[ Feature japanese skincare]
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Japanese Skincare Obsession By Yuko Enomoto
f the U.S. represents the cult of the physical body, then Japan worships the cult of the skin. Just as toned arms and firm abs are the gold standard of the day in America’s pursuit of physical perfection, so is the desire for flawless skin in Japan’s beauty ideal. No other country comes close to Japan’s obsession with and consumption of skin-care products. Japan boasts the world’s largest skin-care market per capita, and Japanese women use and spend more on skin-care products than any other woman in the world.
status symbol,” especially among Japanese and other Asian women, explains Harumi Branch, an esthetician who runs the Savvy Cosmetics store inside the Uwajimaya supermarket. “And those who are looking for the ultimate (in skin care) arrive at Cle de Peau BEAUTE,” a high-end Shiseido line. Whatever the preference — high-end or budget skin care — conscientious Japanese women generally follow a standard regimen that begins with makeup removal, followed by cleansing, application of softener, then lotion and/or cream if they have mature or drier skin. And while many products within that routine can be found at drugstores or department stores here, women are hard-pressed to find softeners by leading European or American brands. Japanese softeners, marketed here sometimes as lotions or astringents, are like a cross between a toner and a moisturizer and are an indispensable part of the process for their role in helping to absorb lotions or creams that follow.
It is said that the average Japanese woman uses up to seven skin-care products several days a week and just as many makeup products. Although the skin-care market continues to decline each year with the slumping economy and shrinking birthrates, Japanese spending on anti-aging products is bucking that trend. And the drop in total spending is not an indication of decreasing Many American women may balk at this laborious interest in skin care; it simply means consumers are regimen. (On a related note, not long ago, I visited a Shu turning to less expensive products. Uemura counter to buy an eyebrow pencil that required Outside of Japan, the rest of Asia has shown deep in- manual sharpening. The beautician simply told me that terest in skin-care products. But the obsession with skin Shu Uemura in America stopped selling them because, care fades in intensity in the West. “American women aren’t going to sharpen their eyebrow Here in Washington, a trip to the Uwajimaya super- pencil.”) But many women outside of Japan recognize the market in the International District or Bellevue reveals benefit of investing time (and money) in their skin care. Japanese loyalty toward their national brands. Rows Still, when it comes to achieving beautiful, heathly skin, the of shelves in a small space are dedicated to Japanese old adage still applies. “You still need a healthy diet, healthy cleansers, exfoliants, lotions and creams. Many of my lifestyle and adequate sleep,” said Yoko Kasahara of Sanders Japanese friends say products from brands like Kose Perry, a Vancouver-based line of natural skin care. “These or Shiseido feel right for their skin, even though those are all necessities for good skin.” brands are not vastly different from their European and American counterparts. On the following pages IBUKI introduces you to local spas, salons and cosmetics counters as well as a bevvy of beauty The considerations that go into a woman’s skin-care products. purchase can be complicated; it is part practical and part aspirational. “Buying a Shiseido product is sometimes a
6 息吹 ibuki • november / december 2011