Willumina Excels in Creating Innovative, High-Quality Anti-Aging Cosmetics

Can you give us a short introduction to your company? 

The origin of our cosmetics company was under the chemical division of the trading giant Sojitz Corporation, and now we consider this time as a second birth or a rebranding of the company, a new version of Willlumina. I took charge about three years ago. Until now, Willlumina has been a cosmetics developer and distributor that caters to the skin concerns of our customers as they age. Now, as a well-being and beauty company, we have transformed ourselves into a company that caters to the concerns of each and every woman, not just cosmetics. We are now not only a cosmetics company, but also a well-being and beauty company that caters to the concerns of individual women.

J-Beauty brands are facing stiff competition from Western and K-Beauty brands, but what's sometimes hidden is that many of the active ingredients used by these competitors come from Japanese makers. There's also a shift in consumer preferences towards the Japanese idea of ​​“less is more.” What do you consider to be the advantages of J-Beauty brands, and what sets them apart from the competition?

I would outline two things that define J-Beauty and explain why it has won high praise and expectations from customers around the globe. First is the high-quality formulations and ingredients, which are necessary to win the trust of the customers. Second is history and tradition because J-Beauty companies have walked a long path and gained customer trust for many years. Attachment to J-Beauty brands is related to Japanese beauty preferences.

Another distinguishing point I would highlight is the focus on skincare rituals. Japanese beauty brands emphasize skincare practices that promote holistic well-being and self-care. Self-care is very important, especially for preventative actions. For example, for many Westerners, if something happens to their skin, they just go to the hospital, so the focus is sometimes on medical treatment. In contrast, Japanese beauty components and raw materials work magic and are preventative measures.

We are not so different from other J-Beauty companies that base their practices on fabless principles. At Willlumina, for example, we start with excellent raw materials and then combine those with customer preferences. We walk the path together with all parties involved to create value-added products. Of course, we also promote and preserve the heritage of traditional Japanese beauty brands, along with time-tested beauty solutions.

Can you expand on that fabless business model? How does not focusing on the manufacturing aspect give you an advantage in product development?

As you might assume, fabless principles give an upfront advantage over some conventional cosmetics or J-Beauty manufacturing companies because those companies need initial investments to build production lines for each product, which are significant investments. We see that as a handicap because without that, we can create a targeted product for one niche audience. Another way to put it is that we are an intermediate company. Fabless is essential because it lets us focus on areas of demand for raw materials where we can create a targeted product and use our marketing strategies to reach the audience that needs the product. This gives us an advantage over our competitors.

We live in an ever-changing society. Market demands and criteria for choosing products are becoming stricter, and it is more challenging to win the trust and loyalty of customers, so we need to target these people. We must understand their needs and preferences to tailor our product development, marketing strategy, and customer engagement initiatives. A product release by a conventional beauty company requires vast investments in R&D and production facilities. I wouldn’t say this makes things simpler for us, however, because we have to create a perfect match between a manufacturing company and the target market's needs. Still, by choosing this fabless strategy, we have a more comprehensive range of possibilities to target areas that other companies can reach.

You mentioned your customer base, and one challenge Japan is facing is demographic decline. It is one of the oldest populations in the world, and it’s estimated that in just fifteen years, one in three people is going to be over the age of 60. This, of course, creates the challenge of a shrinking domestic market. Still, for cosmetics makers, it also allows catering products to an older market that traditionally has more financial means. What are some of the opportunities and challenges this demographic change provides for your company?

We see that as a business opportunity. We have a long track record dealing with a co-op business model, a membership-based subscription platform that delivers products to a customer’s door. The audience of this co-op in Japan skews older, with more people over 50, so having this long experience working with this audience has created a good platform for us to go into areas targeting an older demographic. Therefore, we think that is a good business opportunity for us. We are currently trying to tackle diversified sales channels while preserving a good connection with the co-op, and we think that provides us with an advantage. 

Anti-aging formulas and solutions are a business opportunity for us regarding products for this aging demographic. Of course, an aging population is not only affecting Japan; we see similar tendencies across Asia, so we would like to create a firm brand position not only in the domestic market but also across Southeast Asia.

We are seeing a shift towards sustainability among consumers. This was highlighted recently by a European report that said cosmetics contribute 8% of all microplastics. These are mainly used in wash-off products, which has prompted manufacturers to reevaluate their plastic usage, both in packaging and in products. What impact do you think that this need to reduce plastics is going to have on your product design process?

I’d like to get back to my previous answer when I was talking about our significant sales channel, which is a co-op subscription service for the older audience here in Japan. This channel represents a roughly JPY 3 trillion market. It’s not just for cosmetics; it works for different commodities such as food, fashion, and daily necessities. You just look at the catalog and pick what you would like delivered to your door on a weekly or monthly basis. We are the top vendor in the cosmetics field of the co-op, and we have been for the past several decades. We have been winning the trust of our customers for many years.

I mention that because it relates to the question that you asked about environmentally friendly initiatives and the elimination of microplastics, for example. This is crucial for us because winning the trust of the customers, especially those of a more senior age, is essential, as is getting a variety of the certifications and meeting the criteria for that. 

For example, there is a Green Nano certification in Japan that pertains to biomass and removing microplastics from raw material ingredients. We have obtained that for most of our product lineup. We also have packaging initiatives with the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification. Those things have been very crucial for us because we need to ensure that those who are producing our products do so in a way that is safe for our customers. We are positioning ourselves as a sustainable ingredient-sourcing company with environmentally friendly packaging and eliminating microplastics. We also work with the co-op on these initiatives.

