‘Power of people and digital’: Shiseido developing personalised beauty platform to cater to new lifestyles

With this digital beauty platform, users will be able to receive skin and body analysis, advice and solutions, as well as counselling. At the same time, it will function as an e-commerce and beauty discovery platform.

User will be able to receive personalised information based on the skin and body data the platform accumulates.

During the firm’s latest general meeting of shareholders, Shiseido president and CEO Masahiko Uotani elaborated that this beauty platform will not just offer topical skin care advice but also other health and lifestyle aspects such as nutrition and sleep.

This platform will be accessible via portable devices like smartphones.

“We see the acceleration of a lifestyle where people make full use of their smartphones. So, it goes without saying that a major transformation is necessary in every aspect of our business,” ​said Uotani.

He highlighted that this would allow beauty consumers to reach out to its beauty consultants for advice.

“The most important thing about this platform is that our beauty consultants engage with our consumers at stores and through digital communication to become a trusted partner. By combining the power of people and digital, we will seek to build a business platform that consumers are able to reach out casually for counselling and beauty and health,”​ he said.

This development was driven by the acceleration of digital technologies in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. Like many companies, Shiseido has observed consumers moving towards digital channels.

According to the firm, up to JPY1tn (U$8bn), which accounts for a third (34%) of its sales now take place online.

Digital future

This follows the firm’s push to strengthen its digital capabilities in the wake of the pandemic. For instance, as part of this digital transformation, the firm set up a digital academy that has enrolled and trained around 10,000 people.

In addition to the development of the beauty platform, Uotani hinted that the firm has already begun exploring possibilities in the metaverse.

The digital beauty platform is aligned with the company’s overarching ambitions of becoming the top skin beauty company in the world.

“Shiseido is aiming to become the global leader in the skin beauty area by 2030. This is an area where our R&D is world-class with leading technologies,” ​said Uotani.

The firm has been undergoing structural reforms in an effort to focus on this goal. In February 2021, the company announced it was selling its personal care business to CVC Capital Partners in a deal worth U$1.5bn.

That following August, it shredded another three more brands – Laura Mercier, BareMinerals and Buxom – to private equity firm Advent International for U$700m.

In February 2022, Shiseido sold off its professional hair care business to German consumer goods firm Henkel, while retaining 20% of the company shares.