Pandemic skin: Bio-essence targets opportunities by solving COVID-related skin care problems

Bio-essence is a Singaporean masstige skin care brand founded in 2000. It joined India’s Wipro Consumer Care and Lighting in 2014 through the acquisition of its parent company L D Waxsons Group.

Today, the company is available outside Singapore, including Malaysia, Hong Kong, China, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam, Myanmar, Australia and the UK.

In the aftermath of the COVID-19 outbreak, the firm told CosmeticsDesign-Asia​ that the company, like many others, has experienced dramatic shifts in the market.

“There’s a lot more focus on social, digital, and business has shifted a considerable percentage onto online platforms, this will shape the way we craft our strategies in the coming years,” ​said the ​head of marketing for Bio-essence, Joanne Tan.

Despite the challenges of COVID-19 in 2020, the brand has been “happy”​ with its performance thanks to its ability to quickly shift towards e-commerce, said Tan.

“Sales were slowest during the [lockdown] period. However, as we invested more in e-commerce and home delivery services, we started to see improvements in that few months before the market gradually opened up again.”​

As the pandemic and its effects on consumer lifestyle and habits continue to persist, Bio-essence has tweaked its product development strategy with a focus on launching products that can help consumers overcome skin issues like ‘maskne’ – acne triggered by frequent use of surgical masks.

“Wearing a face mask has become part of our daily routine, and the mask usually traps humidity due to breathing and sweating which may increase the risk of acne, redness, and irritation. To meet these needs, brands are now focusing on products which claim to solve ‘maskne’ and be suitable for sensitive skin,” ​said Tan.

Its latest launch, Bio-Water Biome range, does just that. The range consists of four products, ranging from SGD10.90 to SGD45.90, which are formulated with pre- and probiotic ingredients to promote the growth of good bacteria and balance the skin’s biodiversity.

“A balanced and diversified microbiome is the foundation of good skin health. For decades, most skin care products in the market focus on improving performance of physical skin barrier – Bio-essence aims to bridge that gap with the new Bio-essence Bio-water Biome range, which is specially formulated to take care of the invisible skin barrier – also known as microbiome” ​said Tan.

According to Tan, the Bio-Water Biome range contains lactobacilli grown in a medium of plant-derived culture containing vegetal substrates.

New year, new plans

Bio-essence believes the growing prevalence of skin problems triggered by COVID-related issues, such as ‘maskne’ and skin dehydration, will continue to drive the skin care market.

In addition to products for sensitive skin, the company has also observed a growing need for facial sheet masks.

“Apart from the new Bio-essence Bio-Water Biome products, Bio-essence also has a wide variety of sheet masks available in the market which target nearly every skin concern, and we are looking to launch more sheet masks in the very near future to meet consumer demands,” ​said Tan.

In addition to that, Tan revealed that the firm was planning to launch new products targeting younger consumers to diversify its consumer base.

“Moving into 2021, Bio-essence is turning 21 years old. With that, apart from offering our consumers a comprehensive range of effective anti-ageing skin care regimes, we are also looking to launch new innovative products that will cater to the younger consumers.”​