Rapid Expansion in China
As the largest international health and beauty retailer in Asia and Europe, A.S. Watson Group is one of the first-movers in the Mainland China market. Dominic Lai, Group Managing Director of A.S. Watson Group is delighted about the achievement, “I want to express my heartfelt congratulations to the Watsons China team for achieving the 3,000th store milestone. China has always been a strategic market to A.S. Watson Group, and we are glad to witness the rapid development of Mainland China as well as the tremendous growth of our Watsons business in the market. The customers of Watsons China are the youngest on average amongst all Watsons operating markets. Watsons has become a highly trusted and popular brand over the years, and we are committed to continue to bring a wide variety of quality products to our customers whilst connecting and listening to them via social media. Looking ahead, A.S. Watson Group will continue to expand the reach of our retail brands in 25 operating markets to put more smiles on our customers’ faces, and we expect to reach the milestone of 14,000th store worldwide in the fourth quarter this year.”
New App with O2O Capability
In the newly-opened store, two interesting services, namely “Style Me” and “Skin Test”, have been launched to engage our customers. Leveraging Augmented Reality-enabled (AR) technology, “Style Me” offers virtual make-up service and product recommendations while “Skin Test” gives skincare advice to customers by using scientific biometric data.
As the leading health and beauty retailer in Mainland China, Watsons loyalty club has already recruited over 60 million members in China across its 3,000 stores in the market, making shopping even more convenient. In the digital arena, Watsons will launch the electronic membership card, enabling round-the-clock, O2O (Online-to-Offline) service to customers.
Watsons China has also featured its mobile app “萵筍” (pronounced as “Watsons”) in the new store, which offers one-stop solution to customers. This allows Watsons to become the brand which beauty-savvy customers gather and exchange information, both online and offline. The mobile app is a bridge between Watsons and customers, the “Ask Me” function in the app uses video-conferencing to enable customers to consult beauty advisors over the app, while “Scan Me” function allows instant questions to be asked by scanning the product one has purchased. These features have removed the barrier of time and space, allowing customers to enjoy shopping through a mobile app, even before one steps into the store. Apart from real customer critics, the app can also detect the promotions of the near-by stores, which is expected to draw footfall to physical stores and help improve sales.
Watsons China celebrated the 3,000th store milestone in 2 years, which the brand operated 2,000 stores in 2015. With the introduction of new mobile app and more stores to be opened in new formats, it shows that the brand has been energised and embraced the latest trend to put more smiles on customers’ faces.
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