SK-II Launches First "Social Retail" Pop Up Store in Hainan Inspired by New 'VS' Series Featuring Olympic Athletes

SINGAPORE,May 4,2021 -- Augmented reality and gamified skincare experiences come together with a big purpose at global prestige skincare brandSK-II's first ever "Social Retail" Pop-Up Store in Haitang Bay Duty Free Shopping Centre in Hainan,China.

The SK-II “Social Retail” Pop-Up Store in Sanya’s Haitang Bay Duty Free Shopping Complex,Hainan,China.

The SK-II "Social Retail" Pop-Up Store is inspired by #ChangeDestiny – SK-II's brand purpose – and 'VS' the new six-part animated anthology series by SK-II STUDIO,the brand's first film studio and content hub that is dedicated to tackling social pressures that women face.

 

This marks a new milestone in SK-II's global innovation journey to transform beauty and skincare retail experiences in a safe,engaging and meaningful way in these unprecedented times.

Centered around the concept of "The Line is the Ride",the SK-II "Social Retail" Pop-Up Store immerses visitors in the cinematic universe of the animated anthology series. Through WeChat Mini Program,visitors will be able to transport themselves into the world of 'VS' with just a click on their mobile phones. They will be able to watch the 'VS' films and participate in a larger-than-life augmented reality experience—battling an underwater "kaiju" alongside their favorite Olympic athlete Liu Xiang as they wait in line.

The SK-II “Social Retail” Pop-Up Store in Sanya’s Haitang Bay Duty Free Shopping Complex,China.

Experience immersive AR and gamified skincare experiences at the SK-II “Social Retail” Pop-Up Store in Hainan,China.

Upon entering,visitors can enjoy a personalized skin analysis with SK-II's latest contactless skincare counselling innovation—the Mini Magic Scan. SK-II's Mini Magic Scanis anAI-enabled skin analysis tool that allows visitors to gain understanding of their skin strengths and potential,unlock their skin age as well as receive personalized skin analysis and product recommendations in mere three minutes. No direct facial contact is needed as it can detect fluctuation of skin at pixel level and assess the stability of skin by homing in on three zones –eye,cheeks and mouth using facial recognition. Compared to previous years,it also is also smaller in size and more convenient.

SK-II will also be launching its exclusively designed Special Edition Collectible Pins at the SK-II "Social Retail" Pop-Up Store. The limited-edition pins will be complimentary for every visitor.[1]

The SK-II "Social Retail" Pop-Up Store is part of the brand's ongoing foray into retail innovation and a global transformation to connect with a new generation of consumers who are yearning for more meaningful experiences with the brands they know and trust.

A global learning lab to explore new ways of retail through advanced technology in real-world retail formats,SK-II has launched several Future X Smart Stores in Tokyo,Shanghai,Singapore,in departmental stores,pop-ups,travel retail and even in the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) and China International Import Expo (CIIE)

Through creating engaging "phygital" skincare experiences,SK-II hopes to take the intimidation and pressure out of shopping for skincare in the offline retail space and give control back to the consumer by giving her options to browse,shop and learn about her skin at her own pace and on her own terms,in a safe,engaging yet meaningful way.

"#CHANGEDESTINY is at the heart of our brand purpose at SK-II. For years,we have celebrated how destiny is not a matter of chance,but a matter of choice through the stories of courageous women around the world. This year,we want to further our commitment towards our brand purpose and bring more consumers in new and meaningful ways."shared Sandeep Seth,Chief Executive Officer,Global SK-II.

"We are thrilled to launch SK-II's first "social retail" pop-up in Hainan inspired by our brand purpose #ChangeDestiny and the newest installment by SK-II Studio—the 'VS' series. Engagement in the beauty and skincare category has generally been 'tactile' in nature—what you can see,touch,feel. In these times of the pandemic,we want to provide our consumers contactless,gamified experience where she can gain inspiration and learn about her skin in a safe yet engaging way."

The SK-II "Social Retail" Pop-Up Store is located in the Haitang Bay Duty Free Shopping Centre by China Duty Free Group (CDFG) and will be active from May 1st to May 31st 2021.

To find out more about the 'VS' Series and learn about SK-II STUDIO and #ChangeDestiny,please visit the virtual SK-II CITY at https://city.sk-ii.com/.

About SK-II

For nearly 40 years,SK-II has touched the lives of millions of women around the world through skin and life transformation. The fascinating story behind SK-II began with a quest to understand why elderly sake brewers had wrinkled faces,but extraordinarily soft and youthful-looking hands. These hands were in constant contact with the sake fermentation process. It took years of research for scientists to isolate the miracle ingredient PITERA™,SK-II's exclusive and naturally derived ingredient crafted from a proprietary fermentation process of a unique yeast strain. Since then,SK-II with PITERA™ has become a special secret shared by celebrities all over the world such as Tangwei,Ni Ni,Chun Xia,Haruka Ayase,Kasumi Arimura,Naomi Watanabe,Chloe Grace Moretz. For the latest news and in-depth information,please visit http://www.sk-ii.com.

About #CHANGEDESTINY

#CHANGEDESTINY is at the heart of the SK-II brand philosophy that celebrates how destiny is not a matter of chance,but a matter of choice. Inspired by the stories of women from around the world,#CHANGEDESTINY sheds light on the pressures they face and the universal 'box' they are put in to be perfect in society's eyes. Award-winning #CHANGEDESTINY campaigns include 2016's "Marriage Market Takeover" that put a spotlight on the labels of "Sheng Nu" or "Leftover Women" in China,2017's "The Expiry Date",2018's "Meet Me Halfway" and 2019's "Timelines" a docu-series in partnership with Katie Couric about the evolving and controversial topic of marriage pressure and societal expectations women face globally.

[1]Limited to 30,000 limited edition Olympics pins. First come first served basis,while stocks last for every visitor who has enrolled as an SK-II fan.