In our present and the future to come, technology is at the forefront. Whether we are aware or not, it plays a significant role in all we have as well as what we do. Beauty is a topic that will always be of relevance, which is why society questions how the two worlds result in merging.
Beautyque NYC, founded by Sonia Khemiri and Sylvie Giret, is the first 3D multi-brand virtual retail storefront in the beauty industry exemplifying the intertwining of both businesses. The brand aims toward bridging beauty with technological innovation to create immersive experiences. Khemiri chose indie brands due to her personal experience and believes a brand is authentic once it has a mission, products that work and are absolutely clean.
“I pitched to many retailers, reached out to many stores, but the response was very disappointing to me at that time,” said Khemiri. “As a financial analyst by training, it was important for me to find a solution for my own brand.”
She was trying to figure out ways her brand can access the savvy customer and how she can build awareness as well as engagement as a brand with her limited budget. In addition, Khemiri noticed there were many good brands and products out there, which deserved to be recognized just like hers.
“I’ve never looked at them as competitors, however I knew they deserved to be noticed,” she said.
With this idea, Beautyque was born. The business model she utilized is not new, however, it is fresh to the beauty industry. Serving indie brands that are worth being seen and used by customers is the core of Beautyque NYC’s mission. However, with time, the company was approached by bigger brands and has a few big names like Lelo in sexual wellness, which is absolutely in tune with what Beautyque NYC supports.
“For us, they can absolutely coexist on our platform and work together in this experience,” said Khemiri. “With many consumers shifting to the online shopping platform, Beautyque NYC brings the in-store experience to where you are.”
“Etre bien dans sa peau”
(Feeling good about yourself) is an overall thing that we always want to offer at Beautyque.
Beautyque NYC also offers live workshops, which began online during the pandemic just one month after the 3D store launched in May 2020. Live events stream in the 3D store with brand founders sharing their stories as well as product demonstrations. Events comprise of fitness, coaching, mental health, sexual wellness seminars and more. All these events are centered around Beautyque NYC’s beauty pillars: mental & emotional empowerment, nutrition & health, sexual wellness & intimate care, skincare, makeup and any other topic that matters to foster empowerment.
“From the beginning, our vision was about beauty,” said Khemiri. “For us, beauty is not only about skincare and makeup, but also mental empowerment, sexual health, and nutrition.”
Sonia continued by stating that Beautyque NYC desires for women and men to feel good no matter their age, ethnicity or gender when experiencing the company’s highly curated products by independent brands.
Designed to be a physical retail store in Soho, NYC in the spring of 2020, however, halted by the pandemic that transpired, the Beautyque NYC brick-and-mortar was going to offer personalized wellness, health and beauty solutions. With a quick pivot, the store launched as an ecommerce site with a virtual 3D storefront, keeping the same foundations for the online presence. When choosing brands to be part of the actual store, Beautyque NYC wanted those that create great products as well as make an impact.
Khemiri stated, “We look for unique brands. Uniqueness is a bit tricky because some factors are measurable and some others are non-measurable. We look at the message behind the brand, their authenticity, what they offer and the substantiation behind their claims.”
Through discussions with brands, Khemiri judged which brands were being transparent and authentic to bring into the store. She mentioned that she seeks brands that have a mission beyond just conducting business, such as supporting causes of all sorts along with women and minority owned brands.
“We support brands who made sustainability their reason to exist, or brands who want to offer quality at an affordable price,” she said. “We look at their innovation, which sometimes could be a simple product that works and also look at the way they serve their customers.”
The extensive process of searching for the best fit brands for the store does not end there. After reading all available information on beauty brands and discussing details with Khemiri, Beautyque NYC along with a formulating team of experts requested to receive products to test, as it is essential to see how they work and assess whether the product fits the company’s standard of a clean product.
Beautyque also differentiates itself from other stores with the experiences provided for their consumers. According to Khemiri, the experience goes beyond the 3D space, as they are working on bringing a customized experience to their virtual store in order to gain an authentic human connection just as they would as a physical shop. Starting out as the first 3D virtual retailer in the beauty industry, Beautyque NYC now plans to be a leader in the Metaverse.
“We started the experience with the 3D store presence, which we are working to enhance to its optimal use, especially with Metaverse we have unlimited possibilities,” said Khemiri. “For this reason, we got into tech and I personally love it.”
She continued, “Tech is here to uplift our lives in the digital world and beauty to uplift us in the real world.”
While Beautyque NYC in its entirety remains online, the company currently has a partnership with Doors NYC, a unique fashion and art platform in Soho and LA founded by Alise Trautmane, which supports unique emerging fashion designers and artists while incorporating fashion with art.
“Adding beauty in a space of fashion and art made sense, there is a thin line that connects them all,” she said.
Beautyque NYC also plans to create a much bigger space with more interaction in the Metaverse. Khemiri believes the company needs to be leading the metaverse by providing a culmination of technology, knowledge and a highly curated selection of products that serve the customer’s beauty journey. In addition, Beautyque NYC is working on improving their sense of community by building and bringing more brands into their platform.
“We want people to be part of our community to help them grow in this journey and give them access to what we believe will help, something to know, something to experience or to buy,” said Khemiri. “Join us, share with us and support brands that deserve your recognition.”
To learn more about Beautyque NYC, visit www.beautyque.nyc and contact hello@beautyque.nyc.
