Marc Puig comments on the Puig business in China saying that Puig China is not yet in the group's top three, but expects this result to come soon. Yesterday, Spanish fragrance and fashion group Puig released its 2022 financial results. The results show that Puig's revenue for 2022 is 3.62 billion euros ($3.9 billion), a 40% jump compared to 2021. Its net income was 400 million euros ($433 million), up 71% year-on-year. Marc Puig, chairman and chief executive officer of Puig, noted that the company's showing "is a result of many of the choices that we have taken over the past 15 years." Puig presented a "three-year plan" in March 2021, aiming for sales of 3 billion euros by 2023 and 4.5 billion euros by 2025. This means that Puig wants to double its sales in three years and triple them in five years, on the base of its 2020 sales. Thanks to the growth of the last two years, Puig has achieved its ambition of doubling its revenues by 2020 one year ahead of schedule. On this trend, the Group is well-positioned to achieve revenues of 4.5 billion euros by 2025. In 2022, the Puig Group also acquired three iconic companies, which contributed to the company's growth. In Puig's 2022 financial results, the company acquired a majority stake in the Swedish luxury brand Byredo, the wellness brands Kama Ayurveda in India and Loto del Sur in Colombia. These new brands have significantly increased the company's sales. Puig said that the addition of these three companies had a limited impact on overall sales in 2022. The Puig Group has three categories: fragrance and fashion, makeup and skincare. In terms of each category, its fragrance and fashion business generated sales of 2.67 billion euros ($2.9 billion) in 2022, up 40% and above the market average, with the division's sales growth being driven by organic growth and the new brand Byredo. In the financial report, Puig also mentioned it achieved a 10% global market share in the selective distribution fragrance market in 2022, marking a milestone in its history. It is driven by the inclusion of two of its own brands, Paco Rabanne and Carolina Herrera,, placed among the world’s top 10. The makeup business is Puig's fastest-growing product category in 2022, with the division growing by 52% to 626 million euros ($678 million), driven by the Charlotte Tilbury and Carolina Herrera. Charlotte Tilbury is the number one makeup brand in the UK, with products such as the Pillow Talk make-up range is highly sought after. By region, Puig's US business is its largest sales market and grew fastest in the Americas in 2022, with sales up 56% to 1.31 billion euros ($1.4 billion), accounting for 36% of the total sales of the Group. Puig's sales in Asia grew by 41% to 349 million euros ($378 million) as the group strengthened its presence. China remained in the group's top 10 markets and achieved growth of 36%, despite the constraints of pandemic control in the country, among other reasons. Commenting on the Chinese market, Marc Puig said that Puig China was not yet in the group's top three markets but expected this result to come soon. Although the outlook for 2023 remains uncertain, Puig forecasts that it will continue to lead the market in terms of growth in the next financial year. It is evident in the positive performance of the first two months of 2023.

WWD news, Parfums Christian Dior has appointed Philippe Farnier as executive vice president international, effective immediately. Farnier is said to succeed Bruno Angibeau, who has been Parfums Christian Dior's international managing director since 2011. A graduate of EDC Paris and Columbia University, Farnier started his career at Kraft Foods before moving to Heineken. In 2003, he stepped into the perfume industry as a sales manager for Yves Saint Laurent Beauty. Three years later, he became Managing Director of the company in France. Farnier joined the LVMH Group in 2008 as Managing Director of Parfums Christian Dior France and was promoted to the position of Managing Director of Travel Retail EMEA in 2013. Then in 2015, he transferred to Rémy Cointreau. In June 2022, Farnier returned to Parfums Christian Dior as CEO of Travel Retail for the LVMH group's Beauty division. Farnier will also reportedly continue his role as CEO of Travel Retail LVMH Beauty, working closely with Stéphane Rinderknech, recently appointed Chairman and CEO of LVMH's Beauty division. Commenting on Philippe Farnier, LVMH said that "He created an integrated organization able to leverage the group's strength, while elevating the expression of each brand and strictly controlling distribution. In his new role, Philippe will lead all commercial activities for Parfums Christian Dior, all commercial regions and channels will report to him. His leadership and strategic vision will be instrumental to the development of Parfums Christian Dior at the high end of the market." According to WWD, the leader of Parfums Christian Dior Véronique Courtois lauded Farnier for his 30 years of experience, strategic negotiation skills and strong leadership. It is worth noting that only earlier this month, LVMH restructured its beauty division with the appointment of Stéphane Rinderknech, former CEO of L'Oréal China, at the helm of LVMH Beauty division and Véronique Courtois as the leader of Parfums Christian Dior, Gabrielle Saint-Genis Rodriguez takes the reins of Guerlain. In January, LVMH announced its figures for FY 2022. Its revenues achieved 7.722 billion euros ($8.4 billion) for its Perfumes&Cosmetics division, up 17% year-on-year. A special nod was given to Dior perfumes for their strong growth, as well as Dior Sauvage, Miss Dior and J'adore.

