In partnership with Qatar National Tourism Council (QNTC) and Qatar Airways, Qatar Duty Free (QDF) and L’Oreal Travel Retail Europe Middle East Africa India (Tremeai) officially launched the Lancome Pop-Up store at a Chinese New Year-themed opening ceremony at Hamad International Airport (HIA) yesterday.
The opening of the pop-up store was held under the banner of the fourth edition of the Shop Qatar festival, taking place until January 31 at various shopping malls across Doha. This year, a week-long celebration of Chinese New Year will take place during the penultimate week of the festival and, to mark this, the official launch event of the Lancôme Pop-Up featured Chinese decor and entertainment, including a lion dance, red-and-gold colour scheme and traditional lanterns.
Zhou Jian, Chinese ambassador to Qatar, was the guest of honour at the opening ceremony, which was hosted by Qatar Airways Group chief executive and QNTC secretary-general HE Akbar al-Baker, HIA chief operating officer Badr Mohamed al-Meer and QDF vice-president (Operations) Thabet Musleh. L’Oreal Travel Retail Middle East India general manager, Sebastien Colon, was also in attendance.
HE al-Baker said, “We decided to combine the opening of our new, exclusive Lancome Pop-Up at Hamad International Airport with Shop Qatar’s Chinese New Year celebrations to demonstrate our commitment to welcoming even more passengers from China to Qatar this year. 
Qatar has a huge amount to offer to passengers from around the world, and our growing duty free retail offer at the airport is not to be missed.”
L’Oreal Tremeai’s Gianguido Bianco said, “We are super happy and proud to launch our unique pop-up for Lancome, the number one luxury beauty brand worldwide, in Doha during Chinese New Year, exclusively developed for Qatar Duty Free.
“L’Oreal Travel Retail partnered with Qatar Duty Free to create this immersive and disruptive brand experience, showcasing all axes – to cater to all passengers – in line with our spirit of beauty for all travellers. Lancome has created this engaging and interactive experience where the traveller can experience a magical journey with multiple animations, in particular, sending personalised wishes on a digital screen. 
“Together with this unique experiential podium, we are leveraging fully the power of digital media to have a complete offline and online experience, to maximise the drive-to-store effect within Hamad International Airport.”
Musleh added, “Every year, we honour our Chinese passengers with a Chinese New Year-themed podium. This year, Qatar Duty Free is delighted to reveal this beautifully designed pop-up by Lancome and we invite passengers to come to discover their fantastic products and Chinese New Year-themed gifts. L’Oreal is an important brand partner of QDF and we are delighted to collaborate with them to create immersive experiences for our customers here at our home Hamad International Airport.”
Located at the heart of HIA, the Lancome pop-up features the iconic Lancome ‘O’ and will offer the popular Advanced Genefique Serum in a limited-edition red bottle, a press statement notes. The anti-ageing serum accelerates skin recovery for stronger, younger-looking skin. In addition to the Lancome pop-up, L’Oréal Tremeai has also recently opened a new Giorgio Armani store with a focus on Si Passione Intense fragrances and ARMANI/PRIVÉ.
As part of Shop Qatar’s Chinese New Year celebrations, QDF is also offering 20% off on purchases of $200 and above, subject to terms and conditions. In addition, customers will receive invitations in a red envelope offering a free flash makeup session and exclusive gifts.