DISTANCE and time differences did not deter three National University of Singapore (NUS) students from creating the perfect marketing proposal.

This they did for the L'Oreal Brandstorm 2008 marketing competition, and yesterday, their tireless efforts paid off when they were crowned national champions of the contest.

The annual international competition, introduced here in 2002, challenges tertiary students to come up with a marketing strategy for a L'Oreal brand.

This year, teams were tasked to create a sun care product range targeted at teens and youths for Vichy Capital Soleil.

Ms Lydia Tay, Ms Jenalyn Liu and Ms Avril Tan, all 22-year-old business students, emerged tops among the 213 undergraduates here who flocked to take part.

Their team, which they dubbed The Pinnacle, won an all-expenses-paid trip to Paris, where they will compete in the international finals on June 10.

It has been an arduous six months leading up to yesterday's triumph.

They had to come up with their strategy while two members were abroad in exchange programmes in December last year - Ms Tay was in Shanghai while Ms Tan was away in Sweden.

In order to make their deadline, they communicated online.

They also had to contend with managing school work and exam preparations. But they 'wanted our strategy to be perfect,' said Ms Tay.

Which meant that they spent countless hours consulting dermatologists and a general practitioner regarding the scientific aspects of their product. They also visited Vichy counters to study the brand's product range, and surveyed 100 youths in a bid to understand consumer needs.

While they cannot reveal much about their product and strategy as they want to keep it under wraps until they present it again in Paris, judges at yesterday's finals were impressed.

The team's 'original and intriguing' concept made them stand out from the other seven finalists, said Mr Jean-Francois Couve, managing director of L'Oreal Singapore & Malaysia, who was one of the judges.

The girls, however, have a tough act to follow. Last year's team, which was also from NUS, won the international title for their design of a new range of Redken hair products for men. In 2003, a team from Nanyang Technological University won the top prize for developing a hair care line for Garnier.

Mr Couve thinks this year's representatives may well win, too. The team had 'a concept that was original and viable with a global perspective'.

The trio can also look forward to the prospect of employment with L'Oreal, which has recruited six Singaporeans from previous L'Oreal Brandstorms.

The competition is 'the best example' of L'Oreal's focus on recruiting fresh graduates to stay ahead in Singapore's competitive job market, said Mr Nicolas Pauthier, human resource director of L'Oreal ASEAN.

This is good news for Ms Liu, who graduated earlier this month. Ms Tay and Ms Tan will graduate next year.

'This is one of the jobs I'd really love to do,' said Ms Liu.

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