Beauty & Packaging: Our top stories featuring packaging and design news in the cosmetics industry

1 – WATCH: Plastic packaging and beauty: what’s the next step?​

We shine a spotlight on the steps being made by beauty to reduce plastic packaging​ and plastic waste in this video edition of the Editor’s spotlight.

With Costa Rica recently becoming the first country in the world to announce that it is ditching single use plastics, it is clear that the war on plastics is really heating up.

And we’re seeing this in beauty: the cosmetics and personal care industry actually uses a lower percentage of single use plastics, but even so, more will have to be done to reduce plastics use, as plastic packaging in all forms will increasingly come under the spotlight in years to come.

Discover some areas of ongoing and potential innovation in our video above.

2 – L’Occitane joins forces with Loop to boost sustainable packaging efforts

L’Occitane Group has signed a new multi-year supply agreement with Loop Industry to use its fully sustainable PET plastic in a bid to boost its sustainability credentials​.

The French cosmetics company, which counts the beauty brands L'Occitane en Provence, Erborian and Melvita as part of its portfolio, will incorporate Loop PET plastic into L’Occitane en Provence packaging from 2022 and include the Loop logo on its packaging.

This will enable the brand to have fully sustainable packaging by 2025. Currently, recycled plastic only takes up 30% of the brand’s packaging.

“Our brand is inspired by nature, people and culture and we have been using natural plant-derived ingredients and eco-friendly manufacturing for more than 40 years. We are therefore very conscious of the importance of eco-design and sustainable packaging.”​ said the company in a statement.

3 – Bubble trouble: AmorePacific turns to paper packaging to strengthen sustainability standards

South Korean beauty conglomerate AmorePacific has pledged to use paper packaging​ over bubble wrap, in response to consumer concerns over plastic waste and its environmental damage.

The new eco-friendly packaging materials, geami and papillon, are shock-friendly despite being made of paper.

It took months of research and testing before the company found the right eco-friendly materials for the job.

According to AmorePacific, the paper packaging costs two to three times more than traditional bubble wrap and adds more time to the packaging process.

The firm said such disadvantages did not matter as long as it benefitted the environment.

Replacing bubble wrap is only one of the eco-friendly packaging initiatives AmorePacific has applied.

4— Aptar continues outreach to indie beauty brands with new site

The packaging company launched its new site for start-ups and standalone cosmetics​ and personal care brands at this week’s Luxe Pack event in Los Angeles, California. It’s the next iteration of Aptar’s Indie Boutique offering.

In July of last year, Aptar launched its Indie Boutique and later showcased it for indie brand leaders at the BeautyX Summit in New York City. Cosmetics Design was there and spoke with the company’s marketing strategist Jaimee Given about the new initiative.

“There is a need for more indie-friendly programs,”​ Given told this publication, noting that independent beauty brands expect shorter lead times and smaller minimum order quantities than cosmetics and personal care makers conventionally have worked with. (Watch the full video interview with Given here​ to learn more.)

5 – The Art of prosperity: How to create effective Chinese New Year beauty collections

Special edition beauty collections are an integral part of festive periods, but creating a successful one is not as easy as it looks. We speak to Matthieu Rochette-Schneider of centdegrés to find out what makes a beauty collection worthy​ of ushering in the Lunar New Year.

Celebrated across Asia, the Chinese New Year period is an important sales window. The festival is the perfect opportunity for brands, especially foreign ones, to show Chinese consumers how well they understand their culture, noted Rochette-Schneider.

“Creating occasional collections is a good strategy to attract consumers’ attention and connect in a deeper way with them. Consumers are sensitive to brands' efforts towards exploring and reinterpreting their cultural heritage as long as it’s done in a humble and respectful way.”​