Fungal-centric Simpcare Wins No.1 on Chinese E-commerce Shopping Carnival

Chinese skincare brand Simpcare FOMES OFFICINALIS Pore Refining Toner and Lotion Set surpassed L'Oreal in Tmall 618 promotion and won No. 1 on the 618 Pore Refining Facial Set Hot List. The product is priced at 199 yuan ($29.8) and has monthly sales of 50,000 +. Simpcare focuses on functional skin care. At present, its Taobao flagship store sells the Simpcare Camellia Toner and Lotion Set with the highest sales volume, with monthly sales of 70,000+ and a price of 169 yuan ($25.3).

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Simpcare is dedicated to creating functional skincare products for sensitive skin, choosing the ideal natural formula for each skin type. Developers from Simpcare Lab draw on the power of science to extract effective natural ingredients from nature and apply them to each product formula to create an effective natural prescription for Asian skin. Back at its founding in 2019, Simpcare was clear in its professional orientation of adhering to efficacy. Jeffrey, the founder of Simpcare, said, "We don’t adhere to the 'ingredient-centric' style, but focus on the development of 'delicately formulated' products. Products that stand up to experimentation and have actual efficacy are the core value of skincare R&D."

In recent years, the advancement of research and application of efficacious ingredients, the maturity of the consumer market, and the continuous development of emerging channels have prompted functional skincare products to enter a period of rapid development in recent years. According to Euromonitor data, China's functional skincare market is expected to reach $15.1 billion in 2024, with a compound annual average growth rate of up to 25%.

The launch of the Simpcare FOMES OFFICINALIS Pore Refining Toner and Lotion Set can be seen as its products claim to add Fomes Officinalis(Mushroom) Extract which can improve the effectiveness of blackheads and acne. In fact, the name "medicinal" and "Fomes Officinalis" has caused controversy.

The word "medicinal" has been questioned by industry insiders as implying a medical role and allegedly violating the relevant laws and regulations of the cosmetics industry. In response, Simpcare said that the term in this product refers to the name of a fungus and is not used to describe the product as medicinal.

According to CHAILEEDO observation, Fomes Officinalis is indeed a plant name, and Fomes Officinalis(Mushroom) Extract is also a cosmetic ingredient that can be used according to China's regulations. A cosmetic industry engineer also said that Fomes Officinalis "is a 'mushroom' and is listed in the National Medical Products Administration's newly released "Catalogue of Used Cosmetic Ingredients (2021 Edition)" for FOMES OFFICINALIS extract.

Fomes Officinalis(Mushroom) Extract is a concentrated active extracted from the flesh juice of the mushroom Arizonum, which is used in cosmetic applications to address excessive skin oil secretion, astringent, pore contraction and moisturizing, smoothing, and skin tightening effects.

According to the "cosmetic labeling management measures", the term implying the inclusion of certain types of raw materials as a trademark name, product formulations containing such raw materials, should be described in the sales packaging visual surface for the purpose of its use. Therefore, the use of Fomes Officinalis as a product name by Simpcare is in compliance with the relevant Chinese regulations.

CHAILEEDO also notes that in the context of the epidemic, "fungal" ingredients are being used by more and more skincare brands and health care brands as consumers continue to pursue health. The Fomes Officinalis used by Simpcare is in line with this trend.

Fomes Officinalis was discovered by Simpcare's research and development team in the primeval forests of Eastern Europe. Knowing that it has the function of regulating the secretion of sebaceous glands, the development of the active ingredients and the creation of the formula was on the agenda.

After two years and more than 500 experiments, the researcher found that 2%-5% is the golden effective concentration of Fomes Officinalis. In this concentration ratio, Simpcare also compounded the main ingredients such as slow-release caffeine and vitamin H, which act simultaneously on the front and back ends of the sebum secretion mechanism to reduce oil production in all aspects and converge the pores propped up by oil, and also ensure the mildness of the formula so that users with oily and sensitive skin can use it without worry.

Simpcare also said that the research application of fungal raw materials directly or indirectly applied to skin care has a long history. In addition to the direct application of fungal raw materials, it is believed there would be more indirect applications in the future, such as plant ingredients through fungal-directed fermentation can produce new efficacy ingredients, so that the efficacy of ingredients is more enriched. With the continuous development of science, directed fermentation of new efficacy ingredients for skin care products will have more rich application possibilities and will bring more possibilities to the development of the industry. For example, triterpenoids have high biological activity and are also an important component of traditional Chinese medicine. With the deepening of efficacy research, triterpenoids will have a broader application prospect.