Next stop China? CHAUL by Beiersdorf targets regional expansion for new K-beauty brand

08-Dec-2020 - Last updated on 08-Dec-2020 at 01:12 GMT

Beiersdorf says it is hopeful of Asia-wide success for its new skin care brand. [Beiersdorf]

Beiersdorf says it is hopeful of Asia-wide success for its new skin care brand, which was developed specifically to address ‘high beauty standards’ of South Korean consumers, with China a particular target.

CHAUL is the first Beiersdorf brand exclusively developed and launched in Asia. The three-piece range is based on fermented tea as key ingredient and is currently only available in Korea.

The tea is sourced exclusively from Hadong, a tea plantation in Korea with 1,200 years of history. Renowned for its wild-grown tea fields in the mountainous area, Hadong’s Jaekseol tea leaves are naturally fermented by sunlight, air and wind.

“We wanted to create a brand fully focusing on the skin needs of Asian consumers,” said Endrik Hasemann general manager of Beiersdorf Korea and co-founder of NX.

“The brand concept of CHAUL is inspired by the warmth of tea with its moment of mindfulness. CHAUL wants to embrace an awakened mind and the respect of individual beauty with the philosophy ‘Own Your Moment. Own Your Beauty‘.”

Developed in Korea

The brand was developed by the NIVEA Accelerator (NX) team in Korea as an in-house corporate start-up. This unique setup enabled the brand to form collaboration projects with other start-ups to maximise agility.

“We worked closely with our NX start-ups across all development stages, including consumer research, packaging design, digital marketing and the D2C business model… which enabled us to accelerate the entire process to launch the brand in less than ten months,” said Jacek Brozda, head of ventures and new business and co-founder of NX.

Being developed in Korea was also an advantage for the firm as it views the country as among the most competitive skin care markets in the world with the most sophisticated of consumers.

As such, it aimed to develop a skin care range to suit the needs of Korean consumers. With CHAUL, the company aimed to tap into the increasing interest in clean beauty and vegan beauty.

“The demand for clean beauty with organic or even vegan formulas is increasing constantly and thus, driving the beauty trend globally – especially with the changes brought on by COVID-19. We see great potential in this and believe that CHAUL is an ideal fit for this opportunity,” said Hasemann.

Additionally, the company has also observed trends that have accelerated to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We found that among the fast-moving trends most Korean consumers seek mild and multi-functional products. This has only increased with the global pandemic. Constantly wearing a mask has led to an increase in the need for sensitive products that help ease skin irritations,” said Hasemann.

Global potential?

Currently, CHAUL is available exclusively in Korea through its official website as a direct-to-consumer (DTC) business.

The company aims to extend its reach within Korea in collaboration with selected retailer partners. At the same time, it is seeking to expand the brand into the wider Asia market and beyond.

“The first feedback of consumers was very positive, so we hope to establish a leading position in the Korean market and continue the rollout to other markets in Asia, especially China. In addition, we will collect consumer feedback from other markets, like Japan and the US, to better understand the global potential of the brand concept,” said Brozda.

Moving forward, the firm’s top priority is to further strengthen the brand concept and build consumer trust.

“We just launched a few weeks ago, but the first consumer feedback is very positive. For 2021 we want to bring further innovative products to the market to best serve the needs of consumers in the region. By further exploring the unique tea culture in Asia, we plan to develop further skin care products for CHAUL based on fermented tea.”