Wang Xiaolei at Shiseido said, "Different consumers care about different perspectives of cosmetics. We need to reach different people in different ways." The Chinese beauty market is changing rapidly while beauty and technology are becoming more and more closely integrated. Various disciplines such as synthetic biology, life sciences and epigenetics are profoundly influencing and changing the course of the industry. As beauty enters a new research-driven phase, cosmetic companies not only increased investment in front-end research but also have to face their consumers to promote science communication of their products. In that case, more and more scientists, engineers and researchers are stepping in front of the camera and taking on the role of KOLs. Wang Xiaolei, currently head of science communication at Shiseido China, has had a similar experience. In 2016, after finishing her work at the Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Wang Xiaolei officially joined Shiseido the following year as a researcher at Shiseido (China) Research and Development Centre Co. For herself, her time in the lab was "self-imposed". Wang Xiaolei explained to CHAILEEDO, "In the lab, I only care about how can I develop the products and create better formula. And I focus on what ingredient can be better improve the anti-aging efficacy." She said. "At that time, there was actually very little thinking about how to communicate to the public and how to promote it." After joining the science communication community, it means that her thinking and working patterns need a shift for understanding more about consumers. "I have followed some influencers who consistently communicate useful cosmetic knowledge. I can learn from their content and ways and means of communication." She said, "They practically know what consumers' concerns are. They correct some consumers' misconceptions about skincare in a timely manner, which are worth learning from." In her view, the most important point of science communication in beauty technology is to deliver the correct and scientific knowledge of skincare. In other words, communication should precisely bring better products and technology to consumers. "The content we transfer must be true and well-reasoned." Based on this, it is communicated to different audiences through different forms of presentation. In terms of specific ways and means, Shiseido China, for example, launched a science column "Shi-Lab" last year, which breaks down obscure skin knowledge such as Shiseido's research on dermal stem cells and light-energy dual-action skin care technology and Shiseido's black technology through the form of cartoons so that consumers can intuitively understand the causes of skin problems and the efficacy principles of skincare products. Wang Xiaolei said, "We will update the Shi-Lab regularly and will even increase the frequency of updates this year." Meanwhile, for professional consumers, Shiseido has also opened columns on platforms such as Zhihu (Chinese version of Quora) to output more hardcore content in the form of essays. "Different consumers care about different perspectives of cosmetics. We need to reach different people by different ways." She concluded. For Shiseido, the group has accumulated countless research achievements over the past century such as the eco-friendly packaging technology "Beauty in a Bottle Technology" and "Digital Skin" technology, which were presented at the China International Import Expo last year. Shiseido still continues to innovate its technology. Wang Xiaolei’s work is to get consumers to understand these technologies and even join the brands in practising green living. It is worth mentioning that in early February, Shiseido proposed in its new corporate strategy to spend 3% of sales on research and development. Shiseido has also previously stated that it would make China the second R&D centre in the world. In the future, as more and more cutting-edge technologies and products emerge, science communication will have to play an even more important role.

Giulio Bergamaschi was appointed as general manager of L'Oréal Paris DMI in China from 2013 to 2018. According to WWD, the Acqua di Parma at LVMH group recently announced that it has appointed Giulio Bergamaschi as its new Chief Executive Officer. Giulio Bergamaschi will take over from Laura Burdese, who led the brand from October 2016 until the end of 2021. He joined Bulgari earlier this year as Vice President of Global Marketing and Communications. Following his appointment, he will be based in Milan and will report directly to Stephanie Medioni, CEO of LVMH's beauty division. Bergamaschi, who graduated from Bocconi University in Milan in 2004 and joined L'Oréal in the same year, was promoted to General Manager of L'Oréal Paris DMI China in 2013 and became President of Biotherm Global Brands in November 2018, according to WWD. In April 2022, Bergamaschi joined the LVMH group as Strategic Mission Director for the clothing brand Loro Piana. In the past year, he has made a significant contribution to the design of the brand's strategy and the enhancement of product value through enhanced customer experience and transparency initiatives. According to Fashion Network, LVMH noted in an internal note: "Where he has gained a solid expertise in product development and communication, holding global management positions, but also working in strategic markets such as China." CHAILEEDO found that Acqua di Parma opened an official flagship shop on the Chinese e-commerce platform Taobao with 59 SKUs, Its price range is from 19.9 yuan ($2.9) to 7,760 yuan ($1126.4). Its highest sales product is Acqua di Parma Blu Mediterranean, priced at 605 yuan ($87.8) /30ml, with a total sales volume of 30,000+ units. Stéphanie Medioni, Executive President of LVMH Beauty, said, "Bergamaschi is a seasoned beauty professional who will further enhance the uniqueness and globalization of the brand."

