In normal times, finding the best shade of makeup requires persistence. Try again and again, until you find "the" perfect shade. In times of health crisis, it is downright a headache. How to test products, when the Covid-19 epidemic forced stores to disinfect all the products that have been handled? The answer to this question could be… virtual.
In recent years, cosmetics brands have been developing, thanks to augmented reality or artificial intelligence (AI), alternatives which are now meeting with some success. The principle is simple: you select on a screen the product you want to apply to your face and, thanks to a camera, the rendering is immediate.
From Chanel to Sephora via Lancôme, several brands already offer their customers to try products remotely. On the web or via an application, you can test lipstick, eye shadow or even eyeliner, and why not all at once.
"It's a revolution," promises Jamel Boutiba, general manager France of L'Oréal Paris, the giant of the sector which has launched itself among the first in virtual make-up and also offers its customers (and its few customers) d '' make a diagnosis of their skin. If Jamel Boutiba believes in this technology, it is because it seems to interest visitors to the brand's site, even more numerous during confinement. In almost two months, 60,000 diagnoses were made there, while L'Oréal France's online sales in the facial care category increased by 30%.
"Magic mirror" at Bourjois
Revolution? The clients we interviewed are divided. "It's a good idea, the video is clear and the product adapts well to the face," says Lilia, 24. For Nathalie, 49, the technology is certainly "fun because we can do several tests", and it can "reassure" consumers who are hesitant to buy a product. But in his eyes, it is "not mature enough", still "too rude", to replace a visit to the store.
Rest assured: the brands have no intention of closing their physical stores anyway. Only, it is difficult to imagine that they could reopen under the same conditions as before the Covid-19 crisis. “Today, trying on products, such as lipstick, is prohibited for reasons of hygiene. Tomorrow, it would be nice to go to this type of digital store service, ”predicts Jamel Boutiba. At L'Oréal, QR codes will be pasted "as quickly as possible" under each product label. You just have to scan the code on your mobile phone and test the desired item on your screen. And in case of questions, saleswomen will obviously be there to advise customers.
Other ideas could also have a future. Bourjois' “magic mirror”, for example. Presented at the Consumer Electronic Show (CES, Consumer Electronics Show) in 2019, it allows beauty products to be tested on a computer screen in stores. But to date, only the Forum des Halles store in Paris has it.
A tool to see yourself in twenty years
Besides make-up, the virtual can open up other perspectives for brands that sell beauty products. Some already offer hair coloring tests to their customers. The American cosmetics brand Olay caused a sensation during the last CES with another innovation: virtual aging of the skin. Thanks to a simple photo of himself, the user can get an idea of his face in twenty years. The commercial objective? Make him understand the value of taking care of his skin to limit the effects of time.
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The potential is therefore enormous. But will customers adopt it massively? Nothing is less sure. Some brands do not necessarily believe in it. The Swiss Weleda explains to us, for example, that they prefer a “proximity approach” with the client and does not make virtual make-up a “strategic priority”. As for those who have invested in them, they remain silent on the losses suffered during confinement.
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