Japanese Beauty Brands are Rushing into Sunscreen Market!
- Chaileedo Press
- May 9, 2023
- 7 min read
The battle of sunscreen.
In May, the sunscreen battle is in full swing. A survey released by Xiaohongshu shows that the peak season for sunscreen products is from March to June each year, with May being the peak month for searches and the fastest-growing month for the sunscreen category.
Recently, CHAILEEDO found that consumers have a strong demand for sunscreen products in various beauty retail stores. Many brands have launched a series of promotional activities since May 1st. Online, the discussion volume on sunscreen has also increased.
It can be seen that May is undoubtedly a time point that brands need to seize. The Japanese skincare brand Bb Laboratories, which is well versed in the creation of popular products, will not miss this opportunity.
Battle: Sunscreen battle begins, opening up the second growth curve
The world's first sunscreen product dates back to 1928, with ingredients including benzyl salicylate and benzyl cinnamate. In 1935, Garnier launched the first suntan oil product. In 2016, Shiseido launched the world's first "water-resistant sunscreen cream".
From 1928 to the present, the time that has gone through 95 years, sunscreen products have been updated. In recent years, people's awareness of sun protection has been continuously improved. The need of sun protection has changed from "optional" to "mandatory". Especially in the past two years, under the influence of the "anti-aging starts with sun protection" concept, sun protection has extended from outdoors to daily commutes. The strengthening of sun protection concepts and the increasing emphasis on skin health have led to an endless stream of sun protection products, driving the industry into the fast lane.
According to data from CHAILEEDO, since 2017, the overall market size of sun protection in China has been increasing year by year, with an annual growth rate of over 5%, and the market size reached nearly 10 billion yuan ($1.4 billion) in 2022.
In the huge market, competition is extremely fierce, and international and Chinese brands are fighting for the sunscreen sector. According to a report released by CBNData, among sunscreen brands, imported brands account for over 80% of consumer spending, with Japanese brands being the most popular. Japanese professional sunscreen brands represented by Anessa and ALLIE are more in line with the needs of Chinese consumers for sun protection and minimal skin burden.
Head brands have captured most of the sunscreen market. But compared to other skincare categories, the sunscreen market offers more opportunities for new businesses. Related data shows that the monthly sales of the TOP10 businesses account for about 30%.
Insight into the above trends, Bb Laboratories, a Japanese brand specializing in skin repair, entered the sunscreen sector in 2022. Right in the 25th anniversary of the brand, it launched its Bb Laboratories PH Protect UV Spray. From April to June, the sales volume of all channels exceeded 1 million units. This year, it will strive to double its growth and share a piece of the unlimited potential of China's sunscreen market.
Public information shows that Bb Laboratories was founded in Tokyo, Japan in 1997 by renowned dermatologist Dr. Takanashi Masanori and is now a subsidiary of the listed Japanese company Zongyiken Holdings.
In fact, sunscreen is not the first category that Bb Laboratories has launched in China. The brand has been deeply cultivating the Chinese market for many years and has a solid foundation in professional endorsements and market accumulation.
It is understood that as early as 2017, Bb Laboratories entered the Chinese market and promoted the Moist Cream Mask for five years, with a total sales volume of 30 million units, ranking first in Tmall's apply mask sales and successfully promoting the development of the apply mask segment.
(Cited: Bb Laboratories Moist Cream Mask)
Among the many apply mask products, Bb Laboratories has captured a certain market share of apply masks with a single explosive product. The professionalism of Bb Laboratories in creating popular products can be seen from the Moist Cream Mask. With the hero single product, Bb Laboratories entered the sunscreen field in 2023, hoping to create a second growth curve and create the next popular product.
Explosive product path: Ace ingredients + medical endorsement
For the vast majority of Chinese consumers, getting to know Bb Laboratories starts with the super-popular Moist Cream Mask. The success of this product in the market is closely related to many factors.
First and foremost is the use of ingredients in the product. The core ingredient of the Moist Cream Mask is one of the few resurrection grasses that have survived since the Ice Age – "Balkan Pinguicula".
Public information shows that in extremely arid environmental conditions, the resurrection grass will appear in a withered "dormant state", but when it encounters moisture, it will quickly recover from months of drought and freely guide moisture into every part, becoming vibrant and unharmed.
It is reported that the Balkan Pinguicula leaf extract contains a unique and important active ingredient, MYCONOS IDE. MYCONOS IDE is a potent antioxidant that can inhibit oxidation in the skin, reduce oxidative stress damage, and protect the skin from free radical-induced skin problems.
The brand concept of enhancing the skin's self-healing ability is also applied to Bb Laboratories PH Protect UV Spray
(Cited: Bb Laboratories PH Protect UV Spray)
This is in line with Bb Laboratories' consistent logic in creating products. As the brand name Bb LABORATORIES suggests, it is a combination of biology and botany technology. For 26 years, Bb Laboratories has been using advanced biological technology and plant essence to provide safe and effective care solutions for Asian skin.
