Rise of C-Derma (Chinese Derm Care) Beauty in China

So skin sensitivity boom is one of the reasons of the recent uprising of Derma-care, as well as the increase in cosmetic surgery and its related care, to offer medical-level soothing and repairing solutions.

The rise of the interest in derma brands is also due to the fact that Chinese women are more and more demanding on functional care products for sensitive and problematic skins, as their awareness about efficacy, mildness and safety has been strongly heightened during the last years and especially after Covid-19 crisis.

As a result, the market of functional derma skin care has been increasing significantly, representing 197, 5 billion CNY in 2020 (30, 5 billion USD) with 11, 6% of year-to-year growth and the market size will exceed 300 billion CNY (46, 4 billion USD) in 2023 (source: Imedia research).

In this context, local brands are really performing well creating the boom of what we name the C-Derma care. Facing the fierce competition with international and Japanese derma cosmetic brands such as Avène, la Roche-Posay, Filorga, Freeplus, Curél, etc., local functional derma brands have been witnessing an unprecedented success in terms of sales performance and popularity thanks to their unique positioning, problem solving formula, ingredients and concentration approach, KOL & celebrity marketing. The double 11 Shopping Day 2020 embodies this success as it brought Chinese brands such as Winona or Home Facial Pro in the spotlight (they are in the top 50 list in terms of sales value), while QuadHa and Dr.Alva are among the fastest growing new local derma brands.

Indeed, C derma brands have adopted different positionings depending on what base they were founded, who they are targeting, and how they communicate.

TCM-based Pien Tze Huang, created in 1980, have built its stature thanks to efficient care based on iconic ingredient of Chinese medicine such as Ganoderma or Pearl Powder.

Dr Yu , dermatological brand aiming at resolving skin problems such as itching, inflammation, redness and developed with a dermatologist team and clinical testing, targets consumers who are looking for efficacy, tested and proved by clinical research, with safe ingredients based on botanical formulas.

QuadHa, developed by Bloomage Biotech (the World’s largest manufacturer of HA) or Dr Alva are based on highly functional and perfectly dosed ingredients such as Nicotinamide, HA, or Ceramides. These “Pro derma” brands in the move of Home Facial Pro address “skintellectual” consumers, riding a wave that started with the American brand The Ordinary.

Last but not least, some brands are taking a more medical approach to derma care by offering products developed with medical aesthetic clinics and targeting post-surgery treatments, like the popular ‘medical usage masks ’by the brand Voolga.

This product category will keep leading the cosmetics market for the coming years boosted by the increasing demand for aesthetic procedures & treatments from the young Chinese generation. Chinese brands bring legitimate answers to Chinese skin concerns, interest in ingredients while promoting safe and affordable product offers that evolve with market needs and trends like Whitening & early aging for sensitive skins.