Top of the charts: CosmeticsDesign-Asia’s 10 most-read stories of 2022

How to win over… The informed consumer in India’s booming beauty market​

We explore the thriving Indian beauty market to reveal the product development, sourcing, marketing and business strategies for success with expert insights from the biggest brands, thriving start-ups and e-commerce giants.

The culture of beauty is deeply rooted in India where women were raised on ancient Ayurvedic principles. They believed in the value of everyday kitchen ingredients – coconut oil for sleek and strong hair, turmeric face masks for glowing skin.

These homemade remedies are centuries old, but today beauty in India is in the midst of an evolution.

LG H&H ventures into beauty tech with mini tattoo printer for North American market​

South Korean firm LG Household & Health Care is set to enter the beauty tech space with a mini tattoo printer that it plans to launch in North America in the fourth quarter of this year.

The mini tattoo printer, which has been dubbed with the working name of Printly, is roughly 10cm in size. The device is linked to a companion mobile application where users can select the image they want to get temporarily printed on their skin.

Printly is set to debut in the North American market through Arctic Fox, a US-based vegan hair care brand it acquired in 2021.

Kao to discontinue or divest another 13 of its beauty brands by 2024 as pandemic impact persists​

Kao is mulling over the decision to discontinue or divest another 13 of its beauty brands by 2024 to focus on its core G11 and R8 products, amid warnings that the impact of the pandemic will continue to be felt across the 12 months.

Speaking during the earnings conference, president and CEO Yoshihiro Hasebe said that the company expects the impact of the pandemic to persist this year.

To that end, he said that Kao intends to make investments in a select group of brands and products moving forward. The company had decided to discontinue or divest 28 brands and had already axed 15 of them.

Biotech firm Renovatio focusing R&D towards therapeutic skin care​

Renovatio Bioscience believes skin care innovation is moving towards the development of therapeutic treatments for serious skin conditions such as eczema or psoriasis.

While its products are marketed as anti-ageing solutions, they can also be used by people suffering from conditions such as eczema or psoriasis.

Moving forward, the firm will continue its therapeutic skin care research and treatments for skin conditions like dermatitis, eczema, psoriasis and acne.

How to win over… the multidimensional Generation Z beauty consumers​​

The millennial generation is defined as those born between 1981 and 1996, and anyone born 1997 and onward is considered part of Gen Z, according to Pew Research.

Zoomers, as they are informally known, will make up a quarter of the entire Asia Pacific population in three years, a size on par with millennials, according to McKinsey & Company.

“Generation Z is shaping up to have great spending power and they are the future of modern retail. It’s important to stay relevant to them, not only focusing on the products they want but also the stories and experiences that go with them,”​ Malina Ngai, CEO of A.S. Watson, Asia & Europe, told CosmeticsDesign-Asia​.

Safety overkill? How the rise of ‘coral safe’ sunscreen could hinder​ future formulations​​

Confusion and misinformation regarding the marine safety of sunscreens can ultimately hinder cosmetic formulators’ ability to develop safe and effective UV protection.

The rise in environmental consciousness has led to significant public, scientific and government interest in the effect sun care products have on the marine ecosystem.

This has resulted in sunscreen ingredient bans taking effect in locations such as Hawaii, Palau and Thailand, there is widespread belief that UV protection compounds have a detrimental impact on marine organisms such as corals.

‘Endemic beauty’ sees spring-inspired cosmetics, pollen protection products trending in Japan​

Shades of spring-inspired rouge, lip liners, eyeliners and pollen protection cosmetics are trending in Japan, according to new data.

These trends were revealed in a new report by @cosme, the Japanese cosmetics portal, which showed consumers were searching for products to enhance their cheeks, lips and eyes in light of reduced COVID-19 restrictions.

The researchers said the appearance of the keyword “spring cosmetics” has more than doubled year on year.

K-beauty giants see mega demand for shampoos that conceal grey hairs and prevent hair loss​

South Korean cosmetic titans Amorepacific and LG Household & Healthcare (LG H&H) have both recently launched shampoos that can conceal grey hairs to great success, signalling a huge demand for anti-ageing hair care products.

According to Amorepacific, RYO Double Effector Black Shampoo pre-launch sales on channels including G-Market and SSG.com promptly sold out.

A month later, rival LG H&H introduced two grey hair care products under its hair care brand ReEn and claims to have sold over 200,000 units within three weeks of its release.

Estée Lauder preparing to increase presence across all China retail channels​

Beauty major Estée Lauder Companies says it will be increasing its coverage across all channels in China this year to capitalise on the growth potential of its beauty market.

President, CEO and director of The Estée Lauder Companies Fabrizio Freda said that he remained “absolutely excited by the potential of China”.​

He noted that long-term trends, such as the rising middle class and increasing per capita send, all pointed towards growth for China’s beauty market.

The company aims to serve Chinese consumers “wherever they buy,”​ said Freda.

Estée Lauder outlines six-month strategy to recoup market share loss in China​

The Estée Lauder Companies has put in place a six-month plan to recover the market share it has lost in China due to the COVID-19 pandemic disruptions that occurred in the first half of 2022.

The company plans to recover the lost market share in China over the next six months.

First, it will focus on its premium hair care brand Aveda, which launched in China just last month on Tmall and unveiled its first freestanding store.