Paris beauty brand Laboratoire Nuxe is continuing its DF&TR expansion in China by forming partnerships with companies such as China Duty Free Group, CDF Sunrise, Lagardère Travel Retail and Dufry Group.

As a result of the agreements, new points of sale have been established in locations such as Sanya, Beijing, Hangzhou, Chongqing, Haikou and most recently Qingdao.

Having first entered China in 2018 through an exclusive local market agreement with Sephora, Nuxe then developed an online presence in the country in June 2020. This was courtesy of another exclusive agreement, this time with Chinese business to consumer retail website T-Mall.

The French brand finally entered the country’s DF&TR sector in June 2020 with listings in The China National Service Corporation for Chinese Personnel Working Abroad’s (CNSC) downtown duty free stores in Zhengzhou and Dalian.

Success across Nuxe’s fledgeling Chinese travel retail business is currently being driven by Nuxe’s iconic Huile Prodigieuse Dry Oil.

‘UNPRECEDENTED POLICY SUPPORT’

Marion Bruimaud, Global Travel Retail Director, Nuxe said: “China’s duty-free industry is receiving unprecedented policy support from the Chinese government to enhance the attraction of downtown duty-free shopping and expand the extent of downtown stores.

“The Covid-19 pandemic has given even greater urgency to this commitment with the tripling of the annual offshore duty-free allowance in Hainan from RMB30,000 to RMB100,000, the fact there is no limit on the number of store visits and the opening-up of Hainan’s offshore duty free to new local and international business entities.”

Planned downtown duty free shop openings by Wangfujing and JD.com will create further opportunities in Hainan Province, according to Bruimaud. “All this has created huge new opportunities for internationally recognised brands such as Nuxe. We have great ambitions in China, both on the local market and in travel retail.”

On the company’s current DF&TR business in China, Bruimaud admits it is still early days, but says the brand has got off to a flying start.

“Our four points of sale in Hainan alone are contributing around 64% of total Nuxe sales and we are pleased to be working with CNSC and now also China Duty Free Group, CDF Sunrise, Lagardère Travel Retail and Dufry.

“The Huile Prodigieuse multi-purpose Dry Oil product is the bedrock of our business with them in China and is also creating excellent pull-through of other products, such as our honey-formulated Reve de Miel range.

“We are proud to be in some of the newest flagship stores in the country. Our presence in CNSC’s new downtown duty-free store in the Beijing Fun district, just 100 metres from Tiananmen Square and adjacent to the Palace Museum and National Museum of China, puts us at the heart of some of Beijing’s most famous cultural sites.”

She concluded: “We also plan to be listed in Beijing Capital Airport T2 & T3 later this year. It is definitely an exciting time for us; the Chinese consumer is clearly excited by the Nuxe product range.

“Like so many international brands new to this market, we are investing in resource, the right product mix and dedicated points of sale to fully engage with this significant new customer base that expects and demands the best we can offer.”