1 - China’s ‘Silicon Valley’ of beauty sets the stage for C-beauty expansion
Beautéville is striving to raise the bar for China’s cosmetics industry as it gears up to become a beauty mecca and premium tourist destination.
Initiated in 2015, China Beautéville was an initiative conceptualised by the private cosmetics sector and the local Huzhou authorities with a directive to help foreign counties enter China.
Located in Huzhou City, Zhejiang province, China Beautéville is only a couple of hours away from Shanghai and consists of a complete supply chain platform from raw materials to production to sales.
2 - Father’s bird’s nest farm prompts Malaysian entrepreneur to take cosmetics to China
When Humaira Hassan started incorporating bird’s nests into her skincare products, the move opened up the Chinese market for her.
The Malaysian entrepreneur, from the northeastern state of Kelantan, had been manufacturing and selling traditional facial cosmetics within her own social network since 2015.
Having sensitive skin, she had devised formulas that would work for her own face, and replicated these for her customers.
But when her father started a business this year farming bird’s nests made by swiftlets, these quickly became central to her business and have enabled her to open it up to a wider, international market.
3 - Multi-platform collaboration: Secoo takes over operations of MeituBeauty
Meitu has reached an agreement with online luxury marketplace Secoo to operate its retail platform, MeituBeauty, as the tech company looks to further expand into e-commerce.
“Combining MeituBeauty with Secoo's TryTry Platform represents an adjustment to Meitu's e-commerce strategy,” said Meitu Founder and CEO, Wu Xinhong.
Under the agreement, MeituBeauty will now be operated by Secoo's luxury retail application, TryTry.
While Meitu's app matrix will continue to empower the platform, TryTry will be responsible for branding promotions, product purchasing, sales, delivery, and customer service.
4 - Need-to-know regulatory issues on the agenda for APAC’s cosmetics sector in 2019
Among APAC’s emerging economies and lucrative markets, APAC’s cosmetics legislation is changing at a fast pace. Here we reveal the latest developments set to come into place in 2019.
1. IECIC to get major upgrade
By refining its cross-border e-commerce laws and hosting the inaugural China International Import Expo, China is sending a clear message that it plans to continue opening up its market.
The cosmetics industry can expect China to continue changing its policies, which will come swiftly in the New Year, said Kris Fang, head of Europe for China Beauteville.
Fang told Cosmetics Design Asia that the industry can expect “important changes” in the coming months, especially in raw materials.
5 - The top 5 trends set to shape APAC’s cosmetics sector in 2019 revealed
We’ve identified five key trends that we believe are going to have a major impact on the beauty and personal care industry in Asia-Pacific this year.
3. Demand for luxury
Known for high-end brands such as Albion, THREE, Astalift and SK-II, the resurgence of Japanese cosmetics is partly due to the sudden popularity for prestige brands.
During its Q1 2019 Earnings Call, The Estee Lauder Companies said that the rising middle class is aspiring for luxury products. With more disposable income in millennials and Gen Z consumers, the company is noticing strong interest for luxury beauty in Asia-Pacific, especially in Chinese consumers.
“Prestige beauty growth in department stores in China continued to grow more than 20% and we gained share, while sales in specialty multi and online more than doubled,” said Tracey Thomas Travis, executive vice president and CFO of Estee Lauder Cos.
