Four skin care products were highlighted at the Mintel Innovation Zone during in-cosmetics Asia, held in Bangkok earlier this month, all of which reveal how higher-end products are turning to increasingly sophisticated technologies and ingredients in an effort to gain a competitive edge.
BB cream made from snail secretion
The first of these products is from Kadilian Cosmetics, being its new Kaféllon Cell Renew Snail BB Cream, featuring, you’ve guessed it, a snail secretion filtrate.
This multi-functional cream is said to blend with the skin to provide whitening, while also nourishing the skin and concealing the appearance of imperfection, on top of firming to leave the skin with a smoother appearance.
The product, which taps into the massive Asian-wide trend for BB creams, is also marketed with a Snail Repair Cream as a gift and retails at $22.
Chanel CC Cream
Also in China, Chanel has launched a product that taps into the BB trend, except this one is called a CC cream, which stands for color control, designed specifically to hide or blend in blemishes and other complexion imperfections.
Chanel CC Cream combines an SPF 30 and is a multifunctional cream that has been specifically formulated to deal with sensitive Asian skin by soaking into the skin to soothe, moisturize and protect it, all in one product marketed with a price tag of just over $90.
The product contains naturally derived ingredients such as cornflower water and hyaluronic acid which combine to provide the primary function of the formula to improve the appearance of redness, dark spots, enlarged spores and other imperfections.
Lotion targets seasonal skin care issues
Moving to Japan, we have another very upmarket product in the Pola B.A. red Summer – Milk product, targeting seasonal skin care issues that contribute to skin damage including aging.
The formulation has been developed around AGEs, an anti-aging complex which consists of merged protein and sugar, which is also combined with a whitening function that comes from a vitamin C derivative.
The Milk, which retails at just over $104, is said to be a quasi-drug, and is designed to spread with a replenishing texture to leave skin more resilient, as well as being soft and firm.
It is also said to suppress the production of melanin formation in skin cells, which helps to prevent brown spots and freckles , and is also formulated with ‘mist stretch veil’ technology, said to form a protective layer that also helps the formulation to penetrate the skin more effectively.
Skin care developed to enhance the function of other products
Also in Japan, Mintel highlighted Dr. Ci: Labo Aqua-In-Derm Super Essence, which is a reformulated and rebranded product marketed as a boosting serum designed to soften and prepare skin in an effort to optimize the application of other skin care products.
It retails at $70 and is said to enhance the permeability of other skin care products by up to 900 percent thanks to the inclusion of ingredients such as AHA, soy bean polymer, ceramide polymer and aquapolyn.