Strategy Brand, Business, Internationalisation
Activation Business Matching, Experience
When Skincare Goes from Personal to International
How we turned local bespoke skincare label Skin Inc into a global powerhouse
In a saturated local market full of established players, the local brand needed to rise above the clutter and stand apart in the atmosphere.
Personalised skincare? That sounds like exactly what I need!
Likewise for millions of people, just like you, across the world. That’s why Skin Inc’s concept of “bespoke fuss-free skincare for everyone” is so popular today.
But we’ve heard that things were tough. Take us back to the beginning.
Alright. In 2007, when Sabrina Tan launched the brand, she found herself competing in a saturated market full of established players, with something for everyone and every skin type. And customers aren’t exactly loyal to the skincare brands they use, simply because there’s too much choice, and there’s something “better” coming out every week.
Wow, “challenging” feels like an understatement.
Definitely. Even established global players had a hard time hanging onto their market share, let alone a new local brand. We saw that Skin Inc really needed to rise above the clutter and stand apart in the atmosphere.
Going into multiple channels and international markets was key to achieving greater economies of scale and gaining clout in the busy market.
True. So how did Louken help Skin Inc do that?
To be honest, the Singapore skincare market was too small. To dive in, Skin Inc would have to get out: to scale, go overseas—internationalise. That’s why we encouraged Skin Inc to go into multiple channels and markets to achieve greater economies of scale. To do that, we first needed to push forward its bespoke skincare proposition, and it was this move that gave birth to some of the concepts everyone loves about the brand today.
So that’s how Skin Supplement Bar came into the picture?
Exactly! Together, we came up with the Skin Supplement Bar, a counter system for on-the-spot skincare customisation; My Skin Identity, a proprietary self-diagnostic technology; and My Daily Dose or MDD, a potent serum custom-blended for all skin goals.
And now you’re ready to stand on the global stage!
Well, not quite. There was much to be done before heading out into the wild, wild world. Firstly, we had to help Skin Inc build an internationalisation system that was packaged for its team representatives to use when reaching out to potential partners in Asia, Europe, and the US. Then, we identified intellectual assets, created operation manuals, and came up with a business opportunity package that told potential partners about pre-determined ROI, commercial terms, and pricing systems.
Ok, and now they’re ready?
Yup. We did this through multiple channels, including franchising, distribution, retail, and e-commerce—all working together as one. This helps us achieve economies of scale. You can say that in this case, more is more.
So did you fine-tune the communications to suit every market? Was it the same message?
Everyone in the world wants beautiful skin. And everyone wants their skincare to fit them perfectly. So this proposition was a powerful, universal promise. All we needed to do was to keep communications trendy yet clear and simple, even when translated. So all markets across the globe knew the same Skin Inc.
That’s clever. What do the numbers say?
Today, Skin Inc is taking care of customers in over 78 cities. Skin Supplement Bars have become hot destinations at Sephora and Nordstrom, and Skin Inc retail products continue to rank consistently on leading skincare review sites. Oh, if that’s not impressive enough, they’ve won over 100 international beauty awards!
Plus, they now have concept stores, and more than 200 retail distribution points across Asia, Europe, and the United States. On- or offline, Skin Inc doesn’t show any signs of slowing down.
If you’re ready to make waves, let’s talk.
