Anti-pollution product launches Part I: Why APAC is the region of choice

The Asia-Pacific region has witnessed tremendous market leadership in the growing pollution protection sector.

The number of anti-pollution products in development and claims made by the region’s cosmetics, beauty and personal care brands, indicates APAC’s increasing success this year, Mintel reports.

To date, in 2016, over one in three (38%) new beauty products launched with an anti-pollution claim has been in the APAC market. This represents a 10% rise from the number of anti-pollution product launches in 2015.

Global anti-pollution claims are minuscule in comparison, with only 1% of beauty product launches this year featuring a pollution protectant claim.

Sharon Kwek, Senior Beauty and Personal Care Innovation and Insight Analyst at Mintel emphasised the market drivers leading anti-pollution product launches in APAC: “Anti-pollution claims are a growing trend within the beauty and personal care market, especially in the Asia region.This comes not just from serious pollution issues but because on a daily basis, people are constantly exposed to pollution in the form of dust.”​

Consumer concern​

As the amount of pollution in major cities throughout the APAC region continues to be severe and problematic, a growing number of consumers have expressed their concerns about the impact pollution is having; specifically its damaging effect on both skin and hair.

“​With an increasing number of manufacturing plants and factories being located in Asia, in comparison to the West, Asia faces more issues brought about by pollution,”​ stated Kwek.

Brands are now seeking new and appealing ways to ease consumers’ concerns by providing up to date and varied beauty and consumer products that contain anti-pollution claims.

Mintel’s report stated that in China, for example, over half (55%) of consumers would like to learn more about how to protect themselves from pollution, while 61% say they are very concerned about PM2.5.

“In the North Asia markets of China, Japan and South Korea, air pollution is of increasing concern to consumers and receives extensive media coverage,”​ emphasised Kwek.

“In China, for instance, environmental pollution is believed to be one of the leading factors keeping people from a healthy lifestyle, with Mintel research finding that 48% of consumers agree that environment pollution is a barrier to achieving a healthy lifestyle.”​

Due to these concerns, cosmetics consumers in APAC strongly value solutions that help to ease the impacts of pollution.

“This consumer awareness over dust, PM 2.5 and electromagnetic pollution is driving product innovation as a result,”​ highlighted Kwek.

The second part of our interview with Sharon Kwek, Senior Beauty and Personal Care Innovation and Insight Analyst at Mintel, will be published on Wednesday 30th November 2016.