Executives from the international beauty industry came together last night for an evening of networking, celebration and enjoyment at The Beauty Party in Cannes, and to recognize retail excellence with BW Confidential’s first awards.
The event took place at the Majestic Hotel in Cannes during the TFWA World Exhibition & Conference.
BW Confidential presented the Beauty Retailer of the Year Award to A.S Watson, and Executive of the Year Award to A.S. Watson CEO (Asia & Europe) Malina Ngai.
The Award went to A.S. Watson for its strong performance and innovative approach to retail. The group is the world’s largest international health and beauty retailer operating over 16,100 stores under 12 retail brands in 28 markets. For the fiscal year 2022, A.S. Watson Group recorded revenue of US$22bn.
“Despite the pandemic, A.S. Watson has gone from strength to strength. The group has opened more than 1,400 new stores in Asia in the past three years, expanded to the Middle East and ushered in a number of consumer-focused beauty tech innovations,” BW Confidential Editor in Chief Oonagh Phillips told guests at The Beauty Party.
Malina Ngai was recognized for her visionary leadership and contribution to the retail group’s success.
Ngai gave an inspiring speech and talked about the importance of relationships, service in retail and excellent execution in the effort to ‘put a smile on the face of customers’.
Malina Ngai joined A.S. Watson from its parent company CK Hutchison in 2001. She was appointed Group COO in December 2013 and CEO in November 2019. She has been instrumental in formulating the company’s customer and digital strategy, driving digital transformation, as well as developing strategic partnerships with international suppliers and technology companies.
“Malina is well known in the market as a charismatic and talented retail executive. But she is also known as a kind and thoughtful individual, who will often personally call employees around the world to congratulate them on their achievements,” Phillips said during the award ceremony.
A.S. Watson and Malina Ngai were selected for ‘Beauty Retailer of the Year Award’ and ‘Executive of the Year’ Award by BW Confidential’s editorial staff and with input from key industry executives.
The Beauty Party was organized by BW Confidential in association with Qatar Duty Free.
The Beauty Party was also kindly sponsored by Asian distribution company LUXASIA, French fragrance house MANE, fragrance diffusion specialist Scentys, Swiss beauty brand MAVALA and LVMH-owned cruise retailer Starboard Cruise Services.