BCL Company’s J-Beauty Innovation is Growing Globally

Until now, the J-Beauty brand has tended to be overshadowed by Western and K-Beauty brands. However, upon closer inspection, J-Beauty emphasizes high-value products that are highly effective with fewer ingredients. This strategic focus aligns nicely with the growing demand for simplicity and efficiency in beauty routines. From your point of view, what do you think are the main advantages that the J-Beauty brand offers to its customers?

As you said, the J-Beauty brand has historically been overshadowed by Western beauty brands. However, I believe that J-Beauty's outstanding quality is now recognized worldwide. That said, the speed of innovation is a challenge, especially when compared to Korean and Chinese beauty brands, which are rapidly gaining traction among global consumers. That's why I think the entire beauty industry in Japan has to adapt and evolve to stay competitive.

In terms of market presence, J-Beauty products are making great strides in China and other Asian markets, and are also experiencing significant growth in Western countries. In the European market, both K-Beauty and J-Beauty have recorded impressive sales. I believe that J-Beauty's success lies in its unwavering commitment to quality and safety.

For us, beauty is not just about looking good, it's about enriching our lives and spreading happiness. For example, our main product, "Saborino Sheet Mask for Morning and Night". This product has made consumers around the world smile. It introduced people who had never used sheet masks before to the concept of sheet masks and inspired them to adopt new and beneficial habits.

In the future, we will aim for such local production for local consumption. By customizing the formula to meet the needs of each region, we are confident that J-Beauty will continue to grow as a globally trusted and loved entity.

By 2025, the global cosmetics industry is projected to reach USD 76 billion, driven by Gen-Z consumers and the growing demand for organic and sustainable products. You're perfectly aligned with these trends, offering innovative skincare solutions like the Saborino Sheet Mask, which focuses on natural ingredients and time-saving. What do you see as the key drivers shaping the cosmetics industry over the next five years?

To answer your question, I believe that sustainability will continue to be one of the driving pillars of the cosmetics industry. Initiatives like recycling containers have been incorporated into daily operations and are already standard practice.

I don't think you can get beauty from cosmetics alone, so I also value inner beauty. From 2024, in response to the growing global preference for Japan food, we will also enter the supplement business. In addition, we plan to add beauty appliances to our portfolio, which we see as a holistic and inclusive category.

Japan is also crowded with strong cosmetics manufacturers that will focus on sustainability. However, I believe that one of our key strengths, along with our commitment to providing exceptional quality, is our speed.

Saborino Morning Night Facial Sheet Mask

I heard that you will be exhibiting at several exhibitions this year. Do you plan to showcase food-related products at such exhibitions?

As of now, there are no plans to introduce food products at exhibitions. The first food product will be launched in April 2024, and the second will be released in March 2025. We plan to enter the global market in the next fiscal year.

Expo 2025 Osaka-Kansai is a global platform for celebrating innovation, sustainability and culture, and is expected to attract millions of visitors from around the world. For cosmetics companies, this is a unique opportunity to showcase breakthroughs and connect with a diverse international audience. Can you tell us more about how your company plans to have a presence at the expo?

Saborino is sold in 40 countries around the world, and we aim to use this expo as an opportunity to further raise its profile on a global scale. At the Osaka-Kansai Expo, we plan to sell customized packaging for the Osaka-Kansai Expo in order to increase awareness of our brand.

While we won't have our own booth at the Expo, we see this as a limited but valuable opportunity to showcase our concept, and as a TBS group company, we intend to make the most of this partnership by generating buzz through the press and social media.

Do you have a specific strategy in conjunction with the Osaka-Kansai Expo?

When it comes to using social media, we rely heavily on these platforms in both our domestic and Asian markets. As I mentioned earlier, our market share in the U.S. and European markets is growing, and we plan to take advantage of this by making significant use of social media. We are currently finalizing our plans for global market activities.

Regarding the Osaka-Kansai Expo, you are expecting 28.2 million visitors, including 3.5 million from overseas. In terms of strategy, is there a difference in approach between Japan and overseas?