Lumy Bio is focusing on the production of active and sustainable ingredients. In the future, it intends to launch a variety of products to promote the inorganization of ingredients and reduce carbon footprint. Light-driven synthetic biology company Shanghai Lumy Bio Technology Co. Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Lumy Bio") announced the completion of a Pre-A round of financing of nearly 100 million yuan ($14.5 million), with Vitalbridgh as the exclusive investor and Fanzhuo Capital as the financial advisor for this round of financing. The new round of financing is mainly used for the deploying pipeline, constructing the carbon-negative process base and expanding the talent team. According to public information, Lumy Bio, founded in 2021, focuses on the development of innovative synthetic organisms for light-driven CO2 recovery. Through rational design and multi-dimensional editing of the photosynthetic microorganism cyanobacteria, Lumy Bio has developed nearly 100 "negative carbon" cell factories that use light energy directly to efficiently convert CO2 into target products. This new generation of synthetic biotechnology attempts to "make compounds from air and reshape the world with recycled carbon". Furthermore, the core R&D team of Lumy Bio has accumulated more than ten years of experience in photosynthetic biomodification, artificial photosynthetic colony development and metabolic modeling. It possesses a number of core technologies in the field of light-driven synthetic biology. It has built a library of photosynthetic cell factories to enable the targeted manufacture of pharmaceutical ingredients, chemical ingredients and degradable materials using CO2. At this stage, Lumy Bio focuses on functional active ingredients, healthcare nutrition and sustainable agriculture. It has already realized the ecological closed loop of the light-driven synthetic biology platform from R&D to application and established several business pipelines such as ergothioneine, sakuranetin and bisdemethoxy curcumin. It is reported that Lumy Bio has signed commercial cooperation agreements with a number of industry heads and hopes to launch a variety of products in the coming years in collaboration with relevant industry leaders to promote inorganic feedstock and reduce carbon footprint. It is worth mentioning that synthetic biology uses third-generation feedstock (e.g. carbon dioxide, methanol) for "carbon-negative production" of tri-generation biorefineries to obtain fine chemicals in a greener way and reduce carbon emissions. This technology is favoured by many leading international brands such as Unilever, L'Oreal and Lululemon.

On March 20, L'Oréal's corporate venture capital fund BOLD announced an investment in a sustainable ingredients research initiative to accelerate the search for sustainable ingredients. L'Oréal said the initiative is led by a biotech start-up, Genomatica Inc., also known as Geno. It is based in San Diego, a hotbed of biotechnology innovation. In June 2022, Unilever invested $120 million in this initiative and Kao joined it in October 2022. L'Oréal and Geno will launch a technology platform to harness the power of biotechnology. The group will mix microbial and industrial processes to ferment plant sugars into materials and ingredients, developing plant-based ingredients as alternatives to traditional ingredients. The ingredients will apply to L'Oréal’s products. Furthermore, this partnership comes on the heels of several strategic partnerships. L'Oréal has forged to strengthen its pioneering green science beauty ecosystem, including precision health heavyweight VERILY, the National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS) in Japan, the Singapore Centre for Environmental Life Sciences Engineering (SCELSE) and the Laboratoire de Chimie des Polymères Organiques (LCPO). On November 29, L'Oréal officially announced a strategic partnership with French biotech company Microphyt, which is part of L'Oréal's research and innovation strategy for green science and its investment in innovative biotech start-ups in France and around the world. It was in line with L'Oréal's 2030 sustainability plan (L'Oréal is committed to using 95% of its ingredients from bio sources). "At L'Oréal, we believe that science has the power to create a better world, and we are committed to using our expertise to drive positive change in the That's why we have made Green Sciences the cornerstone of our research," said Barbara Lavernos, Deputy Chief Executive Officer in charge of Research, Innovation and Technology. Officer in charge of Research, Innovation and Technology, at L'Oréal. "This move not only aligns with our objective of delivering responsible and innovative beauty solutions to consumers but also strengthens our innovation ecosystem in North America," said Sanford Browne, President of Research and Innovation for North America, at L'Oréal. “It's a clear signal of our willingness to collaborate with partners who share our commitment to sustainability and reducing our environmental impact to create beauty that moves the world." Commenting on the investment of L'Oréal, Geno CEO Christophe Schilling said, "L'Oréal's commitment further accelerates Geno's goal to reduce global carbon emissions by over 100 million tons in the upcoming years by targeting massive scale material markets. " Schilling also said that Geno will help L'Oréal achieve its 2030 sustainability plan, which is in line with the aforementioned L'Oréal's partnership with Microphyt. As Lavernos says, "L'Oréal has created a unique ecosystem and has invested massively in biotech around the world."

