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CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

Chapter 1 will provide the background of this research including current global

beauty trends, narrowing down to beauty trends in Indonesia and South Korea.

Furthermore, it will give readers an insight regarding white beauty in Asian region,

why it is important to study this culture and research questions needed to understand

it.

1.1 Background

In today’s world, females and cosmetics are inseparable. Girls as young as

eight years old have started to understand the notion of beauty (Anuwong, 2013).

Taking care of one’s beauty and thus improving the physique of oneself is not seen

as a negative behavior, but rather a custom that every female practices. In the past,

cosmetics were believed to be a nuisance for noble women. Prostitution, immorality,

and materialism were words that used to relate to the cosmetics industry (Pallingston,

1998). Nonetheless, three centuries after its introduction, the global cosmetics

industry is now more than widely accepted, generating up to USD 382.3 billion

revenues in 2010 (Lopaciuk & Loboda, 2013).

Perception regarding cosmetics has always been evolving, changing along

beauty trends. While it was known to be a vanity purchase, after the 2009 global

recession, cosmetics are seen rather as investments (Lopaciuk & Loboda, 2013).

Globally, consumers spend on cosmetics with less guilt and thus encouraging

expansion of the cosmetics market. The ever-growing industry is now divided into

five main segments namely: skincare, hair care, color (make-up), fragrances and

toiletries (Lopaciuk & Loboda, 2013). This paper will focus on the skincare category

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within cosmetics industry which contributes up to 23% of the total global sales in

2010 (Lopaciuk & Loboda, 2013), making it one of the most prominent sectors in the

industry.

Even though cosmetics sales are growing in most parts of the world, cosmetics

trend differ with regions. Anti-aging products are the most favorite within beauty

care products in the Western world (Lopaciuk & Loboda, 2013), but in Asia, skin-

lightening is what the market looks for (Bird, Caldwell, & DeFanti, 2010). Hence,

there is a need to look deeper into consumers’ perception regarding skin-lightening

products to better market cosmetics in Asia.

This study on skin-lightening product purchase intention were done as a

journal adaptation from a past study titled Women’s Perceptions and Use of ‘Anti-

Aging’ Products by Amy Muise & Serge Desmarais (Muise & Desmarais, 2010).

1.1.1 Global Cosmetics Industry

The sales within global cosmetics industry are still dominated by major

developed countries such as United States, Japan, and France, mostly due to the high

discretionary income of women in those regions (Lopaciuk & Loboda, 2013). While

men’s role as cosmetics consumers is increasing, women are still the key consumers

in most parts of the global cosmetics market (Anuwong, 2013). Hence, when women

have more percentage of income to be spent on beauty products, sales of cosmetics

are expected to rise in proportion.

Despite positive trend in average global growth of around 4.4% (Lopaciuk &

Loboda, 2013), emerging markets promise even bigger growth for major cosmetics

brands. Brazil, India, Russia, and China, or better known as BRIC are now

attributing to 21% share in the global cosmetics industry, with promising growth up

to 25% share in 2015 (Lopaciuk & Loboda, 2013). Big cosmetics brands are looking

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into BRICs markets’ beauty trends to mark their existence in these rising markets.

BRICs markets, however, possess unique characteristics that are not similar with the

long-established cosmetics industry in the Western world. With the exception of

Russia, BRICs markets consist of countries that are predominantly non-white and

thus have different beauty standards than consumers in France or USA.

Source: (L'Oreal, 2014)

Figure 1-1: World Cosmetics Market

Another apparent shift in the cosmetics industry is the popularity of skincare.

During the 1990s, hair care was the second highest revenue driver (20.8%) in

personal care market. Nonetheless, the trend has changed and consumers are now

more willing to spend money on skincare, causing the segment to replace hair care’s

position in 2010 with 23% (Lopaciuk & Loboda, 2013). In 2013, L’Oreal Annual

Report shows that a 34.1% of total global sales attributed to skincare, with 32.8% of

sales coming from Asia-Pacific market; both percentages show the highest

contribution amongst other product types and geographic regions (L'Oreal, 2014).

