Shiseido sitting pretty in country's beauty sector

Japanese cosmetics giant Shiseido Group has never wavered in its confidence and determination to invest in China, and will strengthen its long-term investment in the country, said a senior executive at the ongoing China International Import Expo.

Toshinobu Umetsu, president and CEO of Shiseido China, told China Daily that the country is now an important market for Shiseido because of its incredible vitality and resilience.

"We have never wavered in our confidence and determination to invest in China and will continue to strengthen our long-term investment in the country to provide all the support needed to drive further innovation, growth, and best practices," said Umetsu.

Shiseido, which came to China during the early period of the country's reform and opening-up as the first foreign beauty group to enter the Chinese mainland market, has been present in the country for over four decades.

In 2022, Shiseido announced it would be a lead investor with 100 million yuan ($13.9 million) in Jiangsu Trautec Medical Technology Co Ltd — a Chinese provider of new biomaterials and innovative protein and nucleic acid drugs — and the latter is now seeking an initial public offering.

"Shiseido's investment in Trautec is an important part of our commitment to being more closely involved in local Chinese innovation. We also endeavor to make the most of China's favorable policy environment and support for innovation to accelerate the speed at which we introduce Shiseido innovations into the country," Umetsu said.

He explained that this includes launching many products in China before anywhere else in the world through platforms such as the CIIE.

At this year's expo, Shiseido debuted more than 30 products from 12 different brands, which include the global debut of its upgraded product — Shiseido Ultimate Power Infusing Concentrate — and the debut of Elixir's youth accelerate serum, which has proven to be a mega hit in the Japan market.

"The company has also deepened a dual strategy in China, in which it focuses on further enhancing local innovation capabilities. As part of this, we continue to invest in making our China Innovation Center the second-largest Shiseido research center globally," he added.

China reiterated its commitment to further opening up its enormous market and expanding market access to sectors including telecommunications, the internet, education, culture and healthcare at the expo.

Umetsu said he is very inspired and encouraged by China's commitment to continuing high-level opening-up and sharing development opportunities with the rest of the world.

"China today is leading the way in the application of innovative technologies, and understanding the latest innovation trends in China is key to capturing future growth opportunities. Looking forward, we will continue to introduce further innovations for new beauty lifestyle scenarios that allow Shiseido to contribute even more to the Chinese society," he added.