Looking Ahead at Asia’s Personal Care Industry
By: A Q&A with Asia's Personal Care Ingredients Experts
Posted: January 16, 2009
The personal care market in Asia is significant in both raw material production and finished product launches. To fully grasp the ever-changing personal care market, one must certainly study it on a global scale. The following Q&A delves into the trends and issues facing the person care market in Asia. The answers are given by personal care experts in Asia including: Pushker Sona, PhD, Unilever’s R&D Director of the Global Face Care CTC Skin and Regional Technology Centre; Kevin Roden, Thor Specialties’ regional technical manager for the Asia Pacific region; and Pamela Jones, conference consultant for China’s personal care and home care ingredients show, PCHi, which will be taking place in Guangzhou, China, on Feb. 24–26, 2009.
Q: What are the most notable changes to the personal care and home care industry you have seen in the Asian markets in recent years?
Roden: The biggest change I have seen is the shift towards using natural ingredients in personal care and even home care products. This has created a greater demand for natural ingredients and posed challenges to raw material manufacturers as to whether they can provide the required product or adequate supply.
Jones: In Asia, the acceptance and sophistication of new formulations is increasing. Previously, they were lagging behind in development of new formulations compared to western markets. However, persistent media influence and training of the general public has led Asian audiences to quickly accept new ideas and trends. This applies not only to the personal care industry but the home care segment as well.
A notable strength in Australia is their high level of technical expertise. However, one of the downsides is that the Australian cosmetic manufacturing industry is shrinking. Government regulations and increasing manufacturing cost makes the local scene too expensive to compete with most Asian countries, even for exporting. But thankfully, they are still able to stay buoyant with their high level of technical expertise in formulating and ability to provide consultation on new technology.