C-beauty, or Chinese beauty is an umbrella term encompassing contemporary beauty products, practises, and ideals originating from China. [1] [2] China has the second largest beauty market in the world, after the United States. [3] Common C-beauty products include cosmetics, skin care, hair care, perfumes, and nail art. [4] [5] [6] [7] C-beauty often incorporates influences from traditional Chinese medicine and Chinese art. [8] [9]
Chinese beauty products are known for their elaborate packaging, rapid innovation, and cost-effectiveness due to the high expectations of Chinese consumers. [10] [11] As the Chinese market is intensely competitive, some C-beauty brands have multiple product lines in the works simultaneously. They may take only three to six months to conceptualize, launch, and manufacture a product line. [12]
Pechoin, founded in 1931, is China's oldest skin care brand. [13] Lip muds are a cosmetic product invented by Chinese brand INTO YOU, and later adopted by several other Chinese brands. [11] [14] C-beauty content creators are credited for popularizing the skincare routine of Vitamin C and Vitamin A serums at different times of day via the "Morning C, Night A" slogan. [15] [16] [17] C-beauty products that are heavily influenced by Chinese culture may be characterized as being part of a broader social movement known as "guócháo" (国潮) or "China chic", which celebrates traditional Chinese culture. [18] [9]
K-beauty became popular in China in 2012 and South Korea surpassed the United States and Japan in 2015 to become the second largest exporter of cosmetics to China after France. However, the popularity of K-beauty declined sharply starting from 2018 due to a combination of unappealing packaging, low efficacy, unreasonable prices, and an over-reliance on the popularity of the Korean Wave rather than focusing on the quality of the products themselves to maintain consumer interest. This provided the opportunity for domestic C-beauty brands to grow their market share as they offered a more diverse range of higher quality products at more affordable prices compared to K-beauty. [19] [20]
The intense competition of the Chinese beauty market has caused Chinese companies to expand into overseas markets. [21] Skincare brand Herborist was the earliest to expand, opening its first European flagship store store in Paris in 2015. [22] In 2016, Chinese cosmetics brand Kailijumei's color-changing, flower lipsticks became a viral sensation overseas. [23] [24] [25] One of the most internationally successful C-beauty brands is Flower Knows. [26] [27]
Within a five-year span, from 2017 to 2022, the C-beauty industry doubled its market share. In 2022, C-beauty brands surpassed international competitors in sales within China. [28] China exported US$4.85 billion worth of cosmetics in 2021. [29] In 2023, the C-beauty market value was worth US$67.18 billion. [30] In the early 2020s, Chinese makeup styles and cosmetics became popular in Japan. [31] [32]
In 2021, the practice of gua sha facial massage and jade rollers became viral in the West through TikTok. [33] [34] Although this faced criticisms of cultural appropriation as most brands selling Chinese facial tools in the West were not of Chinese origin and Western influencers were promoting gua sha massage methods with no basis in traditional Chinese medicine. [35] [36] [37]
A broad range of Chinese makeup styles and techniques have been labelled "Douyin makeup" in the West, named after the Chinese version for TikTok. [38] [39] However, the majority of these makeup trends have nothing to do with Douyin, and people in China do not use the term "Douyin makeup" themselves. Chinese people simply refer to the makeup styles collectively as "Chinese makeup" or by the specific names of the styles. [40]
Since 2014, cosmetics manufactured and sold in China do not require animal testing if reliable safety assessment reports are provided, although it continued to require animal testing for imported products from other countries. This law was amended in 2021, when foreign companies were allowed to export cosmetics to China without animal testing. [41]
Maybelline New York, trading as Maybelline, is an American multinational cosmetics, skin care, perfume, and personal care company, based in New York City. It was founded in Chicago in 1914, and has been a subsidiary of French cosmetics company L'Oréal since 1996.
Cosmetics are composed of mixtures of chemical compounds derived from either natural sources or synthetically created ones. Cosmetics have various purposes, including personal and skin care. They can also be used to conceal blemishes and enhance natural features. Makeup can also add colour to a person's face, or change the appearance of the face entirely to resemble a different person, creature, or object.
Revlon, Inc. is an American multinational company dealing in cosmetics, skin care, perfume, and personal care. The headquarters of Revlon was established in New York City on March 1, 1932, where it remains. Revlon was founded by brothers Charles and Joseph Revson, and chemist Charles Lachman. Revlon products are sold in 150 countries and the company has many global locations including Mexico City, London, Paris, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Sydney, Singapore, and Tokyo.
Lipstick is a cosmetic product used to apply coloration and texture to lips, often made of wax and oil. Different pigments are used to produce color, and minerals such as silica may be used to provide texture. The use of lipstick dates back to early civilizations such as Sumer and the Indus Valley Civilisation, and was popularized in the Western world in the 16th century. Some lipsticks contain traces of toxic materials, such as lead and PFAS, which prompted health concerns and regulation.
Arc'teryx is a Canadian apparel company specializing in outdoor apparel and equipment headquartered in North Vancouver, British Columbia. It focuses on technical apparel for mountaineering and Alpine sports, including related accessories. The company's name and logo reference the Archaeopteryx, the transitional fossil of early dinosaurs to modern dinosaurs (birds). Arc'teryx is known for its waterproof Gore-Tex shell jackets, knitwear, and down parkas.
NARS Cosmetics is a French cosmetics and skin care company founded by make-up artist and photographer François Nars in 1994. The cosmetics line began with twelve lipsticks sold at Barneys New York. Since then, NARS has created various multi-use beauty products and is now a subsidiary of Shiseido. It mainly sells in department stores in about 30 countries including the Americas, Europe, Japan and Southeast Asia.
The history of cosmetics spans at least 7,000 years and is present in almost every society on earth. Cosmetic body art is argued to have been the earliest form of a ritual in human culture. The evidence for this comes in the form of utilised red mineral pigments including crayons associated with the emergence of Homo sapiens in Africa. Cosmetics are mentioned in the Old Testament—2 Kings 9:30 where Jezebel painted her eyelids—approximately 840 BC—and the book of Esther describes various beauty treatments as well.
M A C Cosmetics, stylized as M·A·C, is a Canadian cosmetics manufacturer founded in Toronto in 1984 by Frank Toskan and Frank Angelo. The company has been headquartered in London since becoming a subsidiary of Estée Lauder Companies in 1998. MAC is an acronym for Make-Up Art Cosmetics.
e.l.f. Beauty, Inc. is an American cosmetics brand based in Oakland, California. It was founded by Joseph Shamah and Scott Vincent Borba in 2004. Items include bath and skin-care products, mineral-based makeup, professional tools, eyeliners, lipstick, glosses, blushes, bronzers, brushes, and mascara, among others.
The cosmetic industry describes the industry that manufactures and distributes cosmetic products. These include colour cosmetics, like foundation and mascara, skincare such as moisturisers and cleansers, haircare such as shampoos, conditioners and hair colours, and toiletries such as bubble bath and soap. The manufacturing industry is dominated by a small number of multinational corporations that originated in the early 20th century, but the distribution and sale of cosmetics is spread among a wide range of different businesses. Cosmetics must be safe when customers use them in accordance with the label's instructions or in the conventional or expected manner. One measure a producer may take to guarantee the safety of a cosmetic product is product testing. FDA occasionally does testing as part of its research program or when looking into potential safety issues with a product. Both the cosmetics business and consumers can benefit from the FDA's resources on product testing.
NYX Professional Makeup is an American cosmetics company that is a subsidiary of L'Oréal. The company was founded in Los Angeles by Toni Ko in 1999. It was named after Nyx, the Greek goddess of the night. NYX Professional Makeup is "certified" and acknowledged by PETA as a cruelty-free brand, and they offer a wide range of vegan-friendly products. NYX products are sold in over 70 countries at thousands of retailers, ranging from specialty beauty and fashion stores to freestanding shops and the brand's corporate website.
TikTok, whose mainland Chinese counterpart is Douyin, is a short-form video hosting service owned by Chinese internet company ByteDance. It hosts user-submitted videos, which can range in duration from three seconds to 60 minutes. It can be accessed with a smartphone app.
ColourPop Cosmetics, also known as ColourPop, is an American cosmetics brand often found at dollar stores based in Los Angeles, California. The company was founded in 2014 by siblings Laura and John Nelson. ColourPop products are sold through their website and at Ulta Beauty. They predominantly make products for the eyes, lips, and face.
Male grooming refers to men paying attention to fashion and enhancing their own appearance. This interest has become increasingly apparent in popular culture.
Male cosmetics include all cosmetic products marketed towards men, such as makeup, skincare products, hair care products, body care products, sun care products, perfumes, and other decorative cosmetics.
Lime Crime is an American cosmetics brand that was founded and launched by Doe Deere. The brand is well known in the beauty community for its eccentric and colourful products, as well as the controversies surrounding Deere and the company. In addition, the brand was independently owned by Deere until its acquisition by Stacy Panagakis and the Tengram Capital Partners in 2018. Lime Crime is also certified as vegan and cruelty-free by both PETA and the Leaping Bunny. The brand is currently stocked at retailers such as ASOS, Revolve, Cult Beauty, Ulta and Bloomingdale's.
Haus Labs by Lady Gaga is an American vegan and cruelty-free cosmetics brand founded by Lady Gaga. First launched on September 17, 2019, it was the first major beauty line to launch exclusively on Amazon as a retailer partner, and released in nine countries including France, Germany, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Haus Labs relaunched on June 9, 2022 with new retail partner Sephora. The company advertises its products as "supercharged clean artistry makeup powered by innovation."
The fashions of the 2020s represent a departure from 2010s fashion and feature a nostalgia for older aesthetics. They have been largely inspired by styles of the late 1990s to mid-2000s, 1980s, and late 1960s to early 1970s. Early in the decade, several publications noted the shortened trend and nostalgia cycle in 2020s fashion. Fashion was also shaped by the COVID-19 pandemic, which had a major impact on the fashion industry, and led to shifting retail and consumer trends.
Li Jiaqi, also known by his English name, Austin Li, is a Chinese streamer, social media influencer, and entrepreneur focusing on beauty and cosmetics. He is often referred to as the "Lipstick King". Li is known for the large volume of sales his streams generate.
Filters are digital image effects often used on social media. They initially simulated the effects of camera filters, and they have since developed with facial recognition technology and computer-generated augmented reality. Social media filters—especially beauty filters—are often used to alter the appearance of selfies taken on smartphones or other similar devices. While filters are commonly associated with beauty enhancement and feature alterations, there is a wide range of filters that have different functions. From adjusting photo tones to using face animations and interactive elements, users have access to a range of tools. These filters allow users to enhance photos and allow room for creative expression and fun interactions with digital content.