La Mer cosmetics海蓝之谜

LA MER海蓝之谜中国品牌总经理陈芷珊女士

A1: I saw this brand for the first time in Singapore at a Department Store. What drew my attention was the fish tank at the counter. I was very intrigued by it because unlike most premium skincare brands, it has very few products and the packaging is very simple. Nevertheless, the price point for the entire range is very high. I started to ask around and found out that this brand, especially the Crème is highly coveted by those in the know.

A2: The Essence launch campaign and especially the ultimate Launch Party held in Beijing in Oct 2006. The Essence is the most expensive skincare product in the world (23,000 RMB and can only be used for 21 days). Only the most important movers and shakers in China, including celebrities, socialites, business elites, and key media, attended the event. For such a large-scale event, we did not use any PR agency. It was just the La Mer team and our production house that put the whole event, including the guest list, together. The halo effect was phenomenal. We received extensive media coverage for the event and it was definitely one of the most talked-about events for “those in the know”.

So far, we have not had any disappointing launch or event. La Mer is very careful in whatever it endeavors in. Every product launch, marketing activity, or new door opening is carefully planned.

A3: So far, we do not have any direct competitors. There is no other brand in the market that only carries about 30 SKUs, still uses hand production; therefore, scarce supply, does not rely on advertising, does not do any kind of gift promotions, and insists on a very tight distribution.

A4: Out of the 8 doors we have, we rank no. 1 in 3 of them in terms of revenues. For the rest of them, we rank within top 5. In terms of brand awareness, we still need to strengthen it in 2nd tier cities. For future development, since La Mer has a very long production process, we will still maintain a tight distribution with limited supply. We always need to satisfy our most loyal customers first.

La Mer is not perceived as a skincare brand, it's in the ranks of super hi-end luxury products. In an article published in Times Magazine in Sept 2004, Crème de La Mer was listed as one of the 15 must-have luxury products and it was the only cosmetics product in that list!

In China, La Mer has already become a luxury lifestyle symbol and our team is working very hard to maintain this positioning.

A5: Customers who buy premium cosmetics are very demanding on quality, product effectiveness and service. Unlike branded accessories, expensive creams are not visible. Therefore, these customers are looking for something that not only makes their skin look good, but also makes them feel good (self-worth).They definitely want their money worth in all aspects. Word-of-mouth is very important since these customers believe more in their friend’s recommendations than in advertising.

La Mer has always been a word-of-mouth, “in-the-know” brand. Making our customers feel special has always been our top priority. We are forever exploring different ways to delight our customers.