects the heart of Lancôme's vision.”
As travellers step through the large circular entrance into the Domaine de la Rose by Lancôme, they find themselves on an immersive sensorial rose journey, punctuated by the framing views of the Domaine’s vast landscapes in the large windows and by the discovery of sub-spaces slipped between the petals. Among these spaces lies a reinterpretation of the distillery with its soft lighting, concrete walls, panoramic bay window, and distillation apparatus.
At the heart of this rose sits a large, organic, golden table that complements the collection of the perfume organ and the distillery table from the Domaine de la Rose. Around the table, a series of small lounges unfold, offering moments of relaxation with minimalist, contemporary furniture and natural tones inspired by the landscapes of the Domaine.
The Rose Journey – “A unique consumer experience”
Tucked away by the side of the floor are Rose Stairs which transport visitors through the brand’s history and into the ethereal Grasse terroir via six discovery zones and touchpoints on the second floor. A window of curiosity, the Rose Journey steeps guests in French culture, architecture, and nature, an immersive and unprecedented travel exclusive O+O experience designed to build emotional connections, recruiting new consumers, and driving conversion.
As they arrive at the entrance of the Rose Journey, travelers are welcomed to the Domaine de la Rose through an iconic Ô door, and prompted to register and make bookings via Lancôme’s seamless and engaging WeChat mini program which they can share with family and friends. Visitors are then acquainted with the history and rose fields at Lancôme’s Domaine de la Rose in Grasse.
At the Rose Distillery, guests get to interact with a simulation of Lancôme’s 4-step distillation process, spanning from the harvesting of rose blooms in the soil to the final products in Lancôme’s range. These four narrative zones acquaint consumers with Lancôme’s rose distillery, with details of the brand’s detailed expertise in rose science spanning the green extraction processes and technologies.
Featuring the ultra premium L’Extrait range, guests get to sit back and enjoy Lancôme’s complimentary hand gesture service while exploring the science behind the L’extrait range and skincare benefits. Lancôme’s most advanced skin analysis service, Skin Screen offers travellers an efficient and comprehensive skin diagnosis in 20 minutes. Skin Screen utilizes a breakthrough tri-polar light technology and algorithms to assess eight key skin parameters, generate skin scores, and build tailored skincare routines.
Visitors then get a bird’s eye view of the Absolue range, and discover the Le Thé du Domaine and Macaron du Domaine at the Rose Agora Table where they will experience a made-to-measure consultation. It is also here that the VIP journey is elevated with Rose Rituals, a 45-minute L’Extrait Spa Treatment held in the Absolue spa treatment room, and a hallmark of true luxurious pampering with the L’Extrait range.
The Rose Ritual showcases the origin of Lancôme Absolue’s Perpetual Rose, Plateau de Valensole, with an immersive tunnel showcasing how the Absolue Blackbiosis micro-ferment is selected, amplified and extracted from the soil at the roots of the Lancôme Perpetual Rose, organically grown on the terroir of the Valensole plateau in France.
At the L’Extrait spa, trained Lancôme therapists perform a 45-minute rejuvenating facial spa with signature Lancôme techniques. The spa features the new L’Extrait Elixir range including Lotion Mist, Serum, Face and Eye Cream and specialized L’Extrait tools were used, both heated and cooled, to facilitate the absorption of the products. VVIPs were also treated to the Absolue Sheet Mask while enjoying a hand massage.
Art of Gifting
The Rose Journey culminates at the Rose Gift Shop where Lancôme’s generosity and artistry in gifting is embodied. Travellers receive exclusive gifting offers, and personalized service spanning their favorite rose products, exclusive Grasse souvenirs, and custom Lancôme tote bags to bring home as mementos.
Decked in lamps, decor, and armchairs from South of France - emulating the truest and most authentic Grasse experience, the Domaine de la Rose by Lancôme flagship store opened its doors on 30th June 2024 at Haitang Bay Block C in Sanya.