House of Beauty event boosts engagement and spend for brands

It was beauty products, goodie bags and masterclasses as the Takealot House of Beauty event returned with a sold-out experience this past weekend.

Tickets for the 3-day event, valued at R350 each, sold out within 15min of going on sale, cementing it as one of the country’s most anticipated lifestyle activations.

EWN spoke to Absa Rewards Executive Alicia Raynard about the bank's decision to return as a partner for the event.

“This is our second year partnering with Takealot on the House of Beauty, but our relationship goes beyond that,” she said.

“Over the past two years, we’ve worked together on several campaigns that have delivered real value to customers.”

She added that the intention was to offer customers more value where they are already spending.

“What we’ve found is that when we offer boosted cashback through partnerships like this, customers are more likely to engage and spend,” she explained.

According to Raynard, last year’s campaign, saw a 30% year-on-year increase in spend on Takealot (by Absa customers) during the House of Beauty promotion period.

Beyond sales, the event also grabbed a lot of attention online. Attendees could not wait to post videos of their goodie bags, full of beauty and lifestyle products valued at more than R3000.

“It’s definitely created a sense of relevance and a ‘coolness factor’ for the brand,” Raynard said.

“We’ve seen strong engagement across different demographics, including younger audiences.”

Leading global and local brands such as L’Oréal Paris, Estée Lauder, The Ordinary, Clarins, Sol de Janeiro, Revlon, Cetaphil, Dark & Lovely and BNG and Nivea used the event as opportunity to engage directly with consumers through masterclasses, interactive games and fun give-aways.

Absa’s presence included over R160,000 worth of prizes, a virtual trolley dash competition and cashback offers of up to 30% on Takealot purchases.

The high demand for tickets has proven the event’s popularity and provided opportunities for growth.

Last year saw the introduction of a Durban edition and there are indications that further expansion could follow.

“There’s clearly strong demand and the intention is to make the experience accessible to more people across different regions,” Raynard said.