In addition, the choice of product ingredients is closely related to the background of the founder of Bb Laboratories, a dermatologist. In decades of clinical research experience, doctors believe that everyone's skin has inherent self-circulation power. Instead of using a large number of highly irritating chemical ingredients to damage the fragile and delicate skin barrier, it is better to extract the original power of nature, awaken the skin's potential energy, generate a healthy and benign skin self-healing cycle, and lead users to the ideal beautiful skin.
Furthermore, in research and development, Bb Laboratories also has certain core competitiveness. Relying on its parent company, Integrated Medical Research Holdings Corporation, Bb Laboratories uses advanced biological marker development technology and plant bioanalysis systems to insist on providing safe and effective solutions to skin problems and caring for the healthy skin of Asians.
Sun protection is the last step in skincare and the last line of defense for safe skin protection. It is reported that this time Bb Laboratories PH Protect UV Spray adheres to the brand concept of "specializing in healing the skin" and is specially tailored for Asian consumers, offering alcohol-free and safe sun protection. Currently, the product has obtained sun protection special license, with a sun protection index of SPF50+ and PA++++.
(Cited: Bb Laboratories PH Protect UV Spray)
Additionally, in terms of technology, the product uses liquid micro-emulsification technology, with a transparent and moisturizing texture, suitable for use after makeup and easy to adapt to various outdoor scenes with its lightweight and portable packaging.
Full-channel mode: gain reputation online, then turn to offline sales
Since entering the Chinese market in 2017, Bb Laboratories has accumulated a strong communication volume on multiple online social platforms such as Douyin (Chinese version of TikTok), Xiaohongshu, and Weibo with its "Specialized Healing Skincare Brand" positioning. It has been widely recommended by users.
However, online brands can gain short-term popularity, but the audience is relatively fixed, which means that brands need to constantly invest in new resources and repeatedly reach the same wave of people to complete the conversion. In comparison, offline experience is an important factor in determining whether consumers will convert to a brand or product. Especially, beauty products rely on direct experiences such as smell and touch, which cannot be compensated for online.
Based on this, Bb Laboratories gradually expanded offline two years ago, hoping to use the online and offline linkage to leverage the accumulated online brand volume to drive offline traffic and create an all-channel marketing model. "In 2023, Bb Laboratories will focus on the layout of offline channels, join forces with WOW COLOR, and lead the transformation of the sunscreen industry segment," the brand told CHAILEEDO.
WOW COLOR is a super unicorn that has swept the beauty industry in recent years. At the end of 2019, the offline beauty collection store WOW COLOR entered the market, attracting public attention with its stormy approach and being hailed as a "new species" dark horse in the industry. Within three years of its establishment, it has received financing from Innovation Factory, IDG Capital, Hillhouse Capital, and Tencent Angel Round. As of now, WOW COLOR has expanded to over 200 stores with more than 2.5 million fans online.
At the "Focus on Beauty Power·WOW in Full Bloom" 2023 Beauty Business Annual Conference held by WOW COLOR on March 17, they announced a new positioning as a membership-based service-oriented beauty collection store. They also stated that they will deepen the offline scene experience while linking more users from online channels to improve all-channel operations. The combination of online and offline channels to create an all-channel model is in line with Bb Laboratories' strategy.
During a visit to the WOW COLOR store in Guangzhou Grandview Plaza, CHAILEEDO noticed that the store was mainly featuring a futuristic metallic style, organically blending high-tech sophistication and a warm, girly touch. Upon entering, one can see Bb Laboratories sunscreen spray prominently displayed. According to the store guide, this sunscreen is currently the main product of WOW COLOR, and most customers coming to buy products now have a basic need for sun protection. "Compared to traditional sunscreen creams, sunscreen sprays are more convenient to use, suitable for spraying large areas of the body, and can also be used after makeup to enhance sun protection, making it a summer essential."
(Photographed at WOW COLOR store in Grandview Plaza, Guangzhou)
Talking about the advantages of Bb Laboratories PH Protect UV Spray, the store guide confidently stated: "Bb Laboratories PH Protect UV Spray is more delicate with small particles, so it is evenly distributed when applied. In addition, this product can instantly give the skin a matte finish, so using it in the summer is like using sunscreen and setting spray."
Entering the Chinese market for 6 years, with a consistent product development logic and brand concept, as well as the backing of flagship ingredients and medical research experiments, it can be expected that Bb Laboratories will definitely have a place among the many sunscreen products. After accumulating a certain online presence, entering the offline market is also beneficial for achieving stable business in the current environment, while continuously creating better consumer experiences. Bb Laboratories’ determination to build a strong brand in the Chinese market is evident.
It is worth mentioning that at the 27th China Beauty Expo, Bb Laboratories will showcase more new products and welcomes everyone to come and experience them.
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