Four companies were fined 3.14 million yuan ($145.2 thousand) for counterfeiting the packaging of TIGI Bed Head from Unilever. On March 18, four cosmetic companies in Chengdu issued a statement of apology to Unilever Services (Hefei) Limited (hereinafter referred to as "Unilever") for unfair competition. According to the statement, since 2018, Chengdu Yisiyun Trading Company Limited (Chengdu Yisi Yun Company), Chengdu Weimei Cosmetics Company Limited (Chengdu Weimei Company) and Chengdu Yanli Cosmetics Company Limited (Chengdu Yanli Company) have divided the work and jointly commissioned Guangzhou Gaojue Cosmetics Company Limited (Guangzhou Gaojue Company) to produce (Guangzhou Gaojue) for the production of Yisiyun Elastin without the permission of Unilever. The packaging and decoration of the Yisiyun Elastin was basically the same as the packaging and decoration of TIGI Bed Head sold by Unilever. Yisiyun Elastin has the similar purple spherical bottle and green pump head. The above-mentioned companies jointly sold the "Yisiyun Elastin" through Yisiyun Flagship Store, Yisiyunhuayan Store on Tmall. The picture on the left is TIGI Bed Head and the picture on the right is Yisiyun Elastin. The Sichuan High People's Court [(2022) Chuan Zhi Min Final 1489] found that the above-mentioned companies used the same packaging and decoration as Unilever's purple spherical bottle and green pump head combination without permission, leading people to believe that Yisiyun Elastin was a product of Unilever or had a specific connection with Unilever. This constituted unfair competition. The aforementioned acts seriously infringed on the legitimate rights and interests of Unilever and the reputation of TIGI Bed Head and caused adverse impact on Unilever. According to Qichacha.com, the four companies mentioned above have been listed as executors with Unilever as the applicant for execution and the amount of execution is 3.14 million yuan ($145.2 thousand). As a corollary, the amount of compensation awarded to Unilever in the case was 3.14 million yuan ($145.2 thousand). The statement said that the company will immediately cease and desist from committing any acts that infringe upon the legitimate rights and interests of Unilever and the reputation of TIGI Bed Head. It should express its sincere apology for the economic loss and damage to Unilever's reputation. CHAILEEDO noted that as of March 20, the product "Yisiyun Elastin" was removed from the the store Yisiyun Flagship Store, Yisiyunhuayan Store on Tmall. At the same time, the apology statement was also posted on the home page of Yisiyun Flagship Store on Tmall.

