Speaking of Korean cosmetics and its amazing growth, I couldn’t help but delve into some commercial successes
The innovation
Technology
The waste
“They’re all crazy about it …”
“Fantastic …”
“She changed the make-up …”
They’re talking about cushion make-up, a new proposal in the world of fontotinta that overlaps the segment of alphabetic creams: BB, CC etc. .. as multitasking or multifunctional product.
Faced with so many enthusiastic reviews, the question arises whether they are due to the hallucinogenic effects of fashions, skilled marketing campaigns or an actual innovation that has revolutionized the functionality and perceived quality of the product.
Launched in Korea in 2008 by Iope, a brand of the Amore Pacific group, today not only does the group sell tens of millions of pieces a year, but the idea with different variations has been adopted by many major make-up brands. As often happens in marketing and as a historic commercial said: just the word. And in this case the key word is “cushion”, used to define a marketing conceptand a product design that can then be declined in different ways. Thus, despite the great similarity in design and communication, make-up sold as a cushion by different brands can satisfy different expectations.
The acronyms imagination of the markettari transformed the initials CC, found in many products, into Color Control, Cushion Compact, Cream Cushion, etc.
As in alphabetic creams, in cushion make-up, the use of SPF to communicate sunscreen involves the usual mess of characterizing sunscreen products that typically lack the features, warnings and, in the US, approvals that a sunscreen product should have.
The innovation
The term “cushion” refers to sponges, more properly urethane foams (you know the foam rubber?) Impregnated with the cosmetic to be applied.
Innovation lies in a concept that has a profound effect on product design. The cosmetic, a foundation, but also a pigmenting emulsion, one of the many “teint créme” that are now called: BB, CC, DD etc. .. is formulated with a low viscosity, essentially presenting itself as a fluid. The packaging and design, where the major innovations have been concentrated, is however similar to that of a compact foundation. The fluid impregnates a sponge from which it escapes as a function of pressure. There is not much really innovative and revolutionary. The sponge impregnated with fluid product is a sort of dispenser, dispenser of the pigment which is then normally distributed on the skin by another applicator cushion (which to distinguish it we could call “puff”), with a much finer porosity in order to reduce the amount of product absorbed. The idea of dosing / applying a color with a sponge, a piece of foam rubber or similar objects instead of a brush is certainly not new. The design is innovative but not new, the utility model, where the container of the fluid foundation externally is similar to those for compact products and the large surface puff allows faster and more uniform applications. The more fluid formulation means that the container of a “cushion”, unlike that of the compact foundation it resembles, is airtight when closed, if you do not want to dye the inside of the bags and their contents. The design is innovative but not new, the utility model, where the container of the fluid foundation externally is similar to those for compact products and the large surface puff allows faster and more uniform applications. The more fluid formulation means that the container of a “cushion”, contrary to that of the compact foundation it resembles, is airtight when closed, if you do not want to dye the inside of the handbags and their contents. The design is innovative but not new, the utility model, where the container of the fluid foundation externally is similar to those for compact products and the large surface puff allows faster and more uniform applications. The more fluid formulation means that the container of a “cushion”, contrary to that of the compact foundation it resembles, is airtight when closed, if you do not want to dye the inside of the handbags and their contents.
Both for the economic crisis, we emerged from an economic crisis that could bring down the global banking system, and for the trend-fashion of multifunction products, the formulations of Korean “cushion” products boasted ancillary qualities: sun protection, some depigmenting effect (which always works in Asian markets), some moisturizing effect, some dreamlike nourishing effect.
The term “cushion” is not adjustable and anyone can use it. The Amore group, one of the greats in the world of cosmetics with massive investments in Research and Development, even though it has filed hundreds of patent applications, has registered only a few patents to protect the concept. Since the general idea is hardly defensible, both for anteriority and for genericity, they have patented various marginal technical details: the procedure of production and impregnation of the sponges, the stabilization of the formulas to keep the product fluid despite the large surface exposed to the air. of the sponges, the relationship between viscosity of the fluid and porosity of the sponges, etc.
Given the success of sales, it is not surprising that despite the risk of a patent litigation, today dozens of brands offer products aligned with this concept. In marketing, products or strategies that pursue another brand’s successful concepts are called “me-too”.
Technology
At the formulation level, I see no stratospheric news.
These are mostly silicone water emulsions with metallic pigments and UV filters, in some cases multiple emulsions with an additional gelled external phase. The concentration of inorganic sunscreens (in products that declare it from 6 to 17%) significantly raises the amount of powders to be stabilized in the emulsion compared to foundations with only pigments and matting or soft-focus powders. The formulation difficulties are exacerbated by the use of the high porosity sponge, where the greater surface exposed to the air accelerates the phenomena of drying and microbial contamination.
The normal preservative system is aided by higher concentrations of glycols and ethylexylglycerine and greater fluidity and resistance to drying is guaranteed by higher concentrations of silicones. In silicone water emulsions the viscosity decreases by increasing the silicone unlike the silicone emulsions in water where by increasing the silicone the viscosity would increase. Overall, the formulation can be traced back to one of the many foundations with sun protection or to one of the many BB creams adapted to be dispensed with an impregnated sponge. It should be noted that the sponge, with its surface-to-volume ratio, can somehow contribute to the stabilization of an emulsion with many powders dispersed inside. High porosity sponges can affect the choice of particle size and coating,
The “coverage” can be modulated at will according to the commercial objective. Normally higher than that of BB creams, it can be reduced by adjusting the particle size of the inorganic filters and pigments or by increasing the concentration of organic sun filters for the same SPF.
The color range is usually smaller than that offered in “normal” foundations for commercial reasons only and brands with higher sales volumes in “cushion” products may offer wider color ranges.
The waste
A new idea or a new design that sells tens of millions of pieces a year is an idea that WORKS.
The consumer immediately perceives the practicality of a fluid foundation that can be carried around and easily applied last-minute. All other effects: brighter, more moisturizing, more nourishing (!), More covering, less covering, more sun protection etc. they are formulation modulations at the discretion of the producer who must segment and qualify the product. Many of the perceived qualities found in so many enthusiastic product reviews associated with the “cushion” concept may be the result of particularly effective marketing or fashion-induced suggestions / hallucinations.
The use of an impregnated sponge to retain the fluid in compact containers involves a great waste of product which in the end is not released by the sponge; but the very high marginality, that is the ratio between the industrial cost of the formulation and the price to the public in make-up products, allows to reduce the economic perception of this waste. Some brands offer, with success and questionable practicality, the possibility of recharging. The higher fractionation, i.e. 10/15 ml packs versus 30 or more ml packs, allows for much higher prices per liter even for brands that are not in the luxury or prestige range.
Rodolfo Baraldini