L’Occitane hits the road with the launch of the ‘L'Occi Truck’
The tour kicked off in Washington, DC at the Cherry Blossom Festival on April 7, and will now take in key US cities and regions throughout April. From April 21-22, the truck will make a stop at Beautycon at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City. In October, it will pop up at The Grove in Los Angeles, California.
Consumer-first strategy
Throughout the tour, L’Occitane will complement the pop-up experience with digital tools including e-mail marketing and social media, communicating with consumers on the scheduled stops and sharing information on the truck's offering.
"Our in-store shopping experience has evolved dramatically in recent years. From our Flatiron experiential community flagship boutique in New York to the new sunshine retail concept that was launched in 2017 […], we are addressing customers’ varying shopping needs in a variety of unique and unexpected ways," says Paul Blackburn vice president of concept design, construction and merchandising in North America.
"Continuing this trend, and inspired by the food-truck revolution, we are driving our customer-first strategy even further by launching the #LOcciTruck. The L'Occi Truck will allow us to bring the best of our magical brand directly to our customers, in a modern and agile way.”
French-inspired design
In a nod to the brand’s French roots, the truck design has been modelled on the vintage Citroën H Van often used by small-town French farmers. Clad in L'Occitane's signature yellow hue, two window-like openings will allow consumers to view an internal shelving display filled with a range of L’Occitane products.
At each stop, beauty associates will be on hand to guide consumers through a product range tailored to each region.
Traveling pop-up trend
Explaining the rationale behind the pop up launch, Caroline Le Roch, the company’s commercial chief officer in North America, says: “Entering a boutique can often be intimidating to a consumer; this dynamic concept is truly more approachable while still an extension of the multi-sensory and hospitable customer experience from our boutiques.
“We are excited to bring Provence to our customers, including areas we may not have a brick-and-mortar presence," she adds.
The launch follows a similar initiative from Sephora, which last year piloted its own travelling retail experience. The Sephora pop-up truck travelled to college campuses across North America, bringing makeup tips and samples to the likes of Harvard in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and St Josephs in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
