Lancôme relates 'antique restoration' to skin repair in new product campaign

Luxury beauty brand Lancôme has unveiled a campaign that leverages "antique restoration" as a metaphor to introduce its new ABSOLUTE Eye Cream.

This comes as the brand realises the art and philosophy of antique restoration echoes its brand value. Within the campaign video, it features Chinese actor Chen Kun taking audiences to Jingdezhen, which is often referred as the “porcelain capital”. 

The campaign is split into three episodes, namely “time” (时间), “artisans” (匠心), and “retaining its authenticity” (存真).

The first episode introduces antique restoration specialist Yu Aiping, who has been restoring antique for 58 years since she was 17 years old. Yu talks about how she thinks the art of restoration in a way prolongs the longevity of antiques, breathing new life into the antique. Then, Chen talks about how Lancôme was originated in 1965 and has been perfecting its innovative products for half a decade, just like Yu. The second episode delves into “artisans”, which digs deeper into the process behind restoring antique. A lot of hard and repetitive work goes into the restoration process, shared Yu.

In the third episode “retaining its authenticity”, Chen and Yu take turn to explain the process of restoring antique blue-and-white ceramics. The idea of the episode is built on the tagline “restoring the old to retain its original nature” (修舊如舊). Then, the video went on to talk about the philosophy behind antique restoration, how the true essence of it is repairing the antiques to retain its authenticity. Rather than a facelift, it’s more about retaining its original nature - its texture, touch and feel, and its spirit.

Don't miss:Shoe brand Melissa names Chinese actress Zhao Lusi as global brand ambassador

Towards the end of the video, the philosophy of antique restoration is used as a metaphor for repairing tired and aged skin to introduce the ABSOLUTE Eye Cream.

The video garnered over 21,300 views and 4,120 comments since its launch on 2 May, with netizens praising Lancôme’s choice to tap into Chinese heritage and culture, and that they were amazed by the crafty hands of the antique restoration artisans. 

MARKETING-INTERACTIVE has reached out to Lancôme for more information.  

Related articles:
Beam Suntory launches special edition whisky in honour of Chinese New Year
Chinese sportswear brand Li-Ning faces heat for Japanese military-like collection
China's Tang West Market Museum taps into metaverse with first NFT project in HK