GEM: Bringing a new category closer to purchase

GEM had already earned attention through social media. With its new shaving range launching in Superdrug, the opportunity was to take that momentum into the real world, building familiarity among beauty shoppers as the products reached shelves.

R4 secured a 52% trade up in media value against GEM’s investment. That value supported a focused national campaign, giving GEM visibility in shopping environments close to its stockists.

Planning started with where GEM’s audience and retail availability overlapped. Using Experian Mosaic and Location Analyst, R4 identified areas with the highest concentrations of urban Gen Z and Millennial beauty shoppers, then overlaid those insights with Superdrug store locations.

The audience was defined by behaviour: frequent beauty and personal care purchasing, engagement with social trends, and an appetite for discovering new products. Locations were selected to connect those habits with stores where GEM’s shaving range could be bought.

The final plan brought together 19 shopping centre digital 6-sheets, each in immediate close proximity to a Superdrug stockist. Eye-level screens placed GEM in busy retail environments where shoppers had time to browse and absorb the creative, with repeated exposure designed to build recognition across the fortnight.

The campaign ran from 5 to 18 October 2026, taking GEM into shopping destinations across the UK, including Westfield, Bluewater, the Trafford Centre, Meadowhall and St David’s Cardiff.

R4 visited every location to verify delivery in person, checking that the creative was live, screens were functioning and placements matched the plan. Activity was also reconciled against media owner reports to confirm creative playback, rotation compliance and booked volumes.

That oversight carried the planning intent through to the shopping centre floor, ensuring GEM appeared in the environments selected and close to the stores stocking its new range.

The two-week campaign delivered:

• 6,462,588 impacts
• 2,308,067 people reached
• 2.8 average frequency
• 19 digital screens, each in immediate close proximity to a Superdrug stockist
• 52% additional media value against GEM’s investment

By combining audience concentration with retail proximity, the campaign gave GEM repeated visibility along relevant shopping journeys. It brought the new shaving range beyond social feeds and into physical retail environments, building opportunities for discovery just moments from the shelf.