South Korean beauty brands most popular

Chinese local brands are outperforming western brands, but Chinese women's appetite for South Korean beauty products continues, according to an industry report.

According to a report on Facial Skincare released by Mintel Group Ltd this month, domestic companies including Pehchaolin Daily Chemical Co Ltd and Shanghai Shangmei Cosmetics Ltd saw significant gains in market share. Intensive investment in mass marketing and distribution channels has helped both companies grow rapidly in the short term. Booming e-commerce has also helped both companies to acquire more users without opening physical stores during the last five years.

More importantly, consumers have realized local brands are better value for money than most of the international brands. Mintel has tracked the product usage in 2015 and 2016.

Facial cleanser remains the most used product among both women and men. Facial masks have replaced moisturizers and have become the second most used product after cleanser. Chinese women's appetite for K-beauty continues.

Some 33 percent said South Korean brands are their most often purchased brands, which rank the highest amongst all listed countries of origin. Chinese women are enthusiastic fans of cosmetics endorsed by South Korean celebrities, particularly those popular with young audiences aged 20-24. They are tempted to buy skincare brands used by leading actors in South Korean TV dramas. Chinese women have established a distinctive association of brands from different countries.

As a result, their purchase motivations are driven by these distinctive perceptions. The facial skincare market was worth more than 91 billion yuan ($13.7 billion) by the end of 2015, a year-on-year growth of 11.5 percent. The robust growth of domestic brands as well as brands from South Korea has expanded the market size further.

Looking ahead, the market will continue to see strong growth supported by the demand for the anti-aging and antipollution products.