L'Oréal Travel Retail YSL Beauty forms pentarchy partnership with ...
L’Oréal Travel Retail with YSL Beauty, in partnership with Qatar Duty Free and Qatar Airways is transforming the traditional ‘trinity’ ecosystem into a consumer-centric ‘pentarchy’.
This new model places the consumer at the centre, surrounded and supported by brands, retailers, airports, airlines and digital partners, working together to deliver personalised and engaging experiences.
L’Oréal Groupe’s successful partnership with Qatar Duty Free and Qatar Airways at Hamad International Airport (DOH) in Doha, illustrates this new collaborative approach.
This pentarchy partnership marked a new benchmark in travel retail, with a first-of-its-kind activation in Qatar, showcasing an integrated ecosystem where airline, airport, retailer, brand and media collaborate to deliver a seamless and personalised consumer journey.
Held from July through October, this exclusive collaboration centered around YSL Beauty’s 2024 ‘Summer Mirage’ campaign, featuring a pop-up retail experience at Doha’s flagship airport. The campaign, fronted by YSL Beauty’s Global Ambassador Dua Lipa, blended the contrast of desert warmth with the refreshing allure of an oasis, capturing the essence of a summer escape and the heat of the Moroccan desert. The personalised consumer experience began prior to arrival at the airport by leveraging Qatar Airways’ expansive loyalty programme.
Through a targeted CRM campaign, travellers were invited to experience the YSL Summer Mirage pop-up on arrival, promoting the exclusive campaign and driving excitement prior to their journey. Personalised digital out-of-home content, strategically placed throughout key areas of the airport, drove traffic to the pop-up.
This was further amplified by the Libre and YSL Loveshine campaigns, each featuring a call to action. Two hours before departure, all passengers travelling through Hamad International Airport received a notification from Qatar Airways’ mobile application, inviting them to visit the pop-up and receive a gift, with or without purchase, based on their loyalty status.
Upon entering the 65sqm Summer Mirage pop-up, travellers were immediately transported into a world of elevated beauty and immersive desert dreams, offering an elevated experience at every touchpoint.
Travellers explored their favorite YSL fragrances through an interactive product table. They also experimented with their preferred makeup look via the Virtual Try-On app, which allowed them to try different styles before having them applied by a makeup expert. Travellers were able to personalise their gifts. They enjoyed UV printing of YSL designs on best-selling products, with an exclusive wrapped design inspired by the desert fantasy.
By blending YSL Beauty’s luxury with Qatar Airways’ interconnected environment, this collaboration redefined the boundaries of travel retail, leveraging brand connection at every step of the journey. The partnership proved highly successful, delivering significant incremental value to the beauty category and allowing YSL Beauty to break new market share records. Leveraging data insights allowed to connect with consumers on a deeper level, contributing significantly to this value creation.
Qatar Airways Group Chief Retail and Hospitality Officer, Thabet Musleh commented: “This partnership with YSL Beauty showcases what’s possible when an airline, airport, retailer, brand and media come together as one. We’ve developed the first-ever ‘pentarchy’ partnership in travel retail – delivering a unique, immersive experience that transforms travel into something truly unforgettable.”
L’Oréal Travel Retail President, Emmanuel Goulin said: “For the first time, this pioneering collaboration with Qatar Duty Free, Qatar Airways, and Hamad International Airport on this groundbreaking YSL Beauty campaign demonstrates how a truly holistic approach, can elevate the customer journey to new heights. We’re creating engaging brand experiences that connect with travellers on a deeper level. This is just the beginning of a new era for travel retail, and it’s incredibly exciting!”