Without skincare market, researches believed the cosmetics industry will struggle to

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prosper. In fact, in 2010 skincare segment was considered the most significant

market due to its success in developing markets hence the vast potential room for

growth (Lopaciuk & Loboda, 2013).

In developed market such as USA, baby-boomers and older generations are

dominating the skincare market, reasonably making anti-aging the most popular

skincare choice (Lopaciuk & Loboda, 2013). That is; however, not the case in BRIC

markets, especially those in Asia. Asian market has its own set of beauty standards

and demographics of cosmetics buyers. Hence, brands are competing to better

understand the Asian market as it is currently the main drive for growth within

skincare industry (Lopaciuk & Loboda, 2013)

1.1.2 Beauty Trends in Asia

“The definition of beauty in the Western world is linked to anti-aging. In Asia,

it’s all about being two shades lighter” the quote from Ashok Venkatraman of

Unilever India accurately describes beauty trends in Asian market (Bird, Caldwell, &

DeFanti, 2010, p. 28). First, there is a need to define whiteness in Asian countries.

Based from a study on cosmetics advertisements in Hong Kong, Japan, and Korea,

ideal skin colors in Sino Asian countries are soft ivory, classic ivory, and natural

ivory (Li, Min, Belk, Kimura, & Bahl, 2008). This spectrum of ivory is what Asian

women consider as white. In Indonesia, there is no clear definition of whiteness.

Originally, Indonesian skin is considered to be in the middle of light and dark,

varying from one island to another. Most commonly found is a tone called sawo

matang, and white skin according to Indonesians most probably refer to shades

lighter than sawo matang, often called kuning langsat (Rashid, 2007), which literally

translates to olive color but often related to ivory colors.

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Sources: http://1.bp.blogspot.com/yg46ZiDNIDM/UO7C2BTYbQI/AAAAAAAACq0/ejDXZBObiXE/s1600/whulandary-herman-foto-2.jpg

http://indonesiabrandforum.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/sariayu_wp_putihlangsat.jpg

Figure 1-2: Skin-tone Comparison in Indonesia

Women in Asia have constantly been on a hunt for the best skincare products

that give their skin more brightness and clarity. In Asia-Pacific region, whitening

products sales are valued up to US$13 billion, and is still growing at a positive rate

since the 1970s (Tan, 2012). Considering the large population in Asia, and its

growing middle class, it is no surprise that both prestigious and mass market brands

release skin-whitening products especially in Asia (Bird, Caldwell, & DeFanti, 2010).

Asian market started to surface when the 2009 global recession happened. Like

how it affected other industries, cosmetics, defined as something bought from

discretionary income were struggling with global sales. In Asia, though, especially

China, India, and Indonesia, sales were not highly disrupted by the recession, even

resulting in over 25% growth rate in 2010 (Lopaciuk & Loboda, 2013). Hence, Asia

provides a safety net for cosmetic brands to salvage themselves from stagnant growth

in developed Western markets, causing big brands to develop products that better suit

this market. Furthermore, in some Asian cultures such as China, skincare especially

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skin-whitening is originally seen as an investment, long before the recession

(Lopaciuk & Loboda, 2013). This particular consumer behavior is highly beneficial

for big global brands as they can be assured the purchase does not come from

discretionary income like it was in the West but rather from consumers’ main

disposable income.

Anti-aging, maintaining its lead in the global cosmetics industry, is starting to

get its spotlight in Asian market. Various studies in Asia show that 50% of cosmetics

consumers feel its importance. Nevertheless, more than 80% of consumers surveyed

still feel that skin-lightening is the most important aspect in a skincare product

(Lopaciuk & Loboda, 2013). Growth in the skin-lightening market is currently

boosted by Asian market, with Japan as the biggest consumer. The segment in Asia-

Pacific market is predicted to be growing at the rate of 13.3% (McDougall, 2013).

