Biotherm Customers Star in Flagship Store Campaign

New York -- Biotherm's new retail store in Glendale, CA, ensures each customer her 15 minutes of fame -- or even 30 minutes, depending on how many customers are finishing their in-store makeovers at the time.After completing a makeover with the brand's cosmetics, an associate takes the customer's photo with a digital camera embedded in the counter mirror. That image is then uploaded to the store's looped program of promotional visuals being shown on four wall-mounted LCD panels.The store, which opened in December, is the brand's first outlet. A second Biotherm store is planned to open this summer in Southern California, with another planned to follow, but no details on the rollout are available to be announced yet, according to Roberta Weiss, senior vice president of marketing for the brand. Biotherm products have been distributed in a few key markets, primarily in California, Florida, Texas and New York. The line is also carried by the 67 stores in Bath & Body Works' Apothecary unit.The display was a key element in opening the store with a bang, Weiss says. "We wanted something that would animate the store, give it a point of difference and make it a true destination beyond the brand element itself," she explains. The "hall of fame" idea achieves that -- but Weiss admits she developed the idea without any notion of whether it could be accomplished. "In a crazy moment, I said it would be great if we could take a person after their makeover, when they're happy with how they look, and transport their photo into our display. That way the customer becomes part of the store and the display, and she gets her own 15 minutes of fame." The notion would be geared toward women 30 to 35 years old, which is the company's key demographic. "It would help build buzz as well as loyalty and a connection to the store," Weiss notes.The marketers took the idea to a variety of P-O-P companies to explain their vision. "It literally was an on-the-spot idea. We'd never seen anything like it before," she says. "It took quite a while to find someone who was willing and able to create such an interactive piece." The display was created by DSI Connect, a division of DSI Group in Maspeth, NY, that has created a proprietary hardware and software system for digital signage called the Brand Marketing Network. The Biotherm system incorporates four beautician's work stations, each featuring a small laptop computer, sink, "lollipop"-style mirror and products. The customers receive a facial and complete makeover, after which the beautician asks if the customer would like her picture added to the four-screen wall presentation, which flashes different brand and product images interspersed with photos of models and customers. Each of the four adjacent screens is approximately 2 feet tall and 3 feet wide.After a customer agrees (and signs a release to allow usage of the image), her photo is taken via a digital camera embedded in the mirror through a small hole drilled near the top of the mirror. The customer previews the photo on the laptop computer, and it is then uploaded into the program and shown on the four LCD screens located behind the cash-wrap station. The laptop is also used to record the customer's name, e-mail and products used to create a database for later contact, and the photo can be e-mailed to the customer so that she can keep it and share it with friends. "There are a lot of visual elements in the screen presentation, and the photos fit into those," explains Weiss. The customer's photo remains on-screen as part of that loop until another customer's image is put up, and it usually remains in the loop for about a half-hour -- the approximate time a person shops in the store."Customers get very excited about seeing the photos," Weiss reports, noting that customers and salespeople often applaud as a new photo appears. "It's thrilling for them. It connects them to the store, and it connects them to the brand." Weiss says that Biotherm plans to use the display in each new store. There is no sales-lift data to indicate how much the display aids sales, particularly since the display was introduced when the first store opened. "But there certainly is a sales lift when someone is excited and connects to that brand so well," she says. "They definitely buy more in that experience."

Biotherm Customers Star in Flagship Store Campaign

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