L’Oréal Paris has opened up a boutique within the Bed Bath & Beyond store on Manhattan’s Upper East Side.
The store, located at 410 East 61st Street, features a 500-square-foot area dedicated to L’Oréal Paris, adjacent to its other personal care offerings. The boutique opened Oct. 21 and includes the entire L’Oréal Paris portfolio, including cosmetics, skin care, hair care and hair color. Brand ambassadors will be in the boutique daily to offer customer assistance in choosing L’Oréal Paris products.
The space serves as “an initial test store, where both L’Oréal Paris and Bed Bath & Beyond can evaluate this type of concept,” said Karen Fondu, president of L’Oréal Paris.
So far, this is the only L’Oréal Paris boutique location, and there are no plans for additional boutiques for the balance of the year, said Fondu.
Bed Bath & Beyond appeared a natural choice for the beauty brand as it “is a one-stop shopping destination for many consumers. Bed Bath & Beyond’s Upper East Side location was the perfect fit for the initial L’Oréal Paris boutique, as it allows busy New Yorkers access to convenient and accessible high-quality beauty products,” Fondu explained.
L’Oréal Paris is no stranger to retailing. Several years ago, the brand opened two retail stores, also featuring its own wares. The stores, located in Beverly Center in Los Angeles and Westfarms Mall in Farmington, Conn., were often referred to as Living Labs, given their insight into customer shopping habits, merchandising and marketing issues. The stores closed in February 2009. At the time, L’Oréal executives said they were “exploring new alternative venues to reach consumers.”