Tarte Cosmetics signs up to virtual reality with Meitu

Fans of Tarte Cosmetics will now be able to virtually test out the brand's lip products, thanks to a new partnership between the US beauty company and the Chinese app developer Meitu.

Shoppers will now be able to test out 72 lip products from Tarte's portfolio of lipsticks, glosses and liners, using the Counter feature of the Meitu app MakeupPlus. The products, which come in a variety of different colorways and finishes, will include 16 shades of Double Duty Beauty The Lip Sculptor & Lipgloss, 24 shades of Rainforest of the Sea Color Splash Hydrating Lipstick, 26 shades of Tarteist Quick Dry Matte Lip Paint and six shades of Double Duty Beauty The Lip Architect Lipstick & Liner.

Tarte is the latest in a long line of beauty brands to have signed up to the MakeupPlus app, following in the footsteps of Charlotte Tilbury, Stila Cosmetics, Glamglow and Clarins, among others. The app allows users to virtually try out different products and share their looks with friends, as well as regularly offering unique looks by partnering with makeup artists and beauty experts.

Augmented and virtual reality technologies have become a huge marketing tool for the beauty industry recently, with brands such as Lancome, Estée Lauder and L'Oreal teaming up with developers to offer customers an immersive online experience with the option of in-app purchases. Meitu, whose apps include MeituPic, Meipai, SelfieCity, BeautyCam, BeautyPlus, BeautyPlusMe, Airbrush and MakeupPlus, is one of the biggest tech companies in the VR beauty business, and its apps are installed on over 1.5 billion unique mobile devices worldwide.