More than skin deep: Porcelain takes aim at unrealistic beauty ideals with Japanese pottery inspiration

23-Mar-2021 - Last updated on 23-Mar-2021 at 01:46 GMT

Porcelain says it wants to play its role in beating toxic beauty standards and unrealistic ideals. [Porcelain]

Singapore brand Porcelain says it wants to play its role in beating toxic beauty standards and unrealistic ideals, with a revamped skin care range inspired by traditional Japanese pottery skills.

Founded in 2009, Porcelain is a facial spa founded by mother-daughter duo Jenny Teng and Pauline Ng. Today, the company owns three outlets in prime locations and has developed a skin care range of products to complement its treatments.

Three years ago, the company decided to redevelop its skin care line. Ng told CosmeticsDesign-Asia that the development of the line was sparked by a reflection of its role in the beauty industry.

“I once had a vibrant discussion on a BBC podcast where they asked if we were guilty of propagating unrealistic beauty ideals to make profits. Knowing our reason for existence, I was certain we were not. Beauty is beyond skin-deep, and I personally don’t stand for curated superficiality.”

The managing director said the firm aimed to create a skin care line that could “better encapsulate our belief that beauty was more than skin deep”.

The rebranding was inspired by kintsugi, the traditional Japanese art of repairing broken pottery by mending the areas of breakage with lacquer dusted or mixed with powdered gold. This method exemplifies the teaching that broken objects are not something to hide but to display with pride.

“Pursuing perfection isn’t about conforming to unrealistic beauty standards. Instead, it’s about embracing our individuality. Just like the cracks in the porcelain bowls that are repaired, each skin imperfection is unique. At Porcelain, we are here to correct it, not conceal it,” said Ng

The new Porcelain skin care line-up consists of four ranges to cover essential skin care to more targeted solutions for concerns such as sensitivity or acne.

The formulations contain high-performance ingredients such as bioactives such as enzymes, probiotics and peptides for optimum skin health.

“Healthy skin is something everyone deserves and achieving that is neither unrealistic nor superficial. It is the bedrock of a person’s confidence, and how they face the world. Wanting to communicate our beliefs better and create an effortless skincare journey for our clients, we created the four ranges, each responding to a particular skin type and concern,” said Ng.

Keeping up with the times

The products were also developed with today’s skin care needs in mind, such as the increased focus on tailored skin care regimes.

The products were designed to be able to work on even the most sensitive skins, allowing consumers to mix and match products to suit their individual needs and simplifying the typically complex process of customisation.

With the new products, its clients would be able to enjoy the Porcelain Spa experience in the comfort of their own homes, which is becoming increasing important as people become more suspicious of personal contact.

“[COVID-19] has had an impact on the spa industry. With facial treatments inherently being an intimate interaction between the client and therapist, we have seen a bit more apprehension from clients when choosing to come down to our spas,” said Ng.

The products are available via its outlets, official website as well as retailers Amazon, Lazada, KrisShop and iShopChangi.

Moving forward, Ng said the firm would be expanding the lineup, noting that consumers could expect new launches as early as this year.

“Having spent the past few years with a greater focus on our developing our treatment offerings, we seek to further enhance our Porcelain Skincare offering for 2021. We expect it to be an exciting year with all the launches that we have planned, and we can’t wait to share them with everyone.”