From 1991 to 2023, the growth history of Uniasia Technology can be regarded as a condensed history of the Chinese cosmetics industry. It has transformed from a regional cosmetics distributor to a large-scale cosmetics group with multiple brands, comprehensive product categories, cross-channel operations, and international presence. Uniasia Technology is gradually assuming the role of a leader, leading the Chinese cosmetics industry into a new era.
Today (December 26th), Uniasia Technology held the “Power of Progress” Huangpu District Beauty and Health Industry Chain Party Building Work Promotion Conference and the 2024 Summit on High-Quality Development of the Beauty and Health Industry in Guangzhou. With new journeys come new challenges, and as the leading enterprise in the beauty and health industry chain, Uniasia Technology, which has created one “pride of made-in-China” after another, carries a new historical mission and continues to explore a broader future.
The brand “aircraft carrier” propels development acceleration
Looking back at the history of international beauty and cosmetics development, the rise of almost all leading beauty conglomerates began with the establishment of high-quality brands. Similarly, in the history of Chinese domestic beauty and cosmetics development, the true era of “Chinese brands rising” also started with the establishment of brand recognition. Uniasia Technology is no exception.
In 1999, Uniasia Technology’s first brand, Meifubao, carried the original intention of inheriting the Oriental skincare tradition and the belief in “technology empowering Chinese ingredients.” It went through market cycles from whitening to sun protection and anti-aging, embarking on Uniasia Technology’s brand-building journey.
This year, Meifubao not only underwent a comprehensive visual rejuvenation of the brand, but also selected a rare ginsenoside, Ginsenoside PRO, with anti-wrinkle properties from the validated 182 ginsenosides. They launched the rejuvenating work “Meifubao Anti-Gravity Cream,” which reached the top of the Tmall’s new anti-wrinkle cream list and the new repairing cream list within 7 days of its release. It also ranked first on Douyin’s popular brand anti-wrinkle cream list and brand repairing lotion list during the Double 12 shopping festival.
Subsequently, multiple brands such as Meifubao, Franic, See Young, and Skyn Future began to take root, sprout, and grow within the Uniasia Technology ecosystem.
For example, See Young, certified by authoritative institution Euromonitor International as the “number one silicone-free scalp care brand in China,” has dedicated 10 years to researching active ingredients with the efficacy of soapberry. Its popular See Young Plant Extract Efficacy Series has received tremendous market response since its launch. The oil control refreshing shampoo alone has sold over 55 million units and has repeatedly topped various best-selling lists, such as Douyin’s popular oil control shampoo and Tmall’s V-list oil control category.
It is worth mentioning that CHAILEEDO, on-site information revealed that in 2024, See Young will launch a new scalp microecological efficacy series and a new salon series called “See Young PRO,” using salon technology peptides to help consumers revitalize their root repair power.
Another example is Skyn Future, which has been deeply involved in scientific whitening. With over 20 years of research experience in melanin deposition, its research team has innovatively proposed the “Five Ratios and One Degree” biological whitening genomics based on insights into the characteristics of Chinese skin. By scientifically combining ingredients such as 377, whitening golden licorice extract, and tranexamic acid, they have achieved significant brightening effects through five major pathways.
In July of this year, Skyn Future announced its collaboration with the IIVS In Vitro Testing Laboratory in the United States to establish the International Skin Pigmentation Joint Research Laboratory, further developing innovative solutions to address skin pigmentation issues. According to Hu Genhua, Chief Marketing Officer of Uniasia Technology and founder of Skyn Future, Skyn Future’s sales revenue is expected to grow by more than 300% in 2023.
Franic, born in 2002, has spent 21 years deeply cultivating the field of plant efficacy. It has established a formula research and development system based on cutting-edge plant technology and continuously upgraded its popular products through technological iterations. They have created a core matrix of water emulsion, face masks, and aloe gel, with the face masks achieving the remarkable milestone of selling over 500 million pieces in six years. The classic aloe cucumber mask has sold nearly 100 million pieces. With 15 years of technical expertise, the aloe gel has become an industry benchmark, leading the category’s innovation with cumulative sales exceeding 11 million units.
