Now live: L’Oréal underscores importance of social commerce in SAPMENA region

The company launched its first TikTok shop in Indonesia two years ago. It has followed up with a launch in Vietnam and expects to expand it to more markets in SEA.

“We livestream 21 hours a day in these markets across our L’Oréal Paris, Garnier, and Maybelline brands, educating consumers on beauty gestures and regimes​,” said Adrien Koskas, general manager, consumer products division (CPD), SAPMENA region.

“The rapid growth of social media platforms and adoption of social commerce – alongside better 4G and now 5G connectivity – has sparked consumer appetite for live, interactive, immersive experiences from brands, their ambassadors and beauty influencers on platforms like TikTok.”​

Koskas was appointed to his current role in October. Previously, he served as global brand president at Garnier. The CPD division includes iconic brands such as L’Oréal Paris, Maybelline New York, and Garnier.

He succeeded Manashi Guha, who has been promoted to the position of managing director, CPD at L'Oréal UK and Ireland.

Buzz across the region

According to the Koskas, Indonesia has the second highest number of TikTok users globally today, second only to the US.

The company expects this behaviour in the SEA region to move across the SAPMENA region, which represents one-third of social media users worldwide.

“In SAPMENA, 43% of the total population is younger than 25 years – our consumers are young and totally connected. They choose brands that reflect their vibrancy and values, and most of their interaction with brands is digital. More than 60% buy online every week and beauty is among the top categories bought online, after mobiles and fashion,” ​said Guha.

“With almost one-quarter of their day spent on social media, the youth are more plugged in than their counterparts across other parts of the globe. Across SAPMENA, we’re seeing a rise in social commerce, led by peer-to-peer recommendation.”​

Guha highlighted the launch of Sky High mascara by Maybelline New York. She said it created “unprecedented buzz” ​on social networks, with over 300 million views on TikTok, which translated into sales for the brand.

According to L’Oréal, its SAPMENA zone is home to 40% of the world’s population. It represents three billion people and 35 markets for L’Oréal.

The rise in social commerce goes “hand-in-hand”​ with the appetite for beauty education, said Koskas. In particular, he highlighted that sun care education was still needed in the region.

“We also see an increasing need for education on impact on skin due to sun exposure. SAPMENA markets are situated in some of the world’s highest UV index zones. Photo-ageing – fine lines, dark spots and dull skin – is accelerated due to UV exposure.”​

He added that the firm will be “building new e-services with e-commerce”​ to keep up with consumers.