Weekly Roundup: YSL-Lil Nas X’s “weapon of reinvention” makeup campaign, Emma Chamberlain debuts matcha dry shampoo

09 Jun 2023 --- This week, YSL Beauté kicked off a new makeup campaign inspired by the diverse “eras” of Lil Nas X, which will be rolled out in “chapters” across the year. YouTube influencer and Vogue red carpet host Emma Chamberlain introduced a Matcha Dry Shampoo, in a collaboration between her coffee brand and hair care line IGK. Meanwhile, Perfect Corp. and Parfums Christian Dior, unveiled a new makeup AR virtual try-on platform for remote consultations.

Limited edition launches and campaigns
YSL Beauté released its latest campaign with Lil Nas X. Branding makeup a “weapon of reinvention,” five looks produced for the campaign are inspired by five “provocative sides of him.” Shot by renowned London-based photographer Campbell Addy, the campaign was revealed as five vignettes, each representing a different era for Lil Nas X, starting with “The Icon,” which works with highlighters for an “under-glow” effect, resulting in reflective skin and candy-tinted lip gloss. Every makeup look will be released as a separate “chapter” throughout the year to highlight the artistry of YSL makeup as a medium of transformative self-expression. The next four chapters will be unveiled throughout summer and into fall, through out-of-home and online social channels.

Matcha Dry Shampoo by IGK and Chamberlain Coffee (Image credit: IGK).Internet vlogger and Met Gala host Emma Chamberlain’s coffee lifestyle brand, Chamberlain Coffee, partnered with IGK to launch a limited-edition Matcha Dry Shampoo. Inspired by Chamberlain Coffee’s classic Matcha Green Tea, this Matcha-infused dry shampoo is designed to absorb hair oil, preserve style and add light touchable texture without grit. The co-branded product will be an iteration of IGK’s Direct Flight Multi-Tasking Matcha Dry Shampoo with exclusive packaging. It will be made available for purchase at Ulta, Chamberlain Coffee’s website and IGK’s website in December.

In honor of the 25th anniversary of SexyHair, the hair care brand is collaborating with Christina Aguilera for a campaign. The partnership will include exclusive tutorials from SexyHair stylist ambassadors on how to recreate “Xtina’s” most memorable looks with SexyHair products. This campaign will launch in Ulta in July and is now available in Cosmoprof and SalonCentric with in-store product displays and ecommerce landing pages. Throughout the past 25 years, both SexyHair and Xtina have inspired self-expression to their respective audiences across generations by ditching social norms and embracing sexy. Recently, ‘90s-00s hair trends have risen in popularity, notes the brand, as people are revisiting iconic styles inspired by Xtina’s debut studio album in 1999 and music video “Genie in a Bottle.”

New product development
Addressing the demand for products that reduce dark spots and repair the skin barrier, La Roche-Posay introduced the newest addition to its anti-aging serum profile, Niacinamide 10 Serum. Hyperpigmentation, sun spots, sun damage and discoloration were some of the highest growing skincare concerns in 2021, all consequences of premature skin aging, the brand highlights. Formulated with a high concentration of 10% pure niacinamide, the Niacinamide 10 Serum is marketed as the first mass commercialized niacinamide serum that is clinically proven to help reduce dark spots, clarify discolorations and rebalance the appearance of uneven skin tone. Up to 90% of visibly premature skin aging is caused by the sun, known as photoaging. Niacinamide 10 Serum directly repairs signs of photodamage, targeting hyperpigmentation.

Attitude, a Canadian body and home care brand, expanded its Oceanly collection – skin care in push-up stick formats – with a foray into the makeup category. Its new natural cosmetics are marketed as the “world’s first line of solid, 100% plastic-free, entirely EWG verified makeup,” packaged in biodegradable cardboard. The line of 28 products includes foundations, tinted oils, concealers, blushes, bronzers, highlighters and lip gloss serums. Phytoglycogen, the hero ingredient of this line, helps improve the health and appearance of the skin by providing long-lasting hydration. Oceanly’s Phytoglycogen is 100% plant-derived and eliminates the need to extract glycogen from shellfish.