Uniasia Technology has always aimed to “create champion products and establish world-renowned brands” as its strategic goal, and the results prove their success. As of now, Uniasia has had six products selected as Guangdong Province’s high-quality cosmetics “Yuezhuang Zhenpin,” including Meifubao Wuzhen Elasticity Moisturizing Firming Cream (Moisturizing Type), Meifubao Whitening Isolation Sunscreen SPF50+PA+++ (Spot-lightening Type), FRANIC Aloe Gel (Essence Condensation Type), and See Young Soapberry Oil Control Refreshing Shampoo (Oily Scalp Type).
Past achievements determine the present, and the present determines the future. The above accomplishments are just a part of Uniasia’s history. The “brand aircraft carrier” will continue to sail, and more importantly, the future path it will take. In the eyes of Hu Genhua, the brand is the longest movie and the shortest epic in this era’s grand narrative of commerce. In the future, Uniasia Technology will continue to deepen its efforts in brandbuilding, product innovation, and consumer-centric strategies to drive the development and growth of its brands. By leveraging technology, research and development, and market insights, Uniasia Technology aims to create champion products and establish world-renowned brands in the beauty and cosmetics industry.
R&D as the foundation, creating the brilliance of Chinese products
From a single brand to a “brand aircraft carrier,” from a single professional channel to multi-channel expansion, from a segmented field to encompassing skincare, hair care, and other multiple categories… The reason why Uniasia Technology has gradually embarked on a path of multi-brand, multi-category, and multi-channel development is its solid research and development system.
Going back more than a decade, as early as 2007, Uniasia Technology established its own research institute and embarked on research on Chinese botanicals, making it one of the first Chinese companies to establish its own R&D center. At this year’s annual meeting, the Chinese Botanical R&D Center, as an upgrade in the field of Chinese botanical research in the past 16 years, was officially unveiled. It announced cooperative research and development projects with universities such as South China University of Technology and Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine on various Chinese botanicals. This “core-making field” has independently developed innovative materials such as rare ginsenoside PRO, fermented essence of soapberry, and 799 reishi extract, which will create more unique and innovative materials for Uniasia Technology.
Taking an overview of Uniasia Technology’s current R&D system, it has three major research centers in China, Australia, and the United States, and four technical platforms including basic research, bioinformatics, biotechnology, and plant cell engineering technology. These form the foundation for research and development. Ten major research centers, including the hair care technology research and development center, product research and development testing center, and human efficacy evaluation center, form the research and development framework.
In terms of industry-academia collaboration, Uniasia Technology has accumulated nearly 10 years of experience. It has collaborated with academicians from the Chinese Academy of Engineering, Sun Baoguo, Beijing Technology and Business University, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou Quality Supervision and Testing Institute, and Guangdong Light Industry Vocational and Technical College to carry out multidimensional technological breakthroughs, achieving industry chain collaborative innovation and complementary innovation.
The comprehensive R&D system and industry-academia collaboration have also given Uniasia Technology the confidence to attract high-quality talents. It is understood that Uniasia Technology has built a high-quality R&D team with over 200 members in various fields such as traditional Chinese medicine, biology, material chemistry, and pharmaceutical formulation. They come from renowned domestic and foreign universities and research institutions such as Peking University, Chinese Academy of Sciences, and the University of Manchester, gradually enriching the flesh and blood of Uniasia Technology’s R&D system. So far, Uniasia Technology has obtained 203 authorized patents, won 37 scientific and technological progress awards at various levels, published 119 scientific research papers, obtained 40 scientific and technological achievement appraisals, and participated in the revision of 25 standards.
It is worth mentioning that at this year’s annual meeting, Uniasia Technology, together with research institutions and universities such as the Institute of Medicinal Plant Development of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Shanghai Skin Disease Hospital, and Guangdong Provincial Institute of Drug Control, jointly authored and released the book “Approaching Precise Whitening – Cosmetic Science Whitening Mechanism and Technology.” Based on current whitening market cases and the “Five Ratios and One Degree” development concept, it provides valuable insights for the research and development of whitening products and serves as a reference for the high-quality development of the whitening market.
