Technology and customization in cosmetics and skin care are two trends expected to be hot in 2016. At the intersection of these trends are, of course, apps to help consumers do everything from creating lipsticks to foundations that are fully customized. And with a digitally savvy younger generation that might not be as apt to visit the cosmetics counter at a local department store as they are to snap a selfie with an app on their phone, beauty product manufacturers are looking for new ways to tap into this tech-driven market.
News Drill Down:
- Teen Vogue notes an iPhone app called Flawless that allows a consumer to take a photo of anything in their environment (a flower in a garden or a tomato at the grocery store, for example) and have the company create and ship a matching lipstick. And by inputing a UPC, the app “offers the ability to resurrect discontinued lip colors from specific brands – using the same formula so you have an exact match.”
- An article from Forbes.com notes five companies that are onboard with custom cosmetics, including MATCHCo. The company “has implemented a technology that scans your skin through your iPhone’s camera and blends a product that is 100% customized.”
- WWD.com’s profile on Plum Perfect mobile application founder Asmau Ahmed notes the engineer and business woman’s own challenge in matching makeup to her dark skin tone as motivation for creating the app. “Ahmed worked nights on developing a proprietary technology that analyzes skin, lip, hair and eye color, knowing that minute details like undertones are often undetectable to the human eye,” explains the article. Plum Perfect gives makeup shade recommendations to users based on selfies uploaded through the app.
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Reading List
Teen Vogue: Move Over, Lip Kit: This New App Allows You to Make Your Own Lipstick
Forbes: Changing The Makeup Game With Customizable Cosmetics
WWD: Asmau Ahmed Turns Frustration Into Plum Perfect
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Excellent short article. It’s an important aspect of the “Indies” meets social media. Like Grace Choi, and her 3D at home printing of foundation, this is another indication of the way that the new technology and the new marketing is revolutionizing the beauty care business.