Elizabeth Arden sets up shop in the metaverse
The metaverse continues to prove an attractive retailing environment for cosmetics brands.
Elizabeth Arden is opening its first-ever immersive virtual store experience, created in partnership with metaverse platform Obsess. The fully shoppable metaverse experience features interactive content, as well as gallery-style art that customers can “jump” into to immerse themselves in the historical scenes depicted in the artwork and photos.
In addition, the virtual store offers a number of gamification features. A spa room offers several elements designed to educate customers about Elizabeth Arden products, including quizzes and gaming elements to find the best regimen for their skin type. Shoppers can also play other games as they browse and shop the metaverse environment.
“Elizabeth Arden has been a leading beauty industry innovator for the past 120 years and we are thrilled to launch our first metaverse shopping experience in partnership with Obsess,” said Martine Williamson, global chief marketing officer, Elizabeth Arden. “We are truly operating as an omnichannel business to evolve our customer experience and engage a whole new generation of shoppers about our products and legacy through digital storytelling.”
“We are honored to work with Elizabeth Arden to bring the brand’s cult products and inspiring heritage to life through an immersive virtual shopping experience for the first time,” said Neha Singh, founder and CEO of Obsess. “This virtual store experience will delight the brand’s customers with one-of-a-kind interactive content and provide new ways for shoppers to discover, learn about and shop for Elizabeth Arden’s industry-leading skincare, makeup and fragrances.”
Metaverse attracts cosmetics brands
Other cosmetics brands have turned to the metaverse as a direct-to-consumer promotional and commercial channel. Clinique, an Estee Lauder company, unveiled a digital shopping experience called “Clinique Lab” in April 2023. The virtual storefront, provided by metaverse-as-a-service platform company Journee, provides a virtual Clinique counter where customers can create a customized avatar and explore six unique zones.
In December 2022, Laura Mercier opened World of Beauty, its first virtually experiential e-commerce presence. Working with Obsess, Laura Mercier is utilizing web-based virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) to offer an HD-quality, 3D and 360-degree metaverse experience.
Charlotte Tilbury also works with Obsess to directly reach out to customers via the metaverse. The retailer initially launched the digitalized version of a brick-and-mortar store, leveraging Obsess technology, on its e-commerce site in November 2020. A year later, the company introduced a virtual 3D Shop with Friends solution, enabling customers to opt to invite others to join them for a virtual store experience by clicking a button and sending friends and family a link to the virtual store by email or text.
Charlotte Tilbury also now offers metaverse shoppers branded avatars that can be personalized across all of a shopper’s characteristics, including skin tone, facial features, body shape, clothing and makeup.
Founded in 1910, Elizabeth Arden is sold in more than 120 countries.