Furthermore, 2006 data shows that there were 226 skin-lightening products (only

those that specifically meant to lighten skin tone, not other cosmetics products with

lightening attributes) available in Asia, four times more than it was in 2002 (August,

2008). The increase is explained by demands for skin-lightening products in various

Asian countries, in Thailand, 58% of its women population use lightening cream.

Similar cases happen in the Philippines, Malaysia, and Hong Kong with 50%, 41%,

and 45% of usage rate respectively (August, 2008).

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Source: Synovate, from (August, 2008)

Figure 1-3: Use of Skin-lightening Products in Asian Countries

South Korea

While countries in Asia are distinct from one another, some countries bear

similarities due to the culture they share. South Korea is one of the three countries

sharing one similar culture which sociologist Reischauer calls Sino Asians

(Reischauer, 1974). The word Sino means Chinese and behaviors that relate to its

culture. Historically, the common use of Chinese alphabets gave these countries a

uniting root, then as letters were shared, so did the teaching of Confucianism that

became a uniting philosophy for China, Korea, and Japan.

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Thailand Philippines Malaysia Hong Kong

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Countries

Use of Skin-lightening Products

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Source: (Anuwong, 2013)

Figure 1-4: Skincare Sales in Asia Pacific

As published by Euromonitor, skincare is the most popular category in Asia-

Pacific market. Sino Asian culture is one of the main reasons that drove Asia to

become the main growth driver for the skincare industry. Sino Asian women have

long-standing tradition in regards to skincare, the demographic puts less emphasis on

color make-up and relate beauty to having skin that is bright, transparent, white, and

full (Pan, 2012) hence the high consumption on skincare.

In Asia, anti-aging benefits from a skincare come in second due to the belief

that having white beauty trumps any other sort of beauty, in accordance to an old

Chinese proverb “one white can cover up a hundred uglinesses” (Bird, Caldwell, &

DeFanti, 2010). Sharing the same Sino root, the same belief is reflected in Korea, a

country that has centuries-old white beauty standard, proven by the existence of mi-

an-soo started in the Goryeo Dynasty (year 938-1392) (Li, Min, Belk, Kimura, &

Bahl, 2008). Mi-an-soo is a ritual of washing faces with peach water to achieve

brighter skin tone, and is encouraged to be practiced since a young age. Historically,

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Korean traditional folklore often related darker skin-tone with evil; hence, the

existing opinion, even in present time, that fair skin-tone is what Koreans have to

achieve (Li, Min, Belk, Kimura, & Bahl, 2008).

In South Korea, beauty could almost translate to sameness. In a society whose

women are expected to have pale skin, having darker skin-tone could lead to being

an outsider. According to an opinion article written by a foreign teacher in South

Korea, beauty in the mindset of young Korean girls is definite (Lee, 2013). Probably

due to its homogenous characteristic as a country, the pressure to follow the standard

of beauty is rather high in South Korea. High-school aged girls in South Korea

regard beauty as looking similar to the idealized features which include a small face,

big eyes, pale skin, and ssang-kkeo-phyool (the crease of fold in an eyelid). Due to

the strict standard of beauty, to judge the beauty of a person Koreans tend to use

some sort of a checklist, suitability does not matter as long as a person fulfills the

criteria aforementioned she will be considered beautiful.

Source: Euromonitor International

Figure 1-5: Sales of Beauty and Personal Care Products in Asia-Pacific

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Following this attitude, physical appearance becomes an important issue in

South Korea; making it the third leading country in terms on beauty products

consumptions in Asia with an estimate of US$ 9 billion in sales (Anuwong, 2013). It

is not uncommon for job applicants to include appearance improvement as a part of

the preparations they need to make before attending job interviews. Due to its favor

for beauty, South Korean women mostly use up to 18 different types of cosmetics

daily, with a focus on skincare (Hunt, 2011). Throughout different demographics,

South Koreans take serious care of their skin, which usually involves double skin

cleansing and a regular regimen of facials, weekly treatments and hydrating masks

(Kantor, 2014).

