New product launches, surveys and investments seek to advance consumers’ ability to search for skin condition insights and advice, separate recycling from ‘wishcycling’ and access a plethora of luxurious and eco-conscious products. In our bi-weekly cosmetics round-up, we delve into the latest developments in the beauty and personal care industry.
Vaseline unveils online database, See My Skin
The 150-year-old moisturizer brand has designed and launched a tool that strives to improve skin healthcare outcomes for people of color. Vaseline’s online database, See My Skin, has been created to enable users to search for information on skin conditions and access adequate relevant information and care.
Vaseline teamed up with digital health company, HUED, and medical informatics firm, VisualDx, to launch its database, designed to be an educational resource for skincare consumers.
Users can search for skin conditions, connect with a database of board-certified dermatologists and receive recommendations. Skincare consumers can access support and guidance on how to monitor and treat skin at home, when to reach out to a dermatologist and the types of questions to ask when they do. Users are also able to submit images to the database to help Vaseline better understand and expand its representation of skin conditions for people of color.
“People of color are negatively impacted by healthcare inequities that can lead to worse health outcomes, including caring for their skin,” said Kevin Tolson, Brand Director of US Skincare at Unilever. “Whether it’s looking for answers in search, on social media, or even in textbooks—the results that resemble their skin are scarce, which can leave us feeling unseen and underrepresented,” added Tolson.
Farfetch enters the beauty sphere with multiple launches
The online luxury retailer has made its move into the beauty world across its companies, including Farfetch.com, Browns and Off-White. Together, the e-tailer’s brands will unveil their beauty portfolios based on their own individual brand identities and offerings.
Farfetch announced its debut into the beauty sphere in January 2022 by acquiring luxury beauty destination and content provider, Violet Grey. The investment saw Farfetch dip its toe into the beauty industry ahead of its wider planned expansion in April 2022.
Globally, Farfetch hopes to offer beauty consumers a curated edit of luxury items through its beauty global collective, community-led approach and technologically-driven capabilities such as virtual makeup try-on features.
From its online platform and physical London-based location, Beauty Pod, Browns Beauty will focus on providing consumers with a luxury product edit that follows quarterly themes. The beauty name launched with the theme, ‘Big Little Rituals’, celebrating community and connecting with its newly-created beauty network, Browns Beauty Community. Its Off-White brand has unveiled its beauty collection, Paperwork, featuring a new toolkit and genderless fragrance collection.
New beauty survey calls for consumers to end ‘wishcycling’
Environmentally-focused haircare brand, Rhyme & Reason, reveals its findings from its recent survey into ‘wishcycling’, a word that describes the belief that an item is recyclable when it is not.
In Rhyme & Reason’s recent survey, the haircare name found that 67% of people admitted to regularly disposing of packaging in the hope that it will be recycled, without fully understanding if it can be. Further, 86% said they felt happier about their contribution to the planet when they were able to recycle packaging.
Although often well-intentioned, potential confusion over wishcycling versus recycling can cause beauty packaging to remain unrecycled. Along with seeking to provide awareness of the prevalence of wishcycling, the brand has manufactured its haircare products in 100% recycled and recyclable High-density polyethylene (HDPE) bottles (the HDPE comes from a post-consumer waste stream) and 100% recycled caps.
“Recycling is only a useful part of the solution to reduce the waste stream reaching our oceans if it’s genuine,” highlighted Andy Donnelly, Marine Scientist and Conservation Educator and Expert Advisor to Rhyme & Reason. “Fundamental innovation at the design stages of packaging is what we need, with products like Rhyme & Reason showing it is possible.”
Motsi introduces 18-product dermatological skincare line
The US skincare and beauty brand revealed its latest product collection, Ultra Skincare. Its latest dermatologist-formulated skincare range includes 18 new items featuring clinically-proven products.
Using popular and renowned ingredients such as hyaluronic acid and green tea, Ultra Skincare strives to offer a high-performing and conscious skincare offering using advanced skincare systems.
Motsi’s latest masstige skincare line includes its firming serum with antioxidant and moisturization properties, a mattifying serum designed to calm inflammation and ease hyperpigmentation and redness, a hydrating spray with vitamin C, a body conditioning cream and a lip balm containing Vitamin B and peptides.
YSL Beauty introduces its global sustainability program
Luxury makeup, skincare and fragrances brand, YSL Beauty, unveils its new sustainability commitment, called Rewild Our Earth, in partnership with the global non-governmental organisation (NGO), Re:wild.
In launching its program, YSL Beauty aims to care for, safeguard and restore 100,000 hectares of land by 2030 and secure biodiversity in areas around the world that it sources its ingredients from. The brand has identified priority areas to focus on due to the impact of climate change. In 2022, YSL Beauty will center its efforts on The Ourika Valley in Morocco, Haiti, Madagascar and Indonesia. By working with Re-wild, the duo will focus on introducing rewilding programs in these geographical sourcing areas for biodiversity. The rewilding efforts seek to encourage natural processes, recover damaged ecosystems and recover degraded landscapes.
YSL Beauty seeks to align its latest global program with its new sustainability platform, which is referred to as ‘Change the Rules, Change the Future’. Based on a renewed vision and strategy, the brand has updated its three key pillars of sustainability to: (1) reduce our impact, (2) rewild our earth, and (3) abuse is not love.
In addition to its rewilding plans, YSL Beauty will also focus on tackling its transitions towards low carbon and circular economies. Among its targets, the brand aims to transition to producing products in 100% carbon-neutral French factories in 2022, prioritize formulations with bio-based ingredients and use 70% in its products by 2023, and use 100% eco-designed and recyclable materials, phasing out virgin plastic by 2030.
The brand will also pursue its global program to stop and combat intimate partner violence through its prevention programs with other non-profit partners. YSL Beauty’s program strives to use internal training and the support of its partners and NGOs to educate 2 million people by 2030.
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