n recent years, the sales momentum of Chinese cosmetics products in the Japanese market has been strong, and the number of cosmetics imported from China to Japan has rapidly increased. Industry insiders and experts believe that the popularity of Chinese cosmetics in the Japanese market is closely related to the popularity of Chinese makeup in Japan, and also reflects the upgrading of innovation capabilities of Chinese enterprises and the transformation from "Made in China" to "Created in China". However, some industry insiders believe that in order to become an evergreen tree in the Japanese cosmetics market, Chinese companies need to have a deeper understanding of the Japanese market and carefully cultivate their brands.

Chinese cosmetics show outstanding growth in daily sales

Japanese beauty industry insiders say that about three years ago, Chinese beauty products began to become popular in Japan and sales quickly climbed. Compared with European, American, and Korean brands, although Chinese cosmetics brands have not entered the Japanese market for a long time, their growth rate is outstanding and their development momentum is still further strengthening.

This is the perfect diary eye shadow plate taken at the LOFT mall in Ginza, Tokyo, Japan on July 30. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Zhong Ya

According to the Japan Imported Cosmetics Association, Japan's imports of cosmetics from China in 2022 increased by nearly 44% compared to the previous year, with a total value of 10.4 billion yen (approximately 145 yen per US dollar). In the first half of this year, Japan's imports of cosmetics products from China increased by about 45% year-on-year to around 6.1 billion yen; Among them, the import value of eye makeup products reached 3.4 billion yen, a year-on-year increase of over 51%.

Since entering Japan in 2020, Chinese cosmetics brand Xinmu and You have sold over 430000 units of their lip makeup product Lip Mud. Yang Qian, the president of Lizhi Corporation responsible for selling Xinmu and your products in Japan, told Xinhua News Agency that the company's sales target for 2023 is to more than double compared to last year.

Feng Zhen, a Tokyo girl in her 20s, bought the eye shadow plate of the Perfect Diary of the Chinese cosmetics brand in a shopping mall in Ginza. She told Xinhua News Agency reporters, "I feel that the styling of the advertising models is very cute, and I can't help but want to try the beautiful and bright Chinese makeup

The popularity of Chinese makeup promotes cultural exchange

In recent years, a group of Chinese cosmetics brands have won a huge customer base in the domestic market shortly after their birth, and many brands have turned their attention to overseas markets. According to data from the General Administration of Customs of China, the export value of beauty cosmetics and toiletries in China reached 3.03 billion US dollars in the first half of this year, a year-on-year increase of 23.7%.

On July 30th, a customer purchased Chinese makeup products at LOFT Mall in Ginza, Tokyo, Japan. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Zhong Ya

Japanese women who have used Chinese makeup products describe their impression of Chinese makeup as "gorgeous", "brightly colored", and "full of aura after makeup".

The Economist magazine recently published an article titled "Japanese Young People Want to Dress Up as Chinese Stars," stating that Japanese beauty masters are now pursuing Chinese style makeup, while in the past, the fashion trend was usually blowing from Japan to China.

In 2019, the trend of Chinese makeup began to rise in Japan. Nowadays, more and more young Japanese women are fond of Chinese style makeup with clear contours, thick eyebrows, and red lips, making Japanese fashion culture more diverse.

The Chinese internet celebrity makeup teaching video that Japanese beauty blogger "Deer Between" topped on a video sharing website has received over 1 million views.

The Chinese internet celebrity makeup teaching video that Japanese beauty blogger "Deer Between" topped on a video sharing website has received over 1 million views. The Japanese newspaper Mainichi Shimbun quoted her comment in its report: Chinese makeup expresses women's strength and confidence, which is very novel in Japan.

Zhao Junhuai, the head of the Japanese Department at the School of Foreign Languages, Tianjin University of Science and Technology, stated that the popularity of Chinese makeup in Japan is a strong proof of friendly exchanges between people. This trend and trend will undoubtedly bring people closer emotionally and psychologically, and have a positive impact on the deepening of exchanges between the two peoples.

The Nikkei Asia website commented that the popularity of Chinese makeup in Japan indicates that the younger generation can always embrace foreign cultures and trends, which is worth learning from.

Deeply rooted in the Japanese market is a long and arduous task

Excellent Chinese manufacturing, meticulous market research, and precise planning and layout have made Chinese cosmetics products popular in the Japanese market, and Chinese beauty brands have gained a good reputation in the Japanese market. However, multiple industry insiders have stated that Chinese beauty brands still have a long way to go to become evergreen trees in the Japanese market.

Considering that the Japanese public tends to prefer offline shopping, most Chinese makeup brands in Japan have adopted a marketing approach that prioritizes offline while also considering online channels. Yang Qian stated that Xinmu and your brand have established 818 stores throughout Japan, as well as shopping websites such as Amazon. In addition, the Xinmu and You Lip Mud color codes sold in Japan are specially selected for Japanese consumers, targeting female consumers around the age of 20.

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Ji Li, the Asia Pacific Marketing Director of STAR DESIGN, a Japanese company that represents multiple Chinese cosmetics brands, told reporters that due to the low repurchase rate of cosmetics, Chinese brands need to take advantage of the popularity of cosmetics products to launch skincare products and win a stable customer base in order to achieve long-term development in the Japanese market.

Yoshida, a senior industry insider engaged in cosmetics wholesale, believes that if Chinese cosmetics companies want to develop smoothly in Japan, they should first have a deep understanding of the business habits of the Japanese market and make sufficient market research preparations when launching new products; Secondly, it is important to pay attention to publicity, as the effectiveness of publicity can greatly affect product sales. He said that Chinese cosmetics companies should firmly establish their determination to "go global" and deeply root themselves in the Japanese market.