Visit in-cosmetics Korea on 12-14 July to get more insights into Japanese Beauty, formulations and technology, with the Japan Country Focus.

Japan has long been at the forefront of pioneering beauty trends and innovation, dating as far back as the Edo Period (1603-1868) which saw powder (or Oshiroi), lipstick, and eyebrow make-up dominate upper class women’s beauty routines[1].

The archetypal porcelain white face, red lip, and black teeth, commonly seen on geishas and women of high status, were achieved by applying or consuming mercury, oxidised iron, and pigments from fresh safflowers, amongst others.

While we’ve come a long way in ingredient formulation – in part thanks to modern health and safety regulations – the Japanese market remains loyal to its traditional ideals, placing much of its emphasis on creating a clear canvas through cosmetic and personal care fundamentals: skincare, base makeup, and foundation.

Ahead of this year’s in-cosmetics Korea, which is returning to Coex, Seoul from 12-14 July, influential leaders in this space help unpack past and current Japanese beauty trends and provide a first-hand look at what attendees can expect to see at what is anticipated to be the most international event yet, with a particular country focus on Japan and J-Beauty.

The rising power of ‘skinfluencers’

The old proverb, “white skin covers the seven flaws,” points to the passion Japanese women had for white, clear skin, and it still rings true today. “Creating clear skin has become very popular through the media,” said Kajo Bo, Marketer at Japanese cosmetic ingredient manufacturer, SEIWA KASEI.

“Many beauty magazines are featuring cosmetics and other related mechanisms that contribute to skin transparency. To form transparent skin, brightening ingredients like kojic acid, tranexamic acid, vitamin C derivatives, and 4MSK are essential.”

Skin transparency, also commonly referred to as “glass skin”, has created waves on social media. On TikTok, the skincare trend has risen in popularity over the last few years, generating more than 29k posts with 642m million views over a 120-day period in 2023 alone. It places value on crystal-clear, pore-less, translucent skin.

While the trend is rooted in Korean skincare principles, the comparatively young and trendy market once known for its multi-step routines, it shares its traditional ideals with the more mature, established Japanese market, which focuses on achieving natural, clear, and youthful beauty through thoughtful skincare and health care.

As Miyabi Kumagai, Brand Manager at Shiseido, said in an interview with Glamour magazine, “The Japanese beauty philosophy is very close to healthcare philosophy. Western culture is more concerned with correcting damages after they have occurred, whereas Japanese beauty care is more about anticipation.”[2]

Bo goes on to explain the slight differences between the Asia Pacific regions: “From an ingredient manufacturer’s perspective, K-Beauty focusses on maximising people’s beauty with make-up, while J-Beauty focusses on natural skin and healthcare.

Similarly, Chinese Beauty, or C-Beauty, focusses on high performance to improve the original conditions.” Yuki Kinoshita, Deputy Manager at Japanese active ingredient supplier, TriBeaute Inc., said the respective countries are controlled by different regulations: “J-Beauty has a tendency to focus on safety and quality, so [Japanese] manufacturers rely on well-known, trusted ingredients. C-Beauty differs in this way with its own trends as the country is tightly restricted and unable to implement as many new trends into its products.”

Japanese cosmetic ingredient manufacturers have long been developing their techniques and formulations focussed on achieving ‘natural’ beauty, and J-Beauty leaders such as Shiseido, Bioré, and SK:II, with the help of social media, have begun to dominate the global market and wider supply chain. The result is that a flurry of new trends has emerged, having a direct effect on work by R&D experts and ingredient and raw material manufacturers.

Harumi Suzuki, Marketing Manager of Nikko Chemicals Co., said the medium of which today’s market is drawing inspiration from has led cosmetic and raw materials companies to disclose more in-depth information about their ingredients and functions.

She said: “Young generations are moving away from the TV and are watching more videos on the Internet, getting [their] cosmetic-related information from platforms such as YouTube and TikTok. From October, regulations on marketing will be implemented. The reliability of information introducing cosmetics is becoming more important for beauty-conscious consumers. The need for influencers who are ex-beauty advisors, ex-cosmetics developers, and other influencers who can speak about their specialized knowledge is growing.”

She continued: “The industry needs to introduce the mechanism of beauty actives with R&D trends of cosmetics companies, compare product performance by experiment, and carefully explain the different between quasi-drugs and cosmetics to increase their persuasiveness.”

Mayumi Honma, Manager, Sales & Marketing International at Vitamin C60 BioResearch Corporation, says quality and safety are the “main characteristics of J-Beauty”, but there are other factors that come into play when being analysed:

“High quality and safety are the main characteristics of J-Beauty, but another feature of J-Beauty is that the background of the raw materials and products themselves are spun into a beautiful story. Interesting cosmetic raw materials, such as plant-based fullerene, not only have high quality and safety, but is a perfectly symmetrical sphere, which is rare for a chemical substance, and has attracted scientists because of its strong, longer-lasting, and stable ROS scavenging capability. This is not only evidence-based, but also story-based, which is also a factor.”

As ‘skinfluencers’ rise in power, the wider industry and supply chain will need to keep a close eye on new trends and innovations in order to stay ahead, while ensuring consumers’ health and safety is at the forefront of their functions.

