Innisfree teams up with Alibaba to open new concept store in China

South Korean cosmetics giant Amorepacific’s cosmetics brand Innisfree has opened a new concept store in Hangzhou, China, in collaboration with Alibaba’s Tmall, the company said Thursday.

According to Innisfree, its new concept store features a technology-based shopping experience, backed by Tmall’s new retail technology.

Tmall is China’s largest B2C platform for brands and retailers, in terms of GMV.

At the store, customers can test makeup products by using Magic Mirror, which has adopted Tmall’s augmented reality technology. An automated vending machine that sells mask sheets and sample products will allow customers to easily purchase items at lower prices, the company said.

In addition, smart shelves are installed to show each product’s information on interactive screens.

“With the South Korean cosmetics brand acing in the Chinese market, especially with Innisfree being the only brand to have hit 1 billion RMB ($148 million) of sales, our trial with Innisfree to provide a new retail and interactive experience based on big data technology will strengthen customers’ brand experience and increase their satisfaction,” said Mike Hu, head of Tmall’s retail business division.

Tmall also plans to collect information on real-time product availability at 61 stores in Shanghai and Hangzhou through big data technology to boost online sales and help stores digitize their operations and upgrade the supply-chain operation and offer shoppers an integrated online and offline experience.

“Tmall is one of the most innovative and leading retail platform operators globally. We will strive to adopt digital technology and interactive content marketing from Tmall for Innisfree’s brand value,” said Filipp Cai, head of Innisfree China.

Innisfree, which means “pure island” in Korean, is based on the philosophy of introducing beauty products with natural ingredients sourced from the Korean island of Jeju. It opened its first store in China in 2012.