In recent years, the luxury group beauty business is in full swing and It is undoubtedly a strong opponent that other high-end beauty brands cannot ignore. Recently, according to JOURNAL DU LUXE, the French luxury brand Hermès will launch its first eye makeup series this autumn. This will be a further expansion of Hermès' business in the cosmetic sector since March 2020 when it first launched beauty products. In fact, it has been common for luxury brands to enter into beauty. A number of luxury brands, including Hermès, Gucci and Burberry have deployed beauty lines in the past few years. So, what does it mean for brands which only focused on cosmetics? Did the beauty lines that luxury brands have bet on in the last 3-5 years go well? Hermès eyes on $10-billion eye makeup sector As a top luxury brand, Hermès' ambition to enter the beauty industry has been well-documented for a long time. In March 2020, Hermès launched its first lipstick collection, Rouge Hermès. It is understood that its formulas were developed by Jérôme Touron, who has designed beauty products for Chanel and Dior. Its product quality is personally controlled by Hermès CEO Axel Duama. This shows the importance of Hermès attached to the beauty sector. In an interview with the press, Pierre-Alexis Dumas, Artistic Director of Hermès, also said that Hermès had been inspecting its beauty business for at least 15 years. The launch of its first lipstick has reached the brand's expectations. Hermès' financial results showed that the sales of its Perfumes and Beauty increased by 21% year-on-year in the first quarter of 2021. Hermès pointed out that the lipstick range made a significant contribution. For the full year 2021, sales in the same sector rose by 46.4% year-on-year. Following the positive feedback from the first make-up collection, Hermès continued to refine its product line with the launch of Rose Hermès collection and Plein Air, a facial foundation collection. Recently, some media reported that Hermès would soon unveil its eye make-up in the autumn. According to JOURNAL DU LUXE, the collection will include eye shadows, eyeliners, eyebrow pencils, brow pencils and more. This will be the final piece of the puzzle for its full line of color cosmetics. Then why does Hermès launch its eye makeup products? Firstly, from a mass perspective, global market research firm MRFR estimates that the global eye makeup market will reach $19.6 billion by 2025. MRFR also revealed that the market is expected to grow by a significant 6.6% from 2019 to 2025. Meanwhile, according to the 2022 Chinese Consumers' Commonly Used Makeup Category Survey released by iiMedia Consulting, a whopping 56.5% of consumers commonly use eye products. These figures indicate the huge potential of the eye beauty market. Then, Gucci, Dior, YSL and other luxury brands, which are Hermès' peers, have deployed their eye makeup products. They have established a complete makeup line containing lips, face and eyes and have achieved excellent market results. So Hermès won’t miss it. Giant cosmetic group helps luxury fashion brand expand beauty sector As the market such as leather goods, bags and fashion become increasingly saturated, several luxury brands have entered the beauty industry to seek new opportunities for performance growth in recent years. According to incomplete statistics from CHAILEEDO, so far in 2019, there have been brands that ventured into beauty and increased their presence in the beauty sector including Prada, Hermès, Valentino, Gucci, Burberry, Belgian high fashion brand Dries Van Noten, French luxury brand Balmain and others. Looking at the business models of these new luxury brands in the beauty business, CHAILEEDO found that there are two models: self-management and authorization to head beauty groups to operate on their behalf. But Hermès holds the autonomy of the beauty business in its own hands, i.e. raw materials, product design, etc. all come from the Hermès company. Same as Chanel. Unlike Hermès and Chanel, more luxury brands entrust their beauty business to cosmetics groups in order to take full advantage of their strengths in research and development, production and sales to extend the beauty market. For example, L'Oréal Group has the beauty business licenses of several luxury brands such as YSL, Armani and Valentino. Estée Lauder has been cooperating with Tom Ford for more than ten years and Estée Lauder Group obtained the beauty product development license of Balmain last year. Coty is responsible for the beauty business of luxury brands such as Gucci and Burberry. The luxury brands mentioned above now also have a relatively increasing share in the beauty market thanks to its beauty sector. They are important "cash cows" for giant cosmetic groups. For example, Armani and YSL beauty, managed by L'Oréal, reached the 1-billion-yuan mark in L'Oréal China as early as 2018. Tom Ford Beauty, owned by Estée Lauder, is set to break $1 billion in sales in the next few years, which is why Estée Lauder eventually acquired Tom Ford. Due to the huge potential of the global beauty market and the huge success of luxury brands in the beauty sector, there has been a lot of momentum in recent years for luxury groups to take back their agency rights and run the beauty business themselves. Typically, Kering Group, Gucci’s parent company, officially announced the creation of its beauty division on February 3 this year. It appointed Raffaella Cornaggia, who has worked for several companies including L'Oréal and HR, as CEO of Kering Beauty. With the creation of the beauty division of the Kering Group, many industry insiders believe that it is only a matter of time before it gradually withdraws its authorization for the beauty business from various cosmetic groups. Luxury brands launching cosmetics shows “a market share war” As mentioned before, Chanel, YSL, Tom Ford, Hermès, Gucci and other brands launched the beauty line and their performance is very good. Relying on the deep cultural heritage and brand reputation carried by the brand, luxury brands have quickly completed their accumulation in the beauty market in a few years. In particular, the current consumer demand for high-end products has led to the rapid development of luxury brands' beauty lines. 2020 saw the launch of Hermès' first make-up. Despite a significant year-on-year decline in sales in the fragrance division due to the pandemic, Hermès achieved a 37.8% increase compared to 2019. (The Hermès fragrance division is renamed Perfumes and Beauty in 2021) According to Hermès' 2022 financial report, Perfumes and Beauty reported sales of €448 million, up 16.4% year-on-year. In addition to being driven by new fragrance products, the new facial primer collection Plein Air also contributed to the division's growth. It is understood that Gucci also has great growth. Its first-ever 58-shade lipstick collection sold over a million units in its first month of launch in 2019. Luxury Institute CEO Milton Pedraza said in an interview that Gucci’s re-entry into the makeup space may have a larger impact on prestige makeup. “So it is a market share war.” In Coty’s FY2021 report, it especially praised Gucci, noting that it was already among the top 25 cosmetic brands in China. It is also shown that Gucci fragrances are in the top three in most key markets and Gucci makeup retail sales in the US market were up by 40%. In 3-5 years, the beauty line from luxury brands has become known to consumers around the world, which showed the conspicuous value of the luxury brand's aura. They are undoubtedly strong rivals to other high-end beauty brands. And as Hermès continues to invest in the beauty sector, the war for high-end beauty will become intense.

