Global beauty business L’Oreal last week launched an online and offline marketing campaign, pop-up store and new high-end product line from David Beckham in China off the back of consumer insights that identified male grooming as a key growth opportunity.

The decision was the result of a partnership with Alibaba Group’s Tmall Innovation Center (TMIC), which was formed in 2017 to help brands explore new ways to tap into the Chinese market through precise market analysis and real-time consumer insights from the company’s 600 million-plus customer base.

L’Oreal China is one of 62 companies that have worked with TMIC so far. L’Oreal China CEO Stephane Rinderknech said the company will continue to deepen its collaboration with local innovation partners to unleash the value of data insights and create value for customers.

“With our ‘Beauty for All’ mission and consumer centric strategy, our ultimate goal is to bring personalised products, services and experiences to each and every Chinese consumer,” Rinderknech said.

The first area of focus is the growing male-grooming industry in China, where online sales of men’s grooming products have increased by more than 50 per cent in each of the past two years, according to a white paper produced by L’Oreal and TMIC.

In the past year, 62 per cent of male consumers between the ages of 15 and 50 said they used male-specific facial skincare products, showing a massive addressable market for male grooming products, the white paper said.

L’Oreal China identified five profile groups of customers with specific preferences, such as those who go for men-only personal care products, those who need a full range of products and those only seeking face, hair and basic products.

Based on these findings, L’Oreal China and Tmall co-hosted an online and offline consumer-oriented marketing campaign, Super U Carnival, last week, where male consumers could discover suitable grooming products, and a pop-up store in Hangzhou, where they could explore products tailored to their unique styles and preferences.

L’Oreal also recently launched a new flagship store on Tmall, featuring David Beckham’s House99 range of high-end male grooming products, including skin and body care, hair and shaving products.