Not all of our brands are as environmentally friendly as possible, but that is our ultimate goal.

Your company is focused on creating products and empowering women. Could you talk about some initiatives that you’re engaging in that are helping women thrive in their daily lives?

We call ourselves a well-being and beauty company that empowers women, but achieving this goal is difficult because, obviously, women have a lot of issues that can’t be addressed with just cosmetics. It has to come not from just an aesthetic point of view, but also from the inside. Wellness, hormonal balance, supplements, and nutrition-based solutions are some things we try to promote. Expansion into wellness products is something that we are pursuing right now because women have different things that they need support for from our company, and addressing these needs can separate us from more conventional cosmetics or wellness-based companies. We think the best approach is a blend of wellbeing products and cosmetics.

That may seem like a natural thing or an easy-to-understand concept, but it requires a very in-depth understanding of women’s needs and their minds. We can understand these needs better than others because 60% or 70% of our employees are women and most of our customers are women. We base all our product development on that understanding, including our holistic wellness products, our mindfulness tools, and our traditional beauty offerings. We are always thinking about daily life occasions and asking ourselves what problems our customers are facing with them, and with this better understanding of their needs, we can create the best products. 

There is a Japanese phrase called sanpo yoshi. The word sanpo means “three-way”, and the word yoshi means “good.” In our context, it refers to buying, selling, and doing good for society. Another way to put it is if you create a good product, you sell it wisely, you create an added-value price, and satisfy the customer’s needs, then you will create a circle of good results and create value for society. That’s what we are all about.

There are obviously different generations or women that you serve who have different needs. Can you talk about how to empower those different segments of women?

The major brands in our portfolio are targeting anti-aging solutions for women over 50 years old, but we are also trying to target younger generations of women, for example, with our Ibiza brand. In fact, having a long history of working with formulations targeting older women has created a good depth of knowledge and knowhow that we try to adopt for products targeting the younger generations.

Of course, women of different ages can have different life obstacles. Younger women obviously have issues related to the menstrual cycle, and this is something that we are targeting by creating solutions for these women. Older women, in contrast, have to deal with menopause or post menopause issues, and, unfortunately, there are still not many solutions for these women. For example, if you go to a drugstore now, the only solution you might find is Kobayashi’s Inochi No Haha. Unfortunately, cosmetics and quasi-drug manufacturing companies are not targeting that market, so they are losing a big part of the customer base. Targeting the daily life problems of women of different ages and different lifecycle stages is something that we are trying to solve with our track record of connections with trusted vendors and our customer base.

Ibiza brand

You were recently highlighted in the EY Entrepreneurial Winning Women for 2024. In your speech, you mentioned you wanted to empower women to strive in society. When we look at Japan, it lags in women’s representation, particularly in the corporate world. The percentage of women in Japan who hold a managerial position is only 12%, which compares to 30% to 40% in the EU or the US. What do you think is the biggest barrier in Japan to achieving this equal representation for women?

We are serving as a good example, with women occupying over 50% of the top managerial positions. I don’t want to say negative things about Japanese society, but Japanese corporate customs have been accumulating for many years and, unfortunately, top managerial positions are generally given to men as a preference, sometimes only because of their age or accumulated experience, and sometimes not even that, just as a matter of preference. It has always been like that. Facing facts, the historical scheme of Japanese business enterprises has always been like that. 

Leadership development initiatives to empower women to take management positions would help. I know that firsthand because we originated from Sojitz, which is a big trading company. For three years, since I became CEO of the company, we had been working on changing our company culture. I remember I was looking at the company's brochure with all the employees written in it, and they were defined by color. Men were shown in black, and women were shown in red. I saw just one line in red, so only one top manager position in the whole structure. That's just one example. Many large Japanese enterprises are like that, so when I became CEO of Willlumina, I tried to change the promotion and hiring preferences to not only focus on experience but also to give opportunities to women who have a better understanding of the market. That's something I consider to be my personal contribution to the company, and financially, performance actually improved since then because these women understand the products and market better. In general, ensuring that our recruitment and promotion selection process is fair and unbiased toward women makes us a good example of empowering women.

Hatomugi Rich Essence

You have formed some partnerships in your fabless business model. Are you currently looking for any new partnerships, and are there any particular markets that you want to focus on? 

Going overseas is something that we are already attempting with some success, especially in other Asian countries, but we are open to areas outside Asia if someone would like to have access to our products.

Do you currently have any products that are specifically targeted for overseas markets?

No, but we will. For almost 40 years, we have been planning, developing, and selling cosmetics and other products to address women's health and beauty needs. From product concept planning to manufacturing, we would like to assist our customers in creating the best possible products with our Japan-quality OEM/ODM network and one-stop service.

If we were to return to re-interview you on the last day of your presidency, whenever that may be, what would you like to have achieved by then, or what would you like to be the hallmark of your presidency?

Let's look at it from a wider perspective because Japan has been criticized for having lost three decades in its recent history. People in the Western world call that lost three decades. From my perspective, this is not accurate. I wouldn't call it lost three decades. I would call it a period of preserving accumulated assets because the country has been accumulating wealth and has been sitting on good assets, including both intellectual property and current physical assets. Now is the time that Japanese companies, both large enterprises and SMEs, have to sell these assets and show their strong points to wider, foreign audiences. Now is a better time than any time before, and we are a good example. We have been creating a good reputation and position in the domestic market, and now is the time to bloom and introduce the excellence and strengths that we have been accumulating over the past several decades. So, my goal is to showcase our company to the world, and I hope to continue doing that until the very end.