Henkel said building J-beauty Innovation Hub is committed to focusing on the Japanese and Asian markets and developing personalised hairdressing and colouring products. On March 16, the Henkel Group announced the opening of the J-beauty Innovation Hub in Tokyo, Japan. Henkel acquired Shiseido's professional hairdressing business in Asia Pacific in February last year. The establishment of J-beauty also marks a new milestone in the integration of Shiseido's hairdressing business into the Henkel Group. According to reports, the J-beauty Innovation Hub covers an area of 1,400 square metres with a total investment of more than 400 million yen ($3 million). Henkel will use the experience of Schwarzkopf and Shiseido to work on the professional hairdressing business. It will provide solutions on hair colour, hair and scalp care, hair loss prevention, styling and perms. The centre, staffed by 40 R&D experts, will significantly enhance Henkel's competence in new product development and ingredient formulation. It is also equipped with an R&D laboratory and a product evaluation studio, as well as a colour observation centre and a reaction observation centre. Commenting on the establishment of the Innovation Hub, Henkel CEO Carsten Knobel said: "Asia is a very dynamic region with many new trends and innovative products being born in this market. Under this circumstance, the new Innovation Hub will help to accelerate effective innovation to strengthen the Henkel Group's hairdressing business in the important region of Japan." Wolfgang Knig, Executive Vice President of Henkel Consumer Brands, also said that Japan is the world’s second-largest hairdressing market. The reason why J-beauty Innovation Hub chose the market is that it not only meets the needs of hairdressers and consumers, but also gives the Group a global ecosystem across North America, Europe and Asia for its professional hairdressing business. According to the financial report, Henkel Group sales in 2022 totaled 22.4 billion euros ($23.8 billion), up 11.6% year on year. Its Beauty Care business posted full-year sales of 3.775 million euro ($4 million), up 2.6% year on year. At the beginning of 2022, Henkel carried out a corporate divisional reorganization, combining the two consumer businesses Laundry & Home Care and Beauty Care into an integrated business unit called Henkel Consumer Brands. The business unit includes iconic brands such as Persil and Schwarzkopf as well as the successful hair salon business. It intended to create a multi-category platform for sales growth in 2022.

International retailer A. S. Watson recorded its worst performance in nearly five years last year in China with revenue of HK$17.58 billion ($2.23 billion), down 23% year-on-year. On March 16, A. S. Watsons' parent company, CK Hutchison Holdings Limited, released its 2022 financial results. The data showed that Watsons' total global revenue last year was HK$169.6 billion ($21.61 billion), with China's market revenue at HK$17.58 billion ($2.23 billion), recording its worst performance in nearly five years. According to public information, CK Hutchison Holdings Limited operates a variety of businesses including ports and related services, infrastructure, retail, telecommunications and others. Within its business system, the retail division, where the A.S. Watson Group is located, plays a significant role. A.S. Watson accounts for 37% of the company's total revenue in 2022. A.S. Watson is also the world's largest international retailer of health and beauty products. It has a significant presence in the global beauty retail sector. By the end of 2022, Watsons managed 12 retail brands. It enjoys 16,142 shops in 28 markets worldwide in 2022 with 256 fewer shops than in the previous year. It has 141 million members, a decrease of 1 million from 2021. In its earnings report, CK Hutchison Holdings Limited said the decrease in shop count was mainly due to Watsons' consolidation of loss-making shops, especially those in Mainland China affected by the pandemic. The figures show that in 2022, A.S. Watson's group revenue will be HK$169.6 billion ($21.61 billion), down 2% year-on-year, while EBITDA (earnings before tax, interest, depreciation and amortization) was HK$14.31 billion ($1.8 billion), down 11% year-on-year to the level in 2020. Overall, in 2022, Watsons' European business performed well, except in China, which was severely affected by the pandemic. Its business in Asia also recovered further in the second half of 2022. Its increased shop traffic also drove a rebound in sales. In 2022, Watsons Health & Beauty Europe revenue and EBITDA (earnings before tax, interest, depreciation and amortisation) reached 