Jitendra Rathod, newsletter contributing editor, provides insights into how blockchain technology is transforming the beauty industry.
“Makeup is not a mask that covers up your beauty; it’s a weapon that helps you express who you are from the inside.”
Michelle Phan
From the dawn of time, vanity and its never-ending need have gone hand in hand. From the age of Cleopatra to the Victorian era, beauty secrets have a way of passing down from one generation to the next. Fast forward a few decades, this sprawling industry is now valued at over $532 billion.
The last 10 years witnessed an exponential spurt in the beauty domain. YouTube, with its ever-expanding user-base, has aided tremendously in this rapid spurt. The year 2018 recorded about 169 billion views on beauty related content. “Beauty Gurus” have now become self-made millionaires, thanks to wide consumerism.
Needless to say, modern advancements in technology have dominated and engineered various sectors of our society with the beauty industry proving to be its new playground.
Innovation and Retail
The beauty scene today has changed dramatically. With the advent of technology, mankind has brought the art of vanity literally to your fingertips. From customized skincare to personalized beauty solutions from the experts, everything is within your reach.
The growth of direct-to-consumer beauty brands that manufacture and send their products directly to buyers and consumers without the hassle of middlemen has revolutionized the market. Direct-to-consumer companies sell their products at relatively lower prices than your traditional brands allowing for greater transparency in marketing, management, and distribution of the products. These brands cater specifically to the needs and want of the customer.
Consumers today don’t have the patience for traditionalistic “one size fits all” requiem. The reality is different now. What works for one will not work for the other. New age beauty brands like Glossier, Milk Makeup, The Ordinary, and Mario Badescu have hit the spot/ nail with their modern marketing approach. For instance, Mario Badescu, in just 6 months, outranked age-old brands like Clean and Clear and Clinique to grab the number 2 spot for teen girls’ favorite skincare brand as reported in Piper Jaffrey’s semiannual “Taking Stock With Teens” survey.
Glossier, launched by Emily Weiss, has taken a more personalized stance in the market. The brand, through its campaigns, has specifically focused on the au naturel stance, celebrating the customer’s natural beauty. It is all about bringing the best in you forward. Glossier lets your beauty do the talking as it should be.
How Blockchain is Helping Transform the Beauty Industry
Blockchain technology has cemented itself in every sector of our growing society. From healthcare, education, finance to even governance, the rise of blockchain doesn’t seem to stop. In the beauty sector, blockchain technology has been incorporated by various beauty brands. Let’s see a couple of industry examples.
Jolyy: Online booking beauty platform, Jolyy came into the market in 2016 with its efficient booking strategies for websites across Europe. The first version of the booking platform was well received by consumers leading the company to now focus on upgrading the platform using blockchain technology.
With the aid of blockchain, Jolyy plans on increasing user efficiency to initiate faster payments and cutting down on commission costs. The upgraded platform would be based on the Origin Protocol, using the Ethereum blockchain network. The decentralized platform would enable users to book various beauty appointments at the click of a button, and finding the lowest prices for beauty treatments, opening days and hours.
Consumers and clients would now be able to interact directly with enterprises and businesses without the inconvenience of a middleman. Jolyy has also come up with the company’s native token, JOY, for its users to process cashless payments and to check-in rewards.
COSMEE: Cosmee, a blockchain-based beauty platform launched by Cosmochain, provides the perfect amalgamation of modern technology and age-old tried and tested methods. Cosmee believes in rewarding both the user and the companies on its platform.
Members of Cosmee would typically be rewarded for creating beauty content using products of the companies mentioned. Users are rewarded in Cosmo Coin (COSM), the site’s native token, according to the level of their interaction within the community. Users can pitch in their ideas, write blogs, create videos or just “like” and “comment” on various posts.
Cosmee is currently the first company to incorporate a “token reward” system for users and enterprises alike. The more active one is in the Cosmee world, the more reward one gets. The company with this initiative plans to get rid of the “influencer only” ideology adopted by social media platforms like YouTube and Instagram.
The Cosmee team is currently in its initial stages of platform development and is solely focused on preparing a solid user base and maximizing customer satisfaction by providing for transparency between the consumer and the buyer.
Blockchain Proving to be a Hand of Gold for the Beauty Sector?
Digitization has truly transformed the game for enterprises, both large and small. Companies are constantly on the lookout for more efficient techniques to expand their resources and provide the best online user experience. Brands not only make use of websites but have also incorporated various innovatory methods like chatbots and virtual reality sections where the users can get a free trial run while sitting in the comfort of their homes.
The adoption of blockchain technology would enable companies in the future to entertain consumers’ honest reviews regarding various products. Making use of this data, companies would be able to hone their marketing and digitization strategies in a coherent and well-structured way. The focus could then be driven to increase profit and revenue while subsequently decreasing marketing and product development costs. Blockchain technology isn’t limited only to its marketing tactics, the technology provides for increased digital connectivity between users and medical professionals alike.
The beauty industry is estimated to grow up to $750 billion by the year 2024. According to EDITED’s retail data platform, UK’s H&M increased their beauty section by 94.8%. Beauty newsletters and mentions in emails also saw a dramatic rise by about 58% in the US from 2017-18 and up to 24% in the UK. From advancements in skincare to technological influences, blockchain is proving itself to be the gateway of the future.