Procter & Gamble and A.S. Watson have joined forces for the co-creation of aio, a new skincare brand designed for busy consumers, with simplicity and sustainability in mind.

The brand is making its debuts in the physical and online stores of Watsons in the Greater China markets a single sku named Super Essence, an all-in-one product designed to maintain skin’s hydration and reduce overproduction of sebum.

"This is a P&G Beauty first breakthrough collaboration with a retail partner to co-create a new skincare brand from scratch. We are delighted to team up with A.S. Watson to learn together and co-design the aio proposition for the Derm and Wellness needs of the customers. This is the future of retailing and skin care," said Markus Strobel, Global President, P&G Skin & Personal Care.

Targeting Gen Z & Millennials

With this new launch, P&G and A.S. Watson aim to attract Gen Z & Millennials. They expect the line to have a larger proportion of sales from online channels.

"Our seamless O+O (Offline plus Online) platforms and sophisticated customer insights will help aio to open new markets. Sustainability is our top priority and we are happy to see aio’s packaging is fully recyclable, making it eligible to be listed as Clean Beauty product under Watsons Sustainable Choices. With its philosophy of ’simple sophisticated’, I truly believe aio will be loved by customers with its unique proposition, refreshing design and great product performance," added Malina Ngai, CEO of A.S. Watson (Asia & Europe) and Group Chief Operating Officer.

According to the two companies, clinical tests have shown that 84% of users who experienced aio Super Essence agree the essence can help skin maintain hydrated and reduce overproduction of sebum; 90% think skin looks radiant and youthful with minimized pores; and 81% say it stabilizes skin to reduce redness, acne and pimples.