10.3% year-on-year shop sales growth, despite a small decline of 1% and 5%. In Asia, Watson's Health & Beauty business continued to improve, adding 143 shops in 2022, with revenue of HK$30.72 billion ($3.9 billion), up 12%, and EBITDA (earnings before tax, interest, depreciation and amortization) of HK$3.04 billion ($387.3 million), up 21%, as well as year-on-year shop sales growth of 21.3%. Watsons, a beauty retail giant, was also hard hit by the recurring epidemic in the country in 2022, which had many negative effects on the economy and weakened cosmetics consumption, as well as brick-and-mortar retail. According to the financial report, Watsons' business in China was severely affected by the ongoing restrictions against the epidemic in 2022, with 590 shops suspended in the first half of 2022 and more than 1,000 shops closed by late November, before fully reopening for business in January 2023. The forced closure of a large number of shops has also had a serious impact on Watsons China's performance. Last year, both Watsons China revenue and EBITDA (earnings before tax, interest, depreciation and amortization) fell the most in almost five years, declining more than in 2020 (-19%). In terms of revenue size, 2019 was the peak of the last 5 years reaching HK$24.59 billion ($3.13 billion) In 2022, A.S. Watson China's revenue was HK$17.58 billion ($2.23 billion), down 23%, and EBITDA (earnings before tax, interest, depreciation and amortization) was HK$1.09 billion ($138.9 million), down 59%. The number of shops shrank by 343 from 4,179 in 2021 to 3,836, down 8%. Its shop sales declined by 18.3% year on year. However, Watson still has outstanding performance in 2022. In this earnings report, CK Hutchison Holdings Limited mentioned that although there was a significant drop in year-on-year shop sales, Watsons also made up for the drop in shop footfall to some extent through online sales, with online sales participation rising from 27% in 2021 to 40% in 2022.

The launch of the new foundation and primer is its first Clean Beauty line in color cosmetics category after the transformation of Mamonde. Recently, Mamonde launched its first Clean Beauty line in color cosmetics category and debuted it at Watsons. According to the brand, the three products listed cover foundation, concealer and setting powder, claiming to be formulated with EWG All Green Grade, which is gentle and nourishing to the skin. It is officially priced between 159 yuan ($23) to 199 yuan ($29). The new collection is also currently available in the brand's flagship shop on Tmall. But its sales have been mediocre. CHAILEEDO understands that Mamonde transformed into Clean Beauty in 2022 and released its first Clean Beauty series in July of the same year. This new product is Mamonde's first Clean Beauty in color cosmetics category after the transition. Mamonde has launched the Camellia Ampoule Foundation in August 2020. After 3 years, it then launched another Foundation. Mamonde's parent company, Amore Pacific, is also bullish on Clean Beauty. In addition to Mamonde's transformation into Clean Beauty, Amore Pacific contributed 168 billion won ($128.1 million) to acquire Tata Harper, an American Clean Beauty brand in September last year. The transformation of Mamonde is related to the brand "in old school" and the competition in the Chinese market. Clean Beauty, the rage of the past two years, is still controversial due to the lack of clear definitions and regulatory standards. And the segment's share has been growing as consumers become more aware of cosmetic ingredients and more health-conscious. In an exclusive interview with CHAILEEDO, Yu Jian, General Manager of External Affairs of Amore Pacific China, said, "Clean Beauty is in line with the current trend of consumers tending to be younger. In recent years, environmental protection has also been a hot topic. Consumers will prefer clean, natural, healthy and eco-friendly products, which is also in line with the sustainable development strategy that our company has been adhering to. We have repeatedly mentioned the Group's five commitments, including our commitment to carbon emissions, carbon neutrality, plastic reduction and the protection of biodiversity. We will do a lot to meet consumer demand. So I think consumers will be happy to embrace the concept of Clean Beauty in the future." According to the CHAILEEDO report, the global Clean Beauty market size was approximately 41.47 billion yuan ($6 billion) in 2021, up 10.48% year-on-year. It may exceed 100-billion-yuan mark in the next decade. With the head companies competing for the deployment, the Clean Beauty market may rapidly usher in a major explosion in the near future.

