Amid the hustle of New York City’s famed 5th Avenue, individuals walking past L’Occitane en Provence’s new store may have seen Paul Blackburn, the brand’s Vice President Design & Construction, North America, peddling away on one of the store’s yellow stationary bikes. The bikes, complete with accessories courtesy of Bike Pretty, are situated under lush vegetation and set up against a 3-D rendering of a Provencal village. According to Paul, the windows of the store have been purposely left transparent, void of any promotional signs, to attract curious gazes to this picturesque installation, as well as the other experiential offerings located inside the 1,870-square-foot space on 555 5th Ave. The retailer closed its Rockefeller Center and Times Square locations to fund the new concept store, which officially opens to the public Thursday, August 23. CEW Beauty Insider met with Paul for a private tour of the store to learn about how L’Occitane plans to redefine the traditional beauty shopping experience with this new interactive space, which has been designed to target new customers, drive in store traffic and increase overall brand awareness.

Eye-Catching Scenes for Social Media Buzz


When guests enter the store, they are first encouraged to visit the bike installation and snap photos for a chance to be featured on the in-store live digital feed. “It was important to us to not have a product focus at the first moment a guest arrives. We want to introduce the experience of the brand and break any barriers between ourselves and customers,” said Paul. The area will be updated four times a year, with the next refresh sporting a holiday-themed setting, scheduled for October. Though not synergistically, other areas of the evolutive store will be updated seasonally with fresh, scenic concepts to keep customers entertained and coming back.

Interactive Testing Areas


To introduce first-time consumers to the brand, a space was created with testers of L’Occitane’s best-selling products, including its popular Almond Delicious Hands Cream. Unique to the area, is a motion-activated rain-shower sink that cascades water down from an overhead illuminated canopy, rivaling the traditional faucet experience. The middle of the store highlights the brand’s latest collections – currently featured is its new Aqua Reotier Skincare Collection and best-selling Verbena Collection – with testers chilled in min-fridges located right on the tableso guests can experience the cooling products. Further back in the store,is a skin care consultation station, which offers complimentary services such as min-facials. The station also offers a sensorial VR experience, where guests can take a digital journey through Provence’s countryside to learn about the brand’s history, while inhaling a lavender fragrance and receiving a hand massage.

Lounge-like Respites
In addition to offering free Wi-Fi, at the center of the store is a curved communal bench located beneath a large, photo-worthy Mediterranean olive tree. Underneath the tree, guests can reach into clusters of lavender plants to find wires they can use to recharge their phones while enjoying complimentary fruit-infused water from a hydration station. Another lounge area is set up in the back of the store and positioned in front of an appropriately oversized digital ad (which also changes seasonally) and features a geometric, rock-inspired deep-blue couch for additional seating.

Enhanced Fulfilment Services


Called, Comptoir, the store includes a fulfillment area that was designed to look like a French hotel lobby. A check-in desk is set up against the backdrop of ceramics that purposely feature the brand’s iconic yellow color – another photo opportunity. “We wanted the space to look like a French hotel to convey that the level of service we offer is above traditional retail experience,” said Paul. Some services include same day messenger services in Manhattan, shipping across the U.S., and Click & Collect, which gives customers the opportunity to order online and pickup in store. Guests can also visit the station to have products engraved.

Lifestyle Products Available for Purchase


Beyond L’Occitane’s products, visitors will find brand-complimentary lifestyle products integrated synergistically within product displays. The items, which are available for purchase and personalization, includeS’well water bottles, Rifle Paper Co. stationary and treats from Le Roy René.

Overt In-Store Recycling


In partnership with TerraCycle, a recycling drop-off area has been set up to accept beauty products and packaging from any brand. As an incentive, when customers bring in a full-sized product from L’Occitane or any beauty brand, they receive a 10 percent discount on any full-sized L’Occitane product. The area is also home to some of the brand’s products in a refillformat in an effort to reduce packaging waste.