Shiseido to ring in the New Year with neuroscience-inspired skincare launch
The high-tech mindfulness brand that is Essential Energy was developed, according to Shiseido’s press release, to address consumer concerns that they are becoming desensitized to skin care.
Shiseido’s new brand seems positioned in a way that encourages both consumers and their skin to be more present in practice of skin care.
Inspiration
Neurocosmetics have been an intriguing niche for a few years now. And this Shiseido launch may be the brand that moves the trend squarely into the mainstream.
Shiseido claims to have applied neuroscience research to developing the Essential Energy skin care line. “Harnessing the combined power of science and nature, SHISEIDO’s ReNeura Technology activates the power of touch to awaken unresponsive skin and to boost the effectiveness of skincare products,” according to the company’s release.
“The formulation is imbued with an Active Response Powder that is made of malleable spheres that guide the skin’s senses to detect information and damage in real time. Combined with the regenerative force of Ashitaba that helps preserve and sustain the energy required for efficient sensory transmission, ReNeura Technology helps forge inner connections that improve skin’s ability to employ the power of skincare, bringing out lasting beauty,” explains Shiseido.
The products are formulated with intriguing ingredients as well, like Assam tea extract, pearl extract, Scutellaria Baicalensis root extract, and Citrus Unshiu peel extract.
Sensation
The new brand’s packaging and signature scent have been carefully designed to amplify the skin care formulations.
Bowl-like jars that take their cues from Japanese tea ceremonies are shaped “to appeal to the sense of touch with a natural fit into the palm,” according to the press release. Across the collection, there are 64 container shapes and decorative designs. And, “each piece [is] meticulously crafted and strenuously tested using psychological metrics to empirically prove its effectiveness in awakening the senses while delivering a sensation of comfort.”
Shiseido selected a distinctive scent for the new Essential Energy skin care product line. The fragrance “blends floral scents of rose and jasmine with fruity accents of fresh pear, rounded out by a soft final note of musky wood. A touch of sweet orange weaves through the elegant, feminine fragrance,” as the release describes it.
Calibration
Shiseido’s current strategy seems to be about not only advancing established brands to keep pace with changing times and consumer expectations but also about innovating new brands like Essential Energy.
This summer, Shiseido introduced a new skin care brand designed especially for millennial consumers. According to a press release circulated in advance of the WASO launch, the company explained, “the range has been crafted with authenticity at its core. Through WASO, Shiseido is redefining beauty – empowering Millennials to feel beautiful in their own skin whatever their gender, nationality, age or status.”
As these two new brands illustrate, Shiseido is creating beauty brands in niche categories that simply couldn’t have existed before. And it will be worth watching what trends and movements the multinational capitalizes on next.
