Timed with its 30th anniversary, Nars launched Nars Maison Explicit on Tuesday on narscosmetics.com. The virtual experience, which merges storytelling, gaming and commerce, is accessible on mobile and desktop in ten languages and in 12 markets, including the Americas, EMEA and Asia.
According to Gabrielle Archambault, Nars’s executive director of global digital innovation and media, the brand will also host IRL Maison Explicit events where on-site QR codes will link to the online experience. The first will be held in Paris on September 14-15 and open to the public.
“Our goal was to build a captivating world that invites exploration and engagement and is uniquely NARS,” Archambault said.
Nars will market Maison Explicit on social media, including with Meta video ads. The digital experience will launch first in the U.S. and Canada, before rolling out to Europe and Asia starting in mid-September.
“In 2022, we were one of the first beauty brands to launch a branded experience in Roblox,” said Archambault. “We’re still ranked as one of the top 10 most trafficked [Roblox] experiences in beauty with over 41 million total visits. We were able to take all of the learnings on gamification from those experiences and bring that to Maison Explicit.”
The Maison Explicit digital world references Nars’s New York City roots, launching in 1994 at Barneys New York and opening its first flagship store at 413 Bleecker Street. The theme reflects the products of focus: the Explicit lipstick line, launched in July, which brought back the brand’s original formulas and shades.
Set in a make-believe Explicit, NYC, the experience allows users to interact with the latest Explicit Lipstick collection, shop at a virtual Nars Boutique, and explore “urban chateau” rooms inspired by the styles of Nars global ambassadors as featured in an Explicit Lipstick campaign film. The ambassadors include Ciara (35 million Instagram followers), Pom Klementieff (2 million followers) and Camila Morrone (5 million followers). In the boutique, users can engage with interactive 3D versions of Explicit Lipsticks, listen to ASMR elements reminiscent of the click of the lipstick cases, watch makeup tutorials and virtually try on every shade of Explicit Lipstick.
Users choose between two avatars inspired by explicit Lipstick shades Provocateur and Bare It All. And they’re guided by Power Player Chelsea, one of three digital ambassadors the brand introduced in 2022. They can access Dirty Talk Phones, which are strategically placed throughout the world and feature audio storytelling about Nars by the global brand ambassadors.
“We wanted to create something scalable because only a certain number of consumers can visit our physical events,” said Archambault. “The beauty of building digitally is that the rules of reality don’t apply, so we can do anything within the technology’s capabilities.”
Each of the experience’s “urban chateau” rooms offers a unique experience, from collecting Explicit Lipsticks to unlocking exclusive rewards. After gathering all three Explicit Lipsticks, users receive an invitation to the VIP After Party — a virtual event where they can mingle with Power Player Maxine, another Nars digital ambassador, and access behind-the-scenes footage from the Explicit Lipstick campaign shoot.
“We wanted to bring in those fun gamification elements to make it enticing,” she said. “The consumer [has become] sophisticated when it comes to digital experiences.”
To bring this project to life, Nars partnered with virtual experience developer Journee. Archambault said the brand is keen to understand how users navigate the experience, including what captures their interest and drives engagement. The learnings will be useful in understanding the path to purchase and will inform future experiences. Journee will provide these analytics.
“As platforms like Roblox continue to grow and mature, the ability to gather and analyze data has become increasingly [more advanced],” said Archembault. For brands, the richest data still lies within their own channels.
Nars has a reputation for leading digital innovation in beauty. It launched virtual try-on on YouTube in 2019 and on Instagram in 2020, and later launched AR filters on major platforms. In 2021, the brand expanded into gaming with activations in video games Animal Crossing and Roblox. In 2023, visitors to its Roblox activation, Nars Sweet Rush, collectively spent over 1.5 million hours engaging in the experience. Nars debuted its first NFT collection, “Orgasm Experienced” in 2021 — Orgasm is the shade of its best-selling blush. In 2023, it partnered with NFT collective Boss Beauties for the “Odentity” NFT project and sold digital collectibles via an “Orgasm, Activated” collection.
