The Social Edition is our weekly series which deep dives into luxury initiatives in China’s social media landscape. Every week, we highlight brand campaigns distributed on Chinese digital platforms — WeChat, Weibo, Tmall, Douyin, and beyond.
Our coverage spotlights global luxury brands, global beauty brands, and local Chinese brands. The latter gives insight into some of China’s most successful campaigns, which often come from local players, and are outside of the beauty and fashion space.
In this week’s roundup, we look at three campaigns: from Caudalie and Nayuki Tea's collaboration to Kering's debut at Shanghai International Impoort Expo.
Western Beauty And Bubble Tea Collabs Keep Winning#
BRAND#
Caudalie
CATEGORY
Beauty
PLATFORMS
WeChat, Weibo, Tmall, Little Red Book
MEDIUM#
Imagery
OVERVIEW#
Caudalie, the French skincare brand known for its signature use of grape extracts in its products, announced a new collaboration with the popular Chinese tea shop Nayuki Tea (奈雪の茶) on October 28. The collaboration, which will launch exclusively on Tmall, features a limited-edition gift box that includes the brand’s signature Viniferine serum as well as Nayuki tea bags. Meanwhile, customers who order the newly launched grape-flavored milk tea drink named “Grape Treasure Tea” in the tea shops have the chance to receive complimentary samples from the limited launch.
NETIZEN REACTION#
The campaign hashtag #GrapeTreasureTea has received over 90.68 million views on Weibo, driven by followers of the Caudalie (70,752 followers) and Nayuki Tea (568k followers) accounts. The tea shop’s cult following, in particular, was responsible for young, local netizens trafficking the crossover on social media. But since the limited-edition is exclusive to only certain flagship stores, many netizens were disappointed that they didn’t have access to the products.
VERDICT#
The collaboration between beauty brands and local shops isn’t new: Fenty Beauty leveraged a not-for-sale crossover with HEYTEA in April, and the C-beauty brand Judydoll tapped a similar partnership with the local bakery chain Holiland in May. The goal is for both to share their predominantly millennial and Gen-Z consumer bases. In Caudalie’s case, the brand opted to collaborate with Nayuki to enlarge their awareness amongst younger consumers and develop a wider reach in the China market.
VERO MODA Tapped Girl Power This Double-11 Shopping Festival#
OVERVIEW#
VERO MODA, a womenswear brand owned by the family-owned Danish BESTSELLER company, launched its Fall/Winter 2020 campaign named VM Shine Girl on October 10. The campaign rolled out with a social call that encouraged netizens to share their “shining” looks and moments. On October 21, the brand announced its “Shine Ambassador” Wang Feifei, a female singer and actress who attracted cult followings thanks to her impressive performance in reality show Sisters Who Make Waves. Wang will also be invited to the brand’s livestream channel on November 11, in celebration of the Double 11 event on Tmall. In addition to leveraging celebrity power, the brand released a collaboration with designer Angel Chen to add a new twist to the collection.
NETIZEN REACTION#
The six-minute campaign video featuring Wang Feifei sharing her styling inspirations has garnered over 3.5 million views on Weibo. Her followers actively responded to the brand’s campaign post and showed appreciation for the collaboration. The livestream announcement post has received over 10,800 comments — mainly from her fans who promised that they will tune in on November 11 to support the livestream.
VERDICT#
VERO MODA has developed its customer base among local millennials since the brand entered China in 2001. However, the rivalry among the mid-end fashion market has been heating up given that homegrown DTC fashion brands are now targeting the same consumer groups and are snatching up market share. On one hand, VERO MODA is using celebrity endorsements to develop a greater reach in various online communities, while on the other hand, it’s looking to elevate its brand image to align more with younger consumers through teaming up with recognized designers like Angel Chen.
BRAND#
VERO MOD
CATEGORY
Fashion
PLATFORMS
WeChat, Weibo, Tmall
MEDIUM#
Short Video, Imagery, Livestream
FEATURED TALENTS#
Wang Feifei (8M Weibo Followers) | Ximeng Dasao (4M) | Wang Xiaohou (1M) | Lin Haiying (1M)
Kering Teamed Up With Gen Z Celebrities For China International Import Expo#
BRAND#
Kering
CATEGORY
Luxury
PLATFORMS
WeChat, Weibo
MEDIUM#
Short Video, Imagery
FEATURED TALENTS#
Victor Ma (11M Weibo Followers) | Xilinnayi Gao (3M) | Zhang Yifan (1M)
OVERVIEW#
On November 5, Kering rolled out the “Kering News” campaign for the 2020 China International Import Expo, in collaboration with Gen Z celebrities Victor Ma, Xilinnayi Gao, and Zhang Yifan. Featuring a news broadcast studio, the first episode focused on the historical background of the Kering Group through a virtual conversation between a news host and an overseas student living in the former site of Kering’s Paris headquarter, with both roles being played by Ma. The goal of the series is to explore the relationship between the luxury group’s heritage and its innovation in the modern age by delivering Kering’s motto of “empowering imagination.”
NETIZEN REACTION#
The campaign hashtag “Virtual Hosts of Empowering Imagination” has garnered over four million views within one day thanks to the 15 million social followers of the three young idols; the campaign post on the group’s WeChat account has received nearly 10,000 reads. Netizens have been impressed by Kering’s approach to sharing its history and cultural heritage through the lens of a news broadcasting and the idea of one person playing two roles.
VERDICT#
2020 marks the second year that Kering has participated in the China International Import Expo, which has become an ideal location for the group to expand its brand awareness in China’s vast market. This year, through collaborating with its media partner Tencent Fashion and Video, Kering showcased its outstanding digital literacy and its determination to connect with the younger generations. The group’s core values and commitments are smartly delivered under the guise of fun and playful short videos.