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Tata to open 20 'beauty tech' outlets



India's Tata Group is planning to open at least 20 "beauty tech" stores where it will use virtual makeup kiosks and digital skin tests to get young, affluent shoppers to buy premium cosmetic products, according to a company document and a person familiar with its strategy.To get more news about first class porn free, you can visit our official website.
The move pits Tata, whose interests range from cars to jewellery, against LVMH's Sephora and domestic rival Nykaa for a share of the fast-growing $16 billion beauty and personal care market in the world's second-most populous country.

Tata is eyeing what it calls a "beauty enthusiast" in India aged between 18 and 45 years who likes to buy foreign brands such as Estee Lauder's M.A.C and Bobbi Brown, according to the document, which lists The Honest Company, Ellis Brooklyn and Gallinee as potential partners. Tata is in talks with more than two dozen companies to supply exclusive products to the new stores, according to the person familiar with the strategy, who did not name specific brands.
Tata declined to comment on its planned beauty stores and the contents of the document seen by Reuters. Representatives of The Honest Company, Ellis Brooklyn and Gallinee did not respond to Reuters requests for comment.

The store opening plans, still under wraps, follow the recent launch of Tata's beauty shopping app, called Tata CLiQ Palette. The company is already in the brick-and-mortar retail business in India, where it has joint-venture partnerships with global brands such as Zara and Starbucks.

The stores will have a bright red facade showing Tata CLiQ Palette branding, with 70% of the products inside being skincare and make up, according to the Tata document. Inside the stores, Tata is planning to install technology allowing customers to try on dozens of lipstick shades virtually on screens and to get digital skin tests to find out what products might work best for them, according to the document.

The technology is not new and is in use by other beauty retailers around the world, but this venture into what industry experts call "experiential retail" is still a relatively new concept in Indian malls and high street shops.

"Experiential retail is going to be a big thing in India as more customers will spend their leisure time at such stores," said Pankaj Renjhen, joint managing director at India's Anarock Retail consultancy. "In the premium segment - where a customer is looking for things beyond price - experiential retail helps trigger impulse shopping and can entice them."

Renjhen added, however, that "the product and the brands have to be exclusive and good - if they are not that, she (the customer) is not going to come back."