ABOUT

In need of a consumer strategy refresh, Clinique turned to TONG to leverage the power of brand collaborations to drive awareness among emerging communities and foster long-term brand equity that will allow Clinique to stay relevant and competitive amid significant market change.


Context & Challenges

Clinique engaged TONG to reimagine its consumer engagement in China, harnessing the power of brand collaborations to connect with emerging communities – especially Gen Z – in an increasingly competitive and fast-evolving beauty market.

The brand needed to strengthen long-term equity while staying culturally relevant, seizing opportunities in both commercial and cultural moments. Another priority was uniting geographically dispersed teams behind a shared China strategy, equipping global HQ with a deeper understanding of the local market and ensuring brand decisions resonated authentically with Chinese consumers.

Strategy & Execution

TONG undertook a cross-industry investigation into collaboration best practice, drawing lessons from premium and luxury brands that had successfully captured Chinese consumers’ attention. This was combined with an in-depth analysis of consumer tribes, cultural trends, and High Traffic Moments (HTMs) in the beauty calendar.

Our recommendation centred on a bold collaboration strategy spanning brand adjacencies, artistic partnerships, and cultural crossovers. The framework balanced prestige with accessibility, creativity with commercial viability, and was designed to:

Communicate Clinique’s brand values through unexpected, trend-led activations.
Align launches to key China moments – both commercial peaks like 618 and 11.11, and cultural touchpoints such as Qixi.
Build a multi-year platform for collaborations that could evolve with consumer tastes and market dynamics.
Delivered through a comprehensive report and two interactive workshops, the strategy aligned local market insight with global brand objectives – creating a “glocal” blueprint for sustained impact.

Results

The project established a three-year collaboration roadmap, underpinned by a flexible, insight-driven framework. It enabled Clinique to:

Explore 20+ fully developed collaboration concepts for immediate and future rollout.
Build stronger alignment between China and global teams on market priorities.
Position the brand to engage China’s Gen Z with culturally resonant, science-led storytelling.