Intercos specifically mentioned that the size of its direct sales in China is still relatively small. So increasing its market share in China will also be one of its key plans for 2023. Recently, the leading global supplier and strategic innovation partner to the color cosmetics and skincare industry, Intercos, released its financial results for the year 2022. According to the financial report, the company's net sales were €835.6 million ($886.7 million), up 24% year-on-year. Its net income was €45 million ($47.8 million), a soar of 69.5% year-on-year. "Our Group’s 2022 results exceeded our expectations, with the key operating and financial indicators at record levels." Renato Semerari, CEO of Intercos, said in the financial report. Such a bright performance by Intercos also reflects the gradual recovery of the overall dynamism of the global colour cosmetics market. In Intercos's financial results for the past five years, CHAILEEDO found that its performance was not good overall due to the impact of the global pandemic on the colour cosmetics market in the past few years. Its net income was represneted in a downward trend from 2019 to 2021, and even down by almost 30% in 2021. However, after the IPO in 2021, Intercos starts to achieve significant growth in net income. By 2022, Intercos' results have started to return to growth and are quite impressive. According to the financial report, net sales for 2022 were €835.6 million ($886.7 million), an increase of 24% year-on-year. Its net income was €45 million ($47.8 million), which was still not as good as 2018, but significantly better than the pre-epidemic level. In fact, last year, all of Intercos segments grew and exceeded their pre-epidemic levels, with double-digit year-on-year growth in the Make Up, Hair & Body. The Skincare segment, although slightly weaker, still maintained positive growth of 2%. Specifically, Make Up, the largest segment for Intercos, achieved the highest growth, with a clear recovery in the business, up 16% on the pre-epidemic level, especially in North America and Europe, where its key customers, emerging brands and multinational companies, were significant growth drivers. According to the results, the Make Up segment accounted for 65.5% of Intercos' total revenue, up 3.5 percentage points from last year, with full-year revenue of €547 million ($580 million), up 31% year-on-year. It also achieved a 27% year-on-year increase in the fourth quarter, with revenue of €120 million ($127.3 million). Its Hair & Body also achieved 24% growth, with full-year revenue of €157 million ($166.6 million). Its growth accelerated in the fourth quarter achieving revenue of €47.9 million ($50.8 million) and a 47% year-on-year growth rate. However, the overall revenue share of Intercos's Skincare segment declined by 3.4 percentage points compared to 2021 with full-year revenue of €130 million ($138 million), up 2% year-on-year and even negative growth of 3% in the fourth quarter. In this regard, Intercos said that the segment was mainly affected by the contraction of consumption in China in the second half of the year and only achieved more solid growth. As a leading global company, Intercos's results also reflect to a certain extent the current state of recovery in the market. As far as the financial data is concerned, the mainstay of Intercos's make-up segment revenue comes mostly from emerging brands in Europe and the US. This shows that the global makeup recovery fever has started in Europe and the US, where the epidemic control was relaxed earlier. According to the financial report, EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) remains the main market for Intercos, accounting for 48.2% of total revenue, with revenue of €402.7 million ($427.3 million) in 2022, up 23% year-on-year. The second largest market, the Americas, had total revenue of €289.2 million ($306.9 million), up 34% year-on-year. In both of these markets, emerging brands and multinational companies were the main drivers of revenue growth. In contrast, Asia, where China is located, achieved only 10% growth, with full-year revenue of €143.7 million ($152.5 million). However, Intercos mentioned that the decline in China was partially offset by revenue growth in the colour cosmetics segment in Korea, despite poor market feedback in the skincare segment in the region. However, overall, the market recovery in Asia is still not as strong as that in Europe and the US. In terms of future market expansion, Intercos mentioned in particular that its direct sales in China are still relatively small compared to the overall beauty market. So increasing its market share in China will also be one of its key plans for 2023. In fact, Intercos is already a service provider and partner for a number of Chinese brands. It is also expanding its cooperation with emerging Chinese brands. Public information shows that Intercos’ Chinese clients include a number of head brands such as Florasis, Perfect Diary, MAOGEPING and PROYA. In MAOGEPING's recent public prospectus, Intercos Technology (Suzhou Industrial Park) Co., Ltd. is its top-ranked outsourced manufacturer. At the China International Import Expo in 2022, Yatsen also signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Intercos, aiming to develop in-depth cooperation in beauty research. In 2022, Fan Bingbing officially announced her first makeup collection for her own beauty brand, Fan Beauty Secret. She has also chosen Intercos as its provider. But it is clear that Intercos wants more than that. In its earnings report, Intercos said that it hopes to further increase its share of the Chinese market through the expansion of new Western brands in China as the market recovers.