From basic research to project implementation, and then to market practice, Uniasia Technology is continuously enriching the imagination of Chinese beauty and cosmetics research and development through a series of practices and transformations. With advanced R&D insights, it will explore more uncharted territories in the beauty industry.
“Chain Leader” drives the upward growth of the beauty industry
While products and research and development are the foundation of beauty conglomerates in the market, the future of long-termism goes beyond that, and Uniasia Technology’s path is not limited to this.
“We will devote all our energy and resources to the further growth of Uniasia Technology. The three driving forces that will lead Uniasia Technology’s upward development in the future are ‘scientific research innovation + digital transformation + green and low-carbon’ development,” said Hu Xingguo, Chairman of Uniasia Technology. “We hope that the people of Uniasia Technology will not lower their heads and get lost in short-term competition, but instead lift their heads, look to the distance, stand at a higher level and a broader perspective, and bring our excellent products to the market, striving to bring the company and the entire industry to the international stage.”
Taking digitalization as an example, as early as 2010, Uniasia Technology launched its development strategy for informatization, intelligentization, and digitalization. Currently, Uniasia Technology has become one of the first cosmetics companies in the world to pass the integration management system assessment for informatization and intelligentization and the first cosmetics company in China to achieve AAA-level (highest level) assessment for integration management. According to the evaluation report of the digital transformation diagnosis platform system on the website of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Uniasia Technology’s integration capacity surpasses 97.75% of the companies in China.
At the same time, in the field of ESG sustainable development, where overall participation rates are still low, Uniasia Technology has been implementing green supply chain management since 2021 and has launched a development plan for green supply chain management. This year, Uniasia Technology was also awarded the national-level “Green Supply Chain Management Enterprise” in the daily chemical industry by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, becoming one of the few companies in the industry to receive this honor. This undoubtedly affirms Uniasia Technology’s path to sustainable development. It is worth mentioning that the case of “Uniasia Technology’s development path of sustainable and green supply chain” was also selected as an “Outstanding ESG Case of 2023 Fragrance, Flavor, and Cosmetic Companies.”
It can be said that whether it is brand building, technological research and development, industrial chain synergy, digital manufacturing and marketing, industry standardization, or sustainable development, Uniasia Technology is embracing the industry with a leadership posture.
In February of this year, Uniasia Technology was awarded the first batch of “Chain Leader” enterprises and “Sub-chain Leader” enterprises in the Huangpu Beauty and Health Industry Chain. With the innovative driving model of “Chain Leader + Sub-chain Leader,” Uniasia Technology takes on the role of the “leader” to promote the high-quality development of the beauty industry. Wu Zhiqing, President of Uniasia Technology, stated that the Huangpu Beauty and Health Industry Chain has already gathered over 1,600 cosmetic business enterprises and nearly a thousand cosmetic brands. Under the leadership of Uniasia Technology and other companies in the Huangpu industry chain, the Huangpu beauty supply chain network industry cluster is taking shape, and Huangpu Beauty and Chinese Beauty are on their way.
Deng Huiyu, Secretary of the Party Group and Director of the Huangpu District Market Supervision Bureau in Guangzhou, mentioned at the meeting that in the future, Huangpu District will continue to focus on chain-leading enterprises and leading enterprise party organizations, and fully leverage the effects of peer interaction and demonstration leadership.
To wear the crown, one must bear its weight. As Hu Xingguo said, “I hope this sense of mission and belief can lead Uniasia Technology to go further, become a company with faith and mission in this turbulent era, take root and grow upward.”
For the beauty market, Uniasia Technology is an established domestic brand group with 32 years of accumulation. It is also a pioneer always at the forefront, constantly innovating and transforming, which gives Uniasia Technology the courage and confidence to face new market environments and the ability to lead the upward development of the Chinese beauty industry.
