Daily face masks: an Asian trend launching for US consumers 2011-12-31 10:40:00 GMT Face masks could become part of US women's daily ro...

Daily face masks: an Asian trend launching for US consumers

2011-12-31 10:40:00 GMT

Face masks could become part of US women's daily routine.

Despite a current spate of beauty launches catering to the skincare needs of specific continents from brands such as bareMinerals (Asia) and Estée Lauder (Europe), Masqueology plans to spread Asian skincare practices in the US.

WWD reports December 29 that the brand will launch single-use paper masks across selected Sephora stores in March, in an attempt to introduce masks as a day-to-day product.

“In Asia, facial masks are a dime store product. In our market, they exist, but they have been hidden,” a spokesperson from Beauty Architects, the firm behind Masqueology, told WWD.

“When you find masks in other lines, they are usually a specialty treatment mask you do once in a while. The masks we are bringing in are part of your daily routine.”

Carolyn Bojanowski, Sephora’s director of skincare merchandising, expressed the company’s interest in introducing Asian beauty practices to other continents.

“Masqueology was bringing technology and ingredients from Korea in a line solely dedicated to paper masks,” explained Bojanowski.

“It was time to go after that category and do it in a way that was bigger than ever before.”

Masqueology’s masks will be available in sets of three with prices ranging from $24 to $36. Each mask tackles a specific skincare concern and taps into the increasing consumer desire for affordable treats that can be carried out at home.

Bojanowski noted the aspect of at-home luxury should resonate with US shoppers, remarking that more traditional masks such as Boscia’s Luminizing Black Mask ($34) have been on the “upswing at Sephora” along with other DIY products such as home hair colorants and manicure kits.

Masqueology’s non-mask products include its Advanced 7D Solution, a wrinkle cream which is a top seller in Korea, where it is called Double X. The product can already be purchased from Sephora stores in Las Vegas and New York. To find out more about the brand, which expects to expand its retail network to department stores and specialty outlets,