Shiseido sustainability actions: Firm unveils two new beauty initiatives with the launch of SBAS

The company announced the launch of the global initiative on October 27 through a virtual press conference.

As part of this initiative, the company said would implement a range of sustainability-focused activities and products to “create social value unique to the beauty industry”.​

“Social issues are becoming increasingly serious and the anxieties are further aggravated by social divisions caused by COVID-19, which has resulted in a higher awareness of sustainability among consumers,”​ said Shihori Oyama, sustainable solutions group manager, SHISEIDO.

The SBAS initiative is built upon three pillars: mottainai, harmony and empathy. Oyama said the company aims to produce beauty products based on this philosophy.

Refillery concept​

To mark the launch of SBAS, SHISEIDO has announced the launch of the ULTIMUNE Fountain, a refill service for its ULTIMUNE Power Infusing Concentrate.

The ULTIMUNE Fountain will be available from November 19 at SHISEIDO’s Global Flagship Store in Ginza, Tokyo.

Customers can bring their empty ULTIMUNE bottles to the flagship, where they are cleaned in a sanitation-controlled environment before being refilled and returned to them within the same day.

“We will sanitise the container with a focus on safety and quality, which will take about one hour. We will inject it with new life upon returning to the customer,” ​said Chigusa Yamanoi, defend platform group manager, SHISEIDO.

Along with the refill service, the flagship store also offers engraving services for consumers to personalise their ULTIMUNE bottle.

“By reusing bottles, we are not just trying to mitigate the environmental load. At the same time, we want to create excitement,”​ said Yamanoi.

This service will be exclusive to the flagship store, but the company hopes to expand it globally.

“Here in Japan, refilling is a common practice and SHISEIDO was one of the companies that drove this. Today, customers are more engaged and aware of our environment and we would like to expand this activity from here in Japan to across the world,”​ said Yamanoi.

‘A kiss to the sea’​

In addition to the ULTIMUNE Fountain, the brand will also be launching the AquaGel Lip Palette at the Ginza flagship from November 1 onwards.

“In this development, the concept was ‘a kiss to the sea’ and we focused on creating beautiful harmony with nature,”​ said Yumiko Hasama, make-up group manager, SHISEIDO.

The lip palette contains five colours and textures and is housed in a compact made from PHBP, a material developed by the Kaneka Corporation.

“Since ancient times, Japan has incorporated fermentation in our everyday lives. From sake to soy sauce, Japan embraces fermentation in a way that is unrivalled by any other culture. Kaneka’s uniquely developed PHBP focuses on just that, the goodness of Japan's fermentation technology,” ​explained Hasama.

She elaborated that PHBO is made with the help of microorganism fermentation and is a 100% plant-derived material.

As such, when its discarded, the packaging can be broken down by microorganisms. As such, the compact packaging can biodegrade on land and sea as well.

According to Hasama, this is the only material in Japan certified by the EU for its marine biodegradability.

As a lip palette, the firm was able to reduce material use by 80% as compared to making five individual lipsticks.

Hasama concluded: “The ocean is a piece of us and by valuing the ocean, it means we value ourselves and it expresses the fact that we are all one and connected.”​

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