New cosmetics shops bucking virtual trend

"Inside the store, there was a collection of hundreds of cosmetics brands, including Japanese, South Korean and Thai names. I no longer need to shop overseas, and the prices are quite reasonable,"Chen said.

"Besides, the store itself is like a wonderland," she added.

The lighting and layout immersed them in a pleasant atmosphere.

"Checking out the dazzling goods, trying on makeup, discussing with my friend about what to buy and finally making decisions－my whole shopping experience was amazing," Chen said.

Despite contagion challenges affecting physical stores, one expert weighed in on how new makeup shops are still managing to prosper.

Huang Cuifen, an analyst at online cosmetics portal mztoutiao.com, said that apart from the decorations, store employees also provide visitors with a comfortable shopping experience.

"Unlike traditional cosmetics stores, shop assistants in the new ones don't oversell the products. Normally, they don't actively approach customers, leaving them enough space and liberty to make their own decisions," Huang said.

"I feel comfortable with self-service shopping experience. We had a great time in the cosmetics collection store, where we could try as many colors of lipstick and eyeshadow as we liked and gave each other advice. The shop assistants didn't bother us. They only approached when requested," Chen said.

In addition, Huang said that new makeup collection stores specifically target millennials and Generation Z customers, deploying precise marketing strategies.

For example, stores like The Colorist, Wow Colour and H.E.A.T tend to use bright and bold colors, trying to catch youthful eyes.

Meanwhile, Beijing-based makeup store Harmay adopts a minimalist industrial style in its decor, shaping its own unique characteristics to attract young consumers who are pursuing novelty and independence.

Furthermore, taking advantage of star power appeal, The Colorist signed on Chinese Gen Z rapper Wang Linkai to be its celebrity spokesman.

"Consumers who visit the offline store and post pictures online can get a poster of Wang. As a super fan of the male hip hop artist, there is no reason for me to refuse to visit," said Liu Yan, a 22-year-old college student who paid a visit to The Colorist's store in Wuhan and received a free poster.

"New makeup collection stores are good at keeping up with youth demand, accumulating deep insight into their preferences and totally debunking the trope that 'e-commerce is overtaking physical stores'," analyst Huang said.

Shi Qiwei, founder and CEO of H.E.A.T, believes offline consumption creates value, and that offline consumption is critical to brand upgrades and user experience enhancement.

"COVID-19 won't change the fact that offline retail enjoys rigid demand. Besides, the pandemic will eventually go away," Shi said.