FOR the holidays, Shiseido has released special-edition bottles of its best-selling Ultimune Power Infusing Concentrate and the iconic eyelash curler, which is said to be the best in the world and well-suited to the Asian eye shape.
Aside from this, Shiseido also recently launched its Sustainable Beauty Actions. Sustainability is a big issue in the beauty business, what with all the bottles, tubes, jars, palettes and even sachets that go into the packaging of all the beauty products we consume. Shiseido’s Sustainable Beauty Actions is anchored on three goals: mottainai (recycle and reuse), harmony (with society and the environment) and empathy for all.
First, Shiseido put up an Ultimune fountain at the Shiseido flagship store in Ginza for refilling empty bottles. The brand has also created the world’s first biodegradable lip palette, Shiseido AquaGel.
For the Ultimune fountain, customers can bring their empty Ultimune bottles, where they are cleaned in a sanitation-controlled environment before being refilled. With the aim of achieving 100 percent sustainable packaging by 2025, this is Shiseido’s first refill service in Japan.
In the Philippines, Shiseido plans to have the Ultimune fountain in one store although there is no timetable for this yet.
By 2025, the 148-year-old Japanese beauty company aims to have sustainable packaging with the five “Rs.” Essentially, this means reduce (less packaging), reuse (refillable containers), recycle, replace (with biodegradable materials) and respect (for the environment).
Shiseido also wants its consumers to share their thoughts on sustainability and ideas related to it via the online community #ShiseidoSBAS.
The Shiseido Sustainable Beauty Actions is based on three pillars. Mottainai is one of those Japanese words that is difficult to find a single-word English equivalent. It is often used to mean “what a waste!” Generally, it means a sense of regret over waste, and is a call for gratitude and respect.
The second pillar is harmony, through which Shiseido promises to nurture the beauty of society by engaging in community-focused activities in harmony with people and nature. Under the banner of the Shiseido Blue Project, the brand vows to continue protecting and supporting beaches, oceans and the skin we live in.
The Shiseido Blue Project is an ocean protection initiative introduced by Shiseido in 2019. As part of the initiative, the brand engages in beach clean-ups, partnerships and other activities. More information can be found at brand.shiseido.co.jp/shiseidoblueproject.
The third pillar is empathy. Through the concept of #ALIVEwithBeauty, Shiseido “strives to bring out the beauty of every individual, regardless of gender, age, nationality or any other personal attribute.”
“To ensure Diversity and Inclusion in every aspect of our brand, we respect the rights and freedom deserved by all, and we act with empathy to create a world where individual beauty can shine,” said Shiseido in a statement.