Laura Mercier, which was acquired by private equity firm Advent International over a year ago alongside fellow Shiseido Americas brands Buxom and Bare Minerals, is joining the virtual store trend.
Along with Laura Mercier, other retailers and brands have been launching virtual stores to create a digitally immersive experience. Bloomingdale’s enlisted virtual experience developer Emperia to create a virtual store featuring dedicated spaces for brands like Nespresso, Ralph Lauren and Chanel. In a similar move, Lacoste also called upon Emperia to build a virtual store featuring seasonal products. Laura Mercier is hoping to capitalize on shoppers’ interest in virtual stores: Citing a Kantar survey of 1,000 consumers, the companies said one in four people have shopped in a virtual store and of those who did, 70% made a purchase.
