Ally Dai, Freelance Writer06.20.23
It seems like China’s beauty market is entering a recovery mode, judging by the 24.3% jump in April retail sale. That increase propelled sales to 27.6 billion yuan (approximately $3.9 billion), according to China National Statistic Bureau. Along with this increase, there’s been a rebound in consumer complaints over cosmetics.
During the first quarter of 2023, there was a 24.2% increase in consumer complaints, 7,237 cases, according to the China Consumer Association (CCA), a consumer rights protection organization backed by the State Administration of Market Regulation (SAMR). And apart from beauty service and product safety, the advertising and sales promotion are also highlighted in CCA’s latest complaint analysis report.
It started with a video ad promoting the brand’s collagen peptide drink, in which five young female characters look extremely upset, each shouting different phrase like: “My husband makes me mad, so drink this! ” and “One year older again, so drink this!” and “Staying up all night binge-watching drama, so drink this!” And, finally comes the loudest in which all together they shout, like a fierce accusation: “It is you who forces me to drink this!”
Soon after its initial airing, the ad drew severe criticism from the local netizens and media for stereotyping and defaming women. Across various social media platforms, many expressed their discomfort over it; one of the most agreed-upon comments is: “it takes advantage of women’s anxiety about age and appearance to peddle fake medicine.” Even the state-founded newspaper, China Women’s News, joined the criticism by stating the brand was trying to woo the general public with “claptrap.”
Five Doctors, before mired in this controversy, was often hailed as a breakout brand with great potential in the beauty sector. Positioned as “a brand of women’s health skin care products” it was founded in 2019 by five female PhDs who graduated from Peking University Health Science Center—well-known for its academic reputation in China. After raising tens of millions of CNY through several rounds of funding with investors, the brand enjoyed huge amount of positive publicity for its “female PhD founders” (often associated with She Power), Peking University (typically representing solid scientific backing), and vigorous sales performance.
Against the backdrop of booming beauty ingestible market here, the brand’s flagship products, ingestible beauty drinks featuring collagen peptides, have achieved astonishing sales results since 2020 across China’s major live-streaming platforms. In April, the brand topped the best-selling list in the health and wellness category on Douyin (the Chinese version of TikTok)—reportedly with nearly 100 million yuan (roughly $14 million).
To be fair, collagen peptide featured in Five Doctors’s products, despite being doubted by many industry professionals, is still well recognized by the consumers for beautifying benefits and widely utilized in the industry. It is a small molecule version of collagen which used to be a mainstay ingredient in the beauty ingestible. Collagen peptide is reportedly absorbed and utilized by the human body more efficiently than collagen due to its low-molecular weight.
The collagen issue aside, “female PhD” and “Peking University” constantly promoted in the brand’s campaigns have received more pushback from the public. Many online comments say the stereotyped content in the ad has reflected poorly the gender and education of the brand’s founders.
“Female PhD is often seen as a logical and independent woman, but the ad just looks like ‘girls using girls’ to sell products desperately,” one detractor commented.
In addition, it has been also revealed that back in 2020, Peking University issued an official statement that it had nothing to do with the brand. At the press time, the investigation is still ongoing by the local authorities, for the ad “being intrusive and misleading against women.”
Last March, in an attempt to sell a fragranced body-cleaning set, P&G China published an advertorial on one of its official WeChat accounts, titled “Women’s feet are five times smellier than men’s. If you don’t believe it, smell yours now!”
While justifying the claim by stating various differences between men and women hygiene in the content, it was overwhelmed quickly by the negative reactions from the netizens. Some pointed out the facts are supported by solid scientific data, but others called it “off-putting” and even “sexist.” Soon afterwards, the company apologized for the post and closed the account. Later, P&G China was fined 700,000 CNY (around $100,000) by the local authority for “obstructing public order and violating good morals of society.”
Ally Dai
Freelance Writer
allisondai@126.com
allydai73@gmail.com
Ally Dai is a freelance writer/independent consultant based in Shanghai. She has covered the beauty industry for more than 15 years. Previously a senior editor and industry researcher, she now works on content creation with publishing houses, event organizers and PR companies in the personal care and life science industries.
During the first quarter of 2023, there was a 24.2% increase in consumer complaints, 7,237 cases, according to the China Consumer Association (CCA), a consumer rights protection organization backed by the State Administration of Market Regulation (SAMR). And apart from beauty service and product safety, the advertising and sales promotion are also highlighted in CCA’s latest complaint analysis report.