Therefore, it is no wonder that in 2012, this country became the 12th largest

cosmetics producer in the world. South Korea is also the biggest beauty trend

importer in the global market, spreading unique local trends such as the use of snail

mucus and sheet mask globally. South Korean cosmetics started gaining its fame

after the boom of BB (blemish balm) cream that gives the impression of smooth,

natural skin often with brightening benefits (Tang, 2013). When its cosmetics

became popular, so did Korea’s beauty standard which promotes natural, pore-less,

and bright skin look. Furthermore, Korean wave or the popularizing of Korean pop

culture across Asia further spreads white beauty perception in China and Southeast

Asian markets.

Indonesia

Indonesia’s beauty perception should be given extra attention because

Indonesia is one of the few countries which cosmetics sales were not disrupted by the

2008 global recession (Lopaciuk & Loboda, 2013). It may not be the largest

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cosmetics market in Asia, but its growth rate for cosmetics products reached up to

almost 8% in 2012, much higher than the total global growth of below 2% (Anuwong,

2013). The country’s large population and growing consumer class also made

Indonesia one of the most promising countries for many industries (McKinsey

Global Institute, 2012), including cosmetics.

In Indonesia, a country known for its originally tanned skin tone, surprisingly

white beauty is also the goal that women thrive for. Up to 70% of Indonesians wish

to have white skin (Rashid, 2007), mainly due to the perception that whiteness

symbolizes beauty. According to Synovate, 65% of women, and 69% of men in

Indonesia prefer their opposite sex to have white skin (Rashid, 2007). Whiteness is

even becoming an unhealthy obsession for some, as proven by the case of an

Indonesian housemaid who pushed herself to steal just so she could purchase skin-

lightening creams (August, 2008).

Traditionally, pre-colonialism Indonesia’s Javanese literatures recognize both

dark and light skin colors as beautiful. Nonetheless, after being colonized by the

Dutch for 350 years, white beauty became more widely accepted in Indonesia.

During this era, whiteness always symbolized power (Rashid, 2007). The ladies of

the Dutch, as the ruling class, are comparatively whiter than the natives. While native

Indonesian skin was often seen as exotic, Indonesians have been long dictated that

white equals power.

White beauty in tropical countries like Indonesia is not only due to white

(Caucasian) adoration, but as well social status. Shifting to more recent eras, the rise

of local cosmetics brands during 1970s became another factor that pushes popularity

of white beauty in Indonesia. Local companies such as Martha Tilaar and Sariayu

both promote beauty like Keraton (Javanese-style palace) princesses as the beauty

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standards of Indonesian women (Rashid, 2007). Princesses, in this case, are

perceived as women who do not work hard labor and stay inside the palace hence

they have paler skin tone than the average native Indonesian (in this context,

Javanese) women. In promoting white beauty, Sariayu even went as far as changing

the term kuning langsat to putih langsat as a part of its product series to put further

emphasis on the word putih (meaning: white).

Source: www. vemale.com

Figure 1-6: Whitening Products in Indonesia

From the pop culture perspective, teenage magazines also played its role in

shaping whiteness as beauty standard in Indonesia. These magazines often talk about

Hollywood styles, providing young girls with cosmetics alternatives, ranging from

make-up, hair dye, to colored contact lenses that will make them look more Western

(Handajani, 2006). From early 2000s, Asian pop culture including the rise to fame of

Taiwanese and Korean dramas which feature pale-skinned actresses also contributed

to further strengthening the perception of white beauty in Indonesia (Handajani,

2006). Skincare brands have even started selling products that are promised to make

one Korean-style beautiful due to the perception of Korean skin-tone as beauty ideal

(Kartika, 2013). Ponds with its White Beauty line, for example, advertises a young

Indonesian singer, Gita Gutawa, with fair white skin and rosy cheeks, admired by the

Koreans for her pretty face.