Well-ageing, gracefully

Anti-ageing and well-ageing have long been Japanese beauty ideals, and the rise of Japanese skinfluencers has continued to drive the desire among consumers for flawless, glass-like skin. This has incited another wave of popularity in retinols, retinoids, and other vitamin A-derived ingredients known for their ability to speed up cell turnover, as well as vitamin B and UV protective ingredients.

Honma says that ‘wrinkle reduction’ “has always been [a] buzz-word,” but ever since the addition of “fine lines and wrinkles caused by dryness” to efficacy claims around cosmetics in Japan, “cosmetics that mainly use retinol, NMN, and other active ingredients with a proven mechanism for wrinkle reduction, such as POLA’s Neil One, have widely penetrated the market.”

According to Suzuki, these age-targeting ingredients are found in most Japanese cosmetics, not least vitamin-B derived niacinamide. “Since niacinamide is highly reliable in the quasi-drug category and can be used for both anti-wrinkle and whitening claims, it is also found in many Japanese cosmetics.

For differentiation, it is growing quickly in the functional ageing care market, where brands are combining the booster of anti-wrinkle effect or other quasi-drug main ingredients for multiple claims and designing formulations for higher permeability to skin. In addition, since many K-beauty products contain niacinamide as a functional cosmetic ingredient, new marketing appeals and concepts are gaining popularity in Japan.”

She continued: “In skincare research, the anti-ageing category is the most prominent topic. There are constantly new evaluation methods and knowledge on senescent cell and wrinkle-generating mechanisms, approaches to blood vessels, and the fat cells deeper than the dermis layer, etc.”

Echoing the trends Suzuki is observing at Nikko Chemicals Co., Kinoshita said the multi-beneficial nature of these ingredients allows formulators to provide consumers with solutions to a number of concerns in one. “Retinol and retinoid or Vitamin A are added to products for better efficacy, stability, safety, and easier application,” he said. “CBD related components too, from botanicals as alternatives, are seeing a rise.”

The best of both worlds

The J-Beauty market, while steeped in tradition and natural care, manages to stay ahead of the curve through the latest technologies and use of artificial intelligence (AI). Beauty technologies, or ‘beautytech’, have already been harnessed by the likes of Shiseido, which has partnered with digital companies to bring AI-powered makeup advisors.[3] Japanese ingredient makers will need to “continue to embrace technologies to differentiate themselves from foreign products,” said Kinoshita.

“Fermentation, domestic botanical ingredients and other raw materials will be formulated with technologies. AI will be one of the next biggest key technologies to measure and embrace them.”

Meanwhile, Suzuki said technology offers science-led formulations a new level of innovation:“When considering existing cosmetic claims such as J-Beauty tradition, J-beauty technology offers new cosmetic concepts created by new dermatology, emulsification mechanisms, and evaluation systems.”

She continued: “For example, there is a new ISO evaluation standard for UV water resistance. This standard indicates not only SPF and PA values, but also resistance to water such as when swimming or sweating. In addition, since the awareness of environmental and social sustainability initiatives is also growing in Japan, J-Beauty is reducing the use of petroleum-derived ingredients and cosmetics packages.”

Kinoshita also predicts that AI and holistic beauty will become “essential” for consumers, and information reliability “will be key after the AI popularisation.”

However, some experts are predicting a shift in consumer targeting and marketing in line with diverse and inclusive values. “As the elderly population keeps growing and the number of foreign workers is expected to increase in Japan, we believe that the cosmetic concept [will become] more inclusive,” said Suzuki. “

For example, genderless cosmetics that are easy for men as well as women to pick up, and the conventional classification of skin types such as oily, normal, and dry could be changed to a wider range of skin types and skin concerns to promote in the global market. Even in this case, it is unlikely there will be any change in the traditional science-driven manufacturing theory of J-Beauty.”

J-Beauty to take in-cosmetics Korea by storm

With this year’s in-cosmetics Korea show dedicating its entire country focus programme to Japanese Innovations and Beauty, visitors can expect to experience everything that the market can offer in terms of ingredients, formulations, and trends. The Japanese pavilion will host some of the country’s leading suppliers which will be offering live ingredient demonstrations, while the Technical Seminars offer insightful, informative sessions on some of the supply chain’s hottest topics.

Introducing new innovations this year include Nikko Chemicals Co., which will be unveiling its new product, NIKKOL LECINOL® MFL, a protective skin barrier function which promotes the synthesis of ceramides and NMF to enhance moisturising capacity of the stratum coneum and leads to a formation of healthy cells.

TriBeaute Inc. will be launching its new active ingredient Aurum Blue Rose targeting microbiome on both skin and scalp, as well as its RedoxySense W, an active ingredient formulated with Japanese fermentation technology for sensitive skin.

Meanwhile SEIWA KASEI’s latest biomimetic haircare ingredient, PhytoCuticle, designed from the hair cuticle structure, will be showcased at this year’s show for those looking for hair conditioning properties that contribute to the formulation of silicone-free haircare products.

And finally, Vitamin C60 BioResearch Corporation will be showcasing its friendly, evidence and plant-based fullerene and Repista – the latter being the world’s first and only cosmetic ingredient containing the plant growth factor Azo-oxohypoxanthine (AOH).

[1] https://asianartnewspaper.com/japanese-beauty-secrets/

[2] https://www.glamourmagazine.co.uk/gallery/japanese-beauty-products

[3] https://www.premiumbeautynews.com/en/shiseido-partners-with-revieve-to,20140

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