Marketing to Women
Such complaints, despite eye-catching headlines in the media, often come and go quickly with few social or legal consequences. Well, not with Five Doctors, a local startup featuring ingestible beauty (recently renamed Young Doctor). Early this May, its latest advertising campaign sparked huge controversy in China, and the company behind it, Beijing Qingyan Boshi Health Management, is currently under investigation by the local branch of SAMR.It started with a video ad promoting the brand’s collagen peptide drink, in which five young female characters look extremely upset, each shouting different phrase like: “My husband makes me mad, so drink this! ” and “One year older again, so drink this!” and “Staying up all night binge-watching drama, so drink this!” And, finally comes the loudest in which all together they shout, like a fierce accusation: “It is you who forces me to drink this!”
Soon after its initial airing, the ad drew severe criticism from the local netizens and media for stereotyping and defaming women. Across various social media platforms, many expressed their discomfort over it; one of the most agreed-upon comments is: “it takes advantage of women’s anxiety about age and appearance to peddle fake medicine.” Even the state-founded newspaper, China Women’s News, joined the criticism by stating the brand was trying to woo the general public with “claptrap.”
Five Doctors, before mired in this controversy, was often hailed as a breakout brand with great potential in the beauty sector. Positioned as “a brand of women’s health skin care products” it was founded in 2019 by five female PhDs who graduated from Peking University Health Science Center—well-known for its academic reputation in China. After raising tens of millions of CNY through several rounds of funding with investors, the brand enjoyed huge amount of positive publicity for its “female PhD founders” (often associated with She Power), Peking University (typically representing solid scientific backing), and vigorous sales performance.
Against the backdrop of booming beauty ingestible market here, the brand’s flagship products, ingestible beauty drinks featuring collagen peptides, have achieved astonishing sales results since 2020 across China’s major live-streaming platforms. In April, the brand topped the best-selling list in the health and wellness category on Douyin (the Chinese version of TikTok)—reportedly with nearly 100 million yuan (roughly $14 million).
Good or Bad Publicity?
But controversy surrounding this latest ad campaign has put Young Doctor under the regulatory microscope. According to reports, the company’s collagen drinks, despite positioned as a beauty product to “retain youth with science,” have not been registered as Healthcare Food under China’s current regulatory framework, which means they haven’t gone through a stricter regulatory examination process, and therefore are not permitted to claim any health and beauty benefits including “retain youth.”To be fair, collagen peptide featured in Five Doctors’s products, despite being doubted by many industry professionals, is still well recognized by the consumers for beautifying benefits and widely utilized in the industry. It is a small molecule version of collagen which used to be a mainstay ingredient in the beauty ingestible. Collagen peptide is reportedly absorbed and utilized by the human body more efficiently than collagen due to its low-molecular weight.
The collagen issue aside, “female PhD” and “Peking University” constantly promoted in the brand’s campaigns have received more pushback from the public. Many online comments say the stereotyped content in the ad has reflected poorly the gender and education of the brand’s founders.
“Female PhD is often seen as a logical and independent woman, but the ad just looks like ‘girls using girls’ to sell products desperately,” one detractor commented.
In addition, it has been also revealed that back in 2020, Peking University issued an official statement that it had nothing to do with the brand. At the press time, the investigation is still ongoing by the local authorities, for the ad “being intrusive and misleading against women.”
Problems for P&G
Of course, the local startup is not alone when it comes to such controversy. Established names, whether international or domestic, are not immune. Another high-profile case is P&G’s “smelly women” post.Last March, in an attempt to sell a fragranced body-cleaning set, P&G China published an advertorial on one of its official WeChat accounts, titled “Women’s feet are five times smellier than men’s. If you don’t believe it, smell yours now!”
While justifying the claim by stating various differences between men and women hygiene in the content, it was overwhelmed quickly by the negative reactions from the netizens. Some pointed out the facts are supported by solid scientific data, but others called it “off-putting” and even “sexist.” Soon afterwards, the company apologized for the post and closed the account. Later, P&G China was fined 700,000 CNY (around $100,000) by the local authority for “obstructing public order and violating good morals of society.”
Proceed with Caution
So, what does this tell us? The Chinese market is quickly evolving, and with rising consumer awareness and regulatory requirements, the locals are becoming more sensitive to not only product safety and functionality, but also related identity and ideology. As a result, the brands have to tread an even finer line between content and commerce when it comes to marketing to women nowadays. Extra caution is needed to avoid unwanted publicity when tapping into gender equality and women’s empowerment.Ally Dai
Freelance Writer
allisondai@126.com
allydai73@gmail.com
Ally Dai is a freelance writer/independent consultant based in Shanghai. She has covered the beauty industry for more than 15 years. Previously a senior editor and industry researcher, she now works on content creation with publishing houses, event organizers and PR companies in the personal care and life science industries.