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1.2 Rationale

Indonesia is a big market in Asia with a growing consumer class, making it the

16th biggest economy in the world (McKinsey Global Institute, 2012). In this

promising market, mass media are promoting white beauty as the standard of beauty

(Handajani, 2006). Likewise, in South Korea one is more likely to find ivory-skinned

models representing beauty products (Li, Min, Belk, Kimura, & Bahl, 2008).

White beauty seems to be an interesting cultural phenomenon and hence

provides skin-lightening a unique position in the Asian market. Brands should look

further into this market because Asian market makes up to US$ 18 billion in

cosmetics sales (Pan, 2012), and 80% of this growing market considers skin-

lightening attributes within a skincare product to be the most important (Lopaciuk &

Loboda, 2013).

This paper does not discuss the moral values of skin-lightening nor does it

provide judgments regarding white obsession. Knowing the buying behavior of these

female consumers is not meant to fix nor change their morals but, as businesspeople,

to serve their needs better and thus provide possible growth for the cosmetics

industry. The novel point of this study is for companies to understand that Indonesian

market may differ from the more popular and more discussed Sino Asian markets

(South Korea, Japan, and culturally-Chinese countries).

1.3 Research Problem

While whiteness is clearly the beauty standard for South Korean and

Indonesian women, past studies have only analyzed women’s desire for lighter skin-

tone from psychological or anthropological perspectives, and some even focused on

correcting this white beauty phenomenon in Asia. These women were only seen as

victims of white supremacy, when in fact they are potential consumers who influence

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the growth of cosmetics industry in Asia as more and more women are considering

cosmetics as important purchases (Lopaciuk & Loboda, 2013). Hence, it is necessary

to understand women’s purchase intention of cosmetics products.

The objective of this research is to study different variables and their impact on

consumer behavior of Indonesian and South Korean women in regards to skin-

lightening purchase intention, more details will be explained in Chapter 3.3

(Research Objective). It is hoped to provide a comparison between the two

nationalities. Variables that were be studied are: self-esteem, importance of

appearance, skin-tone anxiety, and sociocultural pressures; adapted from (Muise &

Desmarais, 2010) block two independent variables. Country-of-Origin effects was

added, based on a study by (Pan, 2012).

1.4 Research Questions

[RQ1]: Do the independent variables studied (self-esteem, importance of

appearance, skin-tone anxiety, sociocultural pressures, and country-of-brand effect)

have any impact on skin-lightening product purchase intention?

[RQ2]: Is there any significant difference between results of study on

Indonesians and of South Koreans?

1.5 Aims and Benefits

The aim of this paper is to better understand cosmetics industry in Indonesia

and South Korea by looking at several factors including self-esteem, importance of

appearance, skin-tone anxiety, sociocultural pressures, brand’s COO and their impact

on skin-lightening product purchase intention. This study is going to provide

stakeholders within the cosmetics industry with better insight regarding women’s

purchase behavior of skin-lightening products.

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Knowing Indonesian women’s perception regarding skin-lightening cosmetics

will be beneficial for global brands. Indonesia currently has 8% yearly growth in

cosmetics industry (Anuwong, 2013); in addition, Indonesia is home to 45 million of

middle class population (McKinsey Global Institute, 2012), making it a favorable

target for big global brands. Global brands are currently developing products to

better suit Asian market; however, most studies provide data only from Sino Asia

(those with originally pale skin such as Japan, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and South

Korea) while Indonesia has different cultural backgrounds attributing to desire for

whiteness compared to those countries. Hence, this paper hopes to provide

understanding for any stakeholder that tries to tap into an emerging market that is

Indonesia.

