Background
A.S. Watson Group (ASW), part of CK Hutchison Holdings Limited, is the largest international health and beauty retailer in Asia and Europe. With a history dating back to 1828, ASW has evolved into an international retail and manufacturing corporation with operations in 25 markets worldwide. Today, the Group operates over 16,000 retail stores covering health & beauty, luxury perfumeries & cosmetics, food, electronics and fine wine.
AS Watson operates in Europe across 15 markets, with 10 Business Units operating in Healthy & Beauty and Luxury Fragrance & Cosmetics Retail.
Starting with Superdrug (UK, IE) firstly is our ambition for this challenge.
Challenge
AS Watson is seeking digital concepts, services, and technologies focused on sustainability to improve the customer experience across all phases of the user journey.
They welcome innovative, scalable, and impactful ideas that drive sustainability and customer engagement. These solutions ideally will be integrated into their websites and mobile apps.
Key trends that AS Watson are interested in seeing are:
- Conscious Consumerism: Customers want brands that align with their values, prioritizing transparency, and ethical sourcing.
- Personalized Sustainability: AI-driven recommendations, carbon footprint tracking, and ethical product filters are reshaping expectations.
- Seamless & Inclusive Digital Journeys: Accessible, intuitive, and equitable digital experiences are vital for building customer trust and engagement.
Solutions must align with at least one of AS Watson’s three sustainability pillars:
- People: Create a more accessible, inclusive, and equitable digital experience.
- Planet: Help customers make informed, sustainable choices when shopping.
- Product: Provide transparent and engaging sustainability insights about products.
Applications should demonstrate customer value, business impact, alignment with retail trends, feasibility of implementation, and compliance with costs and legal requirements.
Further information can be found in this document.
What's in it for you?
As eLab Tech Innovation Team, we always look for new potential ideas & partners that can help us in driving our BUs strategy and put a smile on our customer faces today and tomorrow.
Every year, we organize 4 Innovation Pitches, where we present new opportunities for business challenges on different subjects. After pitching we assess the business interests in these best ideas. In case of interest and relevance, we move forward with the selected partners to pilot the idea. If the pilot is succesful, the partnet has the opportunity to expand their service to the full group and therefore gain advantage.