What’s trending: Top stories on APAC beauty market and consumer insights

Watsons transforms stores with interactive retail experiences to target younger shoppers​​

Health and beauty retailer Watsons has invested USD250m in store upgrades in Asia to meet the increasing desire for interactive experiences, especially among younger customers.

In 2023, Watsons invested in opening and upgrading over 2,200 offline plus online (O+O) stores across 15 markets in Asia, Europe, and the Middle East.

Malina Ngai, group CEO of AS Watson Group told CosmeticsDesign-Asia that the company was motivated by changing expectations of shoppers.

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Oral hygiene embraced as essential part of beauty regime in Japan​​

Oral care is evolving beyond health and hygiene maintenance and is gaining attention as an essential aspect of beauty in Japan.

The growth in oral care has been attributed to the rising awareness of the lower jaw area, including the mouth, teeth, and lips after people stopped wearing protective face masks after the pandemic.

Ishizawa Laboratory is a Japanese beauty and personal care firm behind several brands, including a local drugstore favourite Nadeshiko, which is best known for its rice-based skin care products.

Recently, the brand expanded into oral care with baking soda-based teeth wipes, which it claims help to remove stains and yellowing.

Japan consumers seek ‘mid-priced cosmetics’ amid price hikes, weakened yen – new data​​

Rising prices and weak yen have influenced Japanese consumers to seek out products in the mid-price range, according to new data from the country.

Reviews assessed for @cosme’s Best Cosmetics Awards found increasing concern over price hikes in the first six months of the year, with the frequency of the phrase ‘price increase’ 2.1 times higher compared to last year.

At the same time, the appearance of the phrase ‘mid-range cosmetics’ has increased by 3.6 times compared to last year.

Price sensitivity was reflected in the overall product rankings, which saw only two high-end brands Decorté and Kanebo make the cut.

Gen Z mobile usage, demand for transparency a ‘match made in heaven’ - Meiyume​​

Smart packaging can help beauty brands align with a more environmental and socially conscious Generation Z consumer to create more than just thumb-stoppingly attractive products.

Speaking on the Beauty 4.0 Podcast, Stephane Bulle of Meiyume highlighted that the digital native Gen Z consumer will expect more in terms of information and transparency on the product itself.

To meet the demands of Gen Z, the company believes there’s a huge opportunity for smart packaging solutions, which can be found often in the realm of wines and spirits.

Drop Zone: Amorepacific, Caudalie, Glow Recipe launches help ease complex beauty routines​​

In this edition of Drop Zone, CosmeticsDesign-Asia looks at the new products launched recently that are meeting demands for simplified beauty routines, featuring Amorepacific, Caudalie, and Glow Recipe.

Life is full of complexities, but beauty routines shouldn't be one of them.

With today’s fast-paced lifestyle, beauty consumers increasingly value simplicity without compromising on efficacy.

This minimalist approach has driven the trend for 'skip' care over the past couple of years, which aims to streamline beauty routines without sacrificing results.