If 2015 was the year of the Chinese mask, then 2016 has certainly marked the year of innovative development and expansion around the world.
We spoke to Anne-Claire Roudaut, Marketing and Communications at TechNature about the latest innovation in the facial skin care market and how this hopes to satisfy consumer demands.
Increasingly, brands are expanding their skin care face mask lines into the global marketplace. Companies such as Korean-based Masqueology has taken its face mark range to US retail giant Walmart in a bid to make affordable skin care directly available to the mass market.
The industry is innovating its product ranges in a bid to remain relevant and continue to generate appeal from audiences within APAC and wider global regions. As companies think outside of the box for unique applications and solutions, Research company Mintel predicts that there is a gap in the market for diverse luxury innovations that are also multifunctional.
Vegetable and plant-based cosmetics
In collaboration with the start-up Leaflab, cosmetic skin care manufacturer Technature has developed a new beauty ritual that highlights the benefits of plants: the vegetable Leaf Mask.
Belonging to the naturals market, the selection of face masks contain only plant fibres and extracts. The dry products are free from preservatives, contain no additives, no synthetic fragrances and no colourants.
“Growing awareness around health is making Asian consumers more wary about the products they use on their skin. Lifestyles are changing with increasing disposable income and environmental concerns are expected to promote sales of natural cosmetics,” said Anne-Claire Roudaut, Marketing and Communication, TechNature.
“While China remains the most important market in Asia, countries such as Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia are expected to record the highest growth rates,” Roudaut elaborated.
“Consumers expect natural products to work as well as others. They tend to contain more active ingredients than traditional varieties. With credentials including a safer product with higher quality ingredients and without additives, synthetic fragrances, or colourants, natural skin cares inspire confidence,” added Roudaut.
Using crude raw materials to create face masks, the Leaf Mask falls under the increasingly popular sub-category of hyper-natural skin care products, which are proving popular with Asian consumers as they are preservative-free.
Food and beverage impact
Leveraging popular trends within the food and drink industry including flavours, textures and fragrances is high on the cosmetics industry’s agenda. The Leaf Mask contains green tea and peppermint in the face mask's plant fibres and plant extracts as “the detox trend has reassured us and confirmed this choice,” said Roudaut.
Green tea was selected as an ingredient as it “contains a significant concentration of polyphenols including EGCG (epigallocathechin gallate) that reduces free radicals,” said Roudaut.
This latest innovation follows a wave of facial mask skin care launches in the APAC market, particularly China, including those that have been made of cotton lace and silk.
In October 2015, the year-to-date (YTD) performance report revealed that the global face care market was worth £6 mn (€8.3 mn), according to The NPD Group, a global information company. The multifunctional product trend, which serves a variety of customers' skin care needs, is said to be contributing towards this healthy figure.