The choice to include South Korea is to highlight the similarities and

differences that Indonesian women consider when using skin-lightening products.

For global brands, this could help in designing specific regional marketing strategies

by understanding that Asia is a varied market. Indonesian women are culturally

different from the more known Sino Asian women characteristics, hence factors that

drive them into using skin-lightening products may differ; global cosmetics brands

need to understand these to better provide customized marketing strategies.

Furthermore, local brands could as well benefit from this study to reinvent

their identity as cosmetics brands. Western or Sino Asian brands may have the

country-of-origin advantages that make their skin-lightening products more

trustworthy, but knowing the behavior of cosmetics consumers in their own

homeland could help Indonesian brands to recreate the beauty image they are

offering to Indonesian consumers and compete with East Asian brands. Local brands

could also utilize this study to better understand South Korean, which is currently the

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third top consumer of cosmetics in Asia-Pacific and thus venture into international

market.

1.6 Scope

This research specifically focuses on females, currently still the main buyers of

cosmetics products. Men grooming is growing but this habit is not yet widely

accepted especially in Asia; hence, for the purpose of research ease, this paper will

focus on women.

The term “Indonesian” and “South Korean” refer to nationality. This paper

studies Indonesian and South Korean women with limitation on age. Researcher

decided to study only young women, targeting university to early employment age.

Limitations of this research are chosen in order for sample to better represent

the population of said demographic since cosmetics market’s consumer segment is

wide and varied; furthermore, it is based on the consideration young women are part

of the future workforce and some Asian cultures believe that skin clarity is important

in job application processes.

The title of this research indicates that it focuses on the behavior of female

consumers in urban areas, which according to Merriam-Webster dictionary is defined

as “of or relating to cities and the people who live in them”. The choice to include

only city population is based on past studies that show cosmetics consumption are

highly concentrated in cities (Lopaciuk & Loboda, 2013).

Skin-lightening refers to any skincare product that has skin-lightening

properties claim, not limited to specifically skin-lightening cream but also includes

face mask, body lotion, night cream, cleansing foam and other types of skincare that

promise lightening results. The term “lightening” commonly means to make whiter,

used interchangeably with words such as bright or fair, but all referring to lighter

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skin-tone. Skin-lightening products come in various shapes and prices; hence,

researcher considered respondents’ expenditure on beauty products as an indicator of

type or price range studied in this research.

Figure 1-7: Explanation for "Skin-lightening" Term

Indonesia is chosen because it is a unique market with varying cultures. South

Korea is expected to represent Sino Asian countries that mostly have homogenous

race, and is chosen as comparative study. For many Asian women, Sino Asian

women are already seen as the ideals of white beauty; however, they too put efforts

to lighten their skin. Hence, it is important to see factors that made these so-called

ideals thrive to be a shade paler.

1.7 Structure

Chapter 1 (Introduction) talks about the background of this research including:

current global beauty trends, narrowing down to beauty trends in Indonesia and

South Korea. Furthermore, Chapter 1 gives readers an insight regarding white beauty

in Asian region, why it is important to study this culture and research questions

needed to understand it.

Chapter 2 (Theoretical Foundation) reviews theories and past studies that are

supporting this current study. In Chapter 2, readers are hoped to understand each

variable studied in this research.

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Chapter 3 (Methodology) lays out plans for research methodology used to

answer research questions provided in Chapter 1. Since this study is a journal

adaptation, readers will also find journal adaptation table in Chapter 3.

Chapter 4 (Findings and Analysis) analyzes findings using methodology

explained in Chapter 3. The analyses are hoped to be able to answer research

questions proposed in Chapter 1 and thus provide a conclusion about the study in

Chapter 5.

Chapter 5 (Conclusion and Recommendation) summarizes answers of

research questions will be provided to fulfill research objectives. Based on this

current research, recommendations will be given for further researches.