In this episode of Indie Pioneers we discuss the importance of consumer education to tackle misinformation and confusion, including the debate around natural versus synthetic ingredients, with the founder of Fawn & Co.
The Singapore-based firm was founded in July 2019 by Hann Chia, a former investment banker and a Formula Botanica graduate.
The company was initially developed to focus on cosmetic research and development but has since focused on beauty education through its Fawn Labs subsidiary.
Fawn Labs conducts the Clean Beauty with Fawn Labs workshop, a two-hour session that takes on topics such as ingredient and formulation safety as well as teaches consumers about their skin and what is most suitable for their skin type.
Subscribe
Hijabi hair care: Unmet needs creating massive opportunities for industry players - Dow By Amanda Lim The unmet hair care needs of hijab-wearing Muslim women is creating huge opportunities for players to develop products that specifically target covered hair.
A hijab is a headscarf worn in public by some Muslim women. Despite not being on display most of the day, the hair beneath the scarf has unique needs.
“One of the main concerns for women who wear hijabs is keeping their hair feeling fresh. Since they may wear a hijab for many hours at a time, they can experience oily hair and scalp as well as dandruff because of the excessive sebum produced,” said Cedric Toh, regional marketing manager (Southeast Asia, Australia & New Zealand) Dow Personal Care.
Manila-based skin care brand Native Biologique is eyeing huge opportunities in the Philippines skin care market, which it believes is poised for rapid growth.
The newcomer was founded by Jolly Morales, who previously spent over eight years in the cosmetics ingredient industry as a distributor before graduating with a Diploma in Cosmetics Brand Management from the Institute of Personal Care Australia.
Native Biologique launched in December 2020 with one brightening vitamin C skin serum made with Kakadu Plum extract.
The company utilises a cellular extraction technique that does not degrade the ingredient during the extraction process.
“It’s not just an ordinary extract. We call it Kakadu Phytoactive C and we believe it helps to differentiate us because we are able to really showcase these amazing Australian native extracts thanks to this technology,” Morales explained.
Japanese health and beauty retailer Welcia-BHG Singapore is focusing on increasing its percentage of Japan-made offerings to differentiate itself from competitors and drive growth of its business.
Welcia-BHG Singapore is a joint venture between AEON subsidiary Welcia Holdings and Chinese retailer Beijing Hualian Group (BHG).
Since it entered the market in 2017, the company has experienced steady growth. Despite the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, it managed to unveil more brick-and-mortar stores, growing its retail footprint to 10 outlets across the island.
According to director Masato Ishii, overall sales for the company have been down compared to 2019 because of pandemic-related shifts and economic downturns.
A newly launched skin care retailer based in Singapore is placing emphasis on curation and personalisation to help it stand out in the crowded e-commerce space.
SKNEDIT was launched in October last year by co-founders Emily Yiu and Natassia Siu whose backgrounds are in accountancy and public relations respectively.
The retailer offers skin care products from over 20 brands such as REN, Purito and Cerave.
The duo saw an opportunity to launch its website last year as more people began to migrate onto e-commerce because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“People are moving away from the brick-and-mortar stores and it’s the same for our industry. More people are open to purchasing skin care based on just the description and reviews,” said Yiu.