A new YSL campaign unveiled five vignettes, each representing a different era for Lil Nas X (Image credit: YSL).BioFormula Select’s Stop Guessing, a skin care brand specializing in dark spot removal products, expanded into Canada. The sales for the current fiscal year have shown remarkable growth, exceeding 520% compared to the previous year. Between January 01, 2022, and May 25, 2022, the gross profit has also experienced significant growth, with a 375% increase compared to the previous year. The product range is enriched with ingredients like vitamin C, niacinamide and kojic acid, for fading dark spots and brightening the skin. The line consists of a Color Correcting Exfoliator, Dual Force Gel, Body Scrub, Age Spot Removing Serum and Body Wash.

Digital tech and e-commerce advancements
Perfect Corp., an AI and AR-based beauty tech solutions provider, announced its collaboration with Parfums Christian Dior, showcasing the new makeup AR virtual try-on for remote consultations. Parfums Christian Dior will unveil its sixth beauty tech solution developed with Perfect Corp. This solution introduces a live online consultation service during the makeup shopping journey. The live streaming online consultation service combines Perfect Corp’s AR makeup virtual try-on technology with Bambuser’s live shopping technology. Perfect Corp. began providing Parfums Christian Dior with beauty tech solutions in 2020. Since then, Dior has utilized Perfect Corp.’s makeup virtual try-on solutions on various platforms. These include Dior beauty’s website, retailer websites, Google platforms, WeChat and its TaoBao mini program.

To celebrate the launch of Lipshade – a “buildable, bold lip color in easy-to-apply shades that nourish, hydrate and protect” with 100% mineral SPF for naturally softer and smoother lips – Supergoop! teamed up with Snapchat on an AR try-on Lens that lets users apply four Lipshade colors to decide what looks best, without stepping into a store. Snapchat also partnered with nail polish brand OPI on the Nail Lacquer Lens, which lets Snapchatters try on eight of nail polish shades. This Lens features “first-of-its-kind” Snap AR tech called Nails Segmentation, which makes the digital nail try-on experience more realistic.

Procter & Gamble (P&G) debuted a hair care microsite, dubbed #HairDNA, which is designed to solve consumers’ biggest hair queries via expert advice from the world's leading brands, exclusively on Lazada, Southeast Asia’s e-commerce platform. The launch of #HairDNA marks the first-ever retailer partnership for P&G in Southeast Asia. The platform is also intended to help P&G with its consumer engagement, through personalizing the experience and increasing the segment of one-to-one interaction, all while driving higher penetration for its premium beauty segment.

La Roche-Posay ntroduced the newest addition to its anti-aging serum profile, Niacinamide 10 Serum (Image credit: La Roche-Posay).Business developments and recognitions
Specialty ingredients and chemicals giant Univar Solutions completed its acquisition of Kale Kimya, a specialty chemicals distributor in Turkey in the beauty, personal care, home care and industrial cleaning markets. The company offers formulation lab facilities and technical expertise, as well as a comprehensive range of household and industrial cleaning products. These include beauty and personal care products, including surfactants, emulsifiers, preservatives, UV filters, perfumes, polymers, conditioners, esters and emollients. It also exports outside of Turkey.

Crown Aesthetics, a division of Crown Laboratories, announced that it is expanding further into the Asia-Pacific Region. To lead the way, Jeff Sinclair has joined the organization as executive director of sales, Asia. Sinclair will lead Crown’s growth strategy in Asia with a distributor network for the first FDA-cleared microneedling system, SkinPen Precision, and its living probiotic, Biojuve.

Specialty chemicals supplier Evonik was honored with the American Chemistry Council’s (ACC) 2023 Sustainability Leadership Award in the Product Safety, Innovation & Transparency category. The award recognizes ACC member companies for products, processes or initiatives that promote the safe use of chemicals, transparency, informed sustainability decision-making and innovation to reduce risk. Evonik received the award for Rheance One, a special type of glycolipid biosurfactant derived from renewable raw materials. Surfactants are important compounds of cleaning products. Rheance One is mild to the skin and designed for the formulation of sustainable beauty and personal care products.

By Benjamin Ferrer