It's been 10 years since we launched the Saborino brand, and I think we've already made a big difference in the Japan market. Mass media activities such as TV commercials play a major role in this success. However, it has not yet achieved the same level of recognition globally.」

Our brand concept is to get more people to adopt their morning face mask habits, and this remains the core message we want to convey. So there is not much difference between the Japan and international approaches, and we are consistent in spreading this concept widely and effectively.

While doing research for this interview, I noticed that it was interesting that face masks are more prevalent among men. In the U.S. alone, 31% of men interviewed in 2022 said they use face masks as part of their skincare routine, and that number would rise to 52% by 2024. Are you targeting an international male demographic with Saborino face masks?

Basically, we don't differentiate our concepts by gender. Our products are unisex, so in a way, we've already created a product that appeals to men. But that doesn't mean that the same product will work the same way in all markets. To address this issue, we are planning to localize our products to meet the tastes and needs of different regions.

In terms of brand awareness and market impact after the Osaka-Kansai Expo, what are the key performance indicators (KPIs) for Saborino?

Currently, Saborino's brand awareness in Japan is about 50%. However, the situation is very different overseas, with some markets having less than 1% brand awareness. Our post-Expo goal is to increase brand awareness in these overseas markets 3to around 5%. In order to achieve this, we need to push marketing significantly on our part.

What is your post-Expo strategy?

The company plans to launch influencer marketing before the Expo to build momentum. However, there are more challenges with local production. Our strategy starts in Japan and aims to achieve local production overseas by the end of 202 6.

In addition to Saborino, your company offers a variety of beauty products under brands such as Cleansing Research, KANSOSAN, and TSURURI. Other than Saborino, which brands do you think have the most potential for market growth?

In Japan, Saborino continues to be the top brand, closely followed by KANSOSAN. KANSOSAN HAS SEEN SIGNIFICANT GROWTH IN THE LAST YEAR AND A HALF, BUT SINCE IT IS A PRODUCT FOR DRY SKIN, SALES IN HUMID SOUTHEAST ASIA ARE NOT VERY PROMISING. As a result, the market for KANSOSAN will be more limited. It is currently popular in East Asia and will expand to Europe and North America.

Which countries do you plan to expand into?

Right now, they are concentrating on Hong Kong and Taiwan.

Are there any new brands you're planning to introduce in the near future?

We usually launch 3~4 new brands every year as part of the testing phase. By 2030, the company aims to develop a more mature marketing strategy for overseas markets.

Our research shows that you plan to double your profits by 2030 by evolving into a holistic beauty solutions provider. Can you tell us more about your foray into aesthetic electronics and beverages? How do you position BCL as a comprehensive beauty solutions provider?

When it comes to food and beauty appliances, our goal is not to sell these products individually, but to integrate them into a comprehensive beauty solution alongside cosmetics. Positioning BCL as a "Total Beauty Provider", we aim to ship our products to major countries and regions around the world by 2030. In addition, we aim to achieve an overseas sales ratio of 20% and a non-cosmetics sales ratio of 10%.

The COVID-19 pandemic has changed many aspects of our lives, including the way we shop. Japan is now the world's fourth-largest e-commerce market, and cosmetics play a major role. In May 2017, you set a goal to increase your e-commerce sales from 3% to 10% by 2025 and to 20% by 2030. How are you adjusting your eCommerce strategy and how far along are you progressing to achieve this goal?

Thank you for your question. During the pandemic, e-commerce sales grew significantly, but from 2024 onwards, brick-and-mortar sales are skyrocketing as customers return to brick-and-mortar stores. When shopping for cosmetics, people often touch, feel, and try out products, which is driving this trend. E-commerce is sluggish, but in the future, we would like to use major platforms such as Amazon to increase our presence.

How do you want the world to perceive BCL?

Our core concept is to bring joy, entertainment, and peace of mind to consumers, and to enrich the experience with products, not just the beauty of appearance.

For more information, please visit the website: https://www.bcl-company.jp/en/