Smooth operators: Japan’s male skincare market “growing slowly but surely”
Despite its niche standing and smaller market size, the men’s skincare category in Japan continues to look promising, say two insiders from the country’s beauty industry. Still, the Japanese market in men’s skincare trails behind China and South Korea.
“Men’s skincare in Japan is not a big market at about US$230 to 240 million,” said Masataka Sei, the chief global officer of Japanese men’s skincare brand BULK HOMME, during a recent webinar hosted by fashion and beauty tech community FaB Tokyo. “Yet with CAGR (compound annual growth rate) at 3 to 4 percent, it’s growing slowly but surely, especially with the growth of social networking.”
The use of male beauty products varies across age groups in Japan too, with one group, in particular, making the bulk of purchases in Japan. “About 90 percent of young men in their 20s use men’s skincare and makeup” added prominent investor Kei Sugawara, chief financial officer and board director of istyle, the operator of beauty platform @cosme. “CAGR at 3 to 4 percent doesn’t seem too high, but it’s definitely (increasing).”
He also noted that about 10 years ago, several Japanese beauty companies had also launched men’s grooming products and campaigns, but these had not panned out as well, recalled Sugawara.
Moderated by Chloe Takahashi, the chief executive officer at J-beauty platform Cosme Hunt, the webinar on 15 July 2020 featured Sei and Sugawara as key speakers. FaB Tokyo’s fourth meeting centered on the theme of men’s beauty startups in Asia.
One of Japan’s most successful men’s skincare brands is BULK HOMME. Explaining the direct-to-consumer (DTC) skincare brand’s rapid progression in Japan since it was first launched in 2013, Sei said it boiled down to a distinctive product and marketing strategy.
“Our strong point is our unique and creative products, packaging, and texture,” he said. “Our brand concept is delivering those features to customers, who are not necessarily into fashion and beauty, and educating them that it is natural to use skincare on a daily basis.”
He also revealed that although BULK HOMME is now a well-known DTC brand, the company had not intended to sell to customers directly at first. Instead, it initially experimented with different digital marketing and direct communications methods to increase brand awareness.
But as the number of social media users swelled, the company fine-tuned its digital marketing accordingly and zeroed in on selling direct to consumers. “We tried many ads and ways of operations to find a sweet spot and find potential customers,” said Sei. “But those kinds of quick trial and error led to BULK HOMME’s growth in the Japan market as of today.”
In Japan, consumers generally learn about products via social networking sites, especially Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, and Line.
“If you look at the budget allocation on media spend outside vertical media such as @cosme and LIPS, for example, the largest chunk of cash goes to social ads, influencer marketing, and search engines,” said Sugawara, who is in charge of istyle’s corporate and global operating divisions. The former management consultant had co-founded @cosme in 1999.
Selling to male consumers in China and South Korea
Like many beauty brands with an eye on expansion, BULK HOMME is now turning to China and will be expanding its footprint there, Sei revealed. The brand first launched in mainland China in October 2017.
“We are preparing to accelerate to sell our products in the Chinese market from this summer,” he said. Sei also pointed to how China is now the biggest market for men’s skincare and continues to grow, with South Korea following behind as a more mature market.
Compared to male consumers in Japan, those in China are big fans of men’s beauty products. “In China, most men use (skincare), unlike Japanese men,” explained Sugawara. “The Japanese market seems to be yet at the stage of maturity.”
Indeed, the purchasing behavior of Chinese customers is different compared to the Japanese, added Sei. “China has huge e-commerce-based festivals like Double 11. More than half of Chinese customers purchase at that event, so their behavior is different from the Japanese market.”
Yet, despite competition from China, South Korea remains the global leader in men’s beauty trends and has been at the top for at least five to ten years.
“All the global players test the men’s products in South Korea first, and if that works out, they expand to the US or Europe,” said Sugawara, who is also managing director and partner of Japan-based venture capital firm iSGS Investment Works. “South Korean men’s beauty is a market leader, not only in Asia but globally.”
To a question from Takahashi on selling new products in South Korea, the two speakers said that Japanese men’s beauty companies looking to expand to Seoul should consider selling directly to consumers.
“It depends on the strategy; if you want to expand your business in South Korea in the long term, you need to dive deep into the market and try to sell directly or work closely with the retailers,” said Sei, explaining it would not be an easy task compared to other countries. BULK HOMME launched in South Korea in March 2018.
Japanese beauty companies also face the added complication of trade and political tensions in selling to South Korea. “We have found that the majority don’t buy Japanese products due to the geopolitical situation,” said Sugawara, who noted that Japanese consumers are more likely to buy South Korean products than vice versa.
Yet Sugawara remains optimistic. “There are still so many South Korean fans of Japanese products and quality. Japanese beauty companies can dive into e-commerce websites. Direct commerce or e-commerce would work for Japanese beauty brands to sell in South Korea.”
Text: Denyse Yeo
