Beauty retailers urged to go digital

Retailers’ means to protect hard-won gains in China is to go digital, says research firm L2.

The company found that since 2007, store-based retail in China has declined across beauty categories while online retail sales have soared.

L2 says 61 per cent of beauty brands are digitally challenged in China, compared to 33 per cent in the US. While global brands maintain an edge digitally, local brands have seen the digital light and are investing.

It says brands should localise their technology, language and content in China if they want to thrive.

L2 encourages beauty brands to boost their video marketing efforts as watching streaming video is among the most popular activities for Chinese online shoppers.

Chinese consumers rely heavily on product reviews and peer-to-peer recommendations. Hence, brands offering user reviews and ratings in China will have more edge than those without.

Providing loyalty program also gives retailers a competitive edge as it has been found 96 per cent of Chinese are more likely to visit